Summary
Game of Throneswas a massive hit on HBO despite its disappointing final stretch on the air, and fans hoping for a more satisfying conclusion to the gritty fantasy epic get another update on the source material from the IP’s progenitor.
BeforeGame of Throneswas the best show on TV, the books by George R.R. Martin were already a bestseller and a big deal in the fantasy genre. Praised for eschewing the more fantastical elements of fantasy worlds, Martin crafted a narrative in which no one was safe and anything could go wrong. This brought realism to his Seven Kingdoms, which stood in stark opposition to more conventional fantasy stories of that magnitude but worked excellently. The show for HBO took this popularity to the very extreme end of the spectrum, adapting Martin’s work perfectly for live action. Despite this, the show delivered what is easilythe most disappointing ending to a TV show everwhen the sheer popularity and high quality of the show prior is taken into account.
While there arethings that the show did better than the books, one major reason whyGame of Thronesfiguratively lost the plot was that it literally had, as the adaptation had outpaced Martin’s writing and used up all the source material somewhere around its fifth season. Speaking on the subject of fans who took issue with adaptations of his work in a recent interview withCollider, Martin commented on his ongoing book series and gave an impromptu update on his progress. “There’s always the books,” he commented, “and I’m aware of that people think that— But no, I have to get back. I have to finish the books. That’s the one thing I’m completely in control of. There’s no budget limitations. There’s no other executives on the studio side that I have to please, or other writers with different views. The books are what I’m going to make them. And, I think the one I’m writing is coming pretty well, but I wish it would come faster.”
This is certainly good news for fans and a much-needed update on the next installment in the series that fans have been waiting for for 14 years now. The problem is that this update is about as comforting as whenMartin previously said he was making ‘steady progress’ onThe Winds of Winter…five years ago. While he estimated he was about 75% done with the manuscript back then, a 2023 update indicated that he’d been struggling with the work and hadn’t made much progress beyond the 1,200 or so pages he’d had in 2020. While he says the work is coming along well now, that might be after radical changes or slashing of what was already written, making it impossible to know when the author will actually finish the book. Most worrying of all,The Winds of Winterisn’t the final note of Martin’sSong of Ice and Fire,as a seventh tome titledA Dream of Springis planned to conclude the series.
Book fans have been waiting for more than a decade, and they’ll keep waiting while turning their noses up at the live action adaptations of the author’s works. For his part,Martin approves of at least oneGame of Thronesspin-off, so fans can look forward to a more faithful interpretation of the master’s work inA Knight of the Seven Kingdomswhen it hits HBO later this year. With no timeline on when the next written work will be completed, now might be a good time for fans to go read the book spin-offs while they wait for Dunk and Egg to make the jump to live action.
TheGame of ThronesTV show is available to stream on Max, whileA Knight of the Seven Kingdomswill be released in late 2025.
