Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes 

With screeners watched and the premiere just three days away, the reviews are pouring in now. Though a few journalists have their criticisms of season 5, in general the reviews of

‘s James Poniewozik says the show is still “a magnificent beast: bold, confident and venturing off in new directions” and that “

is flying, full tilt, toward a destination off the edge of our map of the known world. I can’t wait to see what it finds there.”

 of the season’s opening episodes, “This isn’t the best four-episode stretch the series has ever had — as with most cable dramas, the ends of “GoT” seasons tend to be stronger than the starts — but there’s a sense of real forward momentum to the proceedings that hasn’t always been there in the past. Again and again, my pulse quickened as I watched these four hours, at times thrilling to an event or character intersection that I’d been waiting years to see (my notes are riddled with the phrase “it’s about damn time”), at others cheering things that I didn’t even know  I wanted to see until they happened.”

particularly notes some of the actors in their review. “There are so many fine performances here it’s difficult to single out just a few, but in the early going the season offers especially good and illuminating moments for Aidan Gillen as the scheming Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish; Gwendoline Christie as the towering warrior Brienne; and Stephen Dillane as Stannis Baratheon, whose last-minute season-four heroics represent part of a larger plan designed to advance his quest to rule Westeros.”

is a large part of what makes the brilliant series so special,” But also notes that “Entering its fifth season, that sprawl is also part of what can make it so frustrating to watch.”

‘s Andy Greenwald says, “The reality is that the crumbling of old orders, onscreen and off, has invigorated

in the best possible way. Whereas past season premieres have served as extended throat-clearings for the tightly choreographed bedlam to come, Sunday’s hour crackles with nervy possibility. Old friends are thrust into new scenarios.

 Yesterday’s enemies look far more appealing than tomorrow’s threats. Everything feels fluid and untethered. Yes, it’s good —

is always good. But now it’s teetering on the edge of something different and possibly even better.”

rates the season a B+ so far, but dismisses the Sand Snakes as “closer to B-movie bad girls than warriors” and compares the Sparrows to “cult figures from a Kevin Williamson drama.”

has a distinct air of rejuvenation, of spring,” declares Vanity Fair in their review. “Big and propulsive as

has always been, I hope it continues to find the time to pause and consider all of this mad clash and swirl.”

“Sacrifices had to be made (Arianne Martell’s absence stings this particular fan), but the result is a story that runs smoother than ever, with no trace of middle-aged stumbling that can plague book series and TV series alike,” says Sonia Saraiya of

. “Most importantly, in the fifth season’s bold, nimble storytelling, it’s made the hype around “Game Of Thrones” seem reasonable again. This is a show worth championing, because it is a show that does incredible things.”

says, “Many shows are starting to run out of gas by Season 5. “Game of Thrones,” partly because it’s as cold-blooded as its characters in treating personnel turnover as the natural order, seems to have little trouble keeping its pedal to the metal.”

for fixing some of the problems inherent in the splitting involved in

. Critic Alison Herman says, “Rather, it’s to point out that while 

has always been a masterful translation of Martin’s work, the early episodes of season five show a work that’s more than prepared to keep going, with or without the next installment. Confident and self-assured, this is a series that feels just at home in Westeros, and with the deeply flawed people who live in it, as Martin himself.”

says, “Coupled with its more tastefully balanced treatment of nudity and gore, and some inspired new character dynamics,

is often a smarter, more thought-provoking show than it ever has been. The actual execution of the ideas it wants to play with isn’t always so sharp. The erratic pace of some plotlines means days or weeks can pass between episodes and cuts, so keeping track of the exact chronology of events is a fool’s errand.”

says, “The genius of Thrones is that it makes it difficult to root against someone so emotionally damaged […]. And whoever ends up the winner in Cersei and Margaery’s war for Tommen’s heart, there’s hope that female ambition will be rewarded.”

‘s review says, “It’s a weird show, laced with mysteries exotic beyond conventional understanding. Occasionally, there are dragons and zombies and giants. But in the long run it’s about its characters, both the powerful and the powerless. And that equation continues to be compelling. ”

“The unforeseeable effects and ostensible curse of murdering have always proved key to the show’s tension,” says

magazine in their 3 and 1/2 star (out of 4 stars) review, “And as the story continues to build a kinetic rhythm and streamline the drama, the thunderous chaos stirred up by each life taken resonates all the more loudly.”

highlights some of the best parts of the new season: “Season 5 of 

boasts some of the series’ best surprises, particularly as storylines converge and start to wrap inward toward a seventh season ending. Just what kind of surprises, you ask? Why, a wayward

star! Someone you thought dead still (literally) kicking! Kidnappings! Butts! Plus all the usual trimmings; the gravy on top seems to be that the women have all the power this year, cementing

Deadline‘s Dominic Patten says that, “More than anything, this season is the season of queens and governments, and that’s “what makes this one of the best seasons of game of thrones yet,

books, the roads walked, seas traveled, cities taken, and walls protected in previous seasons, they start to come together here in a rather interesting direction.”

pulls even further away from the novels (the Sansa plot will drive some fans crazier than King Aerys) and I’m fairly sure it’s better for it. With each episode, I have less of an idea where the story is going, which means I might soon be enjoying it the way I did the first season, before I’d read the books.”

says, “‘Game of Thrones’ is still remarkable for both the scrupulousness and the lavishness of its production, beautiful to look at and mostly engaging to follow, though there is something of the accountant’s method in Mr. Martin’s fantasy- progress through constant addition- that transfers into the television show.”

Spoiler buttons are functional using shortcode [spoiler] Insert spoiler here [/spoiler] to blur comments. If you do NOT want to be spoiled, click the "Hide" Button before proceeding!

Happy to hear that the new season is so great, despite (and apparently often

Yeah, they always gets their hands on some stills, but uh you really don’t want to bring those to HBO’s attention by linking them here so I’m going to edit out your link.

The reason some websites get shut down periodically is by linking to sites where they come to networks attention. So please be careful about linking to them publicly.

These reviews barely mention Arya’s storyline and I am officially worried. She’ll probably get less time this season than she did last year. And apparently nothing much happens with her for the first four episodes, so this is such a disappointment.

The episodes she’s in, she’s in quite a lot. The reason you don’t see a lot of Arya mentions may partly be because you can’t discuss her at all without big spoilers.

Sue, I put that link it the promo’s article comments, so you should probably remove it there. My apologies as well.

Oh wow, thank you for clarifying that! I’m less worried now, haha. Definitely more excited. Thanks!

It was to be expected though. She doesn’t have that meaty a story line in the books at this point.

So do you feel pretty positive in regards to Arya’s story so far? I’ve read some pretty negative things that have me worried

It appears that it is becoming a creature of its own and less that of the books as the show runners become more confident. It’s similar to the Harry Potter series in that regard, with the notable difference being that the first season of GOT is still much more imminently watchable than the plodding messes that are the first two Harry Potter movies.

But Harry Potter never was so much different than the books. I agree that the first two movies are the worst.

Not too much, I hope. I suddenly have a vision of Jon and a White Walker jumping of the Wall with their faces merging into a clown face a la Voldemort and Harry…

Who would’ve thought AFFC/ADWD could make better TV than the latter half of ASOS, lol.

Can’t wait to see NYTimes + Elio now (westeros.org must be fuming @ these reviews, lol)

dead, but is still alive and kicking, who could that be? Please don’t say LS.

Thanks for your discretion, lucky furious one! I am looking forward to the interior of a certain HoB&W! Hope they do it justice and not HotU 2.0.

But I did like those amazing HD pics though..hope we see them again.

Did the NYTimes…. just give a …. kinda good review????

‘On the other hand, there is a proposed marriage that seems even worse than death.’

I remember me saying – after the first trailer appeared and people were speculating about

Sansa going to Winterfell due to the stone structure of the background walls

bathtub looked like the one Ramsay was bathing Theon in

That’s basically a ringing endorsement bearing in mind who it is coming from.

Now lets wait for Elio…….. (unless he already posted it)

Certainly not a bad review ~ a little tongue-in-cheek in part (Dany wandering around for 40 episodes), but big compliment to Peter D. and the beautiful sets and overall about-to-begin season 5 excitement. I just wish one thing ~ GoT used to use some really awesme songs in their promo trailers like MsMr’s “Bones” and Florence+the Machine’s “Seven Devils”. Wish they had used Hozier’s “Take Me to Church” in one of their trailers ~ I was sure they were going to use that song.

The HitFix “Firewall & Iceberg” podcast is reviewing Season 5 in their latest episode:

GRRM publishes a new sample chapter from The Winds of Winter ( 366 )

Game of Thrones returns in Season 5 with magic and intrigue ( 299 )

WotW Staff weigh in on Season 5 of Game of Thrones ( 226 )

Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics\' eyes

The Fall of Lysa Arryn: An Interview with Kate Dickie

Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes

Tereeza777 on Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes

HelloThere on Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes

Jeb on Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes

Black Aly on Review Round-up: Game of Thrones season 5 going strong in critics’ eyes