Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
Transcript
Man: So, did you see the final episode last night?
Woman: Of course! As if I would miss that!
Man: And?
Woman: It was by far the best episode, definitely.
Man: Yeah, totally. The dragon at the end and all the special effects in that final scene were amazing.
Woman: I loved that part! But I still don't think this series was as good as the others.
Man: Really? But you said you wouldn't want to miss it?
Woman: I know, but still … it's a lot more predictable than it used to be.
Man: But that's because the story has been told so well that all the characters are reaching their destiny now.
Woman: I don't know … before, anyone could die at any time so it was exciting! But, this series, no key characters died and we all knew they wouldn't. When Jaime fell in the water after the dragon attacked him, we knew he would make it somehow. And … oh, surprise, Bronn jumps in and saves him.
Man: They did kill some characters in this series, though. What was that one's name …?
Woman: Exactly, see! You can't even remember who died!
Man: Hmm. The only thing I didn't like about this series was that it was shorter than the others. Seven episodes instead of ten. Maybe they spent all their money on that dragon!
Woman: Right! I don't understand why they did it, as all the fans would happily watch ten episodes.
Man: I reckon that now they're not using the story in the books any more, they don't have as many ideas.
Woman: That would explain why they're not being as brave with the story too. It's more like a Hollywood film than a TV show now.
Man: So, is Tyrion still your favourite character?
Woman: You know … surprisingly, I think my favourite might be Cersei.
Man: What?!
Woman: She's so interesting! All the awful things she's done and the way she's just aiming for revenge, even though it won't make her happy. She still surprises us because we're expecting her to have a happy ending where she sees her mistakes and becomes a good person. But she never does, no matter what it costs her. She's unpredictable because we just can't believe anyone would be like her.
Man: I guess. You don't have to like a character for them to be your favourite!
Hi eulaliu,
The meaning here is
Sometimes people's favourite characters are the villains, because they are often the most interesting or exciting characters. It's hard to say you like someone who is evil or cruel, but they can still be your favourite.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Thuong144,
The core sentence here is 'It was the best episode'.
The phrase by far is a way of adding emphasis: by far the best = easily the best (nothing else is close).
The adverb definitely is another way of adding emphasis. It means that there is no doubt about it - the speaker is sure.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Mayra
It's great that you want to communicate with other people to practise your English, but I'm afraid our House rules don't allow you to share the kind of personal information you would need to do this. This is for legal reasons. I'm sorry for the inconvenience!
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team