re: I seriously am in shock reading this board with the negative opinions

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oh the visuals and scope were amazing for TV

the writing, story, characters, etc were the bad parts

the thing is, this isn't a show built on amazing visual spectacles and big battles. it's built on writing, story, characters, etc

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Oh, it's perfectly acceptable to say "I don't like the way they took this story". That's legit, from many angles, whether it be that you don't get the subtle character interactions you wanted, or whether you rooted for Dany as champion of the downtrodden for 7 seasons, and now she's a terrible monster.

But story aside, the effort dumped into this episode is amazing. Someone commented "it's like a Michael Bay movie"; but bullshite. Bay hasn't gone THIS BIG in detailed utter destruction, and he's made feature films with probably 90% of the budget devoted to that.

And I might point out, most of the writing, story, characters, etc- they've been moving in a direction from the get-go. If nothing happens and all you get is dialogue, then it's basically a witty Brit tv show. There aren't future seasons, this is a story that is coming to an end, and the characters need resolution.
Dany has been coming for the Iron Throne.
Jon has been the reluctant hero.
Cersei has been rolling towards disaster, wilfully blind to the probable final outcome. Jaime has been both noble and also hopelessly devoted to his sister.

The North has despised the South, to the point that they would not accept a Southern ruler, even if they needed said ruler to help defend against a zombie apocalypse. If you spit on them before that battle, then of course you're likely not going to be particularly gentle when you storm into their castle in battle. Hell, Sansa might say what Dany did was wrong, but a lot of the Northern leaders might decide "well, she let us slaughter those frickers, she might not be so bad afterall", because that's what most wanted.