The mysterious Shadow Lands beyond Asshai is one such enticing prospect, as this region has been described with ominous tones and has even been claimed to be the origins of dragons. Weiss, or a combination of the two, but animation could and should allow for the studio and writing team to get more imaginative about the wondrous side of this dark fantasy world. Maybe it was due to budget restraints for an already-expensive show, creative decisions by showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Likewise, whenever we’d see something otherworldly - whether it’s Dany’s dragons or the dark occult magic of the Red Priestesses - they did admittedly have an air of awe to them. Understandably, this isn’t like the more vibrant high-fantasy world of Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, but even the midrange fantasy of Thrones felt like it was intentionally holding itself back as much as possible.įrom a contextual standpoint, it did make some sense, as magic was only recently creeping back into the world with the birth of Daenerys Targaryen’s dragons. Martin’s world of A Song of Ice and Fire is dense with the supernatural and the mystical, and while there were some tantalizing looks at that aspect of the universe in Game of Thrones, it certainly could have been leaned into more. Leaning more into the mystical and supernatural Likewise, many other places could be recreated in animation to stunning effects that might not be explored in live-action, like the rich lands of Old Valyria where the Targaryens and the several other Dragonlord Houses ruled.
Bringing to screen the unseen history of the world - namely Essos - would also be an excellent opportunity to explore a diverse new cast of characters. That’s already a strong start should the project get off the ground, as most passing references to different places and people in Martin’s books and the show already have plenty of lore ripe for adaptation behind them. This country in Essos is inspired by Imperial-era China as an analog of Westeros’ spin of medieval Britain. One of the reported animated spinoffs furthest along in development is under the working title The Golden Empire, and would be set in Yi Ti.
Animation for a Thronesspinoff could vibrantly - or grimly - bring to life adaptations of the various nooks and crannies of Martin’s dark-fantasy universe. With the massive price tags that come with fantasy epics like Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, and especially Prime Video’s upcoming The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, there’s only so much that studios are likely willing to portray through live-action and CGI. But like with most fantasy franchises, the world of A Song of Ice and Fire has heaps of lore and worldbuilding that paint a much bigger picture unseen in HBO’s series. Game of Thrones did manage to explore many places throughout Martin’s world, from beyond the wall to the southern regions of Dorne in Westeros to a handful of locales in Essos.