We’re beginning to see more TV shows adapted from books and comic books. The good news is the TV editions often go their own way to keep audiences on their toes. We’ve seen this effectively done with The Walking Dead over the last decade. Game of Thrones has done this on an equally compelling level, making the upcoming finale all the more mysterious in its outcomes.
What fans want to know now is how the ending differs from George R.R. Martin’s last two novels, which he has yet to publish. While he has his own ending mapped out (and told GoT producers what he had in mind), everyone wonders how similar they’ll really be after Martin gave an important revelation.
The strange comment from George R.R. Martin about how the endings will link up
Those of you who happened to catch George R.R. Martin’s interview on 60 Minutes with Anderson Cooper on April 14 will know the author perhaps gave away more than he planned on the Game of Thrones ending. While he didn’t give away any details on character fates, he assured fans the TV edition finale won’t really be much different from his own planned final books.
It’s clear those final two books everyone’s been waiting eight years for won’t be out any time immediately after HBO’s Game of Thrones ends. We probably won’t see either of the final books in 2019, despite some rumors brewing about the sixth book being out later this year.
With the news that his book endings may be close to how the HBO show ends, fans are curious if this is just a ruse to help set up some more surprises. For overly astute fans of the show and the books, they may think Martin gave away more than he intended.
Which characters will George R. R. Martin kill off?
One insightful thing mentioned by Martin during his 60 Minutes interview will have you reexamining why he kills off so many of his characters. He noted he really doesn’t kill off more than any other fantasy/sci-fi movies/shows have. The reason more people are so shocked by his character deaths is he makes them emotional experiences rather than mere “act breaks.”
Martin says he’s truly assimilated the GoT characters going back years, so he always hated having them die. However, his comments give a subtle tip on what fans might expect during the last episode of the TV series.
No death is going to take place for shock value. Should we see a broad swath of death in the finale, it’ll all be for a good reason. It may also be a hint not as many will die as many believe. Since Martin practically lives and breaths these characters, he may not have the guts to kill the principle players.
Or, maybe he will since the murderous Red Wedding sequence wasn’t something he wanted to write, but ultimately had to.
Will George R.R. Martin leave his books unfinished?
It’s looking clear Martin’s final two books (The Winds of Winter/A Dream of Spring) won’t be out for quite a while after HBO’s Game of Thrones ends. Some might think by the time the books come out, nobody will even care what Martin’s ending is considering it might be two or three years removed from the series.
There’s even some suggestions he may never finish the books, leaving it open to someone else having to finish them if Martin dies in the next decade. Others think he might change his ending from what he originally intended.
Should he just let the HBO series stand as the official ending considering the show’s pop culture status far exceeds the books?
After Martin’s comment of being a slow writer and only able to work from home, relying on the show’s ending may have to happen. Once a writer becomes as popular as he is, there really isn’t enough quality time to finish further writing projects. Fans may already be resigned to this reality.
