> I was very disappointed that Game of Thrones veered into just another zombie show.

It wasn't a veer. The show was always about the seven kingdoms bickering among themselves instead of facing the actual threat that they could have unified against.

(Or at least it was until the last few seasons were written by someone other than the original author, said author having not even come close to finishing the book series.)

Just look at the first episode. It doesn't start in Winterfell or King's Landing. It starts north of the wall.