10 Ways ‘Game of Thrones’ Improved Upon George R.R. Martin’s Books

9. Margaery Is More Complex

Margaery Tyrell isn’t all that interesting in the books. She’s characterized as little more than a cipher who is used as a plot device, particularly when it comes to anything Lannister-related. Fortunately, the Margaery of Game of Thrones is much more dynamic, thanks in large part to actress Natalie Dormer’s strong performance and an increase in the character’s role. Played with a seductive, but oddly innocent charm by Dormer, Margaery is presented as a pragmatic social climber who knows how to attain power, while somehow still remaining one of the more virtuous characters on the show.

There’s also an expansion of Margaery’s relationship with her mother-in-law Cersei, with the two slyly playing off the other in their own particular way (no one brings out Cersei’s bad side quite like Margaery). Although Margaery is outclassed by her even more ambitious grandmother Lady Olenna Tyrell, it’s a bit unfair to compare the two when the latter is being played by the likes of Diana Rigg. Still, Game of Thrones took the unimaginative Margaery of the source material and turned her into one of the show’s best female characters, which is definitely an accomplishment worth making note of.

http://gameofthrones.wikia.com/wiki/Margaery_Tyrell Source: Game of Thrones Wiki

8. Making Robb Stark A “Point of View” Character

Game of Thrones viewers who haven’t read any of Martin’s novels may be surprised to learn that Robb Stark — a very important character in the early seasons of the show — is essentially a minor character in the books. Martin writes each chapter of his novels from the point of view of a different character, which not only indicates which ones are the most important, but also reveals their inner thoughts and feeling. Robb was never a point of view character and any information readers were given about him came from other characters (mostly his mother Catelyn Stark). Game of Thrones made the right decision in depicting Robb as a “P.O.V” character, as this made him a more nuanced, interesting character overall, and helped make his eventual assassination at the infamous Red Wedding more impactful as a result.

http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/robb-stark/images/34130420/title/robb-stark-photo Source: fanpop.com

7. Daenerys’s Rise To Power

Daenerys’s storyline may be one of the most frustrating in both the books and show, as it often feels like a waste of so much potential. Dany’s arc in the first book (and season) is absolutely captivating; starting out as timid and controlled by the men around her, Dany is eventually metaphorically and literally reborn in fire by the end. Unfortunately, the new, more confident Daenerys Targaryen quickly finds herself in one mediocre storyline after another, punctuated by moments of greatness that are too few and far between.

Fortunately, Game of Thrones makes an attempt to streamline some of these issues by making the plot flow better overall. In particular, season two made adjustments to ensure that her storyline from A Clash of Kings was more engaging, as it easily stands as one of the worst individual sections of Martin’s text. Plus, watching Emilia Clarke regularly tear down her enemies’ resolve with her fiery stare (and actual fire) never really gets old.

http://www.theworkprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/xlarge539b4ba1667ff-1748×984.jpg Source: The WorkPrint

6. Theon Is Much More Sympathetic

Although Theon Greyjoy endures much the same level of torture at the hands of Ramsey Bolton on the show as he does in the books, Game of Thrones has made him out to be a much more sympathetic character overall. A lot of this has to do with little changes to Theon’s characterization throughout each season. His betrayal of Robb Stark is depicted as a much heavier burden for Theon than it was in the books and overall, Theon is less smug and more unsure of himself in the show, which makes his actions more thematically-engaging.

His execution of two northern farm boys in place of Bran and Rickon Stark is treated as a constant source of regret for Theon and even though it’s implied in A Dance With Dragons that Ramsey castrates him, Game of Thrones explicitly depicts this event taking place, which only enhances the character’s sympathetic qualities. Simply put, it takes a lot longer for Theon to become a character worth rooting for in the books, which makes his story more difficult to get on board with. In contrast, Theon is given added complexities on the show, and is a more engaging character overall (although the torture stuff really did go on for far too long).

http://www.theweek.co.uk/game-of-thrones/63284/game-of-thrones-spoiler-light-reviews-of-creepy-season-six-premiere Source: theweek.co.uk

5. The Brienne and Hound Fight

Despite being a very likable character, Brienne of Tarth spends most of Martin’s novels engaged in tedious plot lines that take forever to get to the point. While the show has also stumbled with how to use Brienne from time-to-time, it’s done a much better job of integrating her into the larger plot and even has her meet multiple characters she never did in the books. Case in point: the epic sword fight she has with Sandor “The Hound” Clegane at the end of the fourth season.

This event never happened in the books, as the Hound was instead wounded at an inn during a fight with some of his brother’s men. In addition to being one of the best duels in all of Game of Thrones, this fight also brought Brienne into contact with Arya Stark, whom she swore an oath to find and protect. Having Arya refuse Brienne’s services added some much-needed character development for Brienne that just wasn’t present in the books and made her oath seem all the more depressingly unattainable (further reinforced by Sansa Stark’s spurning in the fifth season).

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/15/game-of-thrones-gwendoline-christie-on-brienne-of-tarth-s-epic-s4-finale-showdown-with-the-hound.html Source: thedailybeast.com

4. Sansa In Winterfell

While Sansa Stark has always been one of the most sympathetic characters in both Martin’s novels and Game of Thrones, she hasn’t always been a very likable one. Thankfully, things have been trending up for Sansa in the past few seasons of the show thanks to a combination of the writers giving her more to do and actress Sophie Turner becoming increasingly confident in the role as she’s gotten older. The novels and TV show maintain a very similar arc for Sansa right up until the death of her Aunt Lysa. In Martin’s story, Sansa pretty much hangs around the Eyrie putting up with the sickly Lord Robin and the machinations of Littlefinger. Things take a wide left turn in the show, with Sansa returning to her childhood home of Winterfell to become Ramsey Bolton’s wife, a storyline that was actually given to Jeyne Poole in the books (this character doesn’t exist on the show).

Although the show has stumbled with this plot occasionally (particularly with that controversial rape scene), it’s also made Sansa seem much more pragmatic and determined than her book counterpart and helped involve her more in one of the show’s main storylines. Of course, The Winds of Winter could very well tell its own fantastic Sansa story when it is eventually released, but as of this moment, the Sansa Stark of Game of Thrones is the superior version of the character.

http://cdn.hitfix.com/photos/6028347/game-of-thrones-sons-of-the-harpy.jpg Source: hitfix.com

3. Having Tyrion Meet Daenerys

While overall a good novel, A Dance With Dragons suffers from too many instances of bloated storytelling, particularly when it comes to the continued misadventures of Tyrion Lannister. Tyrion has the same goal of reaching Daenerys in both the books and the show, but the latter handles this storyline much more efficiently. Tyrion not only has a much better paced journey to get to the city of Meereen, with the show stripping away the whole Young Griff plot entirely, he actually makes it to Meereen AND gets to meet Dany.

In contrast, by the end of A Dance With Dragons, Tyrion has yet to achieve either of these goals, which was one of the more frustrating aspects of Martin’s novel. Game of Thrones clearly recognized that these two characters needed to be on screen together sooner rather than later and found time to get them in the same room without it feeling cheap or rushed. It’s just unfortunate that we really only got about two episodes out of this development before Dany made her dragon-assisted escape from the city. Hopefully, this won’t be the last time we see the pair sharing the same frame.

http://winteriscoming.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Daenerys-and-Tyrion-and-wine-Official-HBO.jpg Source: winteriscoming.net

2. Arya Serving As Tywin’s Cupbearer

Oh Charles Dance, how we miss you. Despite being a cold, uncompromising jerk who holds his own children in contempt, Tywin Lannister remains one of the most captivating characters in Game of Thrones history and one of the best decisions the show’s writers made was expanding his role in their adaptation. Not only do we get more Tywin in the show, we also get to see him interact with Arya Stark for a time in season two; an inspired creative choice that arguably improved upon Martin’s material.

Having two of the show’s best characters on screen together was great enough, but it also made Arya’s arc even more intriguing by having her forge a relationship with a man who is her sworn enemy and not even realize it. In comparison, this story arc wasn’t as satisfying in the books, as Arya was the cupbearer for Roose Bolton — at the time still a Stark ally — instead of Tywin, the man whose grandson lobbed off her father’s head. Looking back, we’re a bit surprised that Arya didn’t break her disguise and kill Tywin on the spot.

http://www.madbracketstatus.com/2015/05/arya-stark-is-fiercest-game-of-thrones.html Source: madbracketstatus.com

1. The White Walkers

Both A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones establish the White Walkers as the ultimate threat to the Seven Kingdoms, but for whatever reason, Martin’s text shoves them to the side for long stretches of time, to the point where it’s easy to forget about them altogether. While Game of Throne is guilty of doing this as well, the show has done a better job of doling out scenes featuring the White Walkers, culminating in an epic payoff in the season five episode “Hardhome,” where the White Walkers are finally shown in all their terrifying glory.

No such event has yet to take place in Martin’s books, with the author seemingly determined to keep readers and the inhabitants of Westeros as in the dark about these creatures as possible before unleashing them at a later time. This strategy may very well have a payoff, but it’s hard not to be a little frustrated with Martin’s text for doing so little with the White Walkers over the course of five novels. Truth be told, we’re much more satisfied with the show’s handling of them, keeping them at bay while revealing new and interesting bits of information about them so that viewers will always have the White Walkers in the back of their mind as a terrifying threat.

http://winteriscoming.net/2015/06/01/game-of-thrones-hardhome-analysis/ Source: winteriscoming.net