HBO is nearing a pilot commitment for a prequel series based on the 'Game of Thrones' companion book 'Fire & Blood,' sources have confirmed to Variety. Game Of Thrones 8x06 Daenerys Victory Speech Tyrion Arrested Season 8 Episode 6 FINALE - Duration: 8:01. Daryl Dixon 3,319,804 views. Game of Thrones is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire, George R. Martin's series of fantasy novels, the first of which is A Game of Thrones. The show was both produced and filmed in Belfast and elsewhere in the United Kingdom. Filming locations also included Canada, Croatia, Iceland, Malta, Morocco, and Spain. The series premiered on HBO in the United States on April 17, 2011, and conclude.
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Game Of Thrones Series Finale
Spoiler alert! The following contains details from the 'Game of Thrones' series finale, Season 8 Episode 6, 'The Iron Throne.' Read our recap of Season 8, Episode 5 here.
This isn't what we signed up for.
When 'Game of Thrones' premiered eight years ago, it was instantly clear that the series was something different. It was a story that broke the conventions of the fantasy genre, not one that was a slave to them. Yes, the 'Thrones' books and the series were inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings,' but they also subverted that trilogy. Ned Stark lost his head. The Red Wedding killed Robb and Catelyn. The Mountain killed the Viper. Tragedy and injustice were as baked into the series' identity as dragons and battles.
But that's not the show that aired its finale Sunday night. In the final episode, 'The Iron Throne,' the show was unrecognizable. It was hacky; it was cliched. Every character left standing received a saccharine coda. Closure is one thing, but pandering is entirely another.
Listen to this week's episode of USA TODAY's podcast, The Mothership, to hear our Film and TV Critic rate the 'Game of Thrones' series finale.
'The Iron Throne' would have been a fine ending for a different kind of TV show. It would have been a satisfying landing for a series that had long warmed hearts. But over the years, 'Thrones' has been a story in which the good guys didn't win and the bad guys didn't get their comeuppance. The world the writers built wasn't fair, and good people suffered for no reason. It wasn't a particularly rosy theme, but it was one of the reasons the series became such a massive hit; why it felt relatable in spite of its otherworldy setting. It was never a fairy tale. It was as messy and broken our world is now.
'Iron Throne' is an episode that will go down as one of the most controversial series finales of all time. For many fans, it is likely enough. Everybody who was good got their reward. Dany got her recompense. And there's even an argument to be made that by going for a happy-ever-after, 'Thrones' subverted the expectations of everyone waiting for a bloodbath.
But that's not what 'Iron Throne' did. It didn't gracefully swerve into another lane, it careened off a cliff. And looking back at the series will never be the same.
More: 'Game of Thrones' fan reactions: Fire and fury go beyond King's Landing
All hail Daenerys Stormborn
'Iron Throne' picked up where last week's 'The Bells' left off: In the ruins of King's Landing as Dany's allies reckon with what their queen has done. Tyrion, as you might imagine, is particularly devastated.
Jon is not happy either, as he surveys the corpses of the civilians and their children that his aunt/lover killed. He and Davos come upon Grey Worm and the Unsullied about to execute a group of Lannister soldiers, even though they've surrendered. Grey Worm is still in rage mode and says he's simply acting on Dany's orders to kill everyone who served Cersei. The two almost come to blows before Davos intervenes; Grey Worm executes the prisoners anyway.
Dany, completely chill after her mass murder, is holding court for her soldiers, shouting about all they've conquered, and all the lands they will soon 'liberate.' Emilia Clarke gives her last Dany speech with gusto, and there's a legitimately stunning shot where Drogon takes off behind Dany and she momentarily looks like she has black wings.
Tyrion is not impressed, ripping off his Hand of the Queen badge when Dany confronts him about releasing Jaime. Dany has the Unsullied take him away.
The shield that guards the realms of men
Jon goes to see Tyrion in his makeshift cell, and Tyrion uses what he thinks to be the last few moments of his life trying to convince Jon to murder Dany. He says Dany has killed more people than Tywin and Cersei combined, that she's all fire and blood. He quotes the Night's Watch oath, reminding Jon that he's always tried to save people, and killing Dany could save many.
Tyrion also admits what most fans had theorized since the infamous boat scene in Season 7: That he's in love with Dany. Jon remembers something Maester Aemon said all the way back in Season 1: 'Love is the death of duty.' Tyrion responds: 'Sometimes duty is the death of love.'
I love you, you're perfect, now die
Jon confronts Dany, who is on the verge of finally sitting on the magically intact Iron Throne when he barges in. She's giddy and tries to reminisce about her childhood dreams of what the Iron Throne might look like, but he moves the conversation squarely into the realm of dead children and burned cities.
He's looking for remorse or reasoning – anything to convince him to keep following her. Instead, Dany babbles about some kind of utopia she'll create before begging him to take her back and love her again. (Of all the betrayals of Dany's character this season, her angry ex-girlfriend mood is the worst.) He says she'll always be his queen, kisses her and then stabs her.
Drogon immediately knows something has happened. He climbs into the throne room and nudges her body, trying to wake her, in the most genuinely emotional moment of the whole episode. When he realizes she's dead, he roars, and for a moment it looks like he may burn Jon alive. Instead, he directs his fire toward … the Iron Throne, melting it.
'WHAT!?': Emilia Clarke reflects on the divisive 'Game of Thrones' finale
Kit Harington to 'Thrones' fans mad about Daenerys: 'You're culpable, you cheered her on'
The Iron Throne is definitely a symbol of what killed Drogon's mama, but the man who actually killed her was standing right there. The dragon's rage fire felt like one more instance where the writers wanted something to happen and didn't know how to get it done. The Iron Throne has to go? Well, a dragon can melt it. Or something.
And although Jon was an obvious choice to kill Dany, the series spent substantial time last week setting up Arya for the honor. (Sometimes a white horse is just a white horse, apparently.) Her big job in this episode is to say: 'I know a killer when I see one.' Pretty obvious, since Dany killed all of King's Landing.
Jon's move does probably explain, for those of us keeping track, why the Lord of Light brought him back from the dead in Season 6. (But it might have been easier if the Lord of Light had done something about Dany's access to dragon fire in the first place.)
Much like Cersei's death last week, Dany's demise felt like a dull, anticlimactic end for such a heavily invested character. Daenerys Targaryen came into the world with a storm, and she went out with a thud.
Congrats on inventing the Electoral College
'Iron Throne' skips over all the messy parts (How does Jon try to explain what happened? What are the Unsullied eating? How long does it take the news of the massacre to spread? Oh, and seriously, what are the people eating? Weren't we all really worried about winter?) and jumps a few weeks into the future.
What remains of the great families of Westeros (Sansa, Arya, Bran, Yara, Sam, Brienne, Gendry, Royce, Robin Arryn, Edmure Tully, a random Dornish guy and other nameless men) have gathered to figure out what's next.
Grey Worm and the Unsullied want Tyrion's and Jon's heads, but there's the messy question of who has the authority to order their executions.
Tyrion suggests that the assembled lords and ladies just pick someone to rule. There's a wonderful and awkward moment where Edmure starts to make a pitch for himself before Sansa shushes him. Sam suggests democracy but is immediately laughed off. Eventually, everyone turns back to Tyrion, and he makes a big speech before suggesting Bran.
'Game of Thrones': There were clues to the surprise finale all along
Yes, that Bran – the one who hasn't had a personality since Season 6 and is the least-helpful all-seeing magical raven ever. Tyrion goes on about Bran's story, calling him 'Bran the Broken,' and Bran is all too happy to accept. Everyone agrees to this, including Sansa, but only after Bran gives her the North as an independent kingdom.
There are so many problems with this scene. It's a muddle of messaging and themes for the series to go out on. Sam invents democracy (good job, Sam) and the high lords (even Sansa a little) laugh at the idea of the common people voting, but Gendry and Davos were born in Flea Bottom and sit among them. And hey, didn't 'Thrones' spend most of the last episode making us care about those common people?
It makes sense that the Westerosi nobility weren't going to back full democracy, sure, but Tyrion's suggestion (a glorified electoral college) doesn't feel all that groundbreaking for a series that talked about 'breaking the wheel.'
How will some pandering noble all the other nobles choose be better than the son of whoever they picked last time? Is the moral that you should only try to correct injustice a little, in this case by splashing some oligarchy into an autocracy?
Even accepting this as a solution, why Bran? Tyrion talks about how great his story is, but Arya and Sansa both have pretty good journeys. Bran's story wasn't even worth including in Season 5.
Game of Thrones' fan reaction poll: 60% of readers disliked finale; read their thoughts
Bran's Three-Eyed-Raven identity remains incredibly sketchy. After surviving a mad king, a drunk king, a cruel king, a naïve king, a murderous queen and a second murderous queen, Tyrion thinks Westeros needs a robot king?
When offered the crown, Bran responded, 'Why do you think I came all this way?' Did he arrange events so that he would get a crown? He may be just as bad as Dany and the rest in the end.
Bran is such a bewildering choice for king that it feels like an eleventh-hour reach for the kind of shock and awe the series once had, and a lame rebuttal to all those fan theories. Like most other plot developments in Seasons 7 and 8, it is mostly nonsensical. If it's where George R.R. Martin is taking the books, one can only hope he'll take more time and care to get there.
Will 'Game of Thrones' books end like series? 'Yes and no,' says author George R.R. Martin
There and back again
There might as well be a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage in Westeros.
Jon gets his perfect ending in the compromise between the Unsullied and Sansa and Arya, and heads back to the Night's Watch. (Who knows what they're guarding against these days?) Sansa goes north to claim her crown. Arya decides to go find out what's west of Westeros. Grey Worm leads the Unsullied to Naath.
'Game of Thrones' fans to HBO: Give us our Arya Stark spinoff already
Bran is the king and makes Tyrion be his Hand to fix everything he broke. Also filling out that small council chamber are: Sam, now Grand Maester; Brienne, the new lord commander of the Kingsguard; Bronn, lord of Highgarden and master of coin; and Davos, master of ships. Just what they've always wanted! Even perennial squire Podrick Payne gets knighted and selected for the Kingsguard.
At a small council meeting, Sam waltzes in with a big tome, the Archmaester's official history of the wars that followed the death of King Robert Baratheon. The title of the book? 'A Song of Ice and Fire.' Even Frodo Baggins would shake his head at that line.
The series ends with a montage that intercuts: Sansa is being crowned Queen in the North; Arya is setting sail; Jon, whose hair has returned to its Season 1 glory, meets Tormund, Ghost and the wildlings at Castle Black and goes beyond the wall with them, seemingly abandoning the watch to live with the free folk.
It was probably too much to hope for after two bad seasons, but it would have been nice to watch a finale that felt like it was part of the same story we started with in 2011. Finding happiness and self-actualization may be the proper ending for a Hallmark movie, but not for 'Game of Thrones.'
Series Like Game Of Thrones Hbo
Also of note...
Game Of Thrones Hbo Series Season 2
- Very happy to see Jon Snow finally pet his dog.
- I would really like to believe that after weeks of my tweeting about his whereabouts and writing this story, Edmure Tully's reappearance was added just for me.
- Arya's little venture westward is so open-ended I wonder if it is or ever was in the cards for a spinoff. (The last thing HBO said officially is that they're moving forward with just one prequel series.)
- Brienne didn't need to finish Jaime's page in the Kingsguard book. She needed to write her own. Another female character ill-served by this series in the end.
Thanks for reading my recaps this year (and for the last four years, if you've been with me since Season 5). It may not have ended the way I had hoped, but I did love this show for a long while there. And I loved writing about it for you.
And now my watch is ended.
Say goodbye to the 'Throne':
- Sadly, 'Game of Thrones' never fixed its problem with women
- The definitive ranking of all the 'Game of Thrones' episodes
- 'Thrones' has been about millennials this whole time
- Who won the throne?
- Merch ranked from awful to awesome
HBO's back — and the Television Academy has finally got its Schitt together. The Emmy nominations failed to disappoint on Tuesday morning, recognizing critically acclaimed series such as 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Fleabag,' and giving TV juggernaut 'Game of Thrones' a rousing farewell.
'Thrones' broke the record books this year, scoring an astounding 32 nominations — the most ever for a series in a single year. Previously, 'NYPD Blue,' which received 27 nominations in 1994, held that honor.
It's just the latest history-making turn at the Emmys for 'Game of Thrones,' which already holds the record for most Emmys won by a comedy or drama (47). That's partly because 'Game of Thrones' also boasts the title for most Emmys won by a series in a single season — and it pulled off that feat twice (12, in both 2015 and 2016).
The 'Game of Thrones' haul came despite some dissatisfaction from fans over the show's finale. Turns out it didn't matter. 'Game of Thrones'' 32 nominations was up from 22 last year, and brings the show's grand total to 161 nominations.
Pushing 'Thrones' was a massive showing in the acting categories, including three of the seven supporting drama actor slots and four of the six supporting drama actress spots.
But 'Thrones' is also a below-the-line juggernaut, cleaning up in multitudes of categories, including costumes, visual effects, cinematography, editing, hairstyling, makeup, music composition, sound editing and mixing, and so much more.
HBO didn't stop there. With 'Chernobyl' scoring the most nominations for a limited series, and 'Barry' landing the second-most noms for a comedy (behind Amazon Prime Video's 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), it was a year to remember for the pay cable giant. HBO's 137 nominations were the most in the channel's history, beating Netflix's 117 — which also happens to be the most in that streaming service's short reign.
HBO had led all networks in Emmy nominations for 17 consecutive years until last year, when Netflix took the leaderboard, with 112 nominations to HBO's 108. Ultimately, the two outlets tied for the most Emmys actually won in 2018, with 23 awards total.
Netflix has seen its Emmy nomination tally steadily rise in less than a decade, from 13 in 2013 to 54 in 2016 and 91 nominations (and 20 wins) in 2017. The rise has coincided in Netflix's quick ramp-up of original programming, and in almost every genre imaginable — making it a player in virtually every category.
Listen to this week's episode of USA TODAY's podcast, The Mothership, to hear our Film and TV Critic rate the 'Game of Thrones' series finale.
'The Iron Throne' would have been a fine ending for a different kind of TV show. It would have been a satisfying landing for a series that had long warmed hearts. But over the years, 'Thrones' has been a story in which the good guys didn't win and the bad guys didn't get their comeuppance. The world the writers built wasn't fair, and good people suffered for no reason. It wasn't a particularly rosy theme, but it was one of the reasons the series became such a massive hit; why it felt relatable in spite of its otherworldy setting. It was never a fairy tale. It was as messy and broken our world is now.
'Iron Throne' is an episode that will go down as one of the most controversial series finales of all time. For many fans, it is likely enough. Everybody who was good got their reward. Dany got her recompense. And there's even an argument to be made that by going for a happy-ever-after, 'Thrones' subverted the expectations of everyone waiting for a bloodbath.
But that's not what 'Iron Throne' did. It didn't gracefully swerve into another lane, it careened off a cliff. And looking back at the series will never be the same.
More: 'Game of Thrones' fan reactions: Fire and fury go beyond King's Landing
All hail Daenerys Stormborn
'Iron Throne' picked up where last week's 'The Bells' left off: In the ruins of King's Landing as Dany's allies reckon with what their queen has done. Tyrion, as you might imagine, is particularly devastated.
Jon is not happy either, as he surveys the corpses of the civilians and their children that his aunt/lover killed. He and Davos come upon Grey Worm and the Unsullied about to execute a group of Lannister soldiers, even though they've surrendered. Grey Worm is still in rage mode and says he's simply acting on Dany's orders to kill everyone who served Cersei. The two almost come to blows before Davos intervenes; Grey Worm executes the prisoners anyway.
Dany, completely chill after her mass murder, is holding court for her soldiers, shouting about all they've conquered, and all the lands they will soon 'liberate.' Emilia Clarke gives her last Dany speech with gusto, and there's a legitimately stunning shot where Drogon takes off behind Dany and she momentarily looks like she has black wings.
Tyrion is not impressed, ripping off his Hand of the Queen badge when Dany confronts him about releasing Jaime. Dany has the Unsullied take him away.
The shield that guards the realms of men
Jon goes to see Tyrion in his makeshift cell, and Tyrion uses what he thinks to be the last few moments of his life trying to convince Jon to murder Dany. He says Dany has killed more people than Tywin and Cersei combined, that she's all fire and blood. He quotes the Night's Watch oath, reminding Jon that he's always tried to save people, and killing Dany could save many.
Tyrion also admits what most fans had theorized since the infamous boat scene in Season 7: That he's in love with Dany. Jon remembers something Maester Aemon said all the way back in Season 1: 'Love is the death of duty.' Tyrion responds: 'Sometimes duty is the death of love.'
I love you, you're perfect, now die
Jon confronts Dany, who is on the verge of finally sitting on the magically intact Iron Throne when he barges in. She's giddy and tries to reminisce about her childhood dreams of what the Iron Throne might look like, but he moves the conversation squarely into the realm of dead children and burned cities.
He's looking for remorse or reasoning – anything to convince him to keep following her. Instead, Dany babbles about some kind of utopia she'll create before begging him to take her back and love her again. (Of all the betrayals of Dany's character this season, her angry ex-girlfriend mood is the worst.) He says she'll always be his queen, kisses her and then stabs her.
Drogon immediately knows something has happened. He climbs into the throne room and nudges her body, trying to wake her, in the most genuinely emotional moment of the whole episode. When he realizes she's dead, he roars, and for a moment it looks like he may burn Jon alive. Instead, he directs his fire toward … the Iron Throne, melting it.
'WHAT!?': Emilia Clarke reflects on the divisive 'Game of Thrones' finale
Kit Harington to 'Thrones' fans mad about Daenerys: 'You're culpable, you cheered her on'
The Iron Throne is definitely a symbol of what killed Drogon's mama, but the man who actually killed her was standing right there. The dragon's rage fire felt like one more instance where the writers wanted something to happen and didn't know how to get it done. The Iron Throne has to go? Well, a dragon can melt it. Or something.
And although Jon was an obvious choice to kill Dany, the series spent substantial time last week setting up Arya for the honor. (Sometimes a white horse is just a white horse, apparently.) Her big job in this episode is to say: 'I know a killer when I see one.' Pretty obvious, since Dany killed all of King's Landing.
Jon's move does probably explain, for those of us keeping track, why the Lord of Light brought him back from the dead in Season 6. (But it might have been easier if the Lord of Light had done something about Dany's access to dragon fire in the first place.)
Much like Cersei's death last week, Dany's demise felt like a dull, anticlimactic end for such a heavily invested character. Daenerys Targaryen came into the world with a storm, and she went out with a thud.
Congrats on inventing the Electoral College
'Iron Throne' skips over all the messy parts (How does Jon try to explain what happened? What are the Unsullied eating? How long does it take the news of the massacre to spread? Oh, and seriously, what are the people eating? Weren't we all really worried about winter?) and jumps a few weeks into the future.
What remains of the great families of Westeros (Sansa, Arya, Bran, Yara, Sam, Brienne, Gendry, Royce, Robin Arryn, Edmure Tully, a random Dornish guy and other nameless men) have gathered to figure out what's next.
Grey Worm and the Unsullied want Tyrion's and Jon's heads, but there's the messy question of who has the authority to order their executions.
Tyrion suggests that the assembled lords and ladies just pick someone to rule. There's a wonderful and awkward moment where Edmure starts to make a pitch for himself before Sansa shushes him. Sam suggests democracy but is immediately laughed off. Eventually, everyone turns back to Tyrion, and he makes a big speech before suggesting Bran.
'Game of Thrones': There were clues to the surprise finale all along
Yes, that Bran – the one who hasn't had a personality since Season 6 and is the least-helpful all-seeing magical raven ever. Tyrion goes on about Bran's story, calling him 'Bran the Broken,' and Bran is all too happy to accept. Everyone agrees to this, including Sansa, but only after Bran gives her the North as an independent kingdom.
There are so many problems with this scene. It's a muddle of messaging and themes for the series to go out on. Sam invents democracy (good job, Sam) and the high lords (even Sansa a little) laugh at the idea of the common people voting, but Gendry and Davos were born in Flea Bottom and sit among them. And hey, didn't 'Thrones' spend most of the last episode making us care about those common people?
It makes sense that the Westerosi nobility weren't going to back full democracy, sure, but Tyrion's suggestion (a glorified electoral college) doesn't feel all that groundbreaking for a series that talked about 'breaking the wheel.'
How will some pandering noble all the other nobles choose be better than the son of whoever they picked last time? Is the moral that you should only try to correct injustice a little, in this case by splashing some oligarchy into an autocracy?
Even accepting this as a solution, why Bran? Tyrion talks about how great his story is, but Arya and Sansa both have pretty good journeys. Bran's story wasn't even worth including in Season 5.
Game of Thrones' fan reaction poll: 60% of readers disliked finale; read their thoughts
Bran's Three-Eyed-Raven identity remains incredibly sketchy. After surviving a mad king, a drunk king, a cruel king, a naïve king, a murderous queen and a second murderous queen, Tyrion thinks Westeros needs a robot king?
When offered the crown, Bran responded, 'Why do you think I came all this way?' Did he arrange events so that he would get a crown? He may be just as bad as Dany and the rest in the end.
Bran is such a bewildering choice for king that it feels like an eleventh-hour reach for the kind of shock and awe the series once had, and a lame rebuttal to all those fan theories. Like most other plot developments in Seasons 7 and 8, it is mostly nonsensical. If it's where George R.R. Martin is taking the books, one can only hope he'll take more time and care to get there.
Will 'Game of Thrones' books end like series? 'Yes and no,' says author George R.R. Martin
There and back again
There might as well be a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage in Westeros.
Jon gets his perfect ending in the compromise between the Unsullied and Sansa and Arya, and heads back to the Night's Watch. (Who knows what they're guarding against these days?) Sansa goes north to claim her crown. Arya decides to go find out what's west of Westeros. Grey Worm leads the Unsullied to Naath.
'Game of Thrones' fans to HBO: Give us our Arya Stark spinoff already
Bran is the king and makes Tyrion be his Hand to fix everything he broke. Also filling out that small council chamber are: Sam, now Grand Maester; Brienne, the new lord commander of the Kingsguard; Bronn, lord of Highgarden and master of coin; and Davos, master of ships. Just what they've always wanted! Even perennial squire Podrick Payne gets knighted and selected for the Kingsguard.
At a small council meeting, Sam waltzes in with a big tome, the Archmaester's official history of the wars that followed the death of King Robert Baratheon. The title of the book? 'A Song of Ice and Fire.' Even Frodo Baggins would shake his head at that line.
The series ends with a montage that intercuts: Sansa is being crowned Queen in the North; Arya is setting sail; Jon, whose hair has returned to its Season 1 glory, meets Tormund, Ghost and the wildlings at Castle Black and goes beyond the wall with them, seemingly abandoning the watch to live with the free folk.
It was probably too much to hope for after two bad seasons, but it would have been nice to watch a finale that felt like it was part of the same story we started with in 2011. Finding happiness and self-actualization may be the proper ending for a Hallmark movie, but not for 'Game of Thrones.'
Series Like Game Of Thrones Hbo
Also of note...
Game Of Thrones Hbo Series Season 2
- Very happy to see Jon Snow finally pet his dog.
- I would really like to believe that after weeks of my tweeting about his whereabouts and writing this story, Edmure Tully's reappearance was added just for me.
- Arya's little venture westward is so open-ended I wonder if it is or ever was in the cards for a spinoff. (The last thing HBO said officially is that they're moving forward with just one prequel series.)
- Brienne didn't need to finish Jaime's page in the Kingsguard book. She needed to write her own. Another female character ill-served by this series in the end.
Thanks for reading my recaps this year (and for the last four years, if you've been with me since Season 5). It may not have ended the way I had hoped, but I did love this show for a long while there. And I loved writing about it for you.
And now my watch is ended.
Say goodbye to the 'Throne':
- Sadly, 'Game of Thrones' never fixed its problem with women
- The definitive ranking of all the 'Game of Thrones' episodes
- 'Thrones' has been about millennials this whole time
- Who won the throne?
- Merch ranked from awful to awesome
HBO's back — and the Television Academy has finally got its Schitt together. The Emmy nominations failed to disappoint on Tuesday morning, recognizing critically acclaimed series such as 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Fleabag,' and giving TV juggernaut 'Game of Thrones' a rousing farewell.
'Thrones' broke the record books this year, scoring an astounding 32 nominations — the most ever for a series in a single year. Previously, 'NYPD Blue,' which received 27 nominations in 1994, held that honor.
It's just the latest history-making turn at the Emmys for 'Game of Thrones,' which already holds the record for most Emmys won by a comedy or drama (47). That's partly because 'Game of Thrones' also boasts the title for most Emmys won by a series in a single season — and it pulled off that feat twice (12, in both 2015 and 2016).
The 'Game of Thrones' haul came despite some dissatisfaction from fans over the show's finale. Turns out it didn't matter. 'Game of Thrones'' 32 nominations was up from 22 last year, and brings the show's grand total to 161 nominations.
Pushing 'Thrones' was a massive showing in the acting categories, including three of the seven supporting drama actor slots and four of the six supporting drama actress spots.
But 'Thrones' is also a below-the-line juggernaut, cleaning up in multitudes of categories, including costumes, visual effects, cinematography, editing, hairstyling, makeup, music composition, sound editing and mixing, and so much more.
HBO didn't stop there. With 'Chernobyl' scoring the most nominations for a limited series, and 'Barry' landing the second-most noms for a comedy (behind Amazon Prime Video's 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), it was a year to remember for the pay cable giant. HBO's 137 nominations were the most in the channel's history, beating Netflix's 117 — which also happens to be the most in that streaming service's short reign.
HBO had led all networks in Emmy nominations for 17 consecutive years until last year, when Netflix took the leaderboard, with 112 nominations to HBO's 108. Ultimately, the two outlets tied for the most Emmys actually won in 2018, with 23 awards total.
Netflix has seen its Emmy nomination tally steadily rise in less than a decade, from 13 in 2013 to 54 in 2016 and 91 nominations (and 20 wins) in 2017. The rise has coincided in Netflix's quick ramp-up of original programming, and in almost every genre imaginable — making it a player in virtually every category.
This year, Netflix's haul was helped by programs including 'When They See Us,' 'Russian Doll,' 'Our Planet,' and 'Ozark.'
The tallies also revealed the differing program strategies at HBO and Netflix. HBO scored the most nominations via 23 programs, while Netflix's tally was spread across 40 different programs. That volume strategy may ultimately continue to serve Netflix well in the coming years, while HBO will continue to rely on a more targeted list of shows to resonate with voters.
HBO may have had fewer contenders, but the pay cabler spread out its dominance: It has two nominees each in comedy, drama and limited series, and three contenders in TV movie.
This year, HBO may also have a leg up when it comes to actual wins during the Creative Arts and Primetime Emmy ceremonies in September. With 'Game of Thrones,' 'Veep,' 'Deadwood: The Movie' and 'Last Week with John Oliver' believed to be the front runners in their respective categories, along with several others, the WarnerMedia pay cable network is expected to have a good night. Netflix, meanwhile, is still in the hunt for its first major series win, and all those nominations mean there's a good chance some of its contenders might cancel each other out.
Given their rival triple-digit nomination tallies, it might seem as if it's only a two-network race. And Netflix and HBO would probably like you to think that way. But other networks having a good day included Amazon, which doubled its nomination haul from 22 to 47; AMC, which is back in the game with 11 (after only receiving 1 last year); CNN, which jumped from 10 to 17; VH1, which hit a new network best with 14; and Pop, which is riding high with its four 'Schitt's Creek' nods.
The haul for 'Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,' at 20 nominations, gives the Amazon comedy — the incumbent outstanding comedy series winner — some major momentum as it heads into Emmy Phase 2 voting and faces off against the category's other favorite, HBO's 'Veep' (which landed nine nominations in its final season).
But other than 'Maisel,' 'Veep' and 'Barry' (which landed its second consecutive comedy series nomination), the category is full of fresh entrants. Amazon's 'Fleabag,' NBC's 'The Good Place,' Netflix's 'Russian Doll' and Pop TV's 'Schitt's Creek' all landed their first outstanding comedy series nominations — a triumph for the critics and fans that have celebrated those shows.
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The drama side is also enjoying an infusion of new blood. Besides returning winner 'Game of Thrones' and perennial nominees 'Better Call Saul' (AMC) and 'This Is Us' (NBC), both of which have been nominated every year they've been eligible, the deck is filled with first timers. Competing for the first time in outstanding drama are Netflix's 'Bodyguard,' BBC America's 'Killing Eve,' Netflix's 'Ozark,' FX's 'Pose' and HBO's 'Succession.'
The Emmy refresh also hit the key performer categories, which boasted 45 first-time nominees this year, up from 36 in 2018. Among the A-list names landing their first ever Emmy nods: Amy Adams ('Sharp Objects'), Benicio del Toro ('Escape at Dannemora'), Hugh Grant ('A Very English Scandal'), Michael McKean ('Better Call Saul'), Mandy Moore ('This Is Us'), Kumail Nanjiani ('The Twilight Zone'), Nick Offerman ('Making It'), Chris O'Dowd ('State of the Union'), Rosamund Pike ('State of the Union'), Billy Porter ('Pose'), Stephen Root ('Barry'), Sam Rockwell ('Fosse/Verdon'), Kristin Scott Thomas ('Fleabag'), Emily Watson ('Chernobyl') and Michelle Williams ('Fosse/Verdon').
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But there was also room for some old favorites as well — including 'Schitt's Creek' star Eugene Levy, enjoying his first Emmy nomination since 1983.
Meanwhile, it was another trying year for the broadcast networks. Despite still being the home for the Emmy telecast, the Big 4 saw their overall fortunes dip again this year — mostly because of a drop at NBC.
The Peacock network still boasts one of the most-nominated series in all of TV, 'Saturday Night Live,' which scored 18 nominations this year. But overall, NBC's tally dipped from 78 last year to 58 this year. CBS (35 to 43) and Fox (16 to 18) were up ever so slightly, while ABC (31 to 26) also saw a net loss. PBS (9 to 4) also dropped, while the TV Academy once again almost completely ignored The CW (which scraped together two nominations — granted, a boost from last year's 0).
