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Episode 804 was the worst ‘Game of Thrones’ episode in the show’s history, according to IMDB

Published May 9th, 2019 12:30PM EDT
Game of Thrones Season 8
Image: HBO

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The Last of the Starks

, or episode 4 from the final season of Game of Thrones, was by far the worst episode in the entire history of the show, and now we have real data to support that claim. It received plenty of criticism not because of what it tried to do, but because of how it was all handled. It’s as if the showrunners and writers completely forgot everything that has made Game of Thrones great. The episode defied logic and common sense, brought Starbucks beverages to Westeros, and ignited debates about how it’s portraying women and dealing with race issues. No Game of Thrones episode is perfect, some will say, and that’s true. But I miss the days when my biggest concern with the Game of Thrones plot was explaining how the White Walkers crafted, transported and used those heavy chains to drag out Viserion out of the frozen water.

It’s the kind of episode that Septa Unella, may the Lord of Light rest her soul, should take out in the streets and shame as hordes of Game of Thrones fans get to voice their anger. As it turns out, that’s what IMDB is for. And with an average rating of 6.6 from more than 62,000 votes, the episode is sinking and ruining the entire season’s rating in the process.

Unlike some forms of entertainment that trolls try to “kill” with review bombs, Game of Thrones has never had this problem. So it’s not like Game of Thrones haters have decided, with two episodes to go, to ruin the show’s rating. The series still has an amazing 9.5 average score from nearly 1.5 million IMDB votes. Not all the people who rated the entire series, however, scored each episode.

Some would show you only the following screenshot to make their point:

Image source: IMDB

But not us. No, we went back and looked at each Game of Thrones episode and its IMDB review to collect all the rating data.

Season 1: Average IMDb rating of 9.15 with an average number of 24,279 votes per episode.

Season 1 2011 Rating Votes
Ep.1 Winter Is Coming 9.30 31,264
Ep.2 The Kingsroad 8.80 23,843
Ep.3 Lord Snow 8.70 22,547
Ep.4 Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things 8.80 21,365
Ep.5 The Wolf and the Lion 9.10 22,334
Ep.6 A Golden Crown 9.30 22,153
Ep.7 You Win or You Die 9.30 22,700
Ep.8 The Pointy End 9.10 20,876
Ep.9 Baelor 9.60 29,669
Ep.10 Fire and Blood 9.50 26,043
Average 9.15 24,279

Season 2: Average IMDb rating of 9.03 with an average number of 21,100 votes per episode.

Season 2 2012 Rating Votes
Ep.1 The North Remembers 8.90 20,699
Ep.2 The Night Lands 8.60 19,494
Ep.3 What Is Dead May Never Die 8.90 19,286
Ep.4 Garden of Bones 8.90 18,587
Ep.5 The Ghost of Harrenhal 8.90 17,747
Ep.6 The Old Gods and the New 9.10 19,738
Ep.7 A Man Without Honor 9.00 19,155
Ep.8 The Prince of Winterfell 8.90 18,871
Ep.9 Blackwater 9.70 33,729
Ep.10 Valar Morghulis 9.40 23,692
Average 9.03 21,100

Season 3: Average IMDb rating of 9.10 with an average number of 25,726 votes per episode.

Season 3 2013 Rating Votes
Ep.1 Valar Dohaeris 8.90 20,893
Ep.2 Dark Wings, Dark Words 8.70 18,690
Ep.3 Walk of Punishment 8.90 18,876
Ep.4 And Now His Watch Is Ended 9.60 26,258
Ep.5 Kissed by Fire 9.00 19,233
Ep.6 The Climb 8.90 19,080
Ep.7 The Bear and the Maiden Fair 8.80 18,335
Ep.8 Second Sons 9.10 18,982
Ep.9 The Rains of Castamere 9.90 75,326
Ep.10 Mhysa 9.20 21,591
Average 9.10 25,726

Season 4: Average IMDb rating of 9.33 with an average number of 28,954 votes per episode.

Season 4 2014 Rating Votes
Ep.1 Two Swords 9.10 25,338
Ep.2 The Lion and the Rose 9.70 40,629
Ep.3 Breaker of Chains 8.90 20,810
Ep.4 Oathkeeper 8.90 19,924
Ep.5 First of His Name 8.80 19,219
Ep.6 The Laws of Gods and Men 9.70 36,181
Ep.7 Mockingbird 9.20 21,642
Ep.8 The Mountain and the Viper 9.70 39,886
Ep.9 The Watchers on the Wall 9.60 33,153
Ep.10 The Children 9.70 32,758
Average 9.33 28,954

Season 5: Average IMDb rating of 8.90 with an average number of 28,463 votes per episode.

Season 5 2015 Rating Votes
Ep.1 The Wars to Come 8.60 22,212
Ep.2 The House of Black and White 8.60 19,170
Ep.3 High Sparrow 8.60 18,475
Ep.4 Sons of the Harpy 8.80 19,081
Ep.5 Kill the Boy 8.70 19,313
Ep.6 Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken 8.10 21,956
Ep.7 The Gift 9.10 21,458
Ep.8 Hardhome 9.90 77,447
Ep.9 The Dance of Dragons 9.50 33,255
Ep.10 Mother’s Mercy 9.10 32,260
Average 8.90 28,463

Season 6: Average IMDb rating of 9.12 with an average number of 54,220 votes per episode.

Season 6 2016 Rating Votes
Ep.1 The Red Woman 8.60 31,305
Ep.2 Home 9.40 37,525
Ep.3 Oathbreaker 8.80 25,593
Ep.4 Book of the Stranger 9.20 27,756
Ep.5 The Door 9.70 56,154
Ep.6 Blood of My Blood 8.50 25,365
Ep.7 The Broken Man 8.70 24,566
Ep.8 No One 8.50 28,350
Ep.9 Battle of the Bastards 9.90 169,187
Ep.10 The Winds of Winter 9.90 116,403
Average 9.12 54,220

Season 7: Average IMDb rating of 9.21 with an average number of 44,176 votes per episode.

Season 7 2017 Rating Votes
Ep.1 Dragonstone 8.70 39,852
Ep.2 Stormborn 9.00 33,697
Ep.3 The Queen’s Justice 9.30 35,167
Ep.4 The Spoils of War 9.80 69,793
Ep.5 Eastwatch 9.00 33,171
Ep.6 Beyond the Wall 9.20 49,316
Ep.7 The Dragon and the Wolf 9.50 48,236
Average 9.21 44,176

Season 8: Average IMDb rating of 7.95 with an average number of 79,290 votes per episode so far.

Season 8 2019 Rating Votes
Ep.1 Winterfell 8.30 64,967
Ep.2 A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms 8.60 59,358
Ep.3 The Long Night 8.30 130,077
Ep.4 The Last of the Starks 6.60 62,759
Ep.5 Untitled
Ep.6 Untitled
Average 7.95 79,290

With only two episodes left in the season, it’ll be interesting to see if any of the remaining installments will be able to break episode 804’s IMDB record. Valar Morghulis!

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.