The Wolf and the Stag: Arya and Gendry Arc
Game of Thrones Season 8 has been a colossal failure not due to lack of time or investment, not due to the show runners obnoxious penchant for visual spectacle and battle aesthetics over plot development - but the biggest reason why Season 8 has failed miserably is due to the serious lack of character understanding from the writers of the show. Character consistency and its gradual evolution has been the back bone of what made GOT so interesting as a fantasy drama and what made it so appealing to its millions of fans.
But they have visibly moved away from that and decided to butcher character's true nature to fit an overall narrative aimed at ending the season faster. This is what makes the show so stupid starting from the very first episode of Season 8.
Arya Stark
Episode starts with Arya standing in a crowd and witnessing the parade like a dumb idiot. Why exactly is she doing it? Because Arya loves to be a misfit and do the unlikely? It's so silly from the writers to portray Arya exhibiting the same childish characters she exhibited in Season 1- 1st episode.
Even if they wanted to show her as being non-conforming and free spirited, they could have showed her manning a wall and watching the parade or do something entirely different like practicing her shooting skills not minding the parade at all (it would have been more bad-ass in line with her character to ignore something as important as the arrival of the Dragon Queen).
Something more sensible than just standing in the crowd like an idiot and lame-watching Jon/Danerys arrival would have been so much better. And what is worse is her ogling at Gendry like some cheap fan girl. It is so out of character. And the subsequent visits to the Foundry/Forgery to keep hitting on him is literally flawed at so many levels. The show runners felt necessary to build up the sexual tension as they failed to establish any connection between the two in their previous episodes that they decided to throw these random coyish traits from Arya which is absolutely cringe-worthy (Trained assassin of the famed Faceless Men - giggling like a little girl. Yucks!).
Instead, all they had to do was keep the narrative true to her character. Arya is the most non-girlish character for any girl in the show (Brienne, despite everything, wants to be a normal girl at heart. But Arya completely despises being a normal girl).
They could have just let Arya focus on the weapon, the mission and the general past with Gendry. The sex would have happened eventually in a typical Arya fashion, instinctively, without any girly drama as they have shown in the episode. This suits her narrative better than the stupidly uncharacteristic looks she gives him in the weapon forgery/foundry.
Gendry Baratheon
They did a great disservice to Gendry by letting him ask for Arya's hand in marriage after being declared Lord of the Stormlands. Gendry is the most unassuming simple character who loves a good fight (and a good fuck! may be). He is not for titles and never one for gloating (hardly talks about being Robert's Bastard). For him to immediately approach Arya for marriage after becoming Lord Baratheon is plain stupid. If at all he wanted to approach Arya for marriage he would have done it as Gendry Rivers, (and he would still have been rejected by Arya because its not in her to settle down as a married lady).
Instead the show repeatedly makes him say "Always knew you were a lady" like its some impediment for him to approach her (remember he went to Jon, didn't care Jon was king in the North and told him he wanted to help). The very same character is now suddenly calling Arya "rich lady" and then approaching her after becoming a Lord. Stupid writing..
It would have been better if the narrative went this way!
Arya meets Gendry - Talks about their past (Hot pie/Harrenhal/Red Woman etc.) - Talks about weapon - The impending war - Then hesitates for a sec and then kisses him out of the blue when alone - He hesitates for a few seconds - She retreats - but he re-engages her for sex - They are done with it - Talk about it next day - Arya clearly says not interested in being a wife - He agrees without any drama - An atypical chemistry between the two - Move on!
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