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Scott D. Pierce: Why the Starbucks cup doesn’t matter, but I might end up hating ‘Game of Thrones’

(Photo courtesy HBO) The last of the dragons flies toward the Iron Fleet in the "Game of Thrones" episode "The Last of the Starks."

(Photo courtesy HBO) The last of the dragons flies toward the Iron Fleet in the "Game of Thrones" episode "The Last of the Starks."

In the grand scheme of “Game of Thrones,” if you think the Starbucks cup matters you’re kind of an idiot.

Yes, a coffee cup was inadvertently left on a table in a scene. I hate to break it to you, but this sort of thing happens in TV and movies all the time. In the olden days — before we could freeze-frame a telecast — odds are it wouldn’t even have been noticed.

HBO’s response was perfect: “The latte that appeared in the episode was a mistake. Daenerys had ordered an herbal tea.”

And don’t you dare suggest that it signifies that the producers and their crew are careless. The attention to detail on “Game of Thrones” is nothing short of astonishing. This was one detail among thousands that got away from them.

And, seriously, you’re going to complain about this tiny mistake when there’s so much more to complain about in “The Last of the Starks”?

I’ve spent the last few years criticizing those who do nothing but complain about “Game of Thrones.” I’ve never argued the show is perfect, but I think a lot of the carping is excessive and off-base.

So … now I’m going to (hypocritically) complain about how much I disliked the most recent episode — SPOILER ALERT if you have’t seen it — for reasons that include:

  • Varys (Conleth Hill) has been plotting to put Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) on the throne since the show began. Now, suddenly, he’s switching to Team Jon?
  • Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) has proclaimed undying loyalty to Daenerys. Why didn’t he immediately have Varys locked up when he started talking about replacing, perhaps killing, Dany?
  • Ned Stark kept the secret of Jon’s parentage for years and years. His devoted daughter, Sansa (Sophie Turner) — who promised Jon she’d keep it — blabbed to Tyrion after, what, five minutes?
  • How could Jon (Kit Harington) possibly be dumb enough to share that secret with Sansa? (I’m coming around to the view that Jon is, yes, kind of a dope.)
  • I think I understand what executive producers/writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss were trying to say about Sansa’s transition from naive young girl to tough, take-charge woman, but how did they (and HBO) let this line get through: “Without Littlefinger and Ramsay and the rest, I would have stayed a little bird all my life.” That sounds a lot like she’s grateful that she was physically and emotionally abused by Joffrey; manipulated and emotionally abused by Littlefinger; and raped and tortured by Ramsay Bolton. In what universe — even a fictional one — is that acceptable?
  • How in the hell can a fleet of ships sneak up on dragons flying on a bright, sunshine-y day?
  • Not only did they kill another dragon, but Rhaegal was done in by the cartoonish Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbaek)? He’s the least believable character on the show — a buffoon who’s like a mustache-twirling villain from a melodrama.

    • So, yes, I had an incredibly negative reaction to “The Last of the Starks.” In the immediate aftermath, I said I wished I’d never watched the show at all because what happened this past Sunday was so painful.

    I’m sort of hoping that was the result of my anger and sorrow over the death of Dragon No. 2 and Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel). Honestly, mostly the death of the dragon. I love them ... too much.

    But what I disliked even more than Rhaegal’s death is all this sudden maneuvering to supplant Dany with Jon. I hate, hate, hate that plot line. I wasn’t expecting a happy ending to “Game of Thrones,” but pitting those two against each other is worse than anything I imagined.

    And it feels like six episodes isn’t enough for the final season. We seem to be hurtling toward the end and, instead of seeing believable character development, they’re suddenly turning into different people.

    Again, I’m fully willing to admit I may be overreacting. I may be doing exactly what I’ve contemptuously dismissed in others. But I’m more dreading the final two episodes than excited to see them.

    If I didn’t love the show so much — if I hadn’t been so obsessed with it for so long — I wouldn’t be so upset. And I’ve got to hand it to Benioff and Weiss for creating a show that so completely drew me in.

    I expected to be sad when “Game of Thrones” ends, if for no other reason than I’ve so loved it. But if I hate the ending as much as I fear I might, it will sour the entire experience.