There arguably isn’t a perfect TV series. Those that start strong can end up dragging along at times, and they can certainly pick back up again, but they need to be given that chance. Then there are some that just end up not picking back up at all, and Game of Thrones is one of those where the quality just kept declining, especially after season 5.
That being said, it was still a well-crafted show. There was a lot going on, and while storylines didn’t quite work out the way we thought, they did leave us guessing and theorizing. It’s just a shame that Game of Thrones didn’t always live up to the hype.
Some storylines were over-marketed or underutilized way too much. Here are my seven times when the show just wasn’t worth the hype, and a lot more could have been done with the characters.
L + R = J
Let’s just start with the elephant in the room. The theory that Jon Snow was the son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen started from the very beginning, and I don’t think any of us were that surprised when the Game of Thrones writers brought that in at the end.
The problem is that it didn’t live up to all the theories and the hope of what it meant for the overall story. With Jon finding out that he was the rightful King of Westeros, it could have led to an amazing story of Jon and Daenerys teaming up to take down Cersei. It could have prevented the whole Mad Queen arc at the very end and seen a strong alliance that would unite both ice and fire.
Instead, the entire arc was just dropped. Jon wasn’t interested in being king, and that led to poor decision-making at the end.
The Battle of Winterfell
I know a lot of people complain that they couldn’t see much in the battle, but that’s not the reason this was so underwhelming in Game of Thrones. I liked not being able to see, because I felt like we were one of the characters in the series.
Instead, it was the way the battle happened and then just ended. There was all this buildup to the Night King being difficult to kill. We had this tease for the longest time that Jon would be the one to take down the Night King. After all, it was Jon who the Night King kept coming up against.
Yet, when it came to the Battle of Winterfell, Jon was left trying to protect his own life from an undead Viserion, and it was Arya Stark who came out of nowhere to kill the Night King. The Battle of Winterfell shouldn’t have ended in success for the living, allowing the Night King to become the final death in Game of Thrones. That’s the way the opening suggested it would happen, after all!
Sansa Stark going goth
We go back to Game of Thrones season 4, at the very end, as Sansa Stark decided it was time to drop the pretty dresses and go a little darker. Many noted it as when “Sansa went goth,” because of how she started dressing in darker clothing and, at the time, even dyed her hair black.
This was a clear sign that she was done allowing men to manipulate her. She was done with being a pawn in someone else’s game, and yet, she continued to be a pawn in Littlefinger’s game, leading to her marriage and torturous relationship with Ramsay Bolton. We aren’t blaming her as a character, but rather the storyline.
It was an underwhelming moment for Sansa, as she continued to be used and manipulated. The only good thing that came out of the fallout with Ramsay is that she was finally able to stand up for herself, and it arguably led to her taking control and becoming Queen of the North.
Daenerys’s sudden character shift at the end
Okay, I’ll say that this wasn’t as sudden as people tend to think. There were always signs that Daenerys would turn to vengeance and madness at the end of Game of Thrones. I think the problem here is that seasons 7 and 8 failed to offer subtle hints that she would decide to turn on the innocent people of King’s Landing.
Another issue is that it was just so quick within the battle. The bells rang, and she suddenly just turned into a tyrant. There was no need for it to happen because of the bells—nothing was set up to indicate that the bells would be a trigger. This led to questions about why she wouldn’t allow the people of King’s Landing out of the city.
At least the prophecy with the Iron Throne being surrounded in ash happened, but it wasn’t because of the reasons we all theorized. And it ruined some great potential storylines, especially with Jon being the one to kill Dany in the end.
The Golden Company and the elephants
Throughout the break between Game of Thrones seasons 7 and 8, we all got excited about the arrival of the Golden Company. Elephants would arrive, and it would give Cersei a fighting chance to keep control of King’s Landing.
Then season 8 happened, and at first, there was the annoyance that the elephants didn’t turn up. Considering the costs, we could just about forgive that. The bit that we couldn’t forgive was how easily the Golden Company was destroyed in the Battle of King’s Landing.
These men were supposed to be great warriors. We should have at least seen a battle between them and the unsullied. Instead, they were wiped down right at the start, leaving the city guard to take down the unsullied. Make it make sense.
Jon’s death and resurrection
At the end of Game of Thrones season 5, Jon Snow was killed by his own men in a mutiny. Many couldn’t see that working with the wildlings was the best thing to do, as they didn’t believe that the White Walkers were such a threat—despite dealing with them! However, we just knew that Jon may have been killed, but there was no way he would remain dead.
Bringing Jon back from the dead was supposed to be a huge turning point. It could have been a moment for Jon to focus more on the fight against the White Walkers and continue to lead the Night’s Watch after the hanging of the traitors.
Yet, Jon stepped back. He closed in on himself, noting the darkness that awaits them all on the other side. It was like he didn’t care to live, and he even abandoned his men, believing in his duty being done as he stuck with the Night’s Watch until his death. What was the point in bringing him back?
Cersei’s character development and death
Let’s end with how the show ended: with Cersei’s death. At first, Cersei was one of those wonderfully manipulative characters. She was very much her father’s daughter, but being a woman, she was often overlooked. As much as we hated her, there were also some iconic moments, and we had to love her love for her children.
Then all her children died. Suddenly, she had no purpose, and she took over King’s Landing in a way that nobody else seemed to question. At least, not on the inside. This could have been a great moment to show just how manipulative and smart Cersei was, and instead, we saw other men take over, and Cersei only seemed a threat because of Zombie Mountain.
Her death ended up being one of the worst of the whole series. Someone needed to kill her, and instead, he was killed with Jaime as the walls of the Red Keep fell on top of them. There wasn’t even a shot of Jaime’s hand on her neck to live up to the prophecy that we were told! So much went wrong with Cersei, leading to her storyline not living up to its potential.
Game of Thrones is available to stream in full on HBO Max.