Game of Thrones. The television phenomena that left everyone anxiously waiting for Winter came and went over the course of a bloody decade. While the show was critically and publicly acclaimed, the final season left much to be desired. There are a number of plot threads abandoned or book arcs lost, some that may have garnered a better final season. So let’s gather up some of those loose ends and jump into some of those stories that the showrunners forgot. Here are 7 lost Game of Thrones plot points to pull into the light.

SPOILERS: You probably already know all there is to know about Game of Thrones. But if not there are spoilers ahead.

1. Lady Stoneheart

When I first heard that in the books Catelyn Stark became a revived corpse-like figure hell-bent on revenge for the Red Wedding well… I was a little shocked. In the books, Arya’s Direwolf Nymeria pulls Catelyn out of the river her body was disposed of in. Having been dead and in the water for three days she was a little… ripe. Beric Dondarrion of the Brotherhood finds her and kisses her- bringing her back to life with the help of the Lord of Light. The gracious nature she had in her first life is nowhere to be seen, and her wounds never fully heal. She can barely speak due to her slit throat and leads the Brotherhood in a revenge quest for the Freys. From there on out she goes by Lady Stoneheart and is a ghost-story whisper throughout the rest of the series.

Now all of that is pretty stupid cool, and fans of the book could not piece together why that would be excluded from the series. The showrunners do have their reasons though. In the Game of Thrones behind the scenes, book Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon by James Hibberd, David Benioff and Dan Weiss explain three reasons for the character’s exclusion. One of them is that it had to do with spoilers for the upcoming book, and so they couldn’t quite elaborate on it. The other two were simply that they didn’t want to lose the integrity of Jon Snow’s resurrection or the Red Wedding.

They knew that Jon Snow would come back to life. And feared that if there were too many resurrections in the show the deaths would lose their weight. Furthermore, the Red Wedding was one of the most impactful moments of the series. Resurrecting Cat would water that moment down a little bit. They decided that sacrificing Lady Stoneheart to keep the emotional weight of the other two events was worth it. We kind of get why this Game of Thrones plot point was abandoned.

2. Quaithe

Remember that ominous lady with the mask on Qarth? Right, that’s Quaithe, appearing in season 2 and then disappearing without a trace. The question of who she was and where she came from was never answered. She called herself “no one,” perhaps alluding to a connection to the House of Black and White, but there was never any other clues to connect her there. In the show, she simply helps Dany find her dragons and boosts Jorah Mormont’s sense of purpose.

But in the books, she appears a couple more times with some prophecies. One of which goes into detail on whom she should not trust. “The glass candles are burning. Soon comes the pale mare, and after her the others. Kraken and dark flame, lion and griffin, the sun’s son and the mummer’s dragon. Trust none of them. Remember the Undying. Beware the perfumed seneschal.” The meaning of this prophecy and who it refers to is still a mystery, as well as Quaithe’s origin and purpose.

3. Wargs

Throughout the series, we met a couple of Wargs, people who can move their consciousness into animals. Considered a skill beyond the Wall, the ancient bloodline of the Starks lends itself to the genetic skill. Bran Stark is the most notable Warg in the series. But in the books, there were some more Wargs in the Stark family. When Arya was blinded on Braavos, the way she was able to survive was because she discovered that she was Warg. She Warged into a cat, using it to help her navigate and hide on Braavos. Over time she learns that she could do it with almost any animal.

Jon Snow could do it as well, although he was limited to Ghost. When Jon died, he Warged into his Direwolf and was one with Ghost until Melisandre brought him back. Jon used his ability to Warg into Ghost as an asset for the rest of the series. Jon Snow and Arya (More so Jon) were a little dry in the show, and this lost plot point loses some major cool points for both Jon and Arya. Not to mention the Stark family in general. The most likely reason it was cut out was because of how difficult the Direwolf effect was to produce on the show.

4. The Prince that was Promised

The Prince that was Promised was an old prophecy with an unknown origin, speaking on the coming of a saviour leader. There were many theories on who that might be; Rhaegar Targaryen, Daenerys Targaryen, Stannis Baratheon, and Jon Snow all being strong contenders. But none of these people came into long term rule, and none of them brought peace or acted as a “saviour.” The Prince that was Promised never quite came into fruition as a Game of Thrones plot point and was just another of the many unfilled prophecies in the series. This did have a strong effect on Melisandre, who firmly believed it to be Stannis Baratheon. After his death, she lost her sense of purpose for a bit, and the Prince that was Promised was never seen in the show. Whether he will make an appearance in the books has yet to be seen.

5. Arya’s Revenge

Over the course of several seasons, we watch Arya grow from a spunky little girl to a hardened warrior. Training in the House of Black and White on Braavos, Arya learns how to literally steal faces… a skill she uses once. She never once breaks out her skills in the final season, which is more than a little disappointing. Furthermore, she has a list she relentlessly mutters of all the people she is going to kill one day; Cersei Lannister is on that list.

Melisandre also prophecies that she will shut “blue eyes, brown eyes, green eyes” forever. The blue ones eventually referred to the Night King (another complaint we’ll get to in a second) but what of brown and green? Specifically referring to Cersei’s emerald eyes. The obvious and best trajectory that we seemed to be on was that Arya was to kill Cersei using Jaime’s face. Not only would that have been a satisfying death and completion to both Arya and Cersei’s arc, but it would have been so much better than getting crushed by a bunch of rocks. The drama and spice that would have ensued were completely lost, and Arya’s shapeshifting ability was never seen again.

6. Jon’s Return

When Jon Snow is brought back to life, it’s made clear that he would have only come back if there was a reason for him to. For the rest of the show, both Jon and the audience are left waiting to see why Jon was brought back to life. There were some obvious theories, like killing the Night King or becoming king…. none of which happened.

At the very least, Jon should have been the one to kill the Night King. His entire arc over the whole show was leading to that moment, only for it to be given to someone else. While I love Arya, it’s clear to most fans that Arya should have killed Cersei while Jon got the Night King. Furthermore, I personally was rooting hard for Jon to take the Iron Throne. He was lined up for it in his shared Stark-Targaryen genes, it was his birthright, and it would have unified the North and South. Some could argue that he was brought back to life to kill Daenerys, but that feels a little weak. At the end of the show he disappears beyond the wall, and there’s a sense of purpose left waiting.

7. The Lost Targaryen

And to wrap us up, we have a massive character left out of the show completely. While Tyrion is on his way to Meereen to meet up with Dany, he meets a blue-haired boy named Young Griff. This boy turns out to be Aegon Targaryen, the son of Rhaegar and is another individual claiming the Iron Throne.

It had been believed that Rhaegar’s wife and children were murdered by the Mountain. Meaning that Aegon, who was an infant at the time, was switched out with another baby. Some speculate that Griff is not actually Aegon, but just another conspiracy for the Iron Throne made on a false claim. Whoever he may be, in the books he has a small army on Westeros and is gunning for the Throne. Whether he wins it is to be seen, but if he is actually Aegon, he has a strong claim to Throne. Griff/Aegon never make an appearance, nor are they even alluded to in the show.

In conclusion

There are so many discrepancies between the books and the Game of Thrones show, so many plot lines lost or forgotten, that it would take us days to uncover them all. While the show may have left a little to be desired, the books are still alive and kicking, and there’s a lot left to discover in Westeros.

Thanks for reading our article on 7 lost plot threads from Game of Thrones. Did we miss any? Do you agree or disagree with our points or have anything to add? If so, leave us a comment below.

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