How did an awful season of 'Game of Throne' get a record 32 Emmy nods?

The fact that HBO's Game of Thrones received a record-breaking 32 Emmy nominations on Tuesday has left many people scratching their heads. After all, the final eighth season was declared one of the worst TV shows of 2019 by critics and audiences alike.

Judging by the mood on social media, many Game of Thrones enthusiasts seem to agree that Kit Harington (Jon Snow) and Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen) deserve a crack at winning the awards for Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress in a Drama Series.

They're also on board with Alfie Allen (Theon Greyjoy), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister), Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister), Gwendoline Christie (Brienne of Tarth), Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister), Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) and Maisie Williams (Arya Stark) being given the nod for their supporting actor/actress roles.

What fans can't understand, however, is how the show got nominated in the categories of Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series. Remember that petition that called for HBO to remake season 8 with "competent writers" — the one that's been signed by more than 1,6 million people?

They have taken to Twitter to express their anger, confusion and bemusement at the news:

These unlikely nominations make more sense when you consider the way in which the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the organisation behind the Emmys, decides which shows will be up for awards. 

The academy is made up of 24,000 voting members, many of whom are affiliated with various networks, and as Rolling Stone points out, "HBO has one of the biggest voting blocs" in the entire organisation. 

Apparently writers also only need to submit one script to be considered for an outstanding writing accolade. So in theory they could cherry pick the best episode from a terrible season and still win.

Rolling Stone maintains that Game of Thrones writers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss "gamed the system" by just submitting their script for the show's finale, "knowing there’s no way they’d be omitted [from the category] altogether".

Screen Rant adds that many other major series aired later in the year than Game of Thrones, and so were not eligible for entry into this year's awards, meaning it had less competition.

One thing's clear, just because we've left Westeros behind doesn't mean the Game of Thones drama is over. We'll find out how this latest saga plays out on September 22, when the 2019 Emmy awards ceremony takes place in Los Angeles.

• Click here to find out which other shows have been nominated for Emmy Awards this year.

• Additional reporting by staff reporter.