15 Game Of Thrones Storylines That Went Nowhere
It’s not exactly rare that a television show eventually loses its audience, but few have dropped the ball as hard as “Game of Thrones” did with its final season. Among the many things that worked and didn’t work in the “Game of Thrones” finale, a lot of plot threads from throughout the show’s eight seasons didn’t measure up to fans’ expectations, especially as the quality of writing declined and the show strayed further and further from the original source material by George R. R. Martin (which in it of itself has its own issues).
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From major characters who were completely absent from the show’s denouement to mysteries that were never ultimately revealed to show viewers, these 15 plotlines in “Game of Thrones” weren’t just bad, they went nowhere. Maybe fans were too eagle-eyed and searching for answers than they should’ve been, or maybe the writers had other things in mind, but whatever the case may be, these loose ends were left untied by such a lackluster conclusion to one of the best fantasy shows of all time.
Spoiler warning for all seasons of “Game of Thrones” & “A Song of Ice & Fire”!
Tyrion never learns the truth about his first marriage
You wouldn’t know it by his ending, but the character of Tyrion Lannister is supposed to be a very tragic character in George R. R. Martin’s source material. Take, for instance, the backstory he tells Bronn and Shae about his first marriage with a lowborn girl, Tysha. After his cruel father, Tywin, learned of their elopement, he had Jaime reveal to Tyrion that Tysha was actually a prostitute, and had hired her to take his virginity. To prove his point, and as punishment for Tyrion “desecrating” their house, Tywin had his men force themselves on Tysha while Tyrion watched.
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The memory lingers in Tyrion’s mind throughout the first three seasons of “Game of Thrones,” but when Jaime frees Tyrion from captivity in the season 4 finale, book readers were surprised when a significant moment was cut from the show, where Jaime confesses that Tysha was never a prostitute, and their love was real. It should’ve been the impetus for Tyrion to murder his father and ally with Daenerys against his family, but the show oddly opted not to include it.
Quaithe is an important prophet in the books
Let’s be honest; by the time “Game of Thrones” got to its eighth season, no one remembered this mysterious masked priestess from the second season. Quaithe is a prominent figure in the books, encountering Daenerys Targaryen during her time in Qarth, and offers cryptic prophecies that she shouldn’t trust those who try to control her dragons. Quaithe continues to haunt Dany’s dreams into the fifth and most recent “A Song of Ice & Fire” novel, “A Dance with Dragons,” prophesizing the introduction of book-exclusive characters like Young Griff, Victarion Greyjoy, and Quentyn Martell.
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However, in the show, Quaithe’s only role is to mysteriously appear and warn not Dany of interlopers, but her Westerosi companion Jorah Mormont. In future seasons, Melisandre ends up playing the de facto shadowbinder, spouting vague oracles to various characters, whether it be Jon Snow or Varys. It doesn’t even end up being relevant for Dany to stay wary people that want to control her dragons, unless you’re talking about the Night King, which… yeah, obviously everybody should be afraid of him.
Jon Snow is rightful heir to the Iron Throne
Jon Snow was the underdog of “Game of Thrones,” introduced as the bastard son of Ned Stark who follows in the footsteps of his uncle Benjen by joining the Night’s Watch. However, there’s enough clues in the show and books for fans to correctly speculate that there’s more to Jon’s lineage than even he knew. As confirmed by the season 6 finale, “The Winds of Winter,” Jon Snow is not Ned Stark’s son, and is actually the son of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, making him more the heir to the Iron Throne than even Daenerys.
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Unfortunately, by the time Jon Snow’s family tree is explained, he’s already thrust his support behind Daenerys, with it only being relevant in his reluctance to resume their romance with one another. He is never in the running to claim the Iron Throne, with Tyrion instead successfully nominating Bran Stark of all characters to the highly-coveted role of king. Maybe this would’ve been relevant to the purported Jon Snow sequel series heralded by Kit Harington, but fans will likely never know George R. R. Martin’s true intentions with Jon’s lineage unless he finishes the books.
Daenerys spends time learning to be a just queen… for what?
Prior to the final season of “Game of Thrones,” it seemed likely that Daenerys Targaryen would become an aggressive queen for aggressive times by the end of the series. On the contrary, she never gets to sit in the Iron Throne before she’s assassinated by Jon Snow for slaughtering the people of King’s Landing. Not only was this character development rushed, but it spat in the face of Dany’s entire storyline, where she’s unlearning her violent Targaryen instincts and gaining valuable experience ruling in Meereen.
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By the end of the series, Dany’s time in Essos just seems like a massive waste of time, given that she ends up just succumbing to her tendency to burn things to the ground rather than navigate a fraught political landscape trusting the judgement of her advisors. Dany was supposed to be positioned as a breaker of chains, but ended up being a destroyer of worlds, with her heroic arc ultimately ending in anti-climactic tragedy.
Sansa’s Littlefinger era is short-lived
The end of season 4 sees a major change for Sansa Stark, the most victimized member of the Winterfell dynasty. After narrowly escaping King’s Landing with the help of Littlefinger, Sansa seems set up to be the mastermind’s newest protege, donning a new, gothic look with black hair resembling her mentor. However, the fifth season quickly takes a left turn as Littlefinger arranges for Sansa to marry the cruel and abusive Ramsay Bolton, paving the way for her most traumatic season yet, which is saying a lot after what Joffrey and Cersei put her through.
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Although the series finale proves that Sansa is a once-in-a-century ruler with everything you need in a queen, fans never got to see the potential of a more nefarious Sansa exacting Machiavellian revenge on her enemies. It’s great to see her take power back from the men who’ve tried to control her, but losing out the character’s darker side was a missed opportunity. At least Sophie Turner got her opportunity to make a heel turn in “Dark Phoenix.”
Arya abandons her Faceless Men powers
Seasons 5 and 6 of “Game of Thrones” see Arya Stark on a pretty strange journey in the city of Braavos after joining the mysterious Faceless Men. This cultish organization force her to abandon her Stark allegiances to become “no one,” adopting masks that disguise her appearance in order to covertly learn the ways of the anonymous assassins. After Arya leaves the Faceless Men, she returns to Westeros with the goal of crossing names off her murder list, starting with Walder Frey, whom she murders are disguising herself as his servant.
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However, once Arya returns to Winterfell in season 7, she never uses the powers of the Faceless Men again, and her assassination training apparently makes her a good enough warrior in battle to slay the Night King. She picks up her intent to kill Cersei again in the final episodes, but again is making it inside the Red Keep with no use of disguises until she’s told to turn back by the Hound. Kind of a strange and awesome ability to forget about!
Melisandre knows something… or does she know nothing?
Melisandre is one of the most fascinating characters in “Game of Thrones,” partly because viewers aren’t exactly sure where her allegiances lie. She’s a red priestess who serves the Lord of Light and is shown to be capable of shadowbinding magic, but if you ask skeptics like Davos Seaworth, she’s also a swindler manipulating gullible believers into worshipping her religion. She’s even shown to be very wrong about the prophecies she interprets from the Lord of Light, such as when she insists on sacrificing Stannis Baratheon’s daughter Shireen, only for Stannis’ army to easily fall to the Bolton’s powerful army.
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Once viewers see Melisandre successfully raise Jon Snow from the dead, there should’ve been no questions that she was onto something with her Prince That Was Promised prophecy. However, after Arya of all people kills the Night King… does that make Melisandre wrong all along? If so, why did the Lord of Light resurrect Jon Snow? Unfortunately, there’s not enough answers before Melisandre removes her necklace and dies after the Battle of Winterfell.
Uncle Benjen was alive the whole time, but not for long
The books introduce the character of Coldhands in “A Storm of Swords,” a mysterious hooded figure on horseback who rescues Samwell Tarly and Gilly before guiding Bran and his friends to the Three-Eyed Raven. In the show, Coldhands doesn’t appear until Bran and Meera escape from the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave, helping them outrun White Walkers before revealing his true identity: Benjen Stark, Bran’s uncle who went missing beyond the Wall shortly after Jon Snow joined the Night’s Watch.
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From the moment Benjen returns, fans were anxiously awaiting his reunion with Jon Snow, but their meeting doesn’t happen until Jon nearly dies during season 7’s Wight Hunt. However, Jon barely gets to soak up the fact that his uncle was alive all along before being sent off on his horse, while Benjen sacrifices himself holding off wights. Jon never even acknowledges Benjen’s survival after the fact, making the character just a twice-appearing deux ex machina. For a character that fans literally waiting six seasons to see return, his reappearance is oddly unceremonious.
Were Margaery’s intentions good or was she also power-hungry?
Margaery Tyrell is never a POV character in the “A Song of Ice & Fire” books, but her portrayal by Natalie Dormer in the TV series fleshed out her character a lot more than the books were ever able to. While book Margaery is quite cunning, her show version rivals Cersei in terms of her political acumen, declaring as early as season 2 that she wants to be the queen of the Seven Kingdoms. She positions herself as a charitable aristocrat in King’s Landing, even showing herself to be capable of manipulating Joffrey into acting as a more benevolent monarch.
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However, what remains a mystery is Margaery’s true intentions. Once she marries Tommen and finally becomes queen, little is revealed about Margaery’s intentions with the power. Her alliance with the Faith of the Seven in season 6 seems to promise her growing intelligence with diplomacy, but she’s killed in a massive attack orchestrated by Cersei at the end of the season. If only viewers got to see a little more of what Margaery’s ultimate goals beyond becoming queen were, maybe her death wouldn’t have felt so sudden.
Meera and her family should be more important
Meera Reed does a lot for Bran Stark throughout “Game of Thrones,” and gets little respect for it. She and her brother Jojen help shepherd Bran to the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave in the show, and vows to protect him after Jojen is killed by wights. Meera ends up helping Bran escape from the White Walkers as Hodor is killed, literally carrying the paraplegic Stark through the rough weather beyond the Wall to return him to his home of Winterfell. However, the now-emotionless Bran says nothing to Meera before she returns home.
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As if Bran’s goodbye with Meera was already undeservedly cruel, it’s also the last time Meera appears in the series. To make matters worse, Meera’s father, Howland Reed, is an important figure in the books as the only other person with Ned Stark at the Tower of Joy when Jon Snow was born. Howland never appears in the show until the very last episode, having no dialogue besides being present at Bran’s coronation, making Meera’s absence even more egregious.
Jaime’s redemption arc is thrown away for love
For a character who pushes a child out of a window in the very first episode of “Game of Thrones,” Jaime Lannister has quite the redemption arc. It takes nearly three seasons for fans to start empathizing with the Kingslayer, after a now-iconic scene in a bathhouse with Brienne of Tarth, telling his side of the story that’s given him his mocking nickname. Even Jaime’s inappropriate romance with Cersei can grow on fans, despite Cersei’s poor treatment of her twin brother and growing manipulative behavior.
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Jaime’s character arc continues in the later seasons as he grows more disenchanted by Cersei’s behavior, culminating in him abandoning her to join the fight against the White Walkers. He even fosters a romance with Brienne following their victory, though it takes very little for Jaime to abandon Brienne to return to King’s Landing, but not to exact revenge against Cersei or even mercy-kill her, but to stupidly die in each others’ arms as the Red Keep is destroyed by Daenerys’ dragon.
Can Daenerys still get pregnant?
A huge loss for Daenerys Targaryen at the end of season 1 is not only the death of Khal Drogo, but being cursed by the priestess Mirri Maz Duur and experiencing the miscarriage of her child with Drogo, proclaiming that Dany will never have another child. Mirri is later put to death in the pyre that births Dany’s three dragons, who become her de facto children throughout the series. However, a pivotal scene in season 7 seems to imply that Mirri’s “curse” may have been a big fat lie.
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In the season 7 finale, Dany tells Jon Snow that she can’t have children, to which Jon questions the validity of that statement. Later in the episode, the two consummate their flirtation, seemingly implying that she could become pregnant in the final season. However, she never does, meaning that any doubting of Mirri Maz Duur’s prophecy is purely just flirtatious talk between her and Jon Snow. It’s a disappointing ending considering this child could’ve been the literal song of ice and fire, potentially the best character who isn’t in the show.
The Dornish army goes missing after Euron’s attack
There are a lot of mixed feelings about the Dorne plot, given that it’s majorly different in George R. R. Martin’s books. As one of the Seven Kingdoms in “Game of Thrones,” Dorne is largely removed from the plot until Pedro Pascal’s Oberyn Martell debuts in season 4, and in season 5, when Ellaria Sand plots revenge against the Lannisters for Oberyn’s death via trial by combat. Dorne was positioned as a major player in the titular game of thrones after allying with Daenerys Targaryen’s army.
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However, it’s only two episodes into season 7 that the Dorne army seems to be wiped out completely by Euron Greyjoy’s naval forces. Two of the three Sand Snakes are brutally killed by Cersei’s ally, while the third Sand Snake as well as Ellaria are imprisoned in King’s Landing, never to be seen again. Even more so, all it took was this one sea battle for Dorne’s army to be completely taken off the map, even when other factions of Dany’s armies, like the Unsullied and Dothraki, suffer great losses in other battles only to appear completely recovered in the next.
There’s still a White Walker baby out there
Hey, remember that time “Game of Thrones” had a post-credits scene? In episode 4 of season 4, “Oathkeeper,” a lone White Walker is seen delivering the last son of Craster to “The Land of Always Winter,” where the White Walkers supposedly reside. The cryptic scene introduces the Night King for the first time, using his powers to turn this adorable baby into a White Walker. Now, do you remember the scene later in the show where there’s a baby White Walker? Neither do we. In fact, the White Walkers don’t even serve that big of a purpose given that they’re easily defeated in one night in season 8.
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It’s not surprising that “Game of Thrones” changed many important aspects of the White Walkers, but the possibility of there being more out there is irrelevant once established that the Night King dying kills all the Wights. It would’ve been interesting for the show to keep investigating this land of always winter and reveal more about the White Walkers, but we guess it’s just a big threat that turned out to be not that big of a deal.
Where does Drogon take Daenerys’ body?
Daenerys Targaryen’s death is the final tragedy to occur in the series finale, with “Game of Thrones” ending as a story told in the wrong order. However, Dany’s death isn’t left without some ambiguous mystery, since Drogon carries her body away after burning the Iron Throne (which is its own eye-roll moment). In one of the final scenes, Tyrion and the other Small Council members discuss Drogon’s whereabouts, admitting he was seen near Volantis, but apparently this dragon wandering free with Dany’s body isn’t that major of a concern to Bran’s advisors.
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Knowing that Dany had some connections to red priestesses while in Meereen, it’s entirely possible that if Drogon is smart enough to know to symbolically burn the Iron Throne rather than his mother’s murderer, then perhaps the dragon is smart enough to take Dany’s body somewhere she can be resurrected. Or, maybe Drogon gets easily killed by a giant spear like his brother was by Euron Greyjoy. It’s an incredibly important plot thread to be left hanging in suspense at the end of the show, but it’s unlikely that they’ll ever explore what happens to Drogon or Dany’s corpse.
