Overall, Game of Thrones was one of the most popular television series to ever exist, but even the hardiest of fans would have to admit that there was still plenty to take issue with, especially after the controversial final season.
While the curious creative decisions and directions for the final season are sadly what people remember about Game of Thrones and are still talking about to this day, the previous seasons, despite their brilliance, did also have some parts that disappointed fans somewhat.
10 Khal Drogo's Demise Was Pathetic Considering What His Character Could Have Been
Khal Drogo was a terrifying brute at the start and that never necessarily changed, but he became more of a sympathetic character to the viewers once he and Daenerys started getting along properly.
His death came from an infected wound he got from standing his ground against a fellow Dothraki’s blade pressing into his chest. He was displaying his strength and lack of fear but it was overall an underwhelming way to kill off one of the show’s cooler characters. However, it was this that was arguably the catalyst for Daenery's character growth.
9 The Source Material Was The Show's Guiding Light And It Lost Direction When There Was No More
The Game of Thrones TV show and the books have always had differences, whether they be character design changes or parts completely left out, but the main premise was always similar. The Season 5 finale was where the books’ guidance to the series ended.
With no source material to help navigate the way to a good quality end, the show started to suffer, despite having many positives. While it was arguably still good until Seasons 7 & 8, the change in direction was still apparent.
8 Not Introducing Lady Stoneheart Angered Fans Of The Books
Lady Stoneheart is a character from the books that never made it into the series. Catelyn Stark was revived by the Brotherhood Without Banners and Beric Dondarrion's final act and was hellbent on revenge on anyone who wronged her family.
However, in the show, they decided to have Jon Snow resurrected instead, and not only would resurrecting another main character in such a way dampen the impact of such an act, but it would also threaten to ruin the impact that the Red Wedding had. So this might not have been a great loss to the series.
7 Lack Of Consistency With Travelling And Character Placement
While Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon traveling from Winterfell to King’s Landing was covered over a couple of episodes in Season 1, there have been other occasions where people’s travel times either span a whole season or a single episode.
Petyr Baelish is one example of a character that seemed to have fast travel points unlocked all over the kingdoms. It isn’t necessarily worth criticizing this too much but even the biggest of Game of Thrones fans would appreciate more consistency and continuity.
6 Curious Pacing Of The Final Season After Seven Seasons Of Drawn Out Storytelling
The most dedicated of Game of Thrones fans may conflict with those who hate on the final season passionately, but they can probably agree that Season 8’s pacing was all over the place.
Even though it was known way ahead of time what season would be the show’s last, it still got to the stage where Season 8 was rushed. The scenes in between the major battles and interactions were either non-existent or skipped through to the point that meaning was lost entirely.
5 Arya's List And Training With The Faceless Men Should Have Been More Impactful
Arya Stark had a list of names of people she wanted to kill but only ended up killing 4 or 5 of them. While all of them were satisfying in their own right, it still felt like an underwhelming number considering all the training she had gone through over the years.
Her training with the Faceless Men also never really got the payoff it deserved. Yes it developed Arya’s agility and swordsmanship considerably, and she did kill the Night King, but it still felt like a storyline that wasn’t tied up when it was all said and done.
4 Of All The Ways For Cersei & Jaime To Go, Not That Way
Jaime Lannister’s character arc was all over the place throughout the entire series of Game of Thrones. Season 8 saw him apparently join the cause for the greater good before finally going back to Cersei.
Considering the number of enemies that Cersei had made, the way that they both met their joint end was somewhat underwhelming, being buried under the rubble and remains of the crypts of King’s Landing.
3 Bran As King Was Somewhat Underwhelming
Bran Stark becoming the Three-Eyed Raven was arguably one of the weaker character arcs in Game of Thrones, so Bran being made King in the finale wasn’t exactly received too well by the masses. Season 8 garnered a lot of criticism, but Tyrion, a prisoner at the time, suddenly dictating discussions regarding the future and choosing the King all seemed odd and a bit rushed.
Bran implying that he knew everything he’d gone through was leading to this moment, left a sour taste in even the most dedicated of fans’ mouths.
2 Maggy The Frog's Prophecy For Cersei Could Have Been So Much More
While the prophecy that the witch, Maggy the Frog, had given to a young Cersei regarding her children came true, the full prophecy from the books regarding her demise never made it to the show. Regardless, fans still assumed that it would come into play for Cersei’s inevitable demise.
"When your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you." With valonqar meaning ‘younger sibling’, referring to this part of the prophecy could have better justified and explained Cersei’s fear and hatred of Tyrion, while also foreshadowing her death at the hands of either Tyrion or Jaime. However, this being omitted was a missed opportunity.
1 Even As Antagonists, The White Walkers Deserved More
The White Walkers were the first antagonists seen in the show, way back in Season 1, when the 3 Night’s Watch brothers ran into them. The slow and methodical build-up from them being fictional and figments of people's imagination to their advance in Season 2, all the way to the events that unfolded at Hardhome, set them up perfectly.
Then why was it necessary to just have the Night King and his army destroyed all in one dagger strike by Arya? It left many questions unanswered but the main one that was criminally ignored was the reason why they were fighting the living.
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