[TV/Book Spoilers] What is Gendry's role in the story?

[Not_A_Quokka]

Notice the last time we saw Gendry, (Robert Barratheon's bastard son) he was put in the rowboat by Davos because Mellisandre wanted to burn him. Davos was brave since he knew that defying the Red Woman, was the same thing as defying Stannnis - (but Davos is the only one in Stannis' bunch that had any moral compass at all, and the only reason Gendry is still alive).  Anyway, what might Gendry's role be in the whole plot?  Here are the things we know about Gendry:

-The most important thing about him is he has royal blood,

-He doesn't seem to even know that he is important, or why.

-He knows Arya very well as they escaped Harrenhal together (along with Hot Pie) and they have a friendship of sorts.  

-He would like Arya to be "his lady" (and when he tells her that in the caves of the BWOB she looks very dismayed at the whole idea)

-Varys the Spider, knows who he is, CARED who he is, and is presumably the one who paid for his blacksmith apprenticeship.

-With Stannis and Shireen dead, he is now  the last living Barratheon in Westeros. 

The point is he is known to many of the main characters of ASOIAF already, there has been a lot of book/TV time spent on his character, and so he must obviously pop up later in some way.  And we know he is still alive through "Winds of Winter"...so will Gendry just be a minor character that disappears, like Hot Pie seemed to (hard to believe given all the chapters/TV time with him in them), or will he pop up big-time later? 

[King Viserys Targaryen IV]

I think Gendry reforges Ice, and as a favor from Jon for Arya, Gendry ends up as legitimized and Lord of Storm's End plus married to Arya

[The Idle Raven]

I think Gendry reforges Ice, and as a favor from Jon for Arya, Gendry ends up as legitimized and Lord of Storm's End plus married to Arya

If any of Roberts bastards is legitimised as a Baratheon in the books then it will be Edric Storm who Robert acknowledged (through Varys) in his lifetime and is far more likely to be accepted by the Westerosi nobility than Gendry who they will never have heard of.  

[King Viserys Targaryen IV]

If any of Roberts bastards is legitimised as a Baratheon in the books then it will be Edric Storm who Robert acknowledged (through Varys) in his lifetime and is far more likely to be accepted by the Westerosi nobility than Gendry who they will never have heard of.  

It will only matter who the King wants to legitimize not who the rest of the nobility has heard of.

Gendry is linked to Tobho Mott (reforged Ice), Varys, Ned, Arya, The BWB (and possibly Stoneheart), plus is most likely the oldest bastard boy of Roberts

Edric is only linked to Davos, Mel, and Stannis and is not in the show.

Which has a better chance of becoming a Lord story wise?

[bent branch]

Notice the last time we saw Gendry, (Robert Barratheon's bastard son) he was put in the rowboat by Davos because Mellisandre wanted to burn him. Davos was brave since he knew that defying the Red Woman, was the same thing as defying Stannnis - (but Davos is the only one in Stannis' bunch that had any moral compass at all, and the only reason Gendry is still alive).  Anyway, what might Gendry's role be in the whole plot?  Here are the things we know about Gendry:

-The most important thing about him is he has royal blood,

-He doesn't seem to even know that he is important, or why.

-He knows Arya very well as they escaped Harrenhal together (along with Hot Pie) and they have a friendship of sorts.  

-He would like Arya to be "his lady" (and when he tells her that in the caves of the BWOB she looks very dismayed at the whole idea)

-Varys the Spider, knows who he is, CARED who he is, and is presumably the one who paid for his blacksmith apprenticeship.  

The point is he is known to many of the main characters of ASOIAF already, there has been a lot of book/TV time spent on his character, and so he must obviously pop up later in some way.  And we know he is still alive through "Winds of Winter"...so will Gendry just be a minor character that disappears, like Hot Pie seemed to (hard to believe given all the chapters/TV time with him in them), or will he pop up big-time later? 

Have you read the book at all?

[Farstrider]

Gendry's a smith.  Azor Ahai was a smith.  Gendry could be the Azor Ahai foretold and Arya would then become Nissa Nissa.

Still, Gendry could just end up being the bastard of a former king with no significance to the story other than what he's done already.

[Lady Fishbiscuit]

He's The Smith 

[ShadowCat Rivers]

Wrong forum, OP.

 

Gendry's a smith.  Azor Ahai was a smith.  Gendry could be the Azor Ahai foretold and Arya would then become Nissa Nissa.

Still, Gendry could just end up being the bastard of a former king with no significance to the story other than what he's done already.

I suppose that, in that case, the Azor Ajai character should get the 33 POV chapters to Nissa Nissa's zero, or at least share it 50-50 max, but what do I know? I am not a writer.

Nah, seriously, assigning to the main character a role that limits her to servicing the tertiary character's supposed story is just silly.

 

Gendry does not have an autonomous role in the books. In ACOK-ASOS his role was Arya's sidekick, and it remains to be seen whether he'll resume this role, or become attached to some other main character (e.g. Brienne), or simply fade in the background.

[Not_A_Quokka]

Have you read the book at all?

yes all of them.  please tell me what i missed.  

 

Gendry's a smith.  Azor Ahai was a smith.  Gendry could be the Azor Ahai foretold and Arya would then become Nissa Nissa.

Still, Gendry could just end up being the bastard of a former king with no significance to the story other than what he's done already.

Yes but why spend so much book and TV time on this one character just to have him fade away like Hot Pie?  That crossed my mind too, he could be the surprise Azor Ahai.  Being a Barratheon he has Targaryen blood, we don't know how he was born at all, or where, or who the mother was even...and no hint either except "she was blond and used to sing to me".  

[The Great and Mighty Poo]

 

yes all of them.  please tell me what i missed.  

 

Yes but why spend so much book and TV time on this one character just to have him fade away like Hot Pie?  That crossed my mind too, he could be the surprise Azor Ahai.  Being a Barratheon he has Targaryen blood, we don't know how he was born at all, or where, or who the mother was even...and no hint either except "she was blond and used to sing to me".  

you mised the fact that he's not on a row boat at all. And has never been to Storm's End. 

 

and to spend "so" much time on one character- easy sometimes side kicks get alot of screen time. Hell some times we even get to know side characters with like two scenes. IE Davin Lannister.

[krtmd]

This is a show question in the book forum.

[The Great and Mighty Poo]

This is a show question in the book forum.

I agree. 

 

My show answer: because dumb and dumber. (Idk who I stole that from but I love it haha)

[Curled Finger]

The show really did a disservice to both Edric and Gendry.   As half brothers that could have been an interesting story in itself and may still be in future books.   I recently saw a spoiler which stated beautifully what Gendry's role in the TV show is and I LOVED it.  To the books, Gendry is positioned to do many things; he's a knight, a royal bastard, a BWB company man, a follower of Rhllor, Arya's companion and sometime protector, a black smith and protector of children--the orphans at the Inn.  I hope he and Mya Stone are made aware of their ancestry in the story to come.   Gendry's such a commoner, he reaction would be priceless no doubt.  

[bent branch]

 

yes all of them.  please tell me what i missed.  

 

Yes but why spend so much book and TV time on this one character just to have him fade away like Hot Pie?  That crossed my mind too, he could be the surprise Azor Ahai.  Being a Barratheon he has Targaryen blood, we don't know how he was born at all, or where, or who the mother was even...and no hint either except "she was blond and used to sing to me".  

Because from the point where Melisandre goes to get Gendry in the show, Gendry's story line is completely different from the books. You literally can't determine anything in the books from what happened in the show.

[Not_A_Quokka]

Because from the point where Melisandre goes to get Gendry in the show, Gendry's story line is completely different from the books. You literally can't determine anything in the books from what happened in the show.

yes insofar as it seems like the TV show combined the Edric Storm character and Gendry into one character, Gendry.  By having Gendry take off in the row boat, whereas in the book it's Edric who gets rescued by Davos.  If GRR doesn't make something happen with Gendry in "Winds of Winter" we might never know, because for a throw-away character he is in a lot of episodes, almost as many as Robb Stark is. He might just have disappeared and opened his own smithy shop in the free cities or some crap like that and no violence whatsoever.  Which would be most unlike GRR at all.  

[The Great and Mighty Poo]

yes insofar as it seems like the TV show combined the Edric Storm character and Gendry into one character, Gendry.  By having Gendry take off in the row boat, whereas in the book it's Edric who gets rescued by Davos.  If GRR doesn't make something happen with Gendry in "Winds of Winter" we might never know, because for a throw-away character he is in a lot of episodes, almost as many as Robb Stark is. He might just have disappeared and opened his own smithy shop in the free cities or some crap like that and no violence whatsoever.  Which would be most unlike GRR at all.  

in the books he is smithing for the brother hood and last seen by Brienne. In the show he is probably at kings landing. As that's where Davos tells him to go.

 

However he could be on Driftmark, Massey's Hook, Crackclaw Point or any other place sharing Blackwater Bay.