A visual analysis of Game of Thrones' stunning 'Battle of the Bastards,' in 37 images

Here's why everyone can't stop talking about director Miguel Sapochnik's visual masterpiece

There's a lot to praise in the direction and cinematography of Game of Thrones' latest episode, "Battle of the Bastards," but to me, one of the most fascinating choices was also — compared to dragons, dying giants, and the agonizing, almost expressionist footage of Jon suffocating — rather subtle.

I'm talking about the formal parallels between these two shots in which the Stark siblings go rogue — on different-colored horses and facing opposite directions. Sansa leaves the parley and rides away from Boltons and Starks alike after telling Ramsey to sleep well since he'll be dying tomorrow. (Is she riding off to get Littlefinger? It's unclear, cf. the Sansa Problem.) The next day we see Jon in the same location doing the same thing, but riding the other way.

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Lili Loofbourow

Lili Loofbourow is the culture critic at TheWeek.com. She's also a special correspondent for the Los Angeles Review of Books and an editor for Beyond Criticism, a Bloomsbury Academic series dedicated to formally experimental criticism. Her writing has appeared in a variety of venues including The Guardian, Salon, The New York Times Magazine, The New Republic, and Slate.