Where to be Merry: Game of Thrones “The Spoils of War” Screening @ The Regal LA LIVE Stadium, Downtown Los Angeles

To celebrate the recent release of Game of Thrones: The Complete Seventh Season on Blu-ray™ and DVD, HBO Home Entertainment hosted a special event at downtown L.A.’s Regal LA LIVE Stadium 14, Friday, Jan. 19 and Saturday, Jan. 20. 

HBO held four separate screenings — two on Friday night and two on Saturday night — of Season 7’s “Spoils of War” episode, along with other bonus content found on the Blu-ray™ and DVD sets. 

Before and after the screening, guests could get up and personal with a few GOT props. In a gallery featuring the "fallen conquerors of Westeros," there were regal framed photos of some of the infamous GOT royalty — including the good (Jon Snow), the beautiful (Margaery Tyrell) and the ones we love to hate (ugh, Joffrey Baratheon). Each photo was inscribed with a quote from its respective king or queen, providing insight into his or her thoughts on ruling. 

A detailed Dragonstone map was prominently displayed nearby as well, denoting significant places like King’s Landing and putting all of the locations in the series in relation to one another.

Guests could even sit and take pictures in massive replications of the Iron Throne and Dragonstone Throne. As you can see from the photo below, I got pretty comfortable in the royal seat. I think being a queen just might serve me well! 

The night I attended, Matt Shakman, who directed the "The Spoils of War" episode, kicked off the screening with a brief introduction. Random cool facts about this guy: he’s a former child star (The Facts of Life, Diff'rent Strokes and Webster, to name a few), and, he’s directed two GOT episodes (also "Eastwatch") plus dozens of other television show episodes, including It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. As if that’s not enough for accomplishments, he’s also now the artistic director for UCLA’s Geffen Playhouse.

After Shakman's intro, a very brief clip took us "Inside the Art Department" to see how the Dragonstone Throne and other sets were created, and explained that for "The Spoils of War" episode, the crew reached a new record for setting the most people on fire — 20 — in a single shot.

Next up was "Conquest and Rebellion," a 45-minute animation that explains just how Westeros came to be through the aggressive, and quite violent, conquest by King Aegon I Targaryen. It’s available on the Season 7 Blu-ray™ and DVD set, or, you can watch it here.



Rounding out the night was the fourth episode in season 7, "The Spoils of War" episode, which is the third most viewed episode in the series to-date. Main highlights include Jon Snow finding cave drawings at Dragonstone indicating that the Children of the Forest and First Men previously united to fight against the White Walkers; Arya returning to Winterfell, connecting once again with her siblings Sansa and Bran; and an epic battle scene taking place when Daenerys Targaryen and her Dothraki army pay a surprise visit to Jaime Lannister’s army, bringing nothing but death, destruction and an angry, fire-breathing dragon that literally destroys everything in its path.

And even though I had previously viewed "The Spoils of War" in the comforts of my own home, watching it once again — this time on a colossal screen and with surround sound that made you feel vibrations for each and every loud "boom" or "thud"— really was incredible. I wish I could watch all of the series in a theater; it truly augments the story in such a magical, larger-than-life way.

Getting a chance to revisit the GOT series by attending this screening and interacting with some of the props made me remember just how much I enjoy this show and I seriously cannot wait until Season 8 debuts, in 2019 (must we wait an entire year???)!

Are you a Game of Thrones fan, and if so, what’s your favorite season and/or episode?

I’ll see you at another screening sometime soon!