6 Potential Game of Thrones Spinoffs to Fuel Your Westeros Obsession

The Adventures of Dunk and Egg
Perhaps the most obvious of spinoff options is Martin’s series of prequel novellas, presented together in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, that chronicle the globetrotting escapades of hedge knight Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, Egg. A “Dunk and Egg” show has a distinct selling point: it provides viewers with some of the familiarity they crave without all the contempt spending too much time in Westeros tends to breed. Thrones viewers might remember the moment the word “Egg” left the lips of a dying Maester Aemon. Well, that’s because Egg is the nickname of his little brother (and future Targaryen king), Aegon the Unlikely. While the action is set 100 years before Ned Stark first puts on his ill-fated detective hat, while Daenerys’ dragon-cesters still rule the realm, Westeros is the same familiar hellhole of swirling woe and misery we all know and love. Yet, Dunk and Egg, an unconventional pair by any standard, roam from joust, to tourney, to wedding with a certain level of light-heartedness all too often missing from the present-day wars of infinite kings. You get the sense that, at certain points in its history, this realm provided a few fortunate souls some level of happiness and companionship. Who knew?

The Villains of Westeros
Much of what makes A Song of Ice and Fire work is its unwillingness to paint anyone—save for King Joffrey, may his soul writhe in agony—as one-dimensionally villainous. Hell, Cersei literally exploded half of King’s Landing, but did so at a time when she was most utterly deserving of sympathy, given the shelf-life of her offspring. Melisandre burned a child alive and it was still disappointing when Jon Snow kicked her out of the King of the North club. What I’m envisioning is a serial-style show, with each episode devoted to a different character’s turning point. We learned in The World of Ice and Fire that Tywin Lannister was, at one time, happy and in love. So happy that even doddering Grand Maester Pycelle took note: “I do avow that I have even observed her make him laugh, not once, but on three separate occasions!” Wouldn’t it be nice to see that Tywin, instead of the old hard-heart on that ill-fated toilet seat? (Maybe, though, we skip the one featuring a young Walder Frey and his “irritating laugh” being insufferable at yet another wedding, as described in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.)
The Bear and the Maiden Fair
An unlikely love story, starring Tormund Giantsbane and Brienne of Tarth.
A Whole New World of Insanity
We know the depths of the depravity in Westeros, Braavos, and the rest of the cities along Dany’s leisurely freedom cruise. It’s not good. Not good at all. But the rest of the world Martin details in The World of Ice and Fire is so much weirder. Sure, the Summer Isles sound wonderful, with lush landscapes and a seemingly peaceful populace. But pretty soon, as you waltz across the map, you get into territory that has less wonder and more “WTF.” Territories start to have names like “the Isle of Tears.” By the time you get to Sothoryos, weary and ready for it all to end, you at least get your choice of innovative, miserable deaths. Options include, but are not limited to: blood boils, green fever, snakes for days, sweetrot, greyscale, vampire bats, and pus-eye. I’m not saying we need a spinoff series to take place in that particular bubbling cauldron of terror, but the fact that it exists makes you wonder about 1) what other lands might on the edges of the map, and 2) what must the natives be like, to live in this unfamiliar yet terrifying squalor.
Thelma and Louise in Braavos
Part of me (and it’s not a small part) wants Dany to realize she doesn’t actually want the Iron Throne, because she’s not her father’s daughter or her brother’s sister. This not insubstantial part of me was enticed to this opinion by the instantaneous bond between Khaleesi and the bawdy, suddenly delightful Yara Greyjoy upon their meet-cute this season. These two could have a blast when they’re unburdened of the bonds that tie them to their respective unpleasant paterfamilias’. Wouldn’t it be nice to watch them have capers and escapades while sensible, strategic rulers like the still-married Tyrion Lannister and Sansa Stark ruled the realm?
R+L=J
Maybe nothing makes as much sense to explore, however, as the events Bran has been recklessly peeping on amongst the tree people since gaining his time-walking powers. Pretty much everything that is wrong in Westeros right now (except for Walder Frey) is because of actions taken by Rhaegar Targaryen at one tournament more than 20 years ago. Now that the show has confirmed the long-time fan theory that Jon Snow is no Stark bastard—he’s a Targaryen bastard!—it seems only fitting to turn the monolithic names of Rhaegar and Lyanna into fully fleshed characters. The story would still have all the elements of Game of Thrones we love: incest, scandal, political intrigue, folks getting roasted alive. And we’d get to relive Robert’s Rebellion, a simpler time, when Baratheons fought other people before turning on each other, and Starks did not senselessly reveal plans to Lannisters before they reached fruition.