We’ve reached the final voting round for one of Game of Thrones‘s notable strong suits: action scenes. This year, the field of contenders was packed, with many of the preliminary nominees coming from the same episode, “The Watchers on the Wall.”
In the end, however, five nominees stood tallest and collected the most votes.
The complete voting results for round 1 of voting were:
And so the top five, your final nominees are:
Castle Black courtyard fighting in the Battle, captured with 360 degree long shot
Stannis’s troops take out Mance Rayder’s host:
The Mountain vs the Red Viper:
The Hound and Arya take on Polliver & company at the inn:
You have 48 hours, starting now and ending on 10/13/14 at 11AM Eastern Time, to choose the Best Action Scene of Game of Thrones season 4. Will it be a one-on-one match, a chaotic battle or a bloody brawl? Make your choice!
Castle black 360 wins for me as it’s probably the best action scene as well as the best shot scene(unlike others) from the list in my opinion.
It’s gotta be Brienne vs the Hound. A surprising and surprisingly well done fight scene. For a few moments, when it starts, you may believe it’s like any other sword fighting scene, but soon enough it gets really, really violent. And not in a “fun” way. Not the spectacular kind of movie violence, but dirty, realistic and messy violence.
The Hound is everywhere!
All great sequences but the technical wizardry in choreographing that 360 degree shot at Castle Black is masterful. On rewatch, it is able to give the viewer a perfect sense of the geography of the battle and most importantly, the actions of all our principal known characters within it.
What this shot does that many overhead pans or CGI-enhanced battle scenes forget, is to allow each segment of the battle with the different characters be highlighted for the viewer. The other thing that makes this shot unique on GoT is that it shows fights and confrontations all in wide shot as opposed to quick cut close ups to mask the stuntmen and women.
Starting with Jon’s entry into the battle and his quick survey of the fight which kicks off the amazing Djawadi cue in the musical score, we get to move across the courtyard and then up into a small alcove where Ygritte is patiently pegging off NW men with arrows. We get to follow the last arrow back into the far side of the courtyard where Styr is destroying all the NW men with his ax, showing him as a true force of nature. Then the camera quickly pans up in time to hear Tormund’s big gleeful “Har” battle cry before rushing up the keep stairs to force his way across the bridges between holds while mowing down NW members, again displaying his love of battle and proficiency at fighting. We pan around more mayhem in the courtyard and end with Sam suddenly running through the foreground back where we started to go and release Ghost from his pen, music still soaring.
Amazing. Love all the scenes but this is the best.
360 of the battle of castle black, no question. It didn’t even jump out at me as an in-your-face 360 at first. It is masterfully done, subtly giving us what I felt castle black lacked til then- a cohesive feel to the landscape
I’m going with Arya and the Hound, and it’s not even close, despite four other fantastic action scenes.
First off, nobody is asked to shoulder the kind of load when it comes to fighting scenes that Rory McCann did in his four years on the show – Gwen Christie probably would be next, as most others tend to have one or two significant scenes and not much else.
But the reason I love this scene so much is the blocking and choreography. There are five guys here, and so many movie and TV fight scenes fail because they don’t adequately show how it’s possible that one man could take on multiple fighters because they raise the eternal question, why don’t they all attack him at once? Game of Thrones has been less of an offender in this in the past (Yoren took out 3 or 4 guys before the spears notably overwhelmed him), so there’s that, but this scene really handles that dynamic well.
And this one never has that problem, and sorry for what’s to be a long one, but I’m laying it all out.
The fight is less than three minutes. And through the entire scene, the director adequately accounts for the time spent on the floor/knocked out/incapacitated for every character in the scene that makes it reasonable that the Hound could overpower everyone.
There are 5 other participants: Polliver, three younger men who look rather similar, and an older man with a bald head. I’ll ID them as 1 (Polliver), 2 (younger guy) 3 (Older guy) 4 (younger shaved guy) 5 (younger unshaven guy).
At zero seconds the Hound flips the table onto Polliver (1) incapacitating him. He then turns and walks in the other direction as the other four come at him.
The first is one of the younger guys (4). He parries a hit from his sword, punches him with his mailed fist (and the Hound’s armored fists would be enough to kill some people but at least knock out many others). He’s been knocked out entirely and probably hits his head against the table nearby.
The second younger man (2) comes at him after that, and the Hound blocks his sword, turns and slashes him through the torso on his back. This person does not get up again for the remainder of the fight; we’re meant to assume he’s dead or really really close.
He parries with the older, black-jacketed man (3) for a few strokes and then pushes him back, then meeting up with the last of the fighters (5), who he punches, hard, in the face, knocking him down. The older man is still on his feet, so the Hound reengages with him. He then punches him, flooring him.
By this time Polliver (1) has gotten back up. This took about 30 seconds, but given the heft of the table, and if he smacked his head, it’s perfectly reasonable that it takes this much time. At the same time #5 is also back on his feet after being knocked down by the punch for about 10 seconds (also pretty reasonable). They kick at the Hound, knock him down, attempt to get at him with their swords, and then Polliver (1) is pushed away by the Hound putting his foot in his belly area.
The Hound then knocks down #5 as well with his leg, and once again turns his attention to Polliver, who is crawling toward his sword (length of time passed about 7 seconds, also realistic) and he delivers a punch so hard it even knocks out the cameraman (seriously, watch that shot again.) He then refocuses on #5. Again, #3 and #2 are still unconscious/incapacitated.
The Hound then punches and throws #5 aside and we finally see the re-emergence of #2, the guy who had been thrown into a table. The Hound grabs his sword arm and thrusts upward into #3’s crotch, which of course by now means he’s a goner before long.
He then focuses on #2 again. Remember, #5 is – very realistically – groggy or knocked out, and Polliver of course as well. That sword hit to #3 however put the Hound off-balance, so he naturally is overpowered by the younger man this one time. But the Hound eventually gets the upper hand on #2 and stabs him in the face with his sword multiple times, killing him.
This is finally when Arya joins the fray. Three men are left (1, 3, and 5), but all are injured or hurt. We see her notice Polliver starting to stand up again as well, but clearly groggy. She bashes #5 with a pot and runs him through with a sword, killing him, and then we see Polliver approach the Hound from behind – and well played by Andy Kellegher, because he looks whipped – before Arya slashes his leg.
The Hound kills the already-hurt #3, and then of course Arya takes out Polliver.
It’s a tremendous feat of choreography and blocking and laying out of a fight and completely realistic as it takes time for these men – all experienced fighters – to recover from injuries incurred while fighting the freakishly strong Sandor Clegane. It’s such a great feat.
I’m totally good if Brienne vs. Hound wins – it’s also a great scene and a great example of two actors fighting very well in character, and it was also indeed out of nowhere and awesome. But I’m still doing this one. It floors me.
I really think this is going to be an open all-to-play for vote, with probably four of them having a really good chance to win.
I’m going to rule out the Polliver and Mountain sequences because I have already voted for them a number of times for other categories. Stannis was also not quite uo there with the rest.
So that leaves Brienne, and the 360, and it is a tricky one… I think I will go with the 360, it is just that little bit more, but I’m not too bothered which one wins here as they are all deserving of the prize.
King Tommen,
Well stated. I had my reasons for my vote, but if this one were to win, that’d be great too. Nice post.
Greatjon of Slumber,
Your post was great as well. You almost convinced me to change my vote. Almost.
The whole Castle Black episode was excellent. The 360 shot was the icing on the cake!
Easy pick for me : the 360 degree long shot was the most breathtaking visual accomplishment of the season and it was such a feast for the eyes !
The Mountain versus The Viper fight for me. Alex Graves did an amazing job with that scene and the Brienne/Hound fight playing with our emotions with brilliant editing and sound choices. For example that moment when the sound goes out right when the Hound has a dagger at Brienne’s throat and it’s clearly played like a death scene, and we all drew in our collective breaths in shock thinking Brienne was toast–then it kept going. Similar when Oberyn did his little side-flip over the Mountain’s sword, narrowly missing death, we see it in long shot (the audience’s perspective) so it takes us a second to process and realize he dodged a bullet in a most impressive way.
Ultimately, Mountain v. Viper was not the most visceral or technically impressive fight (that would be Hound/Arya versus Polliver and Co. probably, or maybe Neil Marshall’s awesome 360 shot) but it was the most emotional and devastating for me, so it gets my vote.
And let’s give a hand to Stannis’ charge, which will probably poll last (against impossibly good competition), yet was awesome, and if we all remember pretty much everyone was certain that it would pale in comparison to the books, would not have the same impact, was bound to be disappointing in terms of scale, etc…I didn’t hear anyone saying that after the episode aired, and there’s far less complaints that they’ve ruined Stannis as well, since, as in the books, they did a great job of making him look awesome and a total badass again after that scene.
Brienne vs the Hound was a very great fight… but it had so much to do with the 2 actors and the natural terrain.
360 Castle Black was the best “Action Scene”. It was fantastic for everything, the set, the actors, the directing, the ridiculousness of that being attempted in a cable TV show at all…
King Tommen, Greatjon of Slumber,
Damn good reads. For me, this award was a battle between the tight choreography of the Hound’s Inn brawl and the sprawling awesomeness of the CB 360. All sequences listed had their merit though. What a show!
Castle Black 360. It’s nice to have an easy choice for a change.
ETA: Greatjon of Slumber, that was a great breakdown. But it’s still CB360.
I was caught between the 360 Castle Black shot and Brienne vs the Hound. The first was a superbly executed mass action shot, which easily managed to convey the size and savagery of the battle at the wall, while the latter was a well choreographed duel between two finely acted roles.
Greatjon of Slumber,
I voted for the Hound & Arya inn fight for all these reasons. I like that it was a realistic fight, that the men weren’t just waiting turns patiently to be killed. It was a great brawl. I did love all the nominees. I came close to voting for the 360 shot at Castle Black, because I love all the stuff with Kit Harington and the scope of the Battle happening in the courtyard.
I voted for The Mountain versus The Viper. It was not technically best scene, i did not liked spear fighting style, but it had an emotional charge other action scenes were missing.
Only scene i did not liked was Stannis charge. It was just boring too perfect cgi stuff. Pale comparsion to Blackwater charge.
The Viper vs the Mountain. The fight that was promised and the fight that was delivered.
Its between the 360 and the Mt and Viper. While I loved the latter for the tension, and the choreography, I thought for sheer brilliance in filming as well as choreography of the fight, I had to go with 360. Wouldn’t be horribly upset if the other won instead, but for someone who isn’t a fan of large battle scenes in general, this scene gave me an appreciation of what is involved and what such filming can present to the viewer.
And can I just add my appreciation for the many posters here who take the time to explain why they chose what they did? Ive always loved a good debate, and these comments throughout this process have given me much to think about, often showing me something I hadn’t considered before, and at times have made me change my mind I also love that the comments and discussion in general has been flameless, and civil. So thanks to all my fellow geek GOT fans who’ve added much pleasure to a long summer. So, now what do we do till April?
Arya and the Hound at the inn was by far the show’s best fight scene to date. The 360 shot at Castle Black would be my number 2, then Brienne vs the Hound then Stannis’s host (which was really well done). I was underwhelmed by the Red Viper’s scene for the most part.
I voted Brienne vs The Hound best scene of the episode and this wasn’t in the books, D&D have failed to adapt the best moments of aSoS this year except Tyrion’s Trial. (thanks to Peter and Alik)
Fight at the Inn is a close second, again not in the books. D&D directed this one, I was surprised.
3rd is the 360 degree long shot, epic even if it’s short.
4th is The Mountain vs Oberyn, too short, badly edited, no soundtrack. was dissapointed with this one, Pedro Pascal saved it. Thor Bjornsson is the worst casting of the entire series with Renly, Shae, Mance and Mountain #2
5th and last is Stannis The Mannis ( it was boring, they botched this. soundtrack was forgettable as well)
I will argue that the Inn fight was in ASoS, but with different dialogue, one or two different characters, a timeline shift and a slightly different outcome.
The Hound,
The only parts of ASOS I’d say they “botched” (and even that’s an overstatement) are the actual fighting in the trial by combat (which most people disagree with, mind you) and the death of Tywin (which is almost a consensus among book readers). Joffrey’s death was perfect. The battle at the Wall was fantastic. The Lysa scene was passable (would have been better if the Jon Arryn reveal would have happened there, and I find the “your sister” thing hilarious). Oberyn was perfect throughout, even if we both think the actual fight wasn’t handeled well. The Hound and Arya’s scenes were mostly original stuff, with book stuff mixed and matched- and they aced it all. The trial was a remarkable moment of television. Meereen was very well done (at least when it comes to the ASOS material in it- I know you probably hate MissanGrey). The rest was a lot of ADWD stuff (all of which was great- Theon in Moat Cailin, the chaining of the dragons, the wight fight… as long as we forget those damned fireballs) and original stuff (which varied in quality).
I think season 5 will be better, though.
Wushu
King Tommen,
I totally agree with your comment. Amazing scene, was epic.
Music, performances… Goosebumps
Brienne vs. the Hound, of course. Gwendoline’s screams at the end will be etched in my brain forever.
The only nominee that was underwhelming to me, is the Stannis cavalry charge. It seemed as though there was no more budget after planning episode 9, they simplified it to an aerial CGI shot of a classic late-to-the-show cavalry charge.
The castle Black 360 degrees shot was a great technical achievement, mostly on rewatch.
Brienne VS the Hound, and probably the Polliver kill, showed the true gritty nature of real fights for survival.
Viper VS Mountain, was spectacular, and highly emotional with stakes that keep you to the edge of your seat.
Those are all great arguments for each nominee, but in the end my heart fluttered most during Viper VS Mountain, even though I knew the outcome.
So I vote for ELIA OF DORNE!
jentario,
You’re right Joffrey’s death was well done, but the wedding could have been better IMO.
I didn’t care for Lysa’s death because the revelation was made in Episode 5
Battle at the Wall was great until the end :/ (episode was 48 minutes long, come on man)
I also think that Season 5 will be better, at least I will enjoy it more. I still liked/loved (some scenes) Season 4 but my expectations were too high so I was disapointed during the key moments. The hype for the last three episodes was too much for me, it wasn’t even close to what I expected.
4×08 was a joke, Beetle scene (6min) Missandei/Grey Worm (5min) The Eyrie (6-7 minutes was enough you don’t need 10 ) can’t believe they have wasted so much screentime on a crucial episode, man I was so pissed.
4×09 I was pleased until the fookin ending
4×10 was a MASSIVE letdown (well except for The Hound/Arya/Brienne/Pod)
dialogue was pure gold before the fight.
I just think that anyone voting for the Mountain vs the Viper is voting for the last few seconds, when the fight is (almost) over… Which kind of beats the purpose of this vote. I guess if there are any Unsullied around, they have an unadultarated opinion since they didn’t know what was going to happen (which must have made the scene much much more intense).
jentario,
Most of my unsullied friends liked more Arya/The Hound vs Polliver & co and of course Brienne vs The Hound.
The only things I liked in the fight was Ellaria’s scream and the performance of Pedro.
The Hound,
The headsplosion was well done, though I do think that was too much (in both book and show).
That plot was rushed at ten minutes. It certainly couldn’t have been done in seven.
Concerning my vote:
I thought the fight at the inn was pretty poorly done (though some posters here have made good arguments why they think otherwise). Stannis’ charge was anticlimactic. The 360 shot was flashy, but I don’t know that I’d really all it a great action scene. Of the remaining two, I ultimately went with the Hound/Brienne fight, which had better choreography, so I’ll rate it higher as an action scene, despite the Oberyn/Mountain fight having the better ending.
This was so hard, because this was the best season yet for action.
Had to go with the Viper/Mountain, but the battle at the Wall, and the Hound/Brienne were just as deserving.
Worst edited fight scene. Too rushed and choppy. But a grand cunt punt so its my second placer.
360 shot. I’m a sucker for perfection.
Having watched all scenes back to judge them on the quality of the action specifically, my vote goes to Brienne vs the Hound. It was an unexpected scene, the swordplay was very good, and when it turned gritty it felt the most real of all of these scenes. What made it really stand out for me was the acting of Rory and Gwendoline – the fury in Gwendolines cries towards the end made the outcome entirely believable. And that was the freakin’ Hound she was fighting!! That said, besides the Stannis scene (which I personally find rather generic – it’s mostly people riding horses), all of them would be worthy of an award for different reasons.
Mine is the Furry,
*cunt kick
I had to go with Brienne vs The Hound. Though that 360 Castle Black fight had me in shock as well. All those fights listed were great.
When do we find out the winners? Presumably once all the categories have been voted on, but I’m curious how many categories are left.
Well, it’s really a choice between Brienne vs the Hound and the 360 degree shot of *everyone* fighting in Castle Black.
I went with Brienne vs Hound due to its more complex fight choreography plus character moments.
Oberyn vs the Viper really wasn’t as great as it could be; the camerawork just wasn’t very “involved” because they wanted to use a stuntman so much that they would always pull the camera out so it was less obvious. Compare the cinematography for even the Alisser vs Tormund fight.
I gotta give some love to the Stannis charge. It was exhilarating.
No contest. CB 360 was absolutely amazing, and I was completely blown away when I first watched it.
I think there are three more categories left – best guest actor, best guest actress and best overall quote.
ash,
Re – read the books, for a change?
Oh please Castle Black 360 degree shot took my breath away the first time I saw it and it has always the same effect on me!
It’s perfection.
I voted Brienne vs.the Hound, because “action scene” in my opinion does not need to be “battle scene” – then it would have been Castle Black. The fight between Brienne and the Hound started – as it was noted already – as a more or less classic sword fight, only to develop to a murderous struggle which each of them tried to win by all means. This was the moment when the “action” shifted from the mere skill to the drama of the persons involved (” I have no wish to kill you, Ser”, which kept the fight going on) ; and for me thats action at its best. – Besides, I was really dragged to the Mountain vs. the Viper – that fighting was excellent and a choreography very close to reality in Asian Martial Arts (could have been Wushu, I guess) , But there it is – I stay with Brienne vs. the Hound.
But the analysis of Greatjon was astounding….WoW.
ash,
The Telltale game should come out soonish, so that could be fun. For now, filming news…
Annara Snow,
Has best cgi been done yet? And I think overall quote actually has been done. Or maybe I’m thinking of the prelims…
Just look at these choices – Gods, this show is good!
I’d be fine with the 360 shot or either of the Hound fights winning.
Stannis’ arrival was the easiest to elimibate. It wasn’t bad by any means, it was an exciting moment watching the army come into the forest. But the whole point of the scene wqs to show the Baratheon forces just utterly! destroying the wildlings, which is less exciting than a more balnced action scene.
And I said it before in the prelims, but the trial by combat was a great dramatic scene but by far not the best action scene of the season. It had the emotional investment, but not the choreography or direction of the best Game of Thrones scenes.
Which is why I’m voting Brienne vs the Hound. Not only was it thrilling to watch and directed extremely well, like Hound vs. Polliver and company, but I was really inveeted in both characters who were fighting. I had a knot in my stomach during the entire fight, and on rewatch it’s just as tense and exciting as the first time I watched it.
Too many good ones to choose from! I went with Mountain vs Viper because Pedro was doing his best to keep it awesome and for the wushu spear style which I thought was something we hadn’t seen before and very exciting!
Best scene for me was the fight between Bran and Co and the wights at the weirwood tree. The significance cannot be overstated that strong magic is rising that will over shadow all the armies and orders of mankind.
jentario,
The opposite. I disliked the over-the-top ending, but loved the choreography of the fight and the contrast in styles. Tense, emotional, and Pascal was great.
ashara,
Hee, done that many times for the first three, and just recently read the last two. No, I think I want to watch past seasons; haven’t done that at all; perhaps its time to look at getting the DVDs…
jentario,
I’m unsullied but I actually I viewed the Mountain vs. Viper episode a few times after the first mind-blowing watch, which puts it into perspective. Sorta.
The first time I watched the Arya/Hound scene at the Inn was a real heart/pounder too! So right now I’m still trying decide between the 360 shot and the Inn scene.
Greatjon of Slumber,
now I kind of want to change my answer. this is a great analysis.
I went with dog vs wench. all of these fights are fantastic, but this fight affected me the most (mountain/viper affected me after the fighting was really done).
I’m usually not a squeamish person, at all, but when brienne and sandor were just beating the shit out of each other, it made me feel terrible. I wanted to look away.
this fight felt so incredibly real. the hitting, brienne’s screaming, everything. fantastic.
I’m going with Neil Marshall and his 360 Castle Black fight scene! No doubt. While the other scenes nominated were really fine on their own merit, a shout out to Pedro Pascal and Thor for their hard work, as an overall achievement my choice for voting was clear cut.
That360 scene is just pure brinksmanship, talent and vision, a feat of cinematography, coreography and editing! Bravo!
Waxfoot,
I don’t know, I think this fight doesn’t reach the heels of some of the others in the vote. It was basically- watch Oberyn and the Mountain trade blows for three minutes before anything actually happens. It never felt like the fight was developing (unlike the fight at the inn or Brienne vs the Hound), it didn’t feel like there was a rising tension… Just Oberyn doing his pretty moves while the Mountain misses. I think one of the main factors to worsen the fight (at least in my opinion) was the complete lack of music throughout. If they would have played some exciting, nerve racking music while showing Oberyn and the Mountain fight for their lives… It could have easily been the best fight in the show. Instead what we got is all style and no substance- Oberyn twirling around while repeating his famous line for three minutes until he got the Mountain on his back, and then the overly gruesome ending (the show did a good job adapting the books there, but I don’t think it’s GRRM’s finest death scene- it’s just too much).
And I definitely don’t think this was Pedro at his best, as some believe. Pedro at his best was inside the cell with Tyrion. I love Pedro and I love Oberyn (he’s probably my favorite non-POV character in the series) but I think the other fight scenes mentioned above are far better. They felt more like a story- the fighters used the environment, the shots were varied, there was a real sense of danger and force being used… The Hound at the inn has to be the show’s best fight scene, with his fight with Berric and his fight with Brienne as close seconds.
jentario,
I see your reasons for preferring another scene. But for me, I’m with Waxfoot- the ending was not the compelling part, I enjoyed the fight itself and it’s significance and tension. Pedro brought it with the wushu style, and they did a great job editing to ensure the viewer could see the required reactions (Tyrion, Ellaria, the other Lannisters) to give emotional impact as it ensued. I agree music would have helped, but I think it was a great scene regardless! I think the biggest problem I had with it was that we had these great emotions from Pedro, but we barely saw the Mountain- it could have been a robot for all we knew until the final seconds of the fight, and I get that that’s kind of what the mountain is, but I think it would have improved the scene to see two sides battling fiercely (like in Brienne/Hound) rather than on side battling a wall. But it still got my vote!
Brienne vs the Hound felt so real I almost voted for it. Went with the fighting in the Castle Black courtyard, though. That was one breathtaking rollercoaster of a scene.
I have forgotten but I probably voted for “The Mountain vs The Viper” fight in The Best Drama Scene category. That was Drama by the big “D”. But the choreography of fight, editing and action was better in “The Inn” scene. There were these emotions which I expect from the action/battle moments in movie or tv series. So I voted for the best western genre scene in Game of Thrones.
You’re right, the best CGI hasn’t been done yet.
But you’re wrong about the best overall quote. We’ve only done the Funniest Quote.
I’m hoping that Mel’s “There’s only one hell” quote has made it to the final. And Tyrion’s “the dwarf, the cripple and the mother of madness” quote, since it didn’t make it to the final of the Funniest Quote.
So, I guess that means four more categories to vote on.
Brienne vs The Hound got me thrilled.
One does vote with the heart! Though I think it was the most visceral. Yes, it was already a set up duel, so the fight was expected but as far as the end result and how emotional I felt it I think it was the most visceral even knowing the conclusion. The Arya killing Polliver, slowly and deliberately was pretty much the most calculated one for me. Both though had revenge as the basic raw emotion as the underlying element.
Hound vs. Polliver. That’s the only truly great fighscene. CB had a nice gimmick, but the choreography was shitty compared to the brilliance displayed in the inn fight. Even better, the inn scene had great choreography shot in a way that was easy to follow. Something very rare sadly.
100% true. Oby vs. Greg was a major disappointment.
Argh I used my phone to vote and I mistakenly clicked on The Mountain and The Viper instead of Brienne vs. The Hound. They’re both amazing but my vote goes to Brienne vs. The Hound the choreography on that scene is 100x better than the Mountain and Viper. Damn thumb
The 360, mos def. It was so good. I really appreciated the boldness and confidence of the directors in S4. I admit, I’m a little worried that will be lacking in S5 with mostly new directors. But then again, AFFC & ADWD have a completely new atmosphere, so maybe that can be conveyed by using different directors.
King Tommen,
I agree with everything you said!