Game of Thrones: Valar Morghulis (2012)
Season 2, Episode 10
10/10
Season Two: Full Season Review
2 March 2016
I couldn't see anyway that Season 2 was going to live up to the 1st Season, for me, Season 1 was faultless. Game Of Thrones: Season 2 did a solid job in continuing the fantasy epic, it built on the characters very well, moved along at a pleasant pace and stayed true to its roots with its impeccable dialogue and story-telling.

As a whole, the season is quite slowly paced, dedicating much more time to character building. The introduction of new characters is always a tricky task, especially introducing several in a short space of time. Within the first 3 episodes we are shown 6 or 7 new characters, many of which go on to have very important roles in the up and coming seasons. Existing characters which got little screen time in season 1 are also given larger roles whilst also focusing heavily on the already established characters from the previous series. Tyrion is featured heavily in this season building on his likable reputation even more while other characters are given more screen time and you really start to despise them. John Snow, Arya, Theon and Joffrey all especially stand out for me with solid performances and important story lines. A TV show has never had the ability to make me dislike certain people as much as Game of Thrones and Season 2 goes a long way to making this happen. Even the small-time characters which have little screen time have a remarkable knack of being interesting and intriguing – nobody feels out of place or unnecessary.

The production from start to finish looks great, the sets, CGI, costumes and locations are all perfect again. Watching this show in HD with a decent surround sound system is quite the experience! Season 2 is gruesome and explicitly violent, contains strong nudity, strong language and delves deeper into the fantasy realms than its previous series. It isn't as strong as season 1 but it is a strong second season, offering everything that you would want. The story is told perfectly and the introduction of many more characters is implemented faultlessly.

The pacing is spot on and scenarios start to unravel very nicely, tension is built and many questions are left unanswered – making you want to keep on watching! Daenerys scenes can get a little tiring and repetitive but this part of the show is very important for future episodes and when looking back, the character development you see of her is very significant.Season 2 ends on a strong note, exploding in episode 9. Previous episodes build up to this perfectly and the climax doesn't disappoint. With an estimated budget of $8,000,000 for episode 9, it shows off its power with an incredible battle scene, you forget that you are watching a TV drama, with a budget like that, it's an easy mistake. Episode 10, gets back to normal and ends the season on a strong note, a real cliff-hanger, giving you a small taste of what is to come!

My only real negative from the whole season was the Daenerys storyline, I felt that it started to drag a little towards the end and the climax felt a little flat. However as I said before, looking back on this storyline, you really get to see significant progression in her character which is very important for future seasons.

Overall, Season 2 is weaker than Season 1 but that was hardly a surprise for me as the first Season is one of the strongest I have ever seen out of any TV show. Season 2 does however build characters very strongly with many characters stepping up with much more screen time and fascinating stories. It includes various, very strong plots and answers questions from the previous season, contains some very solid stories and leaves key questions unanswered for future episodes.

Season ratings so far: Season 1 – 10/10. Season 2 – 9/10.
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