Despite how some people might have been disappointed by the final season of the show, fans still want more Game of Thrones. Though there was a lot of disappointment when it was announced HBO would not be going forward with the Naomi Watts-led prequel, a new prequel entitled House of the Dragon is in the works. And there’s sure to be more on the way.
While HBO seems to be steering away from the established characters from the original series, for now, it seems like only a matter of time before we see spin-offs of some of the characters we know and love. But not all the characters on the show are worth revisiting. Here are some characters from Game of Thrones who deserve a spin-off and some who don’t deserve one.
10 Deserves: Mance Rayder
Mance Rayder was set up as a major threat during the first few seasons but failed to make much of an impact on the show, despite being played by the great Ciaran Hinds. Mance was a former Night’s Watch ranger who decided to join the Wildlings and eventually lead their army past the Wall.
While Mance died in Season 5, a spin-off could act as a prequel exploring his early days as a member of the Night’s Watch, how he joined the Wildlings and becoming King Beyond the Wall. The spin-off could also give more contact to the White Walkers.
9 Doesn’t Deserve: Gendry Baratheon
Gendry was a supporting player in the story who unexpectantly found himself in a significant place of power by the end of the series. He was introduced as the bastard son of Robert Baratheon before becoming a loyal ally of Arya Stark. Following the Long Night battle, Daenerys named Gendry as lord of the Stormlands.
It might be interesting to see what it’s like for a blacksmith to suddenly become a lord of a great castle which could be explored in a spin-off. However, Gendry just doesn’t seem like an interesting enough character to follow in his own journey and works best as a supporting character.
8 Deserves: Brienne Of Tarth
Brienne of Tarth is a fan-favorite character for good reason. Though underestimated by pretty much everyone she meets, Brienne has proven herself to be one of the best fighters in Westeros. She is also one of the most heroic characters in the show, always ready to do the right thing.
When last we saw Brienne, she was the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard in King’s Landing. It is a role she was born for and it could be very interesting to see her adventures in this role. She’d likely still be dealing with a lot of adversity in the position and it would be nice to see if she finally finds happiness.
7 Doesn’t Deserve: Grey Worm
Not everyone was fans of the romance between Grey Worm and Missandei in the series and the closer the two got the more it seemed like the romance was doomed to end in tragedy. After Missandei is executed by Cersei, Grey Worm seeks only revenge and turns mad, just like Daenerys.
The last we saw of him, Grey Worm was leading the Unsullied to Missandei’s homeland of Naath, presumably to protect the people. However, after seeing him lead the brutal slaughter of innocent people in King’s Landing, he’s not really a character we want to cheer for anymore.
6 Deserves: Beric Dondarrion
Beric Dondarrion is one of the most underrated characters in the series and he has one of the best stories. A knight of King’s Landing, Beric led a small band of soldiers to capture The Mountain. However, they were ambushed and Beric was killed but then resurrected by Thoros of Myr.
A spin-off could focus on Beric leading the Brotherhood Without Banners as the Robin Hood of Westeros. Seeing this band of heroes protecting the innocent and punishing the evil could be a fun adventure series.
5 Doesn’t Deserve: Bran Stark
One of the most controversial aspects of the finale of Game of Thrones was that Bran Stark ended up on the Iron Throne. The decision seemed to come out of nowhere, the reasoning was flawed, to say the least, and it seemed to contradict a lot of what the character had become.
It could be tempting to creating a series that follows Bran’s reign as King of Westeros, however, fans would likely not be interested. The character has become quite dull and the thought of him as king is still annoying to many of the fans.
4 Deserves: Arya Stark
Of all the characters from the series, Arya Stark seems like the one who is best set up for a spin-off. She was the highlight of the final season, becoming the hero who killed the Night King then survived the massacre at King’s Landing. Finally, she leaves her family, heading off to explore whatever is west of Westeros.
Not only is Arya a lovable badass who is always entertaining to watch, but the idea of her exploring uncharted lands opens up so many possibilities for a spin-off. While the idea has been shot down already, perhaps it will be revisited in a few years.
3 Doesn’t Deserve: Jon Snow
Jon Snow quickly became one of the most iconic television heroes of all time throughout this series. Though his actions were questionable at times, he was always an easy character to root for. However, the last season tainted his image in the minds of many fans.
Jon’s inaction with Daenerys turning into the Mad Queen, his unhelpful participation in the Battle of Winterfell, and his overall poor decisions made it seem like the writers ran out of ideas for the character. The finale saw him rejoining the Nights Watch and heading North which doesn’t sound like too interesting of an adventure.
2 Deserves: Drogon
One of the biggest questions that are left dangling at the end of the series is where Drogon went. Daenerys’ last surviving dragon melted the Iron Throne after Jon murdered his mother, then he flew off to never be seen again.
It’s a tremendous tease to have a dragon just flying around the world with no real purpose. It would be great to explore Drogon’s new life on his own having his own adventures. While it might be odd following a character who cannot talk, it could be a really compelling series.
1 Doesn’t Deserve: Tyrion Lannister
Game of Thrones was largely an ensemble series, but if there was a star it was surely Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister. From the very beginning, Tyrion was a clever, heroic, funny and complex character to watch. But like Jon Snow, he is a character who soured over time, especially in the final seasons.
Tyrion gets a happy ending as Hand of the King to Bran Stark and that’s a good place to leave him. As good as Dinklage is, the character has run his course and we’ve seen him as an advisor long enough that there’s nothing new a spin-off could add.
