The final season of Game of Thrones gave people a lot to talk about. Shortly after its conclusion a petition to have the last season rewritten went viral, now it has been made and there is a video (with more than four million views) in which the scriptwriter explains how he would have closed the already legendary HBO series. Although it is understandable and agreeable that the right to make creative demands on something is only entitled to its original creators and that the tantrum from the fans is a bit childish, one has to admit that his proposal is still genuinely epic. This is the imaginary outcome of Game of Thrones in a parallel reality where this youtuber/ screenwriter is the showrunner of the series:
For starters, Whidden would have made two final seasons of 10 episodes, no cuts. However, his main changes would have come into play on episode 3 of the eighth season. To start off with, the characters would not have been so foolish as to hide people in a crypt. They would have anticipated the dangers that would come from this. Instead, they would have taken refuge in the interior of Winterfell (as Melisandre does in the series).
But let’s go to the important part. No, Arya does not kill the Night King in this version. The small warrior is simply a backup. The hero, Jon, had come down from the skies to fight with his men and not have fallen off the dragon. Rhaegal dies from his battle wounds and not later shot by the arrow from Euron Greyjoy. In this version, Jon arrives in time to see how Theon died defending Bran and we finally get to see the protagonist and the Night King have the most epic sword battle in the entire series. Unable to reach him with his Valyrian steel sword, Jon strikes him with a dragon glass knife but it has no effect. And then, at last, Bran does something he hasn’t done since the sixth season when he controlled Hodor. He gets into the skin of Viserion, the dragon of the Night King and blasts the Night King. But in this version, the leader of the White Walkers will not fall until the end. Daenerys on the back of Drogon resues Bran and Jon to flee with the survivors to King’s Landing. Whidden clarifies that Bran remains in a trance since the Night King himself kills his dragon while the young Stark was in his skin.
Let’s keep going with this version. This time the made out to be crazy queen Daenerys is the heroine that was promised to fans and does not hesitate to kneel before the despot Cersei to shelter her surviving troops. In this way, the epic battle from episode 5 would not be between the two mad queens, but the struggle between the dead and the living would be the final battle at the end.
In addition, Euron dies in the battle and the end of the Clegane would be the same as it was in the series, as expected, King’s Landing can do little to stop the white walkers. Here Whidden has his most daring concept. Bran comes out of his trance by remembering what took place at the creation of the Night King and the white walkers on the island, Gods Eye, the center of magical power that we only know about because of the books and not the series. Bran discovers that if that Arcian tree is destroyed, it will also mean the end for the Night King since that’s where the children of the forest created him. As both have their minds connected, the battle is interrupted since the undead will go to protect the tree. There is only one problem if that tree disappears, so will the rest of the magic, that is, Jon will also die.
It has already been established that the Night King in this version is a lot, a lot more difficult to kill. So, Drogon burns the tree, Daenerys and the Night King at the same time. While the tree burns, Daenerys stabs the monarch of the dead with Valyrian steel. As expected, Daenerys survives the fire again and both Jon and the Night King die and all the white walkers fall.
Meanwhile, in King’s Landing, things have also been rolling. Arya tries to kill Cersei while using Jaime’s face (yes, what all the fans asked for) but gets distracted when she runs into Elaria Arena in the calabash. It is the real Jaime who will kill Cersei when he discovers that she was lying about being pregnant and that she intends to kill all the refugee followers of Daenerys.
If fans have something in common is that they find it hard to believe that their favorite characters will disappoint them. But you have to admit that in the end, this version makes the characters more interesting. In this denouement, however, Daenerys and Jaime are ideal. Whidden makes the story too nice, too pretty. Be that as it may, this Daenerys would end up as the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.
In case this was not joyful enough. Whidden adds an epilogue 5 years later. In it, the characters return to Winterfell, which has been rebuilt after being destroyed by the White Walkers. Sansa is not the queen but a Lady and in the crypt is the tomb of Jon next to that of Ned Stark. Queen Daenerys Targaryen shows up with a five-year-old boy whom she calls next to her father’s grave “come here Jon.” Which should make watchers shed tears, maybe.
Whidden has quite a ways to go before becoming a screenwriter for television and remember that HBO did not hire some amateurs to write Game of Thrones. It is true that this version is pleasant, quite satisfactory, that is precisely what fan service means. But Game of Thrones was characterized by its contrary, to antagonize the fans and to show us that in reality, things do not go as we expect or we want them to turn out. In short, it is what it is, even though it might hurt. Of course, who wouldn’t want to see the epic battle between Jon and the Night King or a little Jon?
