Animation Is the Future of ‘Game of Thrones’ — And That’s a Good Thing

The Big Picture

• Animation has been used in the Game of Thrones series to explore and explain various concepts within the world of Westeros.
• Previous animated spin-offs of the series, such as the special on the Dance of the Dragons, have served as precursors for future live-action prequel series.
• Animation offers endless potential for world building and exploration in Westeros, allowing for the exploration of new locations and events not feasible in live-action settings.

Throughout its history and even still today, animation has had an undeserved reputation as being a medium of storytelling purely meant for younger children, something that an entire subgenre of more mature shows would clearly disagree with. This especially seems to be true of fantasy stories, as even shows loved by some adults can be overlooked merely due to the style in which they are created. One thing that has rarely been seen, however, is the blending of the three genres, which has the potential to explore darker themes and portray elements that would be logistically difficult or even impossible to capture through live action.

Although shows like Castlevania have been wildly successful in the face of great risks, few other franchises have been willing to test the waters of adult fantasy animation, which makes the recent news about an animated Game of Thrones spjnoff all the more surprising. This really should not be the case, as animation has long proven itself a unique avenue through which more fantastical concepts can be explored. Seeing such an esteemed franchise tackle more stories through this method not only provides a great opportunity for world building and new storylines, but might even help secure mainstream acceptance of adult fantasy animation in ther same way the original series once did for more mature fantasy stories on live action television.

‘Game of Thrones’ Already Has An Overlooked History With Animation

Right from the beginning, the world of Westeros has already shown an interest in what animation can bring to the table when creating such an expansive world. During each season of the original series, hand drawn and later fully colored animation was used to explore and explain various concepts, usually those which remained relevant to the season in question. For example, the inaugural season explains the Wall and the Night’s Watch who guard it to casual viewers, even if concepts like the White Walkers are never explored. During later seasons, as the series expanded its budget and prestige, historical events and character backstories were explored in not only greater detail, but now in full color. Perhaps the most notable example is season seven, where Aegon’s Conquest, previously explored in earlier pieces, is discussed more thoroughly and with striking visuals to boot.

Often, these many hours of fascinating details have been dismissed as simply fun exercises for passionate fans or mere exposition for newcomers, ones largely confined to the backwater of behind the scenes content released on home video. This is a shame, as the History and Lore series not only remains a treasure trove of content, but their influence has already served as an indirect source of guidance towards other live action shows.

Several years before House of the Dragon explored the event in greater detail, an animated half hour special was created for season five of Game of Thrones to explain the Dance of the Dragons, which the live action series had only mentioned in passing. This animated feature, the first to be created with color and by far the longest of any other such content before and since, almost served as a precursor to the development of the full prequel series that would later follow, with some adaptational changes here and there and some events that are portrayed differently by various fictional sources in Westeros.

The Animation Precedent for ‘Game of Thrones’ Has Already Been Set

Unlike the original live action series, Westeros has its work cut out for it within the realm of animation, as it not only has explored the medium before but has great examples to follow. Shows like Arcane on Netflix have already been critically acclaimed for their mature storytelling through computer animation, taking a franchise4 with a passionate fan base and expanding it through another medium. Perhaps the more fitting template, however, lies in another Netflix adult fantasy animated series based upon a popular franchise, that of Castlevania. Such a groundbreaking show, which cautiously began with a very short first season due to the uncertainty over how it would be perceived, achieved remarkable success, spawning multiple seasons and, more recently, another whole series. Still, while Netflix might be the pioneer of animated fantasy created for older audiences, other studios have also joined the fray. Preceding both these shows was The Legend of Vox Machina on Amazon Prime, which was praised for many of the same reasons.

This playing field gives any animated spin-off in Westeros something the original live action shows never possessed in the form of a tried and tested framework. Not only is animated fantasy a rapidly expanding subgenre, but one that has gained acclaim in many different forms. Whether the content is mostly directed towards children but still loved by adults, like with Avatar: The Last Airbender, or meant primarily for older viewers, like the shows mentioned above, audiences cannot seem to get enough of them. This makes an animated series for Westeros less of a risk than it might have been even two or three years ago. Far from being an anomaly, the medium has been proven to work time and time again. Assuming you have a good story and characters, your passionate audience will most likely follow.

‘Game of Thrones’ Has Endless Potential Through Animation

Perhaps the biggest reason why animation should be considered a new venture for the world of Westeros is its potential for world building and exploration. Not only are there countless ideas for future spinoffs, but the method of production allows for exploration of locations and events not logistically possible in other live action settings. When discussing the progress of the spinoff The Sea Snake, the prequel series about the many adventures of Corlys Velaryon decades before House of the Dragon takes place, series creator George R. R. Martin noted the show was originally intended for live action, but conceded that the sheer amount of physical locations being explored would render it prohibitively expensive, necessitating the use of animation instead.

Combined with his admission that other future spinoffrs might be animated for the same reasons, this opens all kinds of possibilities for a franchise known for being rich in world building and with so many untapped reserves of lore. Some spinoffs already appear to be planned for live action, such as Dunk and Egg, and others remain uncertain, like Flea Bottom and the possible Jon Snow sequel series. As the previous example of Bloodmoon has shown us, filming a live action pilot comes with a large set of risks, which have already left it as a casualty.

Although Martin has not specified which of the proposed spinoffs will be animated, the medium would remain best suited for those which are large in scale and possess unfamiliar locations. Already, this brings to mind the 10,000 Ships series, featuring the journey of Nymeria that created the modern culture of Dorne, and The Golden Empire, a show based upon the lands of Yi Ti, inspired by ancient China. Given the vastness of the world Martin has created, it’s easy to imagine a series about Old Valyria or the future voyages of Arya Stark being ripe for exploration in both a creative and literal sense. Several future spinoffs could take place outside of Westeros. And given that a limited series and film of Aegon’s Conquest has been discussed, one could also envision new animated stories on a smaller scale exploring major events in the history of Westeros, ideas that a full live action series might not be worth the cost of creating. From Robert’s Rebellion to the Faith Militant Uprising, there is no shortage of storylines for creators to dive into, should they be given the opportunity.

At the end of the day, there are so many benefits and so few drawbacks for Game of Thrones to expand into more animated spaces. Other shows have already shown us that, as long as you have a good story and developed characters, the audience is already there. Should they be willing to embrace animation with open arms, that potential might become well and truly realized.

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