Finally, things are getting a little better for the Starks in "Game of Thrones" season 7, but fans cannot forget how Robb Stark and his mother Catelyn Tully died in the third season of the show. Every fan knows what happened at the Red Wedding, but many of them don't know that Robb and Catelyn's deaths were supposed to be entirely different, according to the "A Song of Ice and Fire" original outline included in a 1993 George R.R. Martin's letter.
Robb against the Lannisters
In George R.R. Martin's original outline, Robb leads the Stark army in the war against the Lannister after Eddard's beheading.
He obtains several great victories and is able to maim Joffrey Baratheon on the field, but ultimately, he is defeated by Jaime and Tyrion Lannister's forces. (Lord Tywin Lannister, who swiftly became the lead villain over Jaime once he appeared, isn’t mentioned at all in the letter. Nor are the Boltons or Freys). The young and brave Stark meets his death on the battlefield like a proper warrior, but without killing the unbearable Joffrey.
There's no hint of the shocking massacre at The Twins in the letter, suggesting that the author came up with that crazy twist much later.
Catelyn forced to flee from Winterfell
Catelyn and Arya escape the capital after King Joffrey's execution of Eddard Stark, but when they arrive at Winterfell, they are not safe.
In Martin's original plotline for his fantasy book series, Tyrion Lannister attacks and burns Winterfell. Then Catelyn, Arya, and Bran escape the castle and go north while hounded by Lannister riders. When they arrive at the Wall, they find Benjen and Jon. Sadly, both Jon Snow and Benjen cannot help their family members because of the Night's Watch's oath.
Catelyn, Arya and Bran in the deep north
Lost any hope of being helped by the Night's Watch, Catelyn, with Bran, Arya and their direwolves, tries to find safety in the deep, deep north, where the Lannister can't find them. Soon the Starks are taken prisoners by The-King-Beyond-The-Wall. The wildlings don't hurt them, but the "inhuman Others" attack the encampment.
Bran Stark fights using magic, Arya fights with her sword, the direwolves protect their favourite humans, but Catelyn Tully, nonetheless, is killed at "the hands of the Others".
We don't know if Catelyn was also supposed to rise again as a wight of the White Walker's army, as this information is not included in the letter Martin sent to Harper Collins back in 1993.
The Wars of the Roses?
As many noted, the series seemed a like a much more straight-forward retelling of the Wars of the Roses, with the Starks and the Lannisters standing in for the Lancasters and the Yorks. Moreover, Jaime is more evil: at a certain point he kills everybody ahead of him in the line of succession, becomes king, and blames Tyrion for the murders.
But we would also like to point out that one thing hasn't changed between the plan and now, and this thing is Martin's willingness to kill off beloved characters. "I want the reader to feel that no one is ever completely safe, not even the characters who seem to be heroes," the author wrote to the publisher.
It's interesting to see the ways the story-as-plotted changed, isn't it? Anyway, a new episode of "Game of Thrones" season 7 is approaching, so don't forget: the next episode, titled "The Queen's Justice", will air on July 30, on HBO. Here's the brief official description: "Daenerys Targaryen holds court. Cersei returns a gift. Jaime learns from his mistakes".
