As time goes on, Game of Thrones fans continue to face the ultimate emptiness. With HBO spiking the never-officially-titled The Long Night prequel in the fall of 2019, there’s no Westeros-set show ready to arrive in the near future. House of the Dragon, a prequel based on the Fire & Blood novels, won’t be ready until 2021 or so. Bereft of their favorite fantasy, Game of Thrones fans can only stare at the final season and wonder about all the loose ends. Because of this, these questions about the Game Of Thrones finale are almost a year old now, but they’re still just as pressing.
It doesn’t help that Game of Thrones’ final season felt like it was missing major chunks of story. Shortened from 10 one-hour installments to six “supersized” ones, fans felt the flow of the series’ storytelling was off. In several places, it glided over details that could have given truly satisfying answers. For those who had watched faithfully for a decade (or read the books), it was a hard truth to swallow. I guess some things in Westeros are destined to stay secret, and some mysteries, when they’re solved, only lead to more questions.
Here are some of the essential questions viewers may never get answered:
1. Did Daenerys Saving The North Even Matter?
On the one hand, yes, Daenerys saving the North mattered. She made it possible for Arya to kill the Night King, which stopped the entire invasion of Westeros.
But once that was over, it didn’t seem like anyone was all that grateful. Cersei certainly didn’t, because she never cared to comprehend the danger, she just wanted power. But one would think Sansa, Arya, Jaime, Tyrion, Varys, someone would have stepped up and said: “Listen, she’s the reason every one of us is alive. Let her be queen.”
2. Will The Night King Come Back?
Part of the point of the Night King’s invasion is that it had happened before. (HBO even made a pilot about the first time the Night King came to conquer!) It was just so long ago, everyone forgot why they built a wall or had a Night’s Watch in the first place.
But at the very end of the series, instead of gearing up for another 10,000-year wait, the Night’s Watch disband, leaving the Wall unmanned. What gives? Is this because the Night King is well and truly defeated? How do they know for sure?
3. Where Did Drogon Take Daenerys’ Body?
Arya may have gone west of Westeros, but Drogon went west of…well, somewhere, with Dany’s body.
Drogon is, as far as anyone knows, the last dragon. Even if there are more eggs, there are no more Targaryens to hatch them. So his whereabouts are critical to track.
Also, as long as Drogon is in the world, so is the powerful magic Melisandre wielded. If he took Dany’s body to Asshai, perhaps a red priestess could resurrect her — not that Dany would probably ever feel like setting foot on Westeros again, she’s earned a nice retirement. But still, these are essential details. Someone on the Small Council should be paying attention.
4. Did Bran Always Know He Would Be King?
When Bran got elected Lord of the Seven Kingdoms in the finale, he told Tyrion he’ll take the job. After all, it’s the reason he came all this way.
How long did Bran know he was going to be King? Moreover, how did he know? Did the Old Gods and the Trees tell him? Is his ruling over Westeros a long-awaited revenge victory for the spirits of the forest, who had been conquered by First Men, Andals, and Targaryens over the centuries?
(Also, does anyone besides Bran know how long Three-Eyed Ravens live? His mentor was going on hundreds of years old, and would have lived longer, had it not been for the Night King. Will Bran’s rule last until Westeros has cars and cable TV?)
5. Why Did The North Gain Independence?
The Iron Islands spent decades plotting and fighting civil wars to be independent. Dorne spent a century fighting before they fully bowed to Targaryen rule. But when the time came, only Sansa got to call the North free. How exactly did that work? Especially since Sansa’s argument was, “We defeated the Night King.” (Actually, no, Daenerys did. And Arya, for that matter.)
Way to surpass your rival and take credit for their accomplishments — if only Cersei and Littlefinger had lived to see it.
6. Did Jon Snow’s Parents Matter?
Ever since A Game of Thrones came out back in 1996, fans have all had the same question: Does R+L=J? For over two decades, they argued and posted and theorized and questioned if Jon Snow could be the first child in history born to a union of Targaryen and Stark. How did that make him special? How would the world learn of his hidden heritage?
And then it turned out none of it mattered. Prince Rhaegar is Jon’s father, but it didn’t gain him a throne, Iron or otherwise. His mother being Lyanna buttered no bread, and got him no place in Winterfell.
Instead, he went North, where he could be free with the Free Folk, and where his parentage had no bearing. After 22 years of wondering, it turned out “R+L=J” may have been real, it just didn’t change anything at all.
