The writing.   It feels like bad fan fiction and is at odds with established characters and world building.  The characters are not clever or smart now, they do what the writers need to get them to point B.   Rather than deal with consequences of a complex and interconnected world, they just kill people off for cheap shock value.  The prime example is how poorly Dorne was botched from being this major story component with political intrigue to...just have the Sand Snakes kill the Martells. 

It comes across as lazy and completely at odds of what A Song of Ice and Fire set out to be, a grand fantasy epic that felt grounded in mideval history.

That's not even getting into how badly characterization of people like Jaime is 180 degrees from his book arc away from Cersei showing his complexity.  No, keep him simple and stupid.  That amazing bath house scene meant nothing, he's right back to season 1.

I'm critical because I care and saw how brilliant the work could be that just a shame to see how without Martin's work to prop it up it really doesn't feel special anymore.

Your statement about show Jaime is far from the truth. While Jaime isn't at odds right now with Cersei compared to the books (especially A Feast for Crows), he isn't just a one-dimensional character on Game of Thrones. If you think so, you haven't been paying attention to episode 7 and 8. Especially the conversation he had with Edmure Tully. Did you watch Nikolaj's interview regarding Edmure's surrender? How Jaime is using the Kingslayer persona so he can make himself believable in the eyes of the world? How he aknowledges that the world envisions him as a man without honor even though he's conflicted between his duty to his house and his commitment to Catelyn Stark?

Why would he care about a peaceful surrender of Riverrun? Why would his character experience so much emotional layers when he meets Brienne again? Why would he let the enemy escape? Jaime in season 6 isn't the Jaime in season 1 anymore. He's learning what it's like to be someone freed from Cersei's toxic grasp, because clearly there is some honour still left in him. Granted, he may be a slow-learner, but he's not the narcissistic, self-centered hot-headed prick he was once. He comes to admire the Blackfish even though he's an hindrance. Look at his reaction when he learns the Blackfish died in combat. Clearly, we didn't see the same Jaime in the end of season 6. People won't just lay it out for you. You got to figure out theses details.

Yes and no.

This episode was a spectacle, with massive amount of money on display in terms of effects and the cineamatography was good.

On the flip side the writing has still descended in atrocious and cringe worthy scenes with awful characterization.  I actually have come to hate when Tyrion is on screen with what they've done to him.

Also, the battle "tactics" in the show devolve into "let's run at one another in a open field".  

In summation, it was good television, but bad adaptation of the feel of the source material.  If you give up on everyone being stupid and able to travel 1000x faster than is possible you can have fun.  I mean, least I finally got to see Rhaegal, Viserion, and Drogon in action.  That was fun. 

This is a world where gods are a very real thing, and the people they've targeted mostly HAVE been terrible people lol

The thing is, I wouldn't really call this an action sequence. It felt like an actual war.