Game of Thrones -- "The Last of the Starks"

Game of Thrones
HBO
Season 8: Episode 4
"The Last of the Starks"
The Nicsperiment Score: 8/10

Folks complained last week, after a white-knuckle episode filled with a nearly non-stop two hour battle that likely caused several viewer deaths by heart-attack, that perhaps in its final season, Game of Thrones has gone soft. Only a few named characters died in that episode, and none of the majors, though the overall cost of the battle was exceedingly great.
"The Last of the Starks" begins in the aftermath of last week's Battle of Winterfell, with the dead being ceremonially burned, as the survivors mourn. Then, it looks like we're in for 80 minutes of reflection, as the survivors celebrate their victory in a long night of partying. Important conversations happen, some heartfelt, some humorous, new connections are made, ancient ones are revisited...and then the night ends and the episode moves on.
Any viewer who thought last week's episode was overly merciful will be happy to know that "The Last of the Starks" is set back in the brutal, unforgiving Westeros they know and love. Secrets aren't kept, promises are broken, advisers discuss treason, relationships are tested, sudden, unpredictable and shocking deaths occur, and by the end of the episode I felt completely rattled, jarred, and unsure of what I'd like to see in these final upcoming two.
So good job, show. Last week you kept me on the edge of my seat and lured me into a false sense of security with the outcome. This week you've tossed all of the characters and convening storylines into a pressure cooker from which there is no escape.
But, hey, that duo who rode off on horseback together in the middle of the episode? I've got a good feeling about them.