Game Of Thrones is over and the popular fantasy series based on George RR Martin’s A Song Of Ice And Fire book series may well be remembered as having one of the most divisive series finales in television history. Fans were left with a plethora of unanswered questions after the show’s eighth season, with some fans going so far as to petition for the final season to be remade.
The HBO series was regarded as one of the best television shows for the majority of its duration, becoming a phenomenon in popular culture across the globe. Though a prequel series has been announced, it remains unclear as to whether any mysteries from the primary series will be explained. Here are 10 unanswered questions we still have about Game Of Thrones.
Who was Quaithe?
Quaithe is a mysterious figure who appears to Daenerys several times throughout A Song Of Ice And Fire. She is seen in season two giving Jorah Mormont cryptic advice to protect the Mother of Dragons, but her character is never seen again.
In the books, Quaithe refers to herself as a shadowbinder from Asshai and communicates with the Targaryen queen through her dreams. Her motives and true intention remain another unanswered question from the series.
Why didn’t Arya kill Cersei?
Game Of Thrones made multiple baffling decisions in season eight, but one of the most perplexing was nobody suggesting that Arya travels to King’s Landing to kill Cersei. Arya herself goes there with the Hound before changing her mind, but her decision to not tell Jon or Daenerys is confusing.
Using her Faceless Man abilities, Arya could have infiltrated King’s Landing and killed Cersei without a need for further war. Sansa knew about her sister’s abilities and, as the most politically astute player in the game of thrones, should have immediately suggested this.
Why didn’t Dragonfire kill the Night King?
The Night King surviving a direct “dracarys” from Drogon was impressive, but it made little sense that dragonfire couldn’t harm him. Valyrian steel and dragonglass can kill White Walkers due to their connection to dragonfire, so why would the very thing itself be ineffective?
It remains possible that the Night King could only die in the same way he was created, but his origins and limits remain mostly unanswered. With the cancellation of Game Of Thrones prequel The Long Night, audiences may be left guessing for a while.
Why wasn’t Rhaegar’s annulment contested?
Jon Snow’s parentage seemed like a big deal. Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark were shown in a flashback as having been married, with Rhaegar annulling his first marriage to Dornish princess Elia Martell.
This information is instrumental in Daenerys’ downfall as the political players of Westeros plot to dethrone her, but nobody contests the validity of Rhaegar’s annulment. The only condition for an annulment in Westeros is if the couple has no children and Rhaegar and Elia had two (one already named Aegon) so his marriage to Lyanna shouldn’t be considered completely legal.
What happened to the Bay of Dragons?
Daenerys spends most of the series in Essos, amassing an army of her own as she conquers Slaver’s Bay. Despite struggling with the politics of Meereen for three seasons, the newly dubbed Bay of Dragons is never heard from again after the Mother of Dragons sets sail for Westeros.
What happened to Meereen after Dany left the city in the hands of Daario Naharis remains a mystery. Slavery has likely been reestablished now that the Dragon Queen is gone.
Where did Bran go during the battle?
After being thrown from a tower by Jaime Lannister, Bran Stark flees his home and journeys north to become the new Three-Eyed Raven, with his powers of warging near limitless.
Fans expected Bran’s powers to come in useful during the Battle of Winterfell, but after cryptically informing Theon he “has to go now,” Bran wargs into some ravens and doesn’t do anything for the rest of the fight. Where exactly did he go and what was he doing during the White Walker invasion?
Could Daenerys have children?
In the books, Daenerys’ fertility remains a mystery. After losing her baby Rhaego, Mirri Maz Durr informs Dany that she can no longer have children, but in the fifth book A Dance With Dragons, Dany is speculated to have a miscarriage after fleeing Meereen on Drogon.
There were several hints in season seven that seemed to foreshadow Daenerys getting pregnant again, but all of these lead to nothing in the final season. Could the Mother of Dragons have had children after all?
Why did Rhaegal and Viserion accept Tyrion?
The theory that Tyrion is a secret Targaryen is popular amongst book readers and the show seemed to hint at this when the exiled Lannister goes to see Dany’s dragons Rhaegal and Viserion in the catacombs of Meereen.
The dragons accept Tyrion in a shocking display of intelligence, seemingly hinting at a secret bond in the same manner as Drogon’s acceptance of Jon in season seven. Does this mean there is some validity to the theory?
Why did Melisandre go to Volantis?
Melisandre informs Varys in season seven that she is journeying to Volantis after uniting Jon and Daenerys. Fans speculated that she would be bringing the Red Priests back with her to fight against the dead, but instead, the Red Priestess just wonders into the battleground at beginning of “The Long Night” with no explanation for her abrupt voyage.
Melisandre’s powers seem to have grown, as she lights the Dothraki arakhs as well as the trench before cryptically telling Arya to kill the Night King. Was this all that she traveled to Volantis for?
What did the White Walker symbols mean?
Fans were hoping for a dramatic reveal when it came to the motivation of the White Walkers. The icy zombies had been built up as the main antagonists, with the Night King’s slow to rise to power spanning seven seasons.
Several strange symbols were left by the White Walkers, including a grisly pattern adorning Ned Umber’s body in season eight’s “Winterfell.” It is never explained what these symbols mean, however, or why the Night King left it there.
