FIRST TIME WATCHING: GOT S7E1!!!

I suggest this as a long-term YouTube fan, but someone who wants to watch things I've seen before without going through ridiculous motions. Help us late-joining fans out!

Andrew Minton

I've been paging & paging & paging - it's freaking annoying. I'm a recent Patreon member, and would like to see your black widow reaction. It's killing me to get there, so many pages I need to go through. I would suggest you allow us to search by movie or TV titles without having to go through the nonsense of paging down and down and down.

Andrew Minton

Part of the change in pacing has to do with a change in the source material - the first 5 seasons were based on the novels ( and rather hefty ones at that), where the show runners had to decide what to leave out or condense for the show. But the last published book ended with Jon Snow's murder, so from that point on the series has been based on an outline of the plot, not a detailed telling of the story. George RR Martin provided most of the major plot points, but no details. For what it's worth: I enjoyed the Patrick O'Brian novels (Master and Commander, etc), about a sea captain during the Napoleonic wars - but in the later books in the series, he always found a reason for a character to rendered unconscious for an extended period of time only to revive shortly before arriving at their destination, since there are limits to how many times you can make a weeks long sailing voyage interesting. How much screen time should GoT spent of people plodding along on horses?

John Richards

ARGH, I owned seasons 1-6 on Amazon, but thought I'd use HBO Max for seasons 7 & 8, but the streaming with HBO Max is awful, compared to other streaming services I use. =T I should see about getting a refund from them.

Troy B.

So I know you said you tend to avoid comments here, and most people are well past this episode, but I just wanted to say, regarding the pre-show commentary this episode, that I agree with you 100% about Hodor. Like, in the moment I was initially shocked, thinking, "OMG, THAT'S why?" but the more I thought about it, the more I didn't like it, both from a... "causal", sci-fi-ish standpoint (I tend to wince at time travel plotpoints in general, for reasons beyond this comment), but also it seemed to overshadow his sacrifice, like you said. Though it was tragic that Bran's worging is what did that to him. I do have to wonder how this was even handled in other languages though, since this is strictly English wordplay. (And also reminded me of an inappropriate joke I heard as a kid, which is not something you want in your head during a dramatic moment.) As for Tyler's 8.5 out of 10 because of the predictability of the battle, in any other circumstance I would have agreed, but since this was Game of Thrones, and considering how many staggeringly depressing defeats we had witnessed over six seasons, I was fully prepared for the possibility of Jon and Co. getting slaughtered. I was not confident there'd be a Deus Ex Machine from Littlefinger.

Troy B.

need of a show to watch next Peaky Blinders is phenomenal if you like crime shows. also the owl house but youre straight to my knowledge so m on that one

H Taylor

Hi Natalie, i don't know if you'll read this but i wanted to write this. The reason i became a patron of your channel was because i believe you to be a genuine and authentic person which is why i enjoying watching you react. i don't always agree with some of your points but that's almost irrelevant to me, i don't have to agree with you for me to still enjoy the experience watching with you. Keep up the great work :)

Dom H

Please react to the Disney Star Wars. Even if you don’t love it. I think you always find stuff to enjoy in your reactions.

Christina

On the Hodor's scene: I honestly didnt interpret it like "got you"... it hadnt crossed my mind even. For me, finding out that it meant hold-the-door made it even more painful to watch... because in my mind Hodor knew what was coming and he did all anyway. There was a scene in the tree where Bran calls Hodor Willis, tells him that he saw him talking and asks him what happened... Hodor replies: "hodor" but the way Hodor says it is like saying, you know what happened I had to hold the door. When Hodor was sacrificing himself, that scene came to my mind and I just cried my eyes out. He knew and he did it anyway. I love Hodor even more for it.

Tbh Tommen did betray Cersei. He should never have let her mom rot in jail let alone let the High Sparrow speak his words of treachery. He should have ordered the Lannister army to bloody the streets with Sparrows to get her and Margaery out. Poor excuse of a king. I'm sure, many people may disagree with me especially since he's a kid, but if my mom was imprisoned and I was king, that's what I would have done.

AC5555

Sansa has to learn that leaders shouldn't argue in front of everyone. Leave that to private discussion but they have to be united in public. As for Jon's decision to forgive the Karstarks and Umbars, I completely agree with him. Mercy and reconciliation is best course of action. Oh and Ollie killed Ygritte so I don't care about him being executed. Lol.

AC5555

I was a little surprised when people talked about being disappointed with your reactions. Some fans became calloused by this time in the series and expect the worst, even when things seem to look up. Seasons 1-3 were super shocking and disappointing with main characters dying and we only seemed to see minor victories by the good characters. I think by this point in the series, the best reactions are when our favorite characters get a major win. I also think that by this point, the series is well beyond the books, so there is a lot more interpretation on what is supposed to happen than the overall intent of the author. I felt that they were rushing by this point, but that's just my opinion. Love your reactions and the discussion you had prior to starting the season. Looking forward to watching your reactions to season 7.

No, unfortunately several people were saying it spoils the whole show or something so I don't think she's going to watch it.

DeadNotSleeping

Now that's a golden comment!

Mike LL

on a completely unrelated note, don't get me wrong you always looks good, tho just fyi this whole look is on point lol your makeup and hair look really good and I also love your shirt haha <3

I hate agreeing with you Dyko. But Arya taking out ALL the Frey's rubbed me the wrong way too. If you go back to season one and look at our precocious Arya who doesn't want to be a lady... and told people that she turns into this kind of murderer...

Colin Ballendine

I'm pretty sure GRRM wrote that himself. It will probably make more sense in the books.

Gwenhwyfar Aine

Did I miss an R+L=J Reaction somewhere?

LogicSequence

I always found the "Hold the door" scene dumb. It feels like a writer who thought themselves so clever. "You know what Hodor kind of sounds like? Hold the door! That's genius!" Feels more like the clever twist of someones 9th grade creative writing assignment.

Myles Away

I think people will always complain about certain reactions or opinions but that's just how it is. We all appreciate the authenticity of your reactions!!

Jenny Tolls

I was waiting for that too.

Paul Gibbons

It may have already been said, but the sad thing about Hold the Door is that Hodor didn't sacrifice himself. He may have known that he was going to die that way since he was a kid and went with Bran anyway, but Bran is the one that actually killed Hodor. He warged into him and made him hold the door.

Kyle Johnston

wow that was a great episode. i hadnt remembered it as well as i should

Tom Fehr

Tyler bored by season 6, the best season? dump him! (kidding)

Tom Fehr

Essentially we go from a character driven show to two seasons that just care about concluding a plot. It’s sad but still some enjoyable stuff. Just not the ending it deserved.

Nic Benham

Ohhhh, so THAT'S why I recognized him! :D

Michael G. Munz

This is not a common take but one I agree with wholeheartedly. The Force Awakens was th eperfect place for nostalgia and homage, given what we'd had since the original trilogy. Nothing in cinema made me feel the way I felt when we saw the Falcon again for the first time. The movie set up tons of interesting plot arcs and introduced us to interesting characters... still, it was so close to a remake of the original Star Wars that I reserved judgement and said 'how good this movie actually is will be determined by the next film'... and we all know what hot garbage that turned out to be. One big fat Mary Sue, a stack of abandoned plotlines and literally every other character wasted... all just to 'subvert expectations'. When did giving the fans what they wanted become such a bad thing?

Ellis Hugh

Yeah, if shit like the Hound not hearing the villagers being murdered annoyed him, just stop watching now lol. It’s gonna get worse. They’re both gonna hate it 😂

Alex De Santiago

The force awakens was good. Its after when they just shit on nostalgia like its not what held up the franchise. I understand you need to relate to a new audience but if your gonna shit on the old why even use the brand. Just write a new narrative.

Cripkie

Cersei does love her children above all but not for the reasons you think. narcissistic personality disorder, her children are extensions of herself. She still values her own life above her children because in her logic she can make more.

Cripkie

Very much agreed. I love season 7 and most of 8. I had a few issues at the end but everyone definitely blows it out of proportion. This is the first series I've reacted to with Nat and she is a sweetheart but I can also see she is very picky and mainly bc she has so much experience in the industry. I also thinked she has already listened to too many people telling her "This is where it goes downhill". Still can't believe she didn't like the episode "The Door".

Andrew Clifton

Much agreed. My only real memory of him was when he was annoyingly smashing those walnuts.

Andrew Clifton

So now that we’re here. I think it’s time to cut Melisandre a bit of slack, OK? Her failure of Stannis was all according to plan. Say you're the Lord of light and you know the events that are coming up. You have plans that involve your favorite Dragon Queen coming across the sea and needing a base of operations. So you take one of your priestesses, tell her half truths about the Prince Who Was Promised and a crown and have her lure the current lord and (sadly) all his family (basically anyone with a claim) out to their doom. For Brandon (not the character) - Surely you also have some contingencies for those who might try to take it while it's empty. So let's cut Melisandre a bit of slack, OK? She was doing her best with the knowledge she was given to help the Lord position some critical people for the wars to come. And burning others ali... purifyi... ok she wasn't perfect. For Joshua Mendez – I see some grand design in the back ground (disclaimer – all the above is my personal fan theory)

Colin Ballendine

Honestly don't even understand how anyone can have any feelings or reaction to Rickon coming back and dying. He barely existed before he disappeared. Whole character could have been removed from the story and it would make 0 difference. Probably been extras on the show with more screentime/dialogue than Rickon. Ha

Stagger

Arya genocides an entire clan, regardless if every member is equally guilty or not. Meanwhile, Jon decides against punishing the clans of the Umbers and Karstarks, and instead forgives them, saying that the guilty parties have already paid with their lives. As he said "The son is innocent of the father's crimes". Interesting contrast. We shall see if Arya ever faces any repercussions for her actions. Also, it's very clear that the writers have no idea what to do with Littlefinger. He's lost all of his agency. Now is he just hanging around, sowing petty plots, trying to manipulate Sansa in the weakest way possible. Have we forgotten that this is the man who set in motion the ENTIRE PLOT OF THE SERIES. Littlefinger is the main human antagonist of the story. He is the man behind the veil. The decision to send Sansa to Ramsey Bolton has altered Sansa's storyline so significantly that it is entirely unreasonable for Littlefinger and her to retain an amicable relationship.

WackySwacky

Yes, but it is still a good idea to burn the bodies. If the White Walkers WERE to reach that far south, those bodies could be resurrected as well. We've already seen that literal skeletons can be raised.

WackySwacky

Hey Natalie! If you didn't know, Geekly TV included your reaction to Ned Stark's beheading in a compilation video they posted on YouTube, on August 2nd.

Matt D

I would disagree.... It makes sense, it's just that the last two seasons feel like cliff notes.... Which is essentially what they are. Martin gave them the through lines for the characters and they basically rushed the story. Now you can blame that on D&D, sure, but HBO and it's executives were also complaining to high heaven about the budget on the show for the entire last 3 seasons as well, so who's to say they weren't involved in rushing it as well. Likely a case of both, but meh, it is what it is.

Brian Jones

Nat, I know you're a big HP fan - tell me that you recognized Professor Slughorn in the Citadel...

Ellis Hugh

All of issues can be resume to 1 thing, Benioff and Weiss shitty writing, they cut so much good stuff to make the story end faster. Result nothing make sense. Again, Bran, Hodor and Meera ate Jojen paste= Moss + Jojen renains.

Daniel Vezina

Nat's least favorite things: 1. Zombies 1a. Cold weather 2. Everything else...

Ellis Hugh

Random thought - at the end of this season, which only has 7 episodes, make the 8th a re-watch of the first episode of the entire show. Watch how young the Stark children are, knowing what is to come, watch Ned and Robert discuss Lyanna and Tyrion meet Jon for the first time, etc. Might be a really nice walk down memory lane - this time with a completely different perspective - before heading into the final season.

Ellis Hugh

He's hoping to rebuild the alliance between the North and the Vale that used to exist when Ned and Robert Arryn were alive, except with himself calling the shots. With several regions of Westeros in open rebellion, whoever controls the North and the Vale would have the mightiest military force in the kingdoms. Right now, sweet-talking Sansa into accepting to marry him is more important than a one-time payment. Littlefinger's long-term goal is to rule all seven kingdoms, so he's being patient, thinking he can get Sansa to see things his way.

RE

Not everything you do is gold?! You might need a name change then

Patrick Mitchell

So you mean that she will probably hate the pacing, but love literally every other aspect of the Last Jedi? You know she probably won't agree with incel cuck-iness about female characters and Luke Skywalker right?

Kelsey Roberts

Tyler was basically complaining about the entire structure of the show and how it works lol he might as well not watch it anymore if that’s how he already feels

Jenny Tolls

I'm glad the topic of the comments were brought up and people being 'angry'. Please don't let those get to you because there are tons of people here that love watching along with you and are not phased at all however you react or take to an episode. I know most of the horrible ones get removed and hopefully banned. But some of the commentors be harsh for no damn reason. We're here for you Natalie! Loved watching this and can't wait to continue S7 with ya

Sleeping Awake

His name is Dolores Edd

chicks dig me

Natalie, can't you just start at the beginning of the episode?

chicks dig me

Jesus...

chicks dig me

how did Baelish roll in to save the day and get nothing at all for it? Seems like he'd be smart enough to work out a price for his help ahead of time.... Even now they say he's needed for protection and all he asks in return is to hang out?

DeadStillEating

Why? To give gradification to how you feel about the last season?

Morten Larsen

Can someone please tell her, that's not how White Walkers work... They have to be raised, and it doesn't just happen out of the blue.

Morten Larsen

Right, it’s gonna be bad lmfao 😂

Alex De Santiago

spoiler?

WackySwacky

Lmao y’all are gonna hate the ending

Joe Mama

Natalie, "Jorah's not going to get any better." Me, "Actually, it's going to be super easy, barely an inconvenience."

Tadpoleaxe

These catch ups with Tyler are the best part of the GoT watch through.

Steve B

ofcourse sam's asking slughorn about the "restricted section" lol

Matt Camburn

I think the costumes these last couple seasons completely abandon the Medieval aesthetic of the previous seasons. They are so over-designed, it's like every character is in a fashion show. Particlarly Cersei, Sansa, and Daenerys. They look like costumes you see in the Once Upon a Time TV show rather than Game of Thrones.

WackySwacky

Ah yes, can't wait for that to unfold.

WackySwacky

I love the scene with Ed Sheeran and the soldiers. They're Lannister soldiers - there are nice people on the Lannister side, and there are monsters on the Stark side (remember the 3 soldiers Brienne slayed who hanged the women?) People aren't black and white.

Owen James McBrearty

She makes a perfectly valid critique.

WackySwacky

The show's timeline is kind of ridiculous, you gotta admit.

WackySwacky

GRRM has nothing to do with this show at this point.

WackySwacky

Cheeky question: is Tyler shy? I get it's your channel and maybe he doesn't want to be too public but I feel like the chat would work better if he weren't off-screen the whole time ;) Also, as you said yourself, the magic built into the wall stops the white walkers and the army of the dead going south of the wall. And precious few people even believe they're real. So it would take a lot to convince people to always burn their dead rather than bury them. It always feels a bit weird to me when we get to this season and suddenly Dragonstone is a whole island with a massive castle rather than a single room with an impressive table and view. A similar thing happened with King's Landing. I dislike having Ed Sheeran because he's clearly just there because he wanted to be in it and someone let him. Which reminds me, I really really hate that trope of having the main character tell the truth in a situation where it's risky or dangerous, then after a beat, the other person in the scene assumes they're joking and laughs. I feel like that's one of those things that used to work but been done to death now.

Paul Mason

The best thing about Season 6 is the dragons being set free.... seriously? It wasn't because Bran was able to prove who he was that gave him entrance. It's the fact that he said the dead was coming for everyone. Nat, I don't understand why you're watching the show when you knew that zombies were an integral part of the show and you're scared of them. Remember, "winter is coming" 🤣

hockeywitch

KODA! <3

Tadpoleaxe

I think that's part of it. But they also built up a lot of cultural inertia from previous seasons. And they got a lot of positive feedback from event episodes like Hardhome and Battle of the Bastards. So they leant into spectacle and that and the inertia mean they were able to ride it out on a high (ratings wise).

Paul Mason

this show is NOT about destiny and grand design... its nihilistic... but we as viewers and fans of stories of the past have been trained to expect Purpose and character growth.... but this story of the past is idealism, and GRRM and DandD set out to make a story closer to the random stochastic chaos of reality

it was only season 5 that bran was not included.

It’s a weird situation in Regards to Dragonstone. I don’t remember everything exactly in the books, Cersei sends Lord Redwyne to take the castle back from the few men Stannis left there. It was sometime after I think Loras Tyrell and Cersei have a conversation, I forget what about though. After however, he ends up going to Dragonstone leading an assault where he gets injured.

Alex De Santiago

its funny, as the shows story got weaker and the FX got better... GOT got more and more popular... so from a capitalistic standpoint, the creators of the show were "correct" they created a cultural hit

Hodor didn't sacrifice, himself.... Bran was controlling him... its much more sinister to me.

To Tyler: Bran spent roughly 4 years beyond the wall 1 year traveling to the tree 2 years in the cave with the three eyed raven 1 year getting back to the wall

john collins

both your obsession with time, and things happening too fast, is just the weirdest critique... its a narrative, its not reality... the author/writer chooses what to show the audience....

Your discussion with Tyler makes me really want you to watch the Last Jedi. I like that your opinions are honest rather than forced-positivity

My Toasty Toast

I really can't remember anything about this season except The Stupidest Plan in History™ 😆

Opti_Frog

Liking a character means she has to like everything about the season? How does that make sense?

Opti_Frog

everything they said was on point.. every intelligent character became stupid.

JohnnyTankTop

The magic in the wall not only held back the dead, but it kept the wall intact during the warmest parts of Summer.

William Glazier

In the recap, you guys mentioned something that sparked an idea: You said there's a lot of content you've watched for Patreon and that your opinion now is different from your initial reaction. I think a compilation of the films/series that you've changed your mind on (for the better or worse), why you felt the way you did originally, and why you feel the way you do now could be cool. It might be a bit meta, but I and a lot of others enjoy the analytical discussions you and Tyler have at the beginning of new GoT seasons, and this could scratch that itch once GoT is over.

Don Britt

Hi Nat and Happy GOT day! 😄 Great reaction! I loved the briefing part with Tyler, it was nice to hear your both opinions and I really find interesting to hear what people from the entertainment environment think about it, and I agree with a lot of points. Great and chill moment, there should be more chill chat like this haha 😄 And for me, you don't have to justify your opinion because some people say certain things, everyone has their own feelings and that can't be discussed and of course a debate is always welcome when it's constructive 😀 I can't wait for your next reactions! I hope you're fine, take care, be safe and stay golden! 💛

Calo Grsf

i personally loved season 6. season 4 and 6 are my favorites with season 1 being right behind them. i think 6 and 4 had the best storylines and they wrapped up each season wonderfully.

I gotta admit, I stopped listen to the recap because I felt that Tyler was trying to convince you it was a bad season, even after you clearly stated that you LOVED John Snow's character. I don't mind when people have different opinions, but when they try to push their opinion as fact then I stop listening to them. I also watch your youtube videos for your reactions, not Tyler's ;)

Graht1

One other thing I noticed when rewatching this episode is the way Cersei and Sansa talk about their dead family while acknowledging that they need to stick to the task at hand and worry about the present. They both qualify their statements by saying "I miss them. I do." and yet Sansa, who has learned a lot from Cersei, still has more compassion in her when she speaks in a cold and logical way. I like that there's more nuance and Sansa didn't just "become" Cersei by having to be around her for so long.

Brandon

am shocked yall didn't like season 6! it's literally one of the best seasons of the show.

Dani

I absolutely love Nat and Tyler's commentary at the beginning of each season. That you both work in the industry, y'all have such wonderful perspectives on the show; and pick up on things that even I missed out on after a few rewatches. <3 you guys!

SmokeAndACoffee

your zombie reaction is hilarious.. bleghhh

Simon Bauer

Not gonna lie, I'm looking forward to Tyler picking apart some of the things to come in this season, in particular the penultimate episode.

Marc Van de Klashorst

The writers did kinda drop the on Brans story a little bit. By the end of season 4 they were so far ahead with Brans story that they completely excluded him from Season 5 so the rest of the series could catch up.

Ryan Nielson

Shout out to Michelle Clapton (costume designer). The costumes have always been good, but these last two seasons I think she’s the VIP.

Jai Nelson

After you finish the series, can you watch the video of the cast describing season 8 in the interviews? It's hilarious and would be a nice little bonus.

Dmitry Ishkov

I feel like the reason Sansa didn't say anything was because she knows Little Finger is pretty much evil, and she knew if she told Jon, he would insist on enlisting their help; and Sansa wanted to avoid that if at all possible

SmokeAndACoffee

iv watched this series twice and just learned there was actually magic in the wall holding them back like a spell, learn something new everyday

Garlicjr Made

I actually thought season 6 was one of the best seasons tbh... Season 7 is ok but 8 is just a meme at this point lol

Dan Tydeman

Tyler said something in the intro about the characters getting less intelligent... and I couldn't agree more with that. Cersei... or nobody for that matter... bothered to take Dragonstone after Stannis abandoned it for the Wall back in season 4? Okay then... Way to give away a major stronghold to a foe with a huge army that's pretty damn close to King's Landing. 😉 As I try to be a glass half-full kind of guy, the production value of these last two seasons is indeed amazing. I finished my first year of film school just as the final season was starting to air and the production value blew me away. The program I took was all about production, not just film theory and analysis so I was able to compare it all to the stuff they taught us and it sort of melts your brain when you watch behind the scenes and see the toys they got to play with on this show. Oh and I forgot to mention in the season finale, that when Sam gets to the Citadel, on the ceiling we actually get to see those rings that change the lenses over the massive map of Westeros in the opening theme. It's the little things.

Brandon

Happy Westeros Wednesday, Natalie! 😊 As much as I loved your "Falcon and the Winter Soldier" reactions, I've been looking forward to the start of S7 of GoT all week. LOL! I've been wanting to see the outcome from the S6 finale episode. I'm going to watch this one right now. I'm going into these last two seasons with an open mind since I've heard mixed reviews about them. Have a great day today! 😊 Until the next video, Stay Golden! 💛

Randee Carreno

I am very interested to see what you think of these last 2 seasons. I agree that avoiding comments would probably be best from here on out. The production levels for these last 2 seasons are mind boggling!

Dante

Happy westeros Wednesday nattie season 7 time ngl my favourite start to any season so savage 🙂 so you can imagine I'm excited to see your reaction to this one as well as tyler and your recap 💛 shall we begin 😉

Ian

I'd avoid all comments until after these last two season. People love shitting on them way more than they deserve.

Chris H

Happy Westeros Wednesday Nat. Been looking forward to diving into this next season. Always great to hear Tyler's thoughts too, and am curious now to see what he is going to make of the final seasons. You'll definitely need to address your zombiephobia to make it through to the end Nat. Thanks for a great video today 💛

Darryl Low