[With multiple spinoff series being considered, and a prequel series from Jane Goldman ordered to pilot, we're reposting our ideas for six stories we'd like to see in a Game of Thrones successor series.]

In the Game of Thrones Season 6 episode “Home,” Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright) continued to hone his warging skills taught to him by the Three Eyed Raven (Max von Sydow). In doing so, he was able to not only visit the past through the weirwood trees and see his late father and uncle sparring as young boys at Winterfell, but he was actually able to enter the scene and walk again. Oh to return to the halcyon days of the past!

Bran’s glimpse of Winterfell life before the turmoil that has defined what we know of Westeros got us at Collider thinking about a prequel series, which has been rumored here and there. George R. R. Martin is reportedly on board with the idea, as is HBO, although Martin wants to see it as an adaptation of his Dunk and Egg stories. Thanks GRRM, but we have some better, more epic contenders for a potential spin-off. Below, Dave Trumbore and I list our picks for what other time periods and stories mentioned in A Song of Ice and Fire we would like to see explored. Let us know in the comments which ones you’d like to see, including expanded tales in the lands like Essos, Sothoryos, and Ulthos as well.

Further, this map should come in quite handy as you navigate the mythology-rich prequel stories below:

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Image via Game of Thrones Wiki

The Coming of the First Men

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Image via HBO

The ancient story of the founding of Westeros is part history, part mythology. Some 12,000 years before Aegon's Landing, the first humans to set foot on the island continent crossed the Dornish land bridge and became known as the legendary First Men. However, they found the land to be inhabited by a nature-worshipping, tree-carving species dubbed the Children of the Forest. It wasn't long before clashes between these cultures escalated to war, the First Men wielding their bronze swords and leather shields as they rode into battle on horseback against the magic-wielding Children, cutting down the all-seeing weirwoods wherever they encountered them. Despite the Children's mythical magic powers, the two sides reached a pact that granted the deep woods territory to the Children while men reigned throughout the rest of Westeros. So began millennia of relative peace between the races, until the Andal Invasion negated the pact. (It's actually a good thing the Andals showed up or we wouldn't have any historical records at all.)

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During the time of peace, known as the Age of Heroes, the First Men began to adopt the worshipping practices of the Children and learned to use ravens to communicate messages. Remnants of this ancient civilization is carried on in Westeros today, mostly in the people of the North (notably House Stark) and, with no shortage of pride, among the Wildlings and Thenns. The meaning of their runic written language has been lost to time, but some wildlings and giants still speak the Old Tongue. Some of their structures, like the First of the First Men, still stand, and their social practices, like laws of hospitality and burying their dead in barrows, are still carried out by families of The North today.

While this history lesson is a rich and formative part of the story that would become "A Song of Ice and Fire," it's a bit short on detail as far as the main plotline is concerned. It's also so foreign and out-of-sync compared to the modern era that a traditional live-action retelling of the mythology probably wouldn't be the best approach. Instead, I'd like to see something more like the animated short sequence "The Tale of the Three Brothers" from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. Short little vignettes done in an adult-appropriate animation style would be a fantastic way to get the story of the First Men across while making it feel ancient, mythological, and absolutely legendary. Plus, we'd get to see the Children and First Men join forces once more once the Long Night fell upon the land. -- Dave Trumbore

The Long Night

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Image via HBO

You might have read my mention of the Long Night in the above section and found yourself wondering just what that's all about. Well you're in the right place, cuz I'm about to tell you! The Long Night occurred 4,000 years after the arrival of the First Men and a full 8,000 years before Aegon's Conquest. It's such a distant memory that many modern inhabitants of the Known World chalk it up to myth and legend, but the tale is still so harrowing that there are those who take it as fact and are concerned that another Long Night (i.e. Winter) is coming.

Legends tell of a darkness that swept across the Known World for a generation, laying waste to civilization through famine and terror. The shadowy soldiers of this Long Night came to be known as the Others, demonic beings which rose from the far northern reaches of Westeros, the Lands of Always Winter. Their ice swords and resurrected wights were enough to drive the combined forces of the First Men and the Children of the Forest south. The Others were stopped only when the legendary inaugural members of the Night's Watch discovered the creatures' weakness to dragonglass and used it to drive them back in the Battle for the Dawn. After their victory, Bran the Builder raised a massive wall of ice and magic which was guarded by the Night's Watch against the return of the Others from there on out.

Clearly, this is an epic tale of mythology that will likely come to bear on the current storyline, but it would be amazing to see quite literally how this story started. Again, a live-action adaptation would likely bust the budget considering that the show's "Hardhome" episode spent a pretty penny on a relatively short, but incredible scene featuring the Night's Watch and wildlings battling wights and White Walkers. Animation has far fewer chokepoints when it comes to bringing these characters to life, so personally I'd love to see an animated web series that extends from the story told in The Coming of the First Men. --Dave Trumbore

Aegon the Conqueror Establishes the Iron Throne

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Some of the most rousing mythology in Westerosi lore deals with the Targaryens establishing rule in the Seven Kingdoms (technically six — Dorne was able to resist and remained independent for another two centuries). Specifically, the tale of silver-haired Aegon and Conquerer and his sister-wives (that’s how those Targs do!) along with their gigantic dragons swooping from Valyria before the Doom, ultimately forging the Iron Throne from the swords of defeated rulers (fused by dragon fire, no less) is pretty much the definition of epic. It would also make for a fantastic addition to the Game of Thrones TV universe.

Aegon established the structure of Westeros that we know in Game of Thrones, unifying the kingdoms under one ruler and then staying on top for 300 years before Robert’s Rebellion overturned the Targaryen’s claim. Still, so much of Game of Thrones has revolved around Daenerys’ story of reclaiming that position and establishing herself as Mother of Dragons that it would provide great context — and a nice potential bookend — for Targaryen reign that includes one of the story’s most magical elements.

Realistically, that much dragon riding and warring would likely be out of budget consideration for a live-action take on the tale, but an animated movie might be a glorious way to tell it. And you don’t immediately have to think of something traditionally cartoonish here. Animation has been doing some pretty fantastic things recently, although admittedly finding the right style would be key (this definitely isn’t a story for kids, so something in the style of Waltz with Bashir comes to mind). Regardless of the how, the story of the taming of Westeros by dragonriders, and the early days of Targaryen rule is ripe for retelling — Allison Keene

Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen

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Image via HBO

Essentially, the scandal between Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen is what sets everything up in Game of Thrones, so making a prequel series that includes that incident along with the Mad King and Robert’s Rebellion is likely the richest material for a spinoff (even though the series has already touched on it a little bit). The details are thus: Lyanna was the beautiful and headstrong daughter of the Lord of Winterfell who caught the eye of the handsome and musically talented Prince of Westeros, Rhaegar Targaryen. Unfortunately, he was already married to Elia Martell, with whom he had two children, and she was engaged to Robert Baratheon, Lord of the Stormlands. The scandal began when Rhaegar won a tournament and passed over his own wife to crown Lyanna “the queen of love and beauty” by presenting her with a winter rose (her favorite).

Shortly afterwards, Rhaegar kidnapped Lyanna and kept her hidden in Dorne, an incident which helped lead (along with the actions of the Mad King) to Robert’s Rebellion. There is a lot of speculation, which most fans currently believe to be canon, that Lyanna and Rhaegar’s affair (if that’s what it was — others believe she was taken against her will and assaulted) resulted in a baby, who became Jon Snow. This is why Lyanna was hidden away, and Ned ended up randomly bringing home a kid to raise after Lyanna was found just before she died (because truly, given Ned’s obsession with honor and duty, would he have cheated on Catelyn? Doubtful. And of course the series has now confirmed the former version of the events).

It’s an epic romance (as far as I’m concerned, and Barristan Selmy backs me up) with an unbelievably tragic fate that combines elements of action, chivalry, romance, and war. It would also essentially bring us directly to the events of Game of Thrones Season 1, while also giving us some fantastic back stories for characters we are already familiar with. The story feels like there is enough to it to warrant a full series, although a miniseries could also work, depending on when it started and how much time it covered. Above all, it’s a story that has specifically captured readers’ imaginations over the years, and is the most similar to the best aspects of Game of Thrones, without being in any way redundant. — Allison Keene

Robert's Rebellion

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Image via HBO

As mentioned above, the relationship between Lyanna and Rhaegar was the incident that sparked a war that colors the current books and TV show. It's a story that has much in common with Helen of Troy and her "face that launched a thousand ships," but perhaps the next line from Christopher Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus" is equally as fitting: "and burned the topless towers of Ilium." Marlowe's play asks if it was Helen's beauty and resultant abduction/seduction by Paris that ultimately caused the Trojan War; so too we can ask if the questionable relationship between the royals led inevitably to Robert's Rebellion, a.k.a. the War of the Usurper.

Led by Robert Baratheon, Eddard Stark, and Jon Arryn, the nearly year-long campaign against House Targaryen shed first blood in the Vale of Arryn. The siege of the port city of Gulltown ended with the rebels defeating the Targaryen loyalists and a calling of the banners of Arryn, Baratheon, and Stark. However, not all bannermen answered the call, leading to battles in Summerhall, Ashford, and Stoney Sept; that latter conflict became known as the Battle of the Bells thanks to the sept tolling its bells to warn citizens of the approaching invaders.

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Image via HBO

The rebel and loyalist forces came to an epic clash at the Battle of the Trident, so named for a major river that ran through the battlefield. Fittingly, Robert Baratheon and Prince Rhaegar met in pitched battle on a ford of the Trident, where Robert proved victorious by smashing the Targaryen prince's chest armor with a vicious blow from his warhammer. The strike was so powerful that it knocked the rubies from the dead prince's armor, granting the site the name of the ruby ford.

What followed was the violent butchery during the Sack of King's Landing, harrowing experiences during the Siege of Storm's End, and more tragic deaths at the Raid on the Tower of Joy and the Assault on Dragonstone. It's an epic war that could easily serve as the action-packed focal point of a Game of Thrones prequel series, one that sees a young and vital Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark in their fighting prime. Not only would it make the current events in Game of Thrones make much more sense, but it would also bring the often hopeless and depressing narrative into a sharper focus. And since it's not a story of the distant past but one within living memory, it would be best told through a live-action series similar to Game of Thrones current iteration. Why, we might even learn more about a certain legendary knight in the process. -- Dave Trumbore

The Adventures of Young Barristan the Bold

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Image via HBO

Game of Thrones only gave us a small glimpse of the great Barristan Selmy, a.k.a. Barristan the Bold (played on the TV series by Ian McElhinney), who has a very rich history in the kingdom of Westeros. His character could also serve as the lead in a spinoff that would include Lyanna and Rheagar’s story, as well as Robert’s Rebellion, since he is present for all of them. In his youth, Barristan made a name for himself as a talented fighter, being knighted at age 16 after unseating Duncan Targaryen at a tournament, where a very small Barristan was disguised as a mystery knight. In addition to being a particularly gifted tournament participant, he also became legendary on the battlefield for his skill and bravery. But, Barristan also joined the Kingsguard at a young age, meaning he had to give up the girl he was engaged to (who was not, it should be noted, the girl he was deeply in love with — more story potential!)

Barristan of course is well-known to viewers as being part of the Baratheon Kingsguard until — after falling out of favor with Cersei Lannister — he absconded to join Daenerys Targaryen and her band of rogues across the Narrow Sea. Though Barristan wasn’t given the death on the show that he deserved (he’s still alive in the books), he could be given a series. Barristan’s story could be, as mentioned above, the perfect window through which to view the events prior to Season 1 of Game of Thrones, and the ideal character to connect the two series together.

While Barristan could certainly have his own movie or miniseries, I think a live-action series might serve him best. Still, there’s a potential here for animation as well, especially if the story was aged-down to something a little more PG-13. Regardless, Barristan’s place in the lore of Westeros makes him a great candidate to star in his own series, as one of the most loyal, heroic, and morally upstanding figures in A Song of Ice and Fire. Give this man his due! — Allison Keene

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