(I am going to assume that anybody reading has seen the first four seasons of Game of Thrones, so consider this your SPOILER WARNING)
10
Mockingbird
(season 4, episode 7)
One of the more underrated episodes of the show, in my opinion. This episode was light on action, short of The Mountain's introduction, but was heavy on emotional impact and strong dialogue. There are many great character-driven scenes for the characters in this episode, such as Arya/Hound, Brienne/Podrick and, of course, the wonderful fall of Lysa Arryn at the hands of Littlefinger that ended the episode. However, it is Tyrion that pushes this episode to the next level. A trio of scenes as he tries to find somebody to champion him in a trial of combat against The Mountain show the peak of GAme of Thrones excellent dialogue. His scene with Oberyn Martell, where the Dornish prince shares his story of anger against the Lannisters and The Mountain, and of his first meeting with Tyrion before deciding to be Tyrion's champion, is my personal favorite scene of the entire forth season, and is the reason this episode makes the top 10.
9
And Now His Watch is Ended
(Season 3, Episode 4)
Many people remember this episode for its ending, in which Daenerys takes control of the unsullied and kills the slave masters of Astapor. That scene, brilliantly directed by Alex Graves, is an awesome ending to a very strong episode. Varys actually has the most scenes in this episode, including a scene with Diana Rigg's Olenna Tyrell, a great example of the series ability to craft great scene using characters whose point of view you would not see in the books. It also includes the intense mutiny of the Night's watch which culminates in the death of Lord Commander Mormont. This episode was an early sign that the show's seasons would no longer have first halves made up of filler episodes like the second season.
8
The Watchers on the Wall
(Season 4, Episode 9)
The second battle episode that GAme of Thrones did, both directed by Neill Marshall, falls slightly short of its first, but is still an incredibly intense, and exciting episode of television that puts Game of Thrones ahead of other shows on television in terms of scope. This episode does improve on Blackwater in terms of its action choreography, featuring more intense and exciting melee combat. However, it features fewer interesting characters than Blackwater did. It's most memorable moment is likely the 360 degree shot, where the camera is in the center of the Castle Black courtyard and makes a full circle pan, stopping on all of the major characters as they fight for their lives in their own way. Continuing the series trend of excellent penultimate episodes.
7
A Man Without Honor
(Season 2, Episode 7)
Season 2 of Game of Thrones is, in my opinion, the weakest yet. This is mainly due to its large number of episodes that, while still filled with strong filmmaking and great dialogue, don't push the story forward in as interesting a method as the rest of the show. However, this episode, which primarily focuses on the captive Jaime Lannister, is an exception. This was the first episode which proved that Nicolaj Coster-Waldau is right up with Peter Dinklage as one of the best actors on the show. The rest of the episode featured strong scenes with Catelyn, Robb, Arya and Daenerys, but the scenes with Jaime are what put this ahead.
6
A Golden Crown
(Season 1, Episode 6)
Just the title of this episode is enough for most of you to remember the most significant moment of it. The final scene of this episode features the most creative death scene yet on the show, as Viserys Targaryen was given the Golden Crown he so desired, in the form of molten hot gold being poured over his head. Elsewhere in the show Eddard realized that Joffrey was the product of incest between JAime and Cersei Lannister, one of the first truly shocking twists in the story of Game of Thrones. Tyrion also had his best episode up to that point, given a chance to admit his crimes, a hilarious and raunchy scene, and his friendship with Bronn started as Bronn defended him, killing Ser VArdis in the first trial by combat of the show, a concept that has provided the series with some of its most exciting action scenes.
5
Kissed by Fire
(Season 3, Episode 5)
Although the ends of the seasons are often considered to be the strongest part of Game of Thrones, The best one-two punch of episodes in the show is actually episodes 4 and 5 of season 3. Kissed by Fire, though not containing a crowd pleasing moment like And Now His Watch is Ended's sack of Astapor, is a stronger episode overall, i feel, due to its strong performances and dialogue scenes. Robb's scene in which he must choose how to punish lord Rickard Karstark is frought with dramatic tension, and the subsequent execution, mirroring a Theon scene from the previous season, is one of the more visually and aurally dramatic scenes of the show. The greatest scene, however is the scene between Jaime and Brienne in the bathtub. In this scene the two adversaries become allies as Jaime reveals that his murder of the king, rather than a political act for his family, was an altruistic act that saved half a million innocent lives, forever changing the way we would see Jaime, turning a villain into a complex antihero.
4
The Lion and the Rose
(Season 4, Episode 2)
As it has now become apparent that George R.R. Martin's days writing for the show are possibly over, this may go down as the final episode he wrote for it, and what an episode to finish on. This is one of the more tension-wrought hours of the series, featuring the first true introduction to Reek (formerly Theon). However, it is Joffrey's wedding that will go down in the history of Game of Thrones scenes. A half hour full of different scenes that each build up the tension, as the viewer knows something major is coming, but are fearful of what. The tension never lets up until finally, the king begins choking. Within the next two minutes, the greatest villain of the series thus far is dead two episodes into the season, and the stage is set for the main storyline of the year. It's just unfortunate that season 4 was not able to top its second episode through the rest of the season.
3
Blackwater
(Season 2, Episode 9)
The first of only two episodes (so far) to take place in only a single location. This episode tells the story of the Battle of Blackwater, in which Stannis Baratheon's forces lay siege to King's Landing. Directed by filmmaker Neill Marshall, this episode featured a (nearly) movie scaled battle scene. The action hits a head in the explosion of wildfire that decimates Stannis' forces, but the tension continues as Tyrion commands the forces of King's Landing in a last ditch effort to prevent the walls from being breached. The episode also features some less violent, but no less tense scenes in which Sansa has to deal with an increasingly drunk Cersei, and the fear of what will happen to the women if the city falls. By focusing on how some of its best characters deal with a battle, this episode is elevated over being just an action episode.
2
Baelor
(Season 1, Episode 9)
The Episode that proved that Game of Thrones was not going to follow the previously set rules of television. The show had killed major characters before this episode, but the one person that everybody assumed was safe was Eddard Stark. How could he die? He's the main character of the show, his storyline has the most screentime, and he's the closest thing to a "good guy" that exists in this world. And then Sir Ilyn Payne swung, Eddard's head came off, and Game of Thrones evolved from popular niche show to pop culture phenomenon in one swing of the sword. An incredibly emotional episode, which features some important backstory for Tyrion and a fateful marriage arrangement for Robb, this is the hour that made Game of Thrones the show it was going to be.
1
The Rains of Castamere
(Season 3, Episode 9)
And this is the episode it was all leading up to. It should come as no surprise that this is the best episode of the show, as this is the scene that made David Benioff and D.B. Weiss want to create the series in the first place. This is an action packed episode that wisely chooses to focus on only a few storylines, and uses that to make the most out of their emotional impact. While the Daenerys storyline is less emotional than the others, its fantastic action makes up for it, and the near meeting of Jon and Bran is a strong and exciting scene, but let's be real. This episode is here for the ending. The Red Wedding is one of the most infamous scenes in the history of fiction. In the course of about six minutes, the most traditional heroes of the story are brutally slaughtered, there army routed, and the defining conflict of the show finished with a decisive loss for the heroes. The Starks, the main group that audiences rooted for, were finished, in a bloody and violent climax, and the Lannisters, the previous villains, became the main characters of the series from this point out. This scene was horrifying, tense, and beautiful. Directed with fantastic vision by David Nutter, the tension builds up to the point where everything goes wrong, and breaks the audiences hearts and expectations in one fell swoop, destroying the, admittedly faint by this point, hope that the ending of this series could be happy.
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