‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Joins the Top-Rated ‘Game of Thrones’ Franchise Episodes

Warning: Includes SPOILERS for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1, Episode 5!

The critically acclaimed new Game of Thrones spin-off, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, is proving its merit and has already matched an astounding record for the franchise. The reviews are in on “In the Name of the Mother,” the first season’s penultimate episode, which has (at the time of writing) scored a tremendous 9.8/10 on IMDb. This places the action-packed climax not only among the top episodes of the Game of Thrones franchise but also among the highest-rated TV episodes of all time.

In terms of Game of Thrones, the top-rated installments are as follows:

9.8 – “Hardhome” – Game of Thrones Season 5, Episode 10
9.8 – “In the Name of the Mother” – A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1, Episode 5
9.9 – “The Battle of the Bastards” – Game of Thrones Season 6, Episode 9
9.9 – “The Reins of Castamere” – Game of Thrones Season 3, Episode 9
9.9 – “The Winds of Winter” – Game of Thrones Season 6, Episode 10

This places A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ trial of seven, and its accompanying flashback sequence, tied for fourth in the overall franchise. Notably, this is higher than anything in House of the Dragon, which peaked at a 9.4 with Season 2’s “The Red Dragon and the Gold.” House of the Dragon Season 3 will look to redeem this, with numerous battles set to overcome the divisive responses to its sophomore slump. Overall, is “In the Name of the Mother” actually that good?

“In the Name of the Mother” Deserves Praise — But It’s a Flawed Episode

HBO

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms deserves all the praise in the world for what it’s managed to do: bring back Game of Thrones hype. The series, which is now the second Game of Thrones spin-off, has the good fortune of being the only show in the franchise that’s based on a complete story (that’s been written in prose) with each season having one direct novella to pull from. Source material accuracy is the key to winning over this fanbase, especially given that much of the vast Season 8 slander has been simplified to “They strayed away from the books.” In that sense, House of the Dragon produces a pain all too similar to Game of Thrones, where this new series can be the more reliable, more whimsical younger brother that everyone loves, sometimes in spite of its sibling.

The hype is evidently back. The responses following episode 4, “Seven”, made that abundantly clear. Now, seeing the actual trial occur and the brutality that comes with it (they finally showed armor working!) is incredibly exciting. Having seen the episode early, I anticipated that audiences, particularly book readers, might have mixed responses to the extended flashback sequence, and that responses would dip slightly after “Seven.” However, it seems that admiration for Dunk and his charming, hero-molding origin story, as well as the euphoria of seeing him drag Aerion through the mud, were enough to satisfy.

Being realistic, this episode wasn’t as good as “Hardhome.” That’s not to put down its virtues. It’s an outstanding installment, with excellent character work, original storytelling, and the visual sophistication we’ve come to expect from Ira Parker’s tenure as showrunner. But it’s not a 9.8 in comparison to the broader franchise. IMDb scores are often quite reactive and trend-focused. Season 7’s “Beyond the Wall,” for example, where Jon Snow brings his suicide squad to go retrieve a wight, has a 9/10: It’s one of the worst episodes in the franchise, but action sells, and hype drives reviews.

The bloody trial of seven, Aerion’s defeat, and Baelor’s gruesome death account for a lot, but the flashback is fairly straightforward and under-developed, reminding me a lot of the game derivations in The Last of Us, which I’m going to start calling “metaphor sequences”: mini stories that build on characters by placing them in situations adjacent to the main story that maintain the same themes but on a smaller, unsubtle scale. This takes up a decent portion of the episode, and it’s not the most refined narrative. Sir Arlan’s unexpected Dothraki singing and the astonishingly astute casting for Young Dunk are clear highlights.

This 9.8 score places the recent A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms episode among the best of the best, but this reaction is more indicative of the mass desire and excitement for this franchise to be, simply put, good again. It’s high-quality television, and I’m thrilled to see this magnificent series having its moment in the cultural spotlight, but Episode 4 is still the strongest of the season, all-around, thus far.