Game of Thrones season 8 episode 5 gets lowest rating on Rotten Tomatoes despite record-breaking 18.4 mn views

*Spoilers ahead* Game of Thrones fandom is fierce and a real thing_._ However, the show’s  penultimate episode  titled The Bells received polarised reviews. While the public opinion remains split on Daenerys Targaryen’s descent into madness as she burnt King’s Landing, the ratings have been dropping with every episode, and with the latest one, the show hit its lowest rating yet. On Monday, Rotten Tomatoes  revealed that The Bells, was one of the series’ worst-reviewed entries with its “lowest Tomatometer score,” currently sitting at 47 percent. But it’s not just critics who dislike the episode, it’s also  GoT loyalists,  who have rated it a 6.8/10 on IMDB, the second lowest in show history by a wide margin.

Yesterday's #GameofThrones is tied as the lowest rated episode in series history: https://t.co/hT7jO0uStp pic.twitter.com/AxxaaQzpnn

— Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) May 13, 2019

However, HBO’s long-running fantasy show has set a new record for the show’s penultimate episode . The episode has delivered 18.4 million viewers across two airings and including cabler’s streaming platforms (linear, HBO GO and HBO NOW), reports Entertainment Weekly. [caption id=“attachment_6418081” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones season 8. HBO[/caption] The figure narrowly beat season seven finale’s record of 12.07 million for broadcast viewings, while the latter surpassed the 17.8 million overall record previously established by The Long Night. Before that, the gross ratings record holder was the season eight premiere Winterfell . The episode has drawn so much flak that fans have signed an  online petition which implores showrunners David Benioff and DB Weiss to remake the final episodes owing to the divisive reactions of fans worldwide. Perhaps all this debate and uproar is responsible for garnering the show’s highest ratings ever. The season finale is slated to release on  19 May. For our full coverage on Game of Thrones season 8, click  here .