The Game of Thrones series finale proved just as divisive as the season which preceded it, with thousands of fans signing a petition calling for HBO to remake the ending with different writers. And while there were some satisfying plot resolutions in "The Iron Throne," we can't help but think about all of the fan theories and predictions that never came true.
Bran and the Night King
This was one of the most popular recurring theories throughout season eight. Bran did pretty much nothing with his clairvoyant powers this season other than make Jaime feel awkward AF, prompting viewers to speculate that he was working for the Night King, after being psychically branded with his mark in season six's "The Door." That mark, as we know now, ended up being little more than "Find My iPhone" for White Walkers.
Another theory posited that Bran and the Night King were one and the same, and predicted that Bran would warg back in time and end up trapped in the body of the man who was captured by the Children of the Forest and would eventually become the first White Walker. The original Three-Eyed Raven warned Bran that spending too much time in the past could lead to you being stuck there, and it would have been a tragic but logical ending if it were revealed that the events of the series were set in motion by somebody who was trying to prevent them.
The "Valonqar" Prophecy
The Azor Ahai prophecy never came to pass in season eight of Game of Thrones, and nor did the "valonqar" prophecy. In the books, in addition to foreseeing the birth and death of Cersei's three children, the witch also predicts that Cersei will be murdered by the "valonqar," which translates to "little brother" in High Valyrian. While not directly mentioned in the show, this would certainly justify Cersei's long-standing hatred for Tyrion, although as the series progressed fans started to believe that the person to kill her would be her twin, Jaime, who was born second and is therefore also technically her younger brother.
This sort of came true, and sort of didn't. According to the witch, Cersei was destined to die with her brother's hands around her throat. In the penultimate episode of the series, "The Bells," Cersei's final moments are in Jaime's arms, and at one point he holds her by the neck to look into her eyes. Fans were disappointed with the unceremonious deaths of Cersei and Jaime, buried under the rubble as they attempted to escape the Red Keep, as many had wanted Jaime to kill her in a final redemptive act.
Brown eyes, green eyes, blue eyes
In "The Long Night," Melisandre reminded Arya of her premonition from way back in season three; she said Arya would close brown eyes, blue eyes, and green eyes forever. The brown eyes could have referred to either Meryn Trant (whose eyes Arya literally stabbed out) or Walder Frey, while in an epic twist the blue eyes ended up belonging to the Night King.
That just left a pair of green eyes, which fans took to mean either Cersei or Daenerys would end up dying at Arya's hand. Cersei had been on Arya's kill list ever since season one, and Arya had plenty of reason to kill Daenerys after witnessing the destruction of King's Landing. However, the finale saw Jon kill Dany instead. This means that the green eyes probably belonged to Littlefinger, whose throat Arya slit in season seven. And while that moment was pretty satisfying, it would have been even better if Arya had finally ticked off the biggest name on her list.
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Philip Ellis is a freelance writer and journalist from the United Kingdom covering pop culture, relationships and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV.
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