Blackwater was also pretty amazing but that was part writing & part special effects. The Pointy End was beautifully written and poignant.

Ironically, The Pointy End left me with more ... what's the word?... extasy? no that's surely not the word... it starts with E... doesn't come to my mind... (vocab tantrum off.)
So the Pointy End left me with my jaw dropped far lower than Blackwater did in spite of all the visual effects. That episode didn't need visual effects to amaze. It was whole and impressive as it was, the actors, the scenes everything was in place.
Now that's not something you can tell about The Bear and the Maiden Fair... The never ending feeling that I'm watching seven different episodes...It felt like the book. A different chapter, a different story, a different world. That's fine with 2000 pages. Not working for a 60 minutes tv episode.