A lot of people are apparently getting impatient waiting for the big battle, but this show wasn't built around big battle scenes. It was built around characters interacting with each other the way we saw in this episode.
Gilly and Ser Davos trying to convince the little girl hat she should take shelter in the crypts. The girl had a scar on her face that was a lot like Shireen Baratheon's. It was a neat reminder of Davos' friendship with Shireen, which was one of the things that made him such an endearing character.
Back in season 2 (I think) Brienne tells Catelyn Stark the story of her debutante dance. She figured out that all of the men who danced with her had turned it into a prank and were laughing at her behind her back because she was so homely. Then Renly Baratheon came to her rescue and treated her like a real princess, and she was so deeply moved that she pledged her sword to Renly's service. When Jaime offers to knight her, she shrugs it off and pretends it doesn't matter to her, because she thinks that she's being pranked again. But once she realizes that he really means it, it's incredibly emotional for her, just like her response to Renly. Jaime had given her recognition and validation that she'd always wished for but never thought she was really allowed to have.
We also saw Theon reminding everybody that he'd betrayed the Starks and asking for a chance to make up for it. And we saw the scene with Samwell and Jorah, with Sam reminding us that Jorah's dad was a mentor who changed Sam's life and molded him into a man. And we saw Sam, Jon, and the other guy from the Night's Watch reflecting on how far they've all come from when they first met in basic training at Castle Black.
I think that for some of these characters this is the last chance we'll have to spend any time with them. I think that this episode was sort of a celebration of the past 8 years of getting to know these fictional people and a way of tying up some of their stories and sending them off in style.
-k
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