As expected with each release from this franchise, it’s extremely fun and complete nonsense – and even won over our critic Clarisse Loughrey, whose review you can read here.

The film has plenty of surprises in store in the form of several cameos and one moment that sees the action film take aim at the Game of Thrones finale.

*Spoilers below – you have been warned*

Now, we’re not going to reveal the biggest cameo here, but an extremely recognisable figure shows up early on in the film and returns again for a mid and post-credits sequence.

This character – who goes by the name of Locke – is clearly a disappointed Game of Thrones fan.

After seeing him having a conversation with Hobbs’ daughter about the HBO show, we later see him angrily criticising the way the show ended – specifically how Jon Snow (Kit Harington) had sex with his auntie, Daenerys Targaryen, (Emilia Clarke) and then ended up killing her.

Best films of 2019 (so far) Show all 49 1 /49 Best films of 2019 (so far) Best films of 2019 (so far) The Favourite “Macabre and fraught though The Favourite gets, this isn’t so much a film about sex or power as it is about plain mischief. It’s a hilarious, buffoonish pleasure, right down to the sets and costume design, and a breeze to spend 120 minutes with.” Christopher Hooton Fox Searchlight Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Beautiful Boy “Casting Chalamet as Nic was a very clever move. The young actor from Call Me by Your Name and Lady Bird has a natural charm and charisma. He still engages an audience’s curiosity and sympathy even when his behaviour is at its most selfish and erratic.” Geoffrey Macnab Amazon Studios Best films of 2019 (so far) The House by the Sea “Guédiguian’s storytelling style is deceptive. At first, it seems as if this is low-key social realism in the Dardennes or Ken Loach mould, albeit set on the French Riviera. Gradually, though, we realise how stylised and theatrical his approach really is.” Geoffrey Macnab Best films of 2019 (so far) Stan & Ollie “Director Jon S Baird, whose previous film was scabrous Irvine Welsh adaptation Filth, wrings every last drop of pathos he can from his material. This is very much a case of the tears of the clowns.” Geoffrey Macnab Entertainment One Best films of 2019 (so far) Vice “Vice is bravura storytelling. McKay isn’t only taking us through Cheney’s life and career but is giving us a whistle stop tour through US politics from the Nixon administration almost right to the present day.” Geoffrey Macnab Annapurna Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Can You Ever Forgive Me? “Playing Lee Israel, McCarthy manages something very special: she makes a character who is odd, obnoxious, difficult and alcoholic seem lovable and even heroic. The rest of the world is at fault, not Lee.” Geoffrey Macnab Fox Searchlight Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Green Book "Green Book flatters the audience about its own good sense and tolerance. It deals with racism and homophobia but still has a fairytale, fantasy feel to it. Whatever humiliations Don endures on their road trip, we know no real harm will ever come to him as long as Tony is at his side.” Geoffrey Macnab Universal Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Velvet Buzzsaw “The golden age of bonkers horror movies is gloriously evoked by Netflix’s latest feature length presentation. Beginning as a satire of the arts world, Velvet Buzzsaw swiftly and gleefully descends into a savage splatter-fest, smeared in paint, viscera and garishly-bright blood.” Ed Power Netflix Best films of 2019 (so far) If Beale Street Could Talk “The setting is New York in the 1970s. Anyone who has watched Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver knows this was an era of violence, corruption and sleaze on a monumental level, but [Barry] Jenkins somehow makes the city seem like a modern-day Eden.” Geoffrey Macnab Annapurna Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) All Is True “Written by Ben Elton and directed by its star Kenneth Branagh, the film plays so fast and loose with the playwright’s final years that they needn’t have bothered fitting Branagh with a prosthetic nose – accuracy is clearly not the priority here.” Alexandra Pollard Sony Pictures Classics Best films of 2019 (so far) The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part is the doomed progeny of a celebrated genius – brilliant but slightly stunted by the knowledge they will never live up to their predecessor.” Clarisse Loughrey Warner Bros. Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Piercing “Nicolas Pesce’s sleek and stylish horror comedy is repulsive and funny by turns. In adapting Ryu Murakami’s cult novel, Pesce strikes just the right balance between humour and Grand Guignol-style shock tactics.” Geoffrey Macnab Universal Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Capernaum "The best moments here are remarkable. Labaki elicits an astonishing performance from her young lead. He’s an irrepressible figure with such an inbuilt sense of moral decency the film seems upbeat and optimistic, even at its darkest moments.” Geoffrey Macnab Sony Pictures Classics Best films of 2019 (so far) The White Crow "Ralph Fiennes combines thriller elements with poetic flashbacks to ballet legend Rudolf Nureyev’s childhood and keeps a tight focus on the dancer. When he is most at risk, Nureyev makes decisions with his artistic future more in mind than his personal safety. As Fiennes reminds us again and again in what is his best film yet as a director, the 'white crow' will do anything to put himself in the limelight, the one place he is convinced he belongs." StudioCanal Best films of 2019 (so far) Border "Border reverses the perspective taken by most other horror films. In more conventional genre fare, Tina and Vore would be portrayed as malevolent outsiders, but in the world conjured up by director Ali Abbasi, the humans are the monsters. Tina is the innocent – a visionary who hardly understands her own powers but who can sense human venality and corruption wherever it appears." TriArt Film Best films of 2019 (so far) Fighting with My Family "Certain scenes feel very trite and predictable but the film gets you in a choke hold early on and won’t let you go. It is far more gripping than its subject matter might suggest. Who ever would believe a story about a wrestling family from Norwich could have quite such heart and resonance?" James Field Best films of 2019 (so far) Us "Doppelgangers abound in Jordan Peele’s weird, creepy and ingenious new horror film. As in his Oscar-winning 2017 feature Get Out, Peele leavens matters with ironic humour but the joking becomes increasingly uncomfortable once the main characters come face to face with dark shadows of themselves which wish them extreme harm." AP Best films of 2019 (so far) Avengers: Endgame "The Avengers cycle comes to a rich and very satisfying conclusion with Endgame, surely the most complex and emotional superhero movie in Marvel history. At 181 minutes, this is a veritable epic, but with so many characters and plot strands, it fully warrants its lengthy running time." AP Best films of 2019 (so far) Eighth Grade "It’s a rare and precious feeling when a film completely dismantles you. Eighth Grade – the directorial debut of US comedian Bo Burnham – breaks down every delusion we have about ourselves and burrows deep into those parts we’ve made such an effort to lock away. You may cry. You may shudder as every awkward social interaction that’s kept you up at night replays in your head all at once. You may feel the sharp pain associated with those moments when you feel completely isolated from the world. Burnham may have crafted a simple story about the most ordinary of teenage girls, but it speaks with the emotions of a true cinematic epic." A24 Best films of 2019 (so far) Vox Lux "Natalie Portman gives her fiercest, most memorable performance since Black Swan in Brady Corbet’s enjoyably subversive satire about a troubled pop star whose loss of innocence mirrors the fall from grace of the US itself. Portman’s character, Celeste, is certainly one of the most objectionable figures she has played: a pampered, hard-drinking drug-taking “floozy” whose appearance and high-handed behaviour rekindle memories of Liz Taylor and Joan Crawford at their monstrous worst." Neon Best films of 2019 (so far) High Life Robert Pattinson gives one of his most striking performances as Monte, the death-row criminal in outer space, tricked into making a voyage described at one stage as a “class-one suicide ride”. The former Twilight star makes his shaven-headed, gaunt-faced character seem hyper naturally sensitive and feral at the same time. A24 Best films of 2019 (so far) Amazing Grace Amazing Grace is as uplifting a film as you will see all year. It’s a concert movie filmed over two nights and featuring Aretha Franklin, the “first lady of soul”, performing gospel standards in a church in Los Angeles in 1972, with a huge backing choir and an enthusiastic congregation. Neon Best films of 2019 (so far) Aladdin Disney’s live-action remake of its 1992 animated feature is a rip-roaring, old-fashioned matinee-style spectacle that turns out far better than we had any right to expect. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Booksmart “Olivia Wilde is a visually inventive director, who keeps the tempo here so brisk that we hardly notice how glib the storytelling sometimes becomes. We can tell exactly how the film will end, but it still feels original both in its screwball energy and in the deft way it continually reverses stereotypes and gender clichés.” Geoffrey Macnab Annapurna Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) Late Night “Late Night is a caustic satirical comedy that turns into an unlikely tearjerker. It’s by turns snide and uplifting, and often very funny too. Its writer/producer/star Mindy Kaling makes vicious observations about the inanity, narcissism and corruption of the mainstream US media at the same time as she celebrates the professionalism of many of those who work within it. The film has a glorious performance from Emma Thompson and a very sly one from Kaling. Thompson is at her most imperious as Katherine Newbury, a legendary entertainer, the only female in a male-dominated field, but one whose career is beginning to slide.” Geoffrey Macnab Amazon Studios Best films of 2019 (so far) Gloria Bell “Gloria Bell is somewhat exhausting – both unbearably intimate and at a constant remove – but it is endlessly pulled back into focus by Moore, who has a firm understanding of the delicate balance between contentment and yearning, joy and pain, recklessness and spontaneity. In a remake that could have felt indulgent in the hands of people less skilled, she more than justifies its existence.” Geoffrey Macnab Curzon Best films of 2019 (so far) Toy Story 4 "The brilliance of the new film lies in the surefooted way it caters both for children too young to have seen its predecessors and for adults who’ve grown up (or grown older) watching the previous instalments. It takes some kind of genius for the Pixar animators to give such a searing emotional charge to a story in which one of the main characters is a single use plastic spork retrieved from the trash." Pixar/Disney Best films of 2019 (so far) In Fabric In Fabric feels like Peter Strickland at his most free and playful, drawing as much from the British sense of humour – dry and morbid to a fault – as from Italian glamour. Curzon Artificial Eye Best films of 2019 (so far) The Flood "Perhaps The Flood isn’t quite the urgent, profound film a crisis of this scale deserves, but in a culture where refugees are so rarely shown any empathy in mainstream media, maybe this is the film we need right now." Best films of 2019 (so far) Midsommar "Ari Aster's follow-up to Hereditary serves up much of the same: it’s a break-up movie wrapped up in pagan horror. It’s also bound to be one of this year’s most memorable films, proving that Aster is far from a one-hit wonder." A24 Best films of 2019 (so far) The Lion King "The Lion King is undoubtedly a technological marvel that, much like Avatar, will come to be viewed as a milestone in special effects history, yet it’s just as interesting to see how all this innovation has been employed." AP Best films of 2019 (so far) Varda by Agnès "For a film that’s almost entirely narrated by Agnès Varda's own voice, it doesn’t feel driven by ego, but by pure intellectual and emotional curiosity." Best films of 2019 (so far) Animals "Animals treats its subjects with patience and generosity. You’ll find no life lessons here. Its main characters are free to pursue their desires, to whatever end." Best films of 2019 (so far) Blinded by the Light "Blinded by the Light offers not only a reminder of Springsteen’s lyrical genius, but of how he’s always served as a beacon for the disenfranchised." Warner Brothers Best films of 2019 (so far) Good Boys Lined up against some of this year’s other more heartfelt offerings, including Booksmart, Good Boys offers further proof that putting a little humanity in our comedy always gets the best results. Best films of 2019 (so far) Hustlers "Hustlers is an electrifying response to the deluge of stories we’ve had over the years about very rich, very bad dudes. Finally, we can turn the tables on every film that’s used women, specifically strippers, as decorative accessories to drape over businessmen as they conduct their illicit backroom meetings. Or, failing that, to shake their out-of-focus tits in the background of a shot." AP Best films of 2019 (so far) For Sama For Sama is one of the most profoundly intimate depictions of the Syrian conflict ever put to film. It’s the push to help those on the outside process something so incomprehensible in the depth of its horrors. Republic Film Distribution Best films of 2019 (so far) Ad Astra The real drama here is not whether or not apocalypse can be avoided but whether Brad Pitt’s character can reconcile himself with his father and overcome his own extreme emotional repression. In other words, in spite of all the jargon and the hardware, this is an intimate family melodrama at heart. Thanks to Pitt’s performance and Gray’s delicate direction, it turns into a very moving one. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Best films of 2019 (so far) The Farewell Wrapped up in all the intricacies of immigrant identity and family politics, The Farewell is a comedy of warmth and bracing honesty. Simply put, it’s one of the best films of the year. A24 Best films of 2019 (so far) Judy This is Renée Zellweger’s Judy. It doesn’t belong to Rupert Goold, its director. Nor does it belong to Tom Edge, its screenwriter. It’s a performance of such overwhelming force that it wrests authorship from every other hand that guided the film’s creation. Pathé Best films of 2019 (so far) Ready or Not As absurd and self-indulgent as Ready or Not can get, it doesn’t mess around with its social commentary. The class system is the game we never asked to play, don’t get a fair chance at, and have no hope of winning. It’s a timeless metaphor. 20th Century Fox Best films of 2019 (so far) A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon Despite its mouthful of a title, A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon is an utter delight – proof that good storytelling and strong craft are what matters, however familiar the packaging. Studio Canal Best films of 2019 (so far) The Beach Bum Clearly, Harmony Korine is steered by his attraction to the theatrical, the absurd and the grimly nihilistic. The Beach Bum is all of that and absolutely none of it, too – a leisurely, neon-soaked stroll through chaos and hazy bohemia, full of slapstick and pathos. It is as much Korine’s most mature film as it is his most juvenile. Neon/Vice Best films of 2019 (so far) The Last Black Man in San Francisco It’s a beautiful, frightening and tragic vignette of the urban nightmare, though The Last Black Man in San Francisco isn’t really an angry film. It’s less of a rallying cry against gentrification than a rumination on the kind of pained acceptance those who suffer its effects must face. A24 Best films of 2019 (so far) The Irishman Scorsese’s signature camerawork goes down like a glass of fine whisky, as smooth and as elegant as you’d expect. The violence arrives in short, sharp shocks. Steven Zaillian’s screenplay even nails the mobster patter, with arguments about fish, tardiness, and business shorts that feel destined to one day be quoted to death. Netflix Best films of 2019 (so far) Le Mans '66 The film’s greatest trick is saved for its final reel. For much of its running time, you’d be easily fooled into thinking Mangold had made a grand ode to the American dream. It’s a film about an immigrant worker who, through perseverance and toil, gains the respect of one of the richest men in the country. And then the rug is pulled right out from underneath you. Le Mans ‘66 may relish in the high life, but its final moments feel devastatingly hollow. AP Best films of 2019 (so far) Marriage Story The film never loses its sense of humour and absurdity. Somehow, in spite of the bleakness of the subject matter, it feels more redemptive than despairing. Best films of 2019 (so far) The Report Adam Driver plays Jones, Annette Bening Senator Feinstein, and director Scott Z Burns captures the events in a cold, rigorously factual, and largely dispassionate manner. But that’s the point. The Report chooses to value the truth over bombastic displays of morality. AP Best films of 2019 (so far) Knives Out Casting an ensemble film is a little like perfecting a cocktail blend, balancing flavours until they sing together in harmony. Knives Out hits the mark here: the actors all feel well-suited to their roles and they bounce off each other with ease. Lionsgate

It’s a bold move to include such a direct reference to something that’s actually not so much a part of the cultural conversation anymore.

It may have seemed like a fun idea when the fantasy series broadcast its controversial finale back in May, but it’s something that’s clearly going to date the film in years to come.

The film isn’t the only one to criticise how the show ended. At Comic-Con last month, Seth Rogen also poked fun at the final season that, days earlier, had been defended by its stars during a panel.

You can find a ranking of every single episode below and a ranking of every character – from worst to best – here.

Game of Thrones - every episode ranked Show all 73 1 /73 Game of Thrones - every episode ranked Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 73. Season seven, episode five: Eastwatch There has to be a loser. ‘Eastwatch’ throws away one of the most important pieces of information in the whole show, Jon’s true parentage, as well as lots of good reunions. It’s the clearest example of how rushed the show has become in recent years, as its unpredictability gives way to conventional plot. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 72. Season four, episode three: Breaker of Chains Jaime appears to rape Cersei next to Joffrey’s corpse. The scene is confused, unpleasant and different from the books in confusing and unhelpful ways. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 71. Season five, episode six: Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken The Sand Snakes are just unbearably naff and this is one of their worst. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 70. Season four, episode four: Oathkeeper At Craster’s Keep, much rape and murder of children. Unpleasant. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 69. Season one, episode two: The Kingsroad The opposite of the rushed plot of the later seasons, this is basically a leisurely chat up the M1. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 68. Season eight, episode four: The Last of the Starks Given a chance to return to real intrigue after the Battle of Winterfell, Benioff and Weiss showed they had lost their grip, with an incoherent episode that betrayed several key characters for the sake of obvious plot grinding. A Starbucks cup left on a feasting table told us everything we needed to know about a series that has given up. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 67. Season two, episode eight: Prince of Winterfell There is some good stuff with Arya and Jaqen H’ghar, but it’s mainly placeholder as they set up the Battle of Blackwater. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 66. Season three, episode 10: Mysha Jon Snow and Ygritte’s goodbye at the climax of season three ought to have been much sadder. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 65. Season five, episode two: The House of Black and White Lots of setting up. Jaime and Bronn plan to go to Dorne, Arya arrives in Braavos. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 64. Season seven, episode six: Beyond the Wall This ought to have been one of the great battles: ice zombies plus dragons plus Jon Snow’s expedition. It looked spectacular, but everyone worried about teleporting ravens and speed of sound dragons. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 63. Season six, episode eight: No One Some absolutely horrible banter between Grey Worm and Missandei. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 62. Season two, episode seven: A Man Without Honour Pyat Pree kills the 13 in Qarth. Tywin talks to Arya about legacy. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 61. Season six, episode one: The Red Woman Melisandre is a very, very old woman. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 60. Season two, episode two: The Night Lands Lots of Tyrion talking in King’s Landing but not much else. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 59. Season six, episode seven: The Broken Man The Hound meets Ian McShane. That’s about it in an episode full of preparations. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 58. Season three, episode one: Valar Dohaeris A classic season opener that flits from place to place. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 57. Season two, episode four: Garden of Bones Lots of grimness. Rat and bucket torture at Harrenhal. Robb Stark meets Talisa. Joffrey is cruel to Ros and Daisy. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 56. Season five, episode one: The Wars to Come Mance Rayder refuses to bend the knee, is burned at the stake by Stannis before Jon shoots him with an arrow. A pretty good death actually. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 55. Season five, episode five: Kill the Boy Season five is perhaps the weakest, and this is one of the weakest episodes in it, despite some good Bolton action and the Stone Men’s fateful attack on Tyrion and Jorah Mormont as they sailed through Valyria. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 54. Season two, episode one: The North Remembers In the season two opener we meet Stannis at Dragonstone, and then Joffrey orders a tremendous infanticide. It was vaguely controversial at the time. Feels like a lifetime ago. ‘Power is power,’ Cersei tells Littlefinger, which was good. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 53. Season six, episode three: Oathbreaker Jon Snow coming back to life really shouldn’t have felt flat. Yet it did. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 52. Season one, episode three: Lord Snow Understandable given that it had to build an entire medieval universe, but 12 major characters are introduced here. That’s too many major characters. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 51. Season six, epsidoe four: Book of the Stranger Jon and Sansa reunite, which is cool, Daenerys burns some more enemies, which is hot, good High Sparrow monologue to Margaery. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 50. Season three, episode six: The Climb Theme of climbing. Thormund makes his way up the Wall; Littlefinger gives his most famous monologue, as he explains to Varys that chaos is ‘a ladder’. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 49. Season five, episode two: Sons of the Harpy Mid-season doldrums, particularly acute in five, as Jaime and Bronn arrive in Dorne. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 48. Season five, episode seven: The Gift The same, basically, except for Tyrion meeting Daenerys. Everyone gives each other presents. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 47. Season three, episode two: Dark Wings, Dark Words Sluggish early-season number, although we meet Olenna and Margaery shows how skilful she will be at manipulating court. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 46. Season one, episode eight: The Pointy End Until the later series, eight episodes are a bit hamstrung by setting up denouements to follow. This is true in season one, as the machinery creaks to set up the beheading they didn’t think could happen. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 45. Season three, episode seven: The Bear and the Maiden Fair Even re-looking at what happened in this episode I still can’t really remember it, except for the fight with the bear. Oh yes, Mackenzie Crook! Forgot he was in this programme. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 44. Season two, episode five: The Ghost of Harrenhal Two good moments: Renly is killed by the shadow, and Arya meets Jaqen H’ghar. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 43. Season eight, episode two: 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Another slow scene setter for the epic Battle of Winterfell, full of night-before antics including the knighting of Brienne by Jamie, and the slightly disturbing sight of Arya and Gendry preparing to go at it hammer and tongs. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 42. Season six, episode two: Home The demise of top lad Roose Bolton, as well as Balon Greyjoy, both sent to their ends by their families. Melisandre finally works her anti-death magic on Jon Snow. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 41. Season four, episode five: First of His Name One of the good things about season four was that it was the only moment where, even briefly, it looked as though a kind of temporary stability had been achieved. Tommen is king, Sansa has escaped King’s Landing, Jon Snow and co get revenge on the mutineers at Craster’s Keep. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 40. Season two, episode 10: Valar Morghulis The White Walkers attacking the Night’s Watch at the Fist of the First Men is a good laugh, but other than that there is a lot to get through, after the events of Blackwater in the previous episode, and the season two finale anticipates some of the rushed feeling that will occur later on. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 39. Season one, episode seven: You Win or You Die Our first real glimpse of what Cersei will become, as she outmanoeuvres Ned Stark after Robert Baratheon’s death in a hunting accident. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 38. Season seven, episode one: Dragonstone A superb Arya moment, as she wipes out the rest of House Frey, but mainly this is set-up for a season that packs a lot in. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 37. Season one, episode four: Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things Ned working as policeman in Kings Landing to find out what happened to Jon Arryn. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 36. Season five, episode nine: Dance of Dragons One of the most upsetting deaths in Game of Thrones, as Stannis Baratheon burns his friendly daughter Shireen alive to appease Melisandre. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 35. Season seven, episode two: Stormborn Theon jumping off the boat after Euron overruns the Greyjoy fleet. Nice reunion between Arya and Hot Pie. Tyrion talks Daenerys down from incinerating King’s Landing. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 34. Season eight, episode one: 'Winterfell' A slower than expected opener for the final season, albeit with some touching reunions at Winterfell, especially Bran and Jamie seeing each other again. Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 33. Season six, episode six: Blood of My Blood Midseasoner. Cersei sends Jaime to retake Riverrun, while Arya is finally trained as an assassin. Can’t really remember it, to be honest. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 32. Season one, episode five: The Wolf and the Lion Jaime and Ned have a brawl in the streets of King’s Landing in an episode that focuses on skulduggery rather than magic. If you ask me skulduggery always trumps magic. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 31. Season three, episode three: Walk of Punishment The first moment where a character’s trajectory was really reversed. We’d disliked Jaime since the start, but when his hand was chopped off he began to win us back. The Blackfish schooling Edmure at shooting fire arrows was another highlight. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 30. Season four, episode one: Two Swords The opening of the fourth series introduced the charismatic, enigmatic Viper of Dorne, one of the few good things other than wine to come out of Dorne. Also notable for an excellent scene with Arya and the Hound clearing out an Inn. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 29. Season two, episode three: What is Dead May Never Die Introduces Margaery Tyrell and Brienne of Tarth, two of the best characters, and also sees Theon decide to betray Robb Stark. What is family? Who can you trust? HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 28. Season three, episode eight: Second Sons Built around Sansa and Tyrion’s unwelcome wedding, while in the north there is a display of how important Sam will be as he draws on reserves of bravery to dragonglass a white walker. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 27. Season four, episode seven: Mockingbird Littlefinger dumping Lysa out of the Eyrie is probably the most dramatic moment here, one of his decisive power-stealing moments as he saves Sansa. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 26. Season one, episode one: Winter Is Coming Can you remember a time before Game of Thrones? Re-watch ‘Winter is Coming’, marvel at the baby Starks, think on how many characters have died, reflect on your own mortality. You are much, much older than when Game of Thrones began. Your life is running between your fingers. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 25. Season one, episode six: A Golden Crown Another dramatic death which is hard to remember now, as the miserable Viserys was put out of his grump with molten gold. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 24: Season eight, episode six: 'The Iron Throne' Well, that was that. The grand finale provoked much gnashing of teeth and hot air, not all of it from Drogon. In truth, things were tied up as best they could, given the way the the different pieces had been arranged, although some of the criticism was valid. The king-choosing and first council scenes were amazingly lame. A number of questions were skirted over. Still, what a spectacle. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 23. Season two, episode six: Old Gods and the New Theon takes Winterfell. Theon, you utter bastard. I hope you are punished for this. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 22. Season five, episode three: High Sparrow A key Littlefinger episode, as he continues to manipulate Sansa, while Jon Snow executes Janos and, in King’s Landing, Cersei’s machinations are matched by Margaery’s. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 21. Season four, episode two: The Lion and the Rose Joffrey, scratching at his throat, going purple, dying. Top stuff. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 20. Season four, episode six: The Laws of Gods and Men An excellent mid-season episode, built around Tyrion’s trial but with lots of other things to admire that hint at the underlying economies in the Game of Thrones universe. Drogon barbecues some livestock, while the Iron Bank of Braavos refuses to bail out Davos and Stannis. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 19. Season three, episode four: And Now His Watch Is Ended The full depravity of Ramsay Bolton is laid bare as he taunts Theon with a fake escape, while Commander Mormont is murdered at Craster’s Keep. But really it’s all about Daenerys, as she and her pets flame Astapor to the ground. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 18. Season seven, episode seven: The Dragon and the Wolf It turns out Jon Snow is actually the true heir to the Seven Kingdoms, the remaining Stark children finally team up to kill Littlefinger, admittedly in overwrought style, and the White Walkers use their new lizard hairdryer to destroy the wall. There is far too much going on, especially the odd scene where Jon shows Cersei the wight, but nevertheless it sends you reaching for the popcorn and cheering along, which is more or less where we are at with the whole series by now. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 17. Season three, episode five: Kissed by Fire Most notable for Ygritte and Jon’s much-parodied love grotto scene, but also for the Hound’s duel with Bendric Dondarrion, which revealed his terror of fire. Nursing his stump in the baths, Jaime tells Brienne the truth about his assassination of the Mad King. Mid-seasoner. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 16. Season five, episode 10: Mother’s Mercy The denouement of the fifth series is the most sympathetic we ever see Cersei, as she completes her walk of atonement through the streets of King’s Landing, her hair cut and her clothes stripped. Strategically, humiliating Cersei proves not to be the masterstroke the High Sparrow thought it would be. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 15. Season seven, episode four: The Spoils of War Spoils aplenty. Arya returns to Winterfell and sees Sansa, then fights a brief duel with Brienne that shows just how much she’s learnt. It’s nothing on one of the great shots of the whole series, however: Daenerys riding Drogon above a Dothraki horde in full charge before incinerating the Lannister lines. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 14. Season one, episode 10: Fire and Blood We were promised dragons, and here they are, mewing atop the naked Daenerys. And one thing we know about baby dragons is they must grow up. This is Game of Thrones’ version of Chekhov’s rule about guns. You’ll keep watching until they torch something. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 13. Season five, episode eight: Hardhome As the big battles go, the showdown between the Night’s Watch and wildlings and the wights at Hardhome doesn’t quite match some of the others, but it is still dead cool, especially when Jon realises his sword works against the snowmen. If that wasn’t enough, Sansa also learnt that her family might be alive. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 12. Season four, episode nine: The Watchers on the Wall The big set-piece between the Night’s Watch and the wildlings. Not quite up to Blackwater’s standards, despite its battle specialist Neil Marshall being summonsed back to direct. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 11. Season seven, episode three: The Queen’s Justice There is too much crammed into this episode, which could have been spread over several hours, but it’s wonderful stuff all the same. Jon meets Daenerys for the first time, Sam cures Jorah of greyscale, Cersei obliterates the Tyrells. Best of all is Diana Rigg, at a table in her tower, bowing out from what is perhaps Thrones’ best overall performance. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 10. Season eight, episode five One of the most divisive episodes, as Dany’s frustrations spilled over into a holocaust in King’s Landing. Whatever you thought of the pacing, or the plot’s fidelity to the characters, it was quite a spectacle, and killed off several key figures in dramatic style. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 9. Season six, episode five: The Door Poor old Hodor. The death nobody wanted, as a wonderful character, played so sympathetically by Kristian Nairn, is finally given his due. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 8. Season four, episode eight: The Mountain and the Viper Other things happen: Littlefinger takes over the Vale, and the Boltons move into Winterfell, but the episode is mainly memorable for the central duel, as Oberyn seeks justice from the man who murdered so many of his relatives, and for one image above all, of the Mountain’s armoured fingers crushing Oberyn’s skull like a grapefruit. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 7. Season one, episode nine: Baelor Poor old Ned Stark. The death they said could never happen! Clearly they had not watched enough Sean Bean films. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 6. Season eight, episode three: The Long Night After two scene-setting episodes, The Long Night finally delivers on the promise of season eight, with 90 minutes of marvellous blood and fire at Winterfell. The Night King’s hordes meet the assembled ranks of Westeros, wildlings, Dothraki and Unsullied. The defenders lose and lose and lose until they finally win, although not before a few spectacular deaths. If it lacks some of the strategic nuance of other battles, it compensates with stunning action sequences and CGI, especially on the dragons, who dogfight high above the plain. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 5. Season six, episode 10: The Winds of Winter Winter has come. It opens with peak Cersei, as she eliminates all her remaining enemies in one enormous blaze. Arya kills Walder Frey. The Jon Theory is confirmed. Tommen walks out of the window. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 4. Season three, episode nine: Rains of Castemere The Lannisters send their regards. Some would have this number one, and one could easily make the case. The Red Wedding was the scene that broke Game of Thrones out of its fandom and into broader popular culture, the point where it was no longer avoidable. Fury, anguish, love, surprise, pity, hate: it’s all here. The look Roose Bolton gives Catelyn Stark when she reveals the chainmail he is wearing to dinner might be my single favourite moment of the whole programme. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 3. Season six, episode nine: Battle of the Bastards Anyone who has seen Mel Gibson’s Mayan drama Apocalypto knows that running in a straight line away from arrows rarely works. So it proved for Rickon, setting up one of the great battles not only on TV but on any kind of film. Where in previous seasons battles had occasionally felt hampered by budget, most egregiously when Tyrion was knocked out and missed the whole thing, this was the full belt and braces. It was brilliantly directed, with aerial shots, as well as face-in-the-mud close-ups to convey the full grinding horror of the battle, and the grim relief of victory. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 2. Season four, episode 10: The Children The fourth season is the best all-round, I think, the high-point of character development before it started to be forced by the machinations of the plot in the later series. Brienne’s bloody brawl with the Hound leaves him bleeding and broken, as Arya heads off to Braavos. Tywin finally gets his comeuppance, a crossbow bolt on the loo, administered by his son, Tyrion, who then flees. And Stannis’s cavalry arrives to save Jon and defeat Mance Rayder and the wildlings in a pincer movement, having been persuaded by Davos. HBO Game of Thrones - every episode ranked 1. Season two, episode nine: Blackwater This is purely a personal view, but if Ned Stark’s death was the moment you sat up and paid attention, Blackwater was the where you started cheering at the TV. The scale, the splendour, the depth of character brought to bear on grand events: they all felt new, somehow. This might have been the last moment where we were equally rooting for both sides, except for one side to be consumed in an eerie green glow. Wildfire doesn’t care who your favourite character is. HBO