The Season Five premiere of Game of Thrones is inching closer with every passing day. Though it won't make the wait until April 12 any easier, critics in the UK had the chance to watch the season opener and share their thoughts. So what's the verdict?

Positive — as you might expect for HBO's hit show. But while the reviews don't spoil what's to come, the critics do give us an idea of what to expect.

Like the seasons before it, this first episode is slower paced and will be setting up the action to come, according to the Evening Standard:

"This was a measured scene-setter, with breasts and buttocks bared as per, but less of the blood or other bodily fluids that will surely be spilt later on. A palpable sense of weariness pervaded many of its characters without afflicting the show itself."

Forbes had much the same to say, describing episode 501, "The Wars To Come," as quiet by Game of Thrones standards:

"'Game of Thrones' is also a show that thrives on the forging of unlikely alliances between characters — and thrives even more when those alliances come to sudden and bloody ends... Both of those happen in this season opener. There's a great deal of persuading to be done, and a number of plans to be hatched. It's a relatively quiet episode by GoT standards — and certainly by comparison to that gory season 4 finale."

Multiple critics make remarks that it feels like the show is finally setting up its endgame— despite word that HBO executives would like Game of Thrones to last for another five seasons, six or even seven seasons. According to the Guardian:

"HBO have recently hinted that they'd like 'Game of Thrones' to go on for decades to come, but so far this season definitely feels like the beginning of the end(game). We know because characters and storylines that have been distinct for so long are unmistakably beginning to intertwine."

It sounds like the opening episode for Season Five will bring all the blood, boobs and political intrigue we've come to expect from the show. With character storylines intertwining and some major departures from George R.R. Martin's book series underway, Season Five is guaranteed to be the talk of the kingdom when it premieres April 12 on HBO.

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