Hate me if you want but these 7 Game of Thrones characters arcs are the worst according to me

Deeya
Still from Game of Thrones (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from Game of Thrones (Image via Game of Thrones)

Game of Thrones was a long show and aired for 8 seasons. While the show garnered a massive fan following across the globe, it also gained negative reviews for the show’s later seasons, which lacked creative direction. Another complaint regarding the later seasons was that many of the important characters on the show had lost their way as their character arcs got weaker and weaker with each season. From Tyrion Lannister initially being a voice of reason to his sudden and quick fall from intellectualism, here are 7 Game of Thrones characters that had the worst character arcs.


Jaime Lannister, Night King, and other characters from Game of Thrones with the worst character arcs

1. Bran Stark

Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)

Played by Isaac Hempstead Wright, Bran Stark has a major role in Game of Thrones. Even in the overall story of the show, he holds an important place. However, when he is crowned as the new King of Westeros, many fans of the show are left in shock. In the first season of the show, his story starts off strongly, and it is soon revealed that he is unable to walk. However, the show teases that he can fly and is called the Three-Eyed Raven. Bran Stark’s character arc in the show is important, as his journey beyond the Wall to uncover his true destiny is one of the high points of his character arc. However, Game of Thrones was unable to justify Bran becoming the Raven, as the mythology behind the role was not explained. Even Bran’s own feelings regarding his fate are not ventured into. The worst part comes in the final season when he is crowned the king, as he did not do anything during the Long Night and didn’t use his abilities to even attempt to defend Winterfell. His character arc felt strange as he pushed Jon to tell Arya and Sansa about his parentage, and the fact that the North is independent with a Stark on the Iron Throne also felt unjust.


2. Petyr Baelish

Still from the show (Image via HBO)
Still from the show (Image via HBO)

One of the most interesting characters on Game of Thrones. Played by Aidan Gillen, Baelish is one of the most manipulative and skilled people in the show, and he uses his ownership over brothels in King’s Landing to gather intelligence on his rivals and also gain wealth and power. He even becomes the Master of Coin in the Small Council under King Robert Baratheon, and his schemes in the show are full of cunning. Also known as Littlefinger, Baelish always wanted to ascend the throne and therefore did various machinations to get what he wanted. However, a few decisions that he takes seem poor and against his nature, as he always wanted Sansa, and then he surprisingly makes a deal with the Boltons and sells Sansa to her enemies. A character as calculative and menacing as Baelish should not have easily given away Sansa without doing his homework. It made little sense that Baelish didn’t know about Ramsay, as the Boltons had flayed their enemies for a long time. Littlefinger does everything to his own benefit, so the marriage between Sansa and Ramsay offered no benefit to Baelish for him to undertake this deal. Even Baelish’s death in the finale is abrupt and insulting, and as the writers had to show Sansa’s growth, the show focused on showing Baelish’s drastic intellectual decline, which felt unnatural in Game of Thrones.


3. Tyrion Lannister

Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)

Played by Peter Dinklage, Tyrion Lannister was one of the most loved characters on Game of Thrones. Even though he did not have the height, he was not someone to be messed around with. Tyrion was witty, dignified, and had a lot of charm, which made him one of the few respectable characters on the show. While others were deceiving others or getting deceived in this battle for the Iron Throne, Tyrion kept his head high and knew right from wrong. Tyrion was known for having the ability to read other characters and use it to his own advantage. He did not even pay attention to his sister Cersei’s schemes. However, when he became a Hand to Daenerys, Tyrion’s character began making mistakes one after another, which was not at all symbolic of his character. In the earlier seasons, Tyrion never fell victim to Cersei’s empty promises. However, he makes awful decisions like bringing a wight to King’s Landing to convince his sister to agree to a truce and then suggests going to King’s Landing again to demand her surrender. His decisions lead to Missandei’s decapitation, and such decisions only show that the makers were unable to keep the character balanced throughout Game of Thrones. His character arc had a terrible fall.


4. Jaime Lannister

Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)

Another character from Game of Thrones who was a brilliant character till the last season of the show ruined his character arc. Jaime Lannister is played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and had one of the most interesting character arcs up until the final season. He was initially a villain who becomes an unconventional hero as the show progresses. Jamie and Cersei both lose children, but while Cersei becomes crueler and wants power, Jaime still has some morals and is disappointed when Cersei blows up the Great Sept. When she conspired with Euron to take down the North, Jaime even showed growth and self-reflection and headed to Winterfell. However, in the last season, his relationship with Brienne feels forced, and he then goes back to Cersei immediately. Therefore it feels pointless and unusual for a character who had so much growth. When he is held prisoner and Tyrion has a conversation with him, Jaime mentions that he never cared about the people, even the innocent ones. This is in contradiction to his earlier scenes with Brienne, where he tells her that he saved the city from the Mad King. Therefore, Jaime’s character arc in Game of Thrones goes for a toss, and he seems confused and lost by the end of the season.


5. Night King

Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)

The Night King and his army were one of the most important threats and dangers in the world of Game of Thrones. Since the beginning of the show, viewers were left to ponder the deeper meaning of the threat of the White Walkers. The looming threat and presence of the Night King were extremely great since the fourth season of the show, and viewers expected a terrible rivalry and war when the Night King gained one of Daenerys’s dragons and broke through the Wall to march on Winterfell. However, while most people expected a massive war and the Night King being unable to lose easily, everything changed. Arya comes out of nowhere and stabs the Night King extremely easily. Even the Night King’s undead soldiers turn into icicles, and the entire storyline that had been built up since the last four seasons felt like a waste of time. The abrupt and easy ending to the Night King’s character in Game of Thrones felt wrong for his character, and once again, the show proved that its writing and creative direction had taken a hit as the series progressed. The threat was diminished suddenly, and it rendered the prophecy useless, and Jon Snow’s arc became pointless.


6. Daenerys Targaryen

Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)
Still from the show (Image via Game of Thrones)

Daenerys Targaryen was the main heroic lead of Game of Thrones. She entered the show as a frightened and lost individual who is unconnected to the political and dramatic world of the noble families and has a humble background. However, even the protagonist and the mother of the dragons could not save her character arc on the show. Played by Emilia Clarke, Daenerys was always seen as a liberator and a person who served the people. She empathized with the poor, and even if she was a novice in the beginning, she soon transformed into a strong woman and followed her gut over her advisors. However, once she makes Tyrion her Hand, she loses all her sharpness and capabilities and gets angry when Tyrion cannot manage things. Even when she was new to Westeros, she knew how to manage things on her own. However, her skills regress as the show progresses, and her arc with Jon Snow also felt forced. Daenerys could have easily surrounded King’s Landing with her own armies and dragons and could have conquered the city. However, she watched Tyrion’s failures and waited for Jon. All of this made her unstable and mad, and Jon has to eventually kill her in Game of Thrones, which did not feel like a fitting end for the character.


7. Bronn

Still from the show (Image via Amazon Prime Video)
Still from the show (Image via Amazon Prime Video)

Played by Jerome Flynn in the show, Bronn is a character whose main job on Game of Thrones was to provide a much-needed dose of humor amidst the serious and heartbreaking events of the show. However, with time, he also became a one-dimensional character and often complained about his lack of payment. Cersei even offers him a castle for killing Tyrion and Jaime, and Bronn goes to Winterfell with a crossbow and gets the promise that he will get Highgarden if Daenerys wins the war. Therefore, his character is finicky and not loyal. However, his character arc does not make sense, as after Bran became king, Bronn got a seat on the Small Council and was made the Master of Coin. The elevation of such a character feels sudden and unnatural, as Bronn did not understand finances. He could be great in war but not in financial matters. Further, he even gets Highgarden as promised, even though Tyrion could not have given him that, as he was not the king and was only a Hand to Daenerys. Therefore, Bronn’s character arc in Game of Thrones feels unsatisfying, as the character did not deserve the great heights that were afforded to him.

Edited by Deeya