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Game of Thrones finale: 19 unanswered questions that still drive us mad

Sky Atlantic/HBO
Sky Atlantic/HBO

After eight seasons, Game of Thrones came to an end exactly a year ago today - with the final ever episode racking up an impressive 19.3 million views in the US alone.

While there's no denying the show was a cultural phenomenon, many fans were left more than a little miffed by its conclusion.

Some were so dismayed by the final episodes that they even started a petition calling for showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss to remake the entire final season.

Needless to say, their calls were not answered and many (us included) are still reeling from what went down.

Here are just 19 of the many unanswered questions that we're still scratching our heads over...

1. What was the point of the White Walkers?

(HBO)
(HBO)

After dedicating years of our lives to the show, we expected to get a little more of an explanation about the White Walkers.

From the very moment they were first mentioned, the Night King and his army of the living dead were teased as enigmatic, mysterious creatures who posed an apocalyptic threat to humankind.

But when the Living Army finally faced the Army of the Dead, the confrontation was dealt with in just one episode - with the Jon Snow-led men triumphing over the Night King, and the White Walkers' story being brushed to the side as we followed Daenerys Targaryen's descent into madness instead.

Yes, there are snippets of information peppered throughout the series - including the fact dragonglass can defeat them and it was the Children of the Forest that created them in the first place - and, we have to admit, Arya Stark killing the Night King was pretty epic. But after a lot of hype and Jon spending his whole existence trying to get people to rally together to fight the force of evil, it was incredibly anticlimactic.

2. Why didn't Arya make better use of her skills?

(HBO)
(HBO)

Speaking of Arya and loose ends, why did we watch so many hours of her mastering the dark art of face swapping if she was only going to use the skills she learnt from the Faceless Men a handful of times?

Sure, she utilised her training while killing Polliver, Ser Meryn Trant and Walder Frey (which was one of the best deaths of the entire show), but beyond that she didn't really take anyone's face.

A lot of fans speculated that she took a Wight's face in order to gain access to the Night King when he and the White Walkers invaded Winterfell, but the episode's director previously revealed she very much fought her way there.

3. Where did Drogon take Daenerys' body?

(Sky Atlantic / HBO)
(Sky Atlantic / HBO)

While Bron and Bran mention that Drogon was "last spotted east" at their first ever privy council meeting, we do not know exactly where Drogon took Dany's lifeless body - though Benioff has revealed he definitely didn't eat her. Phew.

4. So... Is Jon a Wildling now, or what?

(HBO)
(HBO)

After the Battle of Winterfell and murdering Dany, Jon decided to accept his punishment (as dealt by Greyworm) and was exiled to Castle Black.

There, Tormund was awaiting him, along with his trusty direwolf, Ghost.

After a heartwarming reunion and a quick glimpse of a shoot coming up through the snow, Jon, Tormund and a group of others made their way beyond The Wall.

He probably could have gotten away with staying with Bran in Westeros though, as Greyworm already set sail for Naath, Missandei's birthplace.

5. Did Gilly have her baby? And did she and Sam name him Jon?

(HBO)
(HBO)

While the adrenaline was pumping ahead of the White Walkers' approach, Samwell Tarly and Gilly got... a little jiggy to pass the time and calm their nerves.

Just after the Battle of Winterfell, Samwell struts over to his BFF Jon, proudly announcing that Gilly was pregnant with her second child.

The pair also said if it was a boy, they'd name it after Snow.

6. Did Bran know he was going to be dubbed Bran the Broken this entire time?

(HBO)
(HBO)

After training to become the Three Eyed Raven, Bran harnessed the ability to warg and was given the power of greensight - which not only enabled him to see events in the past, but also the present and future.

Does this mean that he knew he would become Bran the Broken the entire time?

7. What ever happened to Meera Reed?

(HBO)
(HBO)

While we're on the topic of Bran, we need to discuss Meera Reed - ya know, the girl who pulled Bran around on a sled for seasons and whom he (in not so many words) told to get lost.

We know she said she was returning to her family, but we never heard from or saw her again after she left Bran at Winterfell.

8. And Daario Naharis for that matter?

(HBO)
(HBO)

Sure, Dany left Daario to watch over Meereen for her, but we didn't really hear much of him after that.

Clearly the Mother of Dragons soon moved on (with her nephew, of course), but Daario was no doubt still pining for her back at base.

9. Are the Dothraki and the Unsullied just chilling now?

To be honest, we're not sure where the Dothraki and Unsullied stayed during the times they were not used in battle, but what's even more unclear is what happens to them next - the few who survived, that is.

10. Is Ellaria Sand still alive?

(HBO)
(HBO)

We're guessing Ellaria is very much dead, but we need closure.

The last time we saw Indira Varma's character, Cersei had chained her up at King's Landing, forcing her to watch her daughter die in agony after being poisoned.

If she didn't die of hunger, she surely met a grisly end when Dany rained fire on the place, but we'll never know.

11. What ever happened to Nymeria?

(HBO)
(HBO)

Ned Stark gifted all his children a direwolf in the season one opener and Nymeria, as fans will recall, was Arya Stark's direwolf, who bit Joffrey when he got aggressive with the youngest Stark.

Cersei then ordered Nymeria's death, but Arya released her before the queen could get ahold of her.

After that, way down the line in season seven, Arya runs into a pack of wolves in the wild and has a staring competition with a beast that bears a striking resemblance to Nymeria. She tries to convince Nymeria to return to Winterfell with her but after a long, suspenseful pause, the wolf then turns and runs off, before Arya says: "It's not you."

Some have taken this to mean that Arya just got her wolves mixed up, but others believe she meant it metaphorically, in that a wild beast should not be domesticated - much like herself.

12. Who was the Azor Ahai?

(HBO)
(HBO)

Unlike the prophecies the show conveniently dropped in over halfway through, one of the most prominent ones in the show and books is that of the 'Prince Who Was Promised'.

As legend has it: “There will come a day after a long summer when the stars bleed and the cold breath of darkness falls heavy on the world.

“In this dread hour, a warrior shall draw from the fire a burning sword. And that sword shall be Lightbringer, the Red Sword of Heroes, and he who clasps it shall be Azor Ahai come again, and the darkness shall flee before him.”

While it is indeed possible that Melisandre's vision related to multiple characters - such as Beric Dondarrion and Arya and Bran Stark - it seems like a bit of a cop out when they've put so much emphasis on the Azor Ahai.

13. Did the White Walker babies turn into adult White Walkers?

(HBO)
(HBO)

In season four, we saw a White Walker turn a baby into a Wight. But after that, we never actually saw what happened to the White Walker baby - or the many sacrificed by Castor.

Do they remain as babies? Do they grow up into fully-grown White Walkers? Was it some sort of Twilight situation?

15. Who plaited Dany's hair after Messandai was killed by Cersei​?

(HBO)
(HBO)

As the seasons go on, Daenerys' plaits get more and more intricate - arguably symbolising her increasing power.

But what we don't understand is how she managed to continue to do her hair after Messandai was beheaded by Cersei.

16. Is winter over?

At the very end of the season eight finale, we saw Jon Snow return to Castle Black and on the ground, there was a little green shoot piercing through the snow.

Does that mean winter is finally over?

17. Was Cersei really pregnant?

(HBO)
(HBO)

We still can't talk about the way our queen Cersei was killed off without swearing, crying and throwing hard objects, but we do have to mention her pregnancy storyline.

Was she really preggers? Was it Jaime's?

18. What the hell is west of Westeros?

(HBO)
(HBO)

After killing the Night King and changing her mind about assassinating Cersei at King's Landing, Arya Stark finally sets on becoming Dora the Explorer and travelling the world.

She goes to explore 'what's west of Westeros', which was also a nod to seasons past, when she met an actor while training to become a Faceless Man.

Indeed, many fans hoped Arya would get her own spin-off show, allowing them to see what the young Stark girl did next.

19. Finally, what went down with Tyrion, the jackass and the honeycomb?

(HBO)
(HBO)

We. Need. Answers.

You can watch Game of Thrones seasons 1-8 on NOW TV.

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