For over seven years, fans of Game of Thrones have watched the powerful families of Westeros battle it out for the Iron Throne, ominously waiting for winter to come.
But while winter has indeed arrived in the Seven Kingdoms and the pool of potential rulers has been drastically and often-gruesomely culled, many viewers seem to think the wait just hasn’t been worth it.
As of 7 pm CEST on Thursday, more than 476,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling on HBO — the US television network which produces and airs the show — to rewrite and re-shoot the final season.
“David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have proven themselves to be woefully incompetent writers when they have no source material (i.e. the books) to fall back on,” the petition’s creator, Dylan D, wrote.
“This series deserves a final season that makes sense,” he said, “subvert my expectations and make it happen, HBO!”
One of the recurring criticisms lobbed at the show from some of the petition signers is that it is “rushed” with events unfurling “too fast”.
The last two seasons have had the fewest number of episodes, with seven and six respectively, compared to 10 each for the previous six seasons. However, episode length has been upped.
“The Bells”, the show’s penultimate episode and the finale — to air on May 19 — both clock in at about one hour and twenty minutes.
And although many appear frustrated with the ending, figures show they continue to watch.
According to HBO, cited by specialised media including the Hollywood Reporter, the final season has averaged 43 million viewers per episode when you factor in those who watch live, streaming and replays —far higher than the 32.8 million average of season seven.
The petition’s demand appears unlikely to be fulfilled. Filming the epic show is an expensive and time-consuming endeavour, with the final season taking nine months and a reported $15 million per episode to shoot.
But disappointed fans may yet get the ending they crave in the books. Author George RR Martin has not yet published the last two books of his epic, entitled The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring.
The 70-year-old novelist has revealed he doesn’t fully know how the television series will end.
