Although Bran the Broken was powerful and wise, the ending of Game of Thrones and the future of Westeros would both have been better served had Gendry Baratheon been chosen as King. There were many divisive aspects to the ending of the now infamous HBO series, from abandoned plot points to overlooked coffee cups. Still, perhaps the most controversial was the unusual ascension of King Brandon Stark.
Tyrion Lannister had historically been one of the most intelligent Game of Thrones characters, but that seemed to change in the show’s final seasons. His suggestion to appoint Bran as the new King based on the interesting stories he’d have to tell was an irresponsible and nonsensical way to select a leader. It overlooked the needs of the people and disregarded the laws of succession. While the latter may be beneficial for the people of Westeros in the long run, uprooting the rules in a time of such great chaos was likely to fuel more chaos amongst the masses.
While the knowledge Bran gained as the Three-Eyed Raven would certainly be useful to the rebuilding of the Seven Kingdoms, Gendry’s past and present made him a more viable choice for Westeros’ future. Stability and leadership were essential to reconstruction. Given that he and Jon Snow both had rightful claims to the throne, the council’s failure to even consider Gendry in the show’s ending was a mistake that affected both fans of the series and the people of Westeros.
Gendry’s History & Robert Baratheon Parallels Explained
Gendry was not only the oldest of Robert Baratheon’s illegitimate children but also the only of them left alive (presuming that all of the children had been documented prior to the Gold Cloaks slaughtering them). He grew up in Flea Bottom, the slums of Kings Landing, spending the entirety of his childhood unaware of his royal ancestry. His mother was a tavern worker that died when he was very young, although there is reason to believe that may just be another lie he had been told.
Although it was certainly not the case in the Song of Ice and Fire books, the HBO series foreshadowed the possibility that Cersei Lannister was Gendry’s real mother. While Bran was comatose after being pushed from a castle window, Cersei told Catelyn Stark about the child that she’d lost. Cersei said the child was taken from her moments after it was born, only for it to die without being returned to her. She described the child as having black hair, a defining Baratheon trait, likely making it the only legitimate offspring of Cersei and Robert. Gendry described his mother as being blonde, a defining Lannister trait, and he had little memory of her beyond what he was told by others because he was so young when she died. Their respective hair colors and shared lack of information regarding their loved ones’ deaths paired with Gendry being roughly one year younger than Cersei’s marriage seemed to suggest that Gendry may have actually been a full-blooded Baratheon, and after King Tommen’s suicide in season 6, he may have also been the last of Cersei’s children left alive.
Whether he was Robert’s legitimate offspring or not, Gendry was in many ways similar to his father when he was young. Robert fell in love with Lyanna Stark, and Gendry fell in love with Arya, but neither relationship worked out (albeit for vastly different reasons). Robert befriended Ned Stark and fought alongside him to seek justice for the deaths of Brandon and Rickard Stark, much as Gendry befriended Jon Snow and sought justice for the deaths of Ned and Robb Stark (among other things). Gendry even wielded a hammer, his father’s weapon of choice, that would become the symbol of his strength after Robert’s Rebellion. Although Gendry had not proven himself in combat to the same extent as his father, he had so far managed to evade many of Robert’s weaknesses. Robert was hot-headed and brash, especially after Lyanna’s death, whereas Gendry remained relatively grounded and even-tempered, making him more suited for leadership than his late father.
How Gendry Could’ve Become King In Game Of Thrones Season 8
After disappearing for more than three seasons, Gendry finally returned in the latter half of Game of Thrones season 7 and rather quickly became a threat to Daenerys’ reign, if only in her eyes. To buy his loyalty, Daenerys eventually granted Gendry his birthright, naming him as a true Baratheon and returning the lands held by his family. Doing this was counterintuitive as it only served to strengthen Gendry’s claim to the throne. Now a full-fledged Baratheon, Gendry was the last and only true heir to King Robert, making his the most royal blood in Westeros. Melisandre effectively confirmed as much in season 3 when she used Gendry’s blood in a ritual that would bring about the deaths of Balon Greyjoy, Robb Stark, and King Joffrey.
Although Daenerys was most concerned about Jon’s secret Targaryen lineage undermining her rule, it was ultimately irrelevant. The Targaryen line of succession was interrupted following Robert’s Rebellion, stripping her of what she and her brother Viserys viewed as their birthright. When Robert usurped the throne, he supplanted the House Targaryen history of succession with his own, making his children the rightful heirs to the throne by law. Robert was not concerned about being overthrown by his older brother Stannis (who arguably would have been more suited for rule), for it was Robert that usurped the throne, making it his by right through combat. Daenerys’ paranoia was, of course, intended to show the beginnings of her descent into madness, but in her recklessness, she inadvertently made Gendry a far greater threat to her rule than her nephew could have been.
King Gendry Would’ve Been Better For Westeros
Although Jon had enough support and combat experience to make him greater than any King or Queen that Westeros had seen in some time, the ending that the show chose for him was more appropriate for his character. Bran, however, had neither the support, the experience, nor the bloodline to be an effective ruler. The wisdom that he had gained as the Three-Eyed Raven made him a tremendously valuable advisor, but it also made him aloof and emotionless, sapping him of any charisma. His all-encompassing knowledge of time immemorial gave him too broad a perspective to be able to effectively govern in the short term. Gendry was now a battle-tested, Stark-supported, full-blooded Baratheon with a sharper mind and a softer disposition than his father, all of which would make him an ideal choice to lead Westeros out of one of the darkest periods in its history.
Perhaps the most significant reason Gendry was best suited to lead Westeros at this particular time in Game of Thrones’ history was the fact that he had spent most of his life in the poverty-stricken streets of Flea Bottom. The War of the Five Kings saw the deaths of a tremendous number of nobles, with several entire houses being effectively wiped from existence. While there were still plenty of nobles left, a relationship with the masses would be essential to the reconstruction of Westeros. Queen Margery was adored by the people of Kings Landing for making relatively small gestures, like getting out of a carriage to speak to them or donating leftovers rather than throwing them out, so a King that is in tune with the actual needs of his people would certainly be even more beloved. And with the hefty overhaul of the class system that would likely take place in the years following Game of Thrones' ending, a knowledge of and rapport with the lower classes will be paramount to not only a long and fruitful reign but to the future of Westeros as a whole.