Not a single season of Game Of Thrones is available for streaming on Netflix. Because HBO owns the production rights for the series, it can only be watched on its streaming platforms – HBO Go or HBO Now. The former is a free streaming platform that comes with your already paid cable plan. So, to access Game Of Thrones for free, you must be an HBO subscriber.
Game of Thrones is a fantasy television series, which is an adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s bestselling book series – A Song of Fire and Ice. The first two seasons are based on the first novel A Game of Thrones and parts of the second novel, A Clash Of Kings.
This American show premiered on April 17, 2011, and spanned over seven years with a total of eight seasons and seventy-three episodes. The show’s eighth and final season aired in 2019 from April 14 to May 19. The show boasts an excellent ensemble cast of actors which includes Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke, Kit Harington, Sophie Turner, and Maisie Williams among others.
Game Of Thrones Seasons 1-7 Synopsis
Game of Thrones follows the battle for total control over the seven kingdoms, the rightful claim to the Iron Throne, and a fight between humans and the ‘White Walkers’ – an army of the undead led by men of ice who have superhuman strength.
The geographical setting of this show is primarily in the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos. This epic fantasy offers a mix of romance, and adventure sprinkled with comedy and an endless supply of twists.
In season one, we are introduced to all the key figures upon which the story is built such as the Lannisters – whose primary members are the incestuous twins, Jamie and Cersei; their younger brother, the imp – Tyrion, and their hard-handed father, Tywin.
There’s also the Stark household made up of Ned Stark; his wife, Catelyn, and their children – Robb, Sansa, Arya, Bran, and Rickon, as well as Ned’s bastard child, Jon Snow. We are also introduced to Daenerys Targaryen who considers herself the legitimate heir to the Iron Throne.
The Lannisters, as of season one, have control of the seven kingdoms with the seat of power at King’s Landing, the Starks live in Winterfell and exercise control over the North with the patriarch of the house, Ned Stark as Warden of the North.
Daenerys Targaryen is offered up in marriage to Khal Drogo by her brother, who wants an army to claim back the Iron Throne which he believes he is the rightful heir to. The season ends with the death of Robert Baratheon the king in King’s Landing, the death of Ned Stark, the death of Khal Drogo, the birth of Daenerys Targaryen as the mother of dragons, and the march of the White Walkers signifying that ‘Winter is coming’.
The following seasons, two and three, see some of the actions that began in the first season continue, Daenerys Targaryen grows stronger, her dragons grow bigger and stronger and her army also increases, especially with the conquer of the Astapori Masters and her taking control of the Unsullied.
The Stark family is scattered across the kingdoms; Robb – the first Stark son takes control of the North and leads them in a battle against the Lannister army in an attempt to revenge the unlawful death of his father.
The Lannisters are still in control and Cersei’s first son, Joffrey sits on the Iron Throne. In these seasons, the men of the Night Watch find dragon glass that will be helpful in their fight against the White Walkers.
Bran, the Stark child who was pushed off a ledge by Jamie Lannister in the first season learns of his new powers that become stronger as he goes further North of the wall. Lady Catelyn frees Jamie who had been taken as a prisoner of war, with the hope of securing her daughters’ safety in King’s Landing, unbeknownst to her, Arya has run away and Sansa is to marry into the Lannister family.
The third season ends with the death of Lady Catelyn and her son Robb. The season also ends with Ramsey Snow’s capture of Theon Greyjoy, of Winterfell and the North. Stannis Baratheon and his army march to the wall, to help the Night Watch fight the White Walkers, who, in the first season, had begun their march to the wall.
The story progresses in Game Of Thrones in seasons four and five with the introduction of new characters. Actions in these seasons occur in King’s Landing, Winterfell, Dorne, The Wall, Beyond the Wall, and Essos – which is a different continent from Westeros.
Daenerys starts an affair with one of her bodyguards, has her chief advisor exiled, and locks up two of her dragons after one kills a farmer’s child. She also struggles to maintain order in the kingdoms she has captured and at the end of season five, she is captured by another Khalaser.
The Lannisters are more powerful than ever under the control of their patriarch, Tywin. Joffrey dies violently from a poison attack and Tyrion, his uncle and former Hand of the King is blamed for the murder by Cersei.
For the Lannisters, the fourth season ends with Tywin getting killed by his son, Tyrion. Cersei orders the revival of The Mountain after his death from a poisoned blade and she continues the affair she has with her twin brother, Jamie.
Jon Snow, the current leader of the Night Watch, has had his first battle with the White Walkers and decides to use his power to help the ostracized Wildings, as the White Walkers are killing them in large numbers and adding them to their growing army of the undead. This action elicits strong opposition from the men of the Night Watch, leading to a mutiny against Jon Snow.
The perverse ways of Ramsey are exposed as he psychologically and physically tortures Theon, one of the ways he does this is to rape Sansa in front of him. Sansa, who had returned home to find out that her home has been taken over by the Bolton army, is forced to marry Ramsey.
We are introduced to the High Sparrow whose pious ways and zealousness pose a problem for the elites and royalty in King’s Landing, including the Lannisters. Bran Stark meets the Three-Eyed Raven and begins his training to hone his powers.
In the sixth season, Jon Snow is brought back to life by the Red Prophetess, defeats Ramsey, and claims back Winterfell.
In season seven, he meets Daenerys and convinces her to join the fight against the White Walkers, Daenerys had already defeated the Khalaser that kidnapped her and had made the Dothraki cross the seas, an action that goes against their principles and culture but because of her numerous feats and her unrivaled power they pledge allegiance to her.
Cersei, who has killed most of her enemies in a bombing, including the High Sparrow, now rules in King’s Landing and has refused to send soldiers to help with the battle against the White Walkers, Jamie, her brother goes against her wishes and joins the forces of the Targaryen girl and the King in the North, Jon Snow.
Season seven ends with the White Walkers approaching the wall and destroying it with dragon fire while the final season shows the climax of the series’ two main conflicts: the Great War against the Army of the Dead, and the Last War for control of the Iron Throne.
The show amassed millions of viewers and swept numerous awards, including the Emmy. However, for six years beginning from 2012, it held the highest number of illegal downloads.
Online Streaming
One of the Frequently Asked Questions about the show is if it is available for streaming on Netflix; sadly, no, it is not. Even the old seasons are not available on Netflix. HBO owns the production rights for Game of Thrones and as a result of the tough competition that exists between these two companies, it means that you can only watch the show on HBO’s streaming platform.
And if you were wondering, yes, all seven seasons are currently available for streaming. All you need to do is create an HBO account, search for the season of Game of Thrones you wish to watch, and stream as much as you want.
There are two options for seeing Game of Thrones on HBO and they are HBO Go and HBO Now. HBO Go is a free streaming platform that comes with your already paid cable plan. As long as HBO is part of your cable package, you can access it on your mobile devices, including laptops and iPads, totally for free.
All you need to do is either download the HBO Go app or visit the HBO website. Once at the website, input your cable package details, your username, and password and you have unfettered access to the episodes you want to see.
Using HBO Now, this works just like your Netflix account, for this, you have to pay a subscription fee of $14.99, However, just like HBO Go, you have to download the app or visit their website.
This works perfectly for people who do not use cable, you can access HBO Now on any of your mobile devices as long as you have the app. With HBO Now, you get a month’s free trial, allowing you to catch up on old and the latest episodes of Game of Thrones for free.
If you have an Amazon Prime account but not an HBO one, you can pay for HBO channels at a rate of $15 from your Amazon account and you can watch as many episodes as you want.