Ramin Djawadi’s score (the show’s M.V.P., crystalline even in the muddiest of moments) shifts from martial to plaintive. It’s too bad we couldn’t see more of what transpired in between. Old Blue Eyes steps forward from the snowy wood, reaches for his frosty sword, arrogant, impassive. Again, I have issues with what this means for the story. (I am not the first to note the similarity to the “Operation Human Shield” story line in the 1999 “South Park” movie, in which a general ordered his black soldiers to sacrifice themselves on the front line.). (The final lesson of “Game of Thrones,” apparently, is to hang on to your old plasma TVs with their sharply defined blacks. The light is used effectively throughout the episode, such as this showstopper boy band moment for the White Walker boys. But away from the plot twists that were revealed in the 84-minute episode (no spoilers), the main debate surrounding the show has been how dark it looked. Maisie Williams and Vladimir Furdik in “Game of Thrones.”, collection of indelible individual scenes. Game of Thrones has to contend with a digitally enhanced mouldering army of the dead, one giant (and we mean giant) wight, and three dragons. You can see a lot of that famous cinematic skirmish in the Battle for Winterfell, but one thing you won’t see is Oscar-winning cinematographer Andrew Lesnie’s approach to lighting. Jaime’s horrified reaction at what’s happening is really a masterpiece of acting. “I wanted to evolve the lighting,” he said and worked to make the “storytelling of the lighting evolve with the storytelling of the characters.” Wagner gave this interview before the episode aired so he didn’t get specific, but knowing that we can look a little more closer at the episode’s use of fire not just from a pragmatic lighting standpoint, but from a character point of view as well. This was something we have seen, or rather not seen, before. Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), all that stood between the leader of the dead and Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright), the personified memory of life in Westeros, has been impaled like a cocktail onion. But it’s also a rather apt name for an episode of television that had many at home squinting and scooting closer to see if one of their favorites had just died in the dimly lit clash between the army of the living and the army of the dead. And then, over his shoulder, out of the blue-black mist, leaps Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) with a scream and the dagger that will find the Smaug-like gap in the Night King’s armor. A blue-ish tinge is all Lesnie needed to connote “night,” but Wagner had to deal with something much trickier. Too often, what it had to say was mumblemurmurmumble. Director of photography Fabian Wagner weighs in on the episode’s biggest challenges. It is also unsettling, in a series that has had issues around race and exoticism, to send off an army of nonwhite characters as zombie fodder. The Dothraki charge in Sunday’s “Game of Thrones” was an inventive use of darkness and light, but much of the episode was simply too murky to track. Some light is also just purely functional, as with whatever inferno is raging outside the Winterfell library window perfectly framing Arya in this kill. Thanks to the fire magic of Melisandre (Carice van Houten), their curved swords are ignited and they ride off, a surging wave of orange seen from overhead in the dark. But sometimes even Wagner’s dab hand couldn’t keep some of the crushes of bodies from being too tough to follow. They form a line on the horizon. “Game of Thrones” is a series that speaks visually as much as it does through dialogue. And those were scenes that used the darkness to a purpose — not as a shroud, but as a physical presence. At best, the device can establish mood. [Read our ultimate guide to “Game of Thrones.”]. But there were also images that absolutely sang. Now, I have substantive questions about this attack. . And in a battle whose length and phantasmagoria befit a prog-rock double album, it reduced a climax eight years in the making to an inky, ill-defined scrum of beards and bones. Which dragon bit which? The Dothraki were established in the first episode as the most fearsome warriors on Earth; we saw them plow through the Lannister army as if it were a field of buttercups. The castle and its crypt are breached. Lord of the Rings star Sean Astin once asked Lesnie “where is the light coming from?” when they were shooting in what should have been a darkened tower. The likes of “Ozark” and “True Detective” externalize their angst by painting the world in shades of black and blue. The first scene began the battle, as the Dothraki cavalry charged the yet-unseen army of the dead. From the awards race to the box office, with everything in between: get the entertainment industry's must-read newsletter. For years, “Game of Thrones” has been a story of the folly of seeking power. The consuming battle to rule Westeros — the “game” cynically named as such by the villainous Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) — is precisely what kept the continent from uniting to face this threat. That is, if you can even see it. Game of Thrones has to contend with a digitally enhanced mouldering army of the dead, one giant (and we mean giant) wight, and three dragons. So dark, in fact, that there’s a … Yes, The Lord of the Rings takes place in a fantasy world, but Helm’s Deep is a battle between humans, elves, orcs, and one wizard. The faces of the onlookers register this in quietly dawning dread. USA TODAY has reached out to HBO for comment. The second scene comes at the end of the battle — actually, it ends the battle in one swift stroke. If you’re not all caught up, or would prefer not to be spoiled, now is the time to leave. But it reminded us, in the most memorable moment of the Battle of Winterfell, that it does its best work when it slips in the blade like an assassin. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. Lesnie replied, “Same place as the music.” Which is why Helm’s Deep is lit up like Fenway Park, making every grim king, glam archer, and shield-surfing elf easy to pick out in a crowd. But when comparing Sapochnik and Wagner to Jackson and Lesnie, it’s only fair to keep a few other considerations in mind. To revisit this article, select My⁠ ⁠Account, then View saved stories. The defenders of Winterfell, it seems, are losing in a rout. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 1/1/20) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated 1/1/20) and Your California Privacy Rights. Funereal color palettes have become a signature of ambitious TV drama. But come on: My heart is not made of dragonglass. Why did Melisandre return to Westeros? Ad Choices. Yes and No. Speaking to ThisIsInsider in 2017, Game of Thrones cinematographer Robert McLachlan explained that the show has gotten so much darker because there are fewer ways to "justify" the … The flames get farther away. To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. We had everything times 100.” It was all there. Beric inspires Sandor and Melisandre inspires many—but most specifically Arya who is shown to be in total darkness in the Winterfell hallways when she’s at her lowest. 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