Well, it happened: On May 19th, 2019, HBO's celebrated fantasy series Game of Thrones
officially came to an end.
Meanwhile, the series of novels it's based upon is far from complete.
As you're no doubt aware, author George R.R. Martin has yet to finish the final two books
in his epic saga, A Song of Ice and Fire.
Right now, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring are still very much works in progress.
However, Martin made some rather interesting comments regarding the end of the book series,
and how it will ultimately compare to the finale of the HBO show.
But before we get too into that, please note: Spoilers ahead!
"I'll tell you everything."
On May 20th, Martin shared a post on his personal website that began on a rather sentimental
note, writing:
"The last night, the last show...It is hard to believe it is over, if truth be told."
Elsewhere, he expressed gratitude to series creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, offering
thanks to everyone who helped make the HBO show a reality:
"It has been a wild ride, to say the least...There were forty-two cast members at the season
eight premiere in New York City, and that wasn't even all of them.
And the crew, though less visible than the cast, were no less important."
Then he offered a characteristically vague progress report, assuring fans that he's still
hard at work on finishing the books:
"Let me say this much, last night was an ending, but it was also a beginning.
Nobody is retiring any time soon…And I'm writing.
Winter is coming, I told you, long ago…and so it is."
Meanwhile, he didn't commit to any firm dates, writing:
"The Winds of Winter is very late, I know, I know, but it will be done.
I won't say when, I've tried that before, only to burn you all and jinx myself…but
I will finish it, and then will come A Dream of Spring."
But here's the burning question: Will A Dream of Spring have the same conclusion as the
show?
Instead of a direct answer, Martin went the cryptic route, writing:
"Well…yes.
And no.
And yes.
And no.
And yes.
And no.
And yes."
Well, at least Martin has a theory as to why the books will inevitably differ from the
HBO series:
"I am working in a very different medium than David and Dan, never forget."
He's got a point.
Where Benioff and Weiss wrapped up the final season in six episodes, Martin's last two
novels in the book series are expected to span, quote, "3000 manuscript pages."
As he sagely notes:
"There are characters who never made it onto the screen at all, and others who died in
the show but still live in the books."
So if that's going to impact the end of the book series, which ending should be considered
the "real" one?
Martin clearly thinks that's a silly question, asking an evasive rhetorical question in response:
"How many children did Scarlett O’Hara have?"
We'll take the bait and answer that for you: She had three children in the 1936 novel Gone
with the Wind, one child in the 1939 film based on the book, and none in real life…
because she's not a real person.
Got it?
Martin's post echoes some of his past remarks about the fundamental differences between
the HBO series and the novels.
Back in April, he told Rolling Stone:
"Would I prefer [Benioff and Weiss] do it exactly the way I did it?
Sure…It's two variations of the same story, or a similar story, and you get that whenever
anything is adapted."
When all is said and done, perhaps the biggest takeaway from Martin's post comes from how
he decided to sign off:
"How about this?
I'll write it.
You read it.
Then everyone can make up their own mind and argue about it on the internet."
Sounds like a plan.
In the meantime, who do you think will prove a faster writer: George R.R. Martin or Brienne
of Tarth?
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