Tyrion flees to Essos, where he meets Daenerys Targaryen, who struggles to rule Slavers' Bay and regain control over her growing dragons.

Jon Snow becomes Lord Commander of the Night's Watch and serves under Stannis Baratheon, who pursues his claim to the Iron Throne by marching on the rebuilt Winterfell.

Game of Thrones features a large ensemble cast, including Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke and Kit Harington.

[25][26][27] In an interview, show writer David Benioff explains that Sophie Turner's development as an actress was one of the reasons that they decided to give her character more dramatic scenes, saying, "Even if [child actors] come in and do a great audition, it’s so hard to know if they’re going to quite literally grow into the parts.

"[28] Bryan Cogman added that it made more sense to give the Winterfell storyline to a proven actress who was already popular with viewers than to bring in a new character.

[28] Other changes include the portrayal of Tommen as old enough to interact with Margaery and the Faith Militant as an adult, the speeding up or streamlining of several subplots, and the introduction of fewer new characters.

[34] A very small portion of one episode was filmed in Calgary, Alberta, Canada: the scenes featuring Jon Snow's wolf Ghost (played by animal actor Quigly) who also appears in season 6.

[42] The fifth season adds previously recurring actors Indira Varma (Ellaria Sand), Michiel Huisman (Daario Naharis), Nathalie Emmanuel (Missandei), Dean-Charles Chapman (Tommen Baratheon), Tom Wlaschiha (Jaqen H'ghar) and Michael McElhatton (Roose Bolton) to the series' main cast.

The role of Cersei's daughter Myrcella Baratheon, who is Doran's ward and betrothed to Trystane is played by Nell Tiger Free.

[47] Across the Narrow Sea, Enzo Cilenti joins as Yezzan, a Yunkish nobleman and slave trader,[44] while Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje was cast as Malko, a slaver, who does not appear in the novels.

[48] At Castle Black and beyond the Wall, new cast members include Michael Condron as Bowen Marsh, First Steward of the Night's Watch.

[49] J. J. Murphy, who was cast as Night's Watch officer Denys Mallister, died in August 2014 shortly after filming his first scenes; his role was not recast.

[52] Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Bran Stark), Kristian Nairn (Hodor) and Ellie Kendrick (Meera Reed) are absent this season because their part in the story has reached the end of A Dance with Dragons.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Bloody action and extreme power plays return full throttle, as Game of Thrones enjoys a new-found liberation from the world of the source material, resulting in more unexpected thrills.

"[56] The Daily Telegraph stated in regards to the premiere episode, "Essentially, this was an exercise in scene setting, the chess pieces being laid out on the board.

[61] Variety gave the season a positive review and stated, "Operating on a scale like nothing else on TV, and creatively liberated to play a long game stretching into the future, perhaps no project better distinguishes HBO's status as the leading premium player.

"[62] IndieWire gave the season a score of 'B+' and found the "first few episodes skew dry, concerned largely with the establishment of allegiances", but still praised them for keeping the audiences "connected to those who have managed to survive thus far in the battle for power.

"[64] James Poniewozik of Time gave the season a positive review and stated, "Game of Thrones is flying, full tilt, toward a destination off the edge of our map of the known world.

"[66] Slate was concerned about the fact that the season "pulls even further away from the novels (the Sansa plot will drive some fans crazier than King Aerys)", though still thought it was "better for it".

Club gave the season a score of 'A−' and stated, "Benioff and Weiss are making the same show but with slightly different rhythms, relying more on character shading and interplay than on staging the next massacre.

[69] David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle gave the season 4 out of 4 and eulogized the "greater sense of urgency",[70] while The New York Times praised the "overall feeling of recharging and regeneration".

[71] Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times gave the season a positive review and stated, "Breathtaking, heartbreaking, awe-inspiring and addictive, it remains the single most remarkable feat of television, possibly ever, increasingly admirable for its ability to grow rather than simply sustain.

"[72] The only major publication to give the season a negative review was John Doyle of The Globe and Mail who stated, "A certain character says to someone who had been believed to be dangerous: "You're not terrifying, you're boring!"

"[73] The sixth episode, "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken" was heavily criticized due to the showrunners' decision to have a well-liked character suffer a sexual assault.

Business Insider cites two likely reasons for the lower ratings: backlash over the rape scene in "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken", one of many deviations from the novels throughout the season that "have upset fans," and increased online streaming through HBO Now.

[139][140][141] Sky Atlantic, the network serving the United Kingdom and Ireland, aired the premiere the day after HBO, but joined the simulcast for the rest of the season.