content: 
  ====Daenerys's arc====
  Critics generally considered Daenerys Targaryen's (Emilia Clarke) villainous turn in this episode unearned.
  Daenerys's turn from hero to villain was especially criticized, with many reviewers and fans feeling that, because she was built up as a morally good protagonist for seven seasons, it made no narrative sense, or that it was not executed properly within the provided timescale. Mike Hogan of ''Vanity Fair'' said that although the show had been clear that Daenerys has a temper, "we have seen her balance that violence with mercy, kindness, and above all shrewdness." Zack Beauchamp of ''Vox'' argued that Daenerys's previous cruelties were somewhat logical because she killed people who "committed crimes deserving of punishment" and Samwell Tarly's father and brother because they "refused to submit to her rule," but that there was no reason to go after harmless civilians. He said although the show had been "building toward Daenerys becoming the Mad Queen" and this route could have worked, "its execution was sloppy and rushed" and "it felt as if Daenerys had become a monster simply because the show needed her to become a monster, not because it was paying off a thoughtfully developed character turn." ''Slate'''s Sam Adams said "the show spent far more time making Dany a hero" than building her up as the Mad Queen.
  ''The Atlantic'' staff opined, "''Game of Thrones'' could have easily demonstrated the nasty reality of Daenerys's fight for Westeros without putting the choice to massacre innocents directly on her shoulders. Instead, 'The Bells' ended up painting one of the most pivotal plot points in the final season as an emotional lashing-out from a tired, lonely, paranoid young woman." Kathryn VanArendonk of ''Vulture'' also criticized the episode for "ultimately hinging on a trope as painfully stale as 'and then the scary powerful woman goes crazy'." Eliana Dockterman of ''Time'' criticized the analyses of Daenerys's advisors as also playing "into the terrible trope of the crazed, power-hungry woman" and Tyrion's advice as having kept Daenerys from taking the Iron Throne much earlier and without as much bloodshed. She said she understood the idea of power corrupting "a heroic figure like Daenerys" and Daenerys falling prey to a messiah complex, but that the show needed to evolve her to that point like it evolved other characters to their points. Alan Sepinwall of ''Rolling Stone'' stated that Daenerys's descent into madness is the kind of development that requires "at least another half of a regular-length GoT season to feel earned."
  Myles McNutt of ''The A.V. Club'' said that Daenerys's final arc comes down to two aspects – story development and character development. He said Daenerys burning down King's Landing is a logical and effective way of ending the story on a thematic level, adding that how "it reshapes the rest of the episode is a striking reframing of the violence that has defined the show." Character-wise, he felt that the choice was "undeniably trickier" because one might be led to believe that Daenerys's choice was purely reflexive when it was instead due to "a collection of life experiences that left her believing that ruling with fear was the only path ahead of her." He said "the writers failed to create the necessary structure for the villainous turn" and they could have better highlighted Daenerys's destiny as a villain by referencing things such as her prophecy in Qarth. ''Variety'''s Daniel D'Addario also argued that it made sense that Daenerys would burn the city because her "tactics have always been more deeply rooted in dominance than in empathy." Arguing that the change in Daenerys's arc has likely been planned by George R. R. Martin from the beginning, Vox's Andrew Prokop stated, "If ''Game of Thrones'' ended with a triumphant Daenerys Targaryen heroically taking the Iron Throne, it wouldn't be ''Game of Thrones''. This is the show of Ned Stark's death. This is the show of the Red Wedding. This is the ending it was headed toward all along."
  Screen Rant's Alexandra August felt that "ultimately it comes down to your interpretation of Dany's arc and how much that interpretation was diluted by pacing, execution and cultural context, if at all." She pondered different ways the show could have pulled off the arc better, such as Daenerys only choosing to kill Cersei, but concluded that there would eventually be someone else to push her over the edge regardless. Also stating that "there are many ways to interpret" Daenerys's decision to burn the city, Megan Garber of ''The Atlantic'' said that maybe it was the Targaryen madness having settled in, or her ruthlessness taking over, or a "crazy edit" by the writers, or a decision "that some innocents must die in the present so that many more can live peacefully in the future," or maybe that Daenerys "having recently lost her second dragon and the apparent loyalty of those left in her orbit, she simply made a blunt calculation about power and what will be required to attain it." Garber said that "ambiguity is a powerful tool in storytelling," but that "it is also a difficult one to wield well," and that "Dany is a savior, and Dany is a monster, and it is impossible to know where one ends and the other begins." To Garber, this uncertainty made Daenerys's actions all the more horrific because logic will not always win and "justice won't always save the day."
  Showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss attributed Daenerys's decision to burn the city to having lost almost all of her friends and advisors, no longer trusting Jon Snow, and wanting to reclaim the home that her family built. Benioff said that Jon also being unable to return her affections because they are related played a factor. Weiss stated, "I think that when she says, 'Let it be fear,' she's resigning herself to the fact that she may have to get things done in a way that isn't pleasant." Benioff said that the ruthless side to Daenerys had always been there and that "if Cersei hadn't betrayed her, if Cersei hadn't executed Missandei, if Jon hadn't told her the truth ... if all of these things had happened in any different way, then I don't think we'd be seeing this side of Daenerys Targaryen." Emilia Clarke said, "Every single thing that's led her to this point, and there she is, alone." VanArendonk expressed disappointment that Weiss and Benioff explained Daenerys's actions as due to her emotions, instead of some "twisted, empathetic logic". Emma Baty of ''Cosmopolitan'' also criticized the showrunners' response, stating, "Totally, totally. A woman is definitely prone to ending thousands of innocent lives just because her dad did the same, even though in the entire series, she's been insistent on not becoming that person. That checks out!"