Phillip Maciak is Assistant Professor of English and Film at Louisiana State University. He is co-founder and contributor to the "Dear Television" column at The Los Angeles Review of Books, and his other work can be found here: phillipmaciak.com.

Spoiler Alert

Game of Thrones didn't invent the surprise death, but it’s hard not to feel like we’re in the renaissance of dramatic house-cleaning. Abrupt exits can do wonders for shows.  Warning: big spoilers.