SPOILER ALERT! After eight seasons, "Game of Thrones" finally had its last war. USA TODAY


There's no way that "Game of Thrones" can sew up every loose plot thread on Sunday night. 

Over its eight-season run, the sprawling HBO series has featured dozens of characters, settings on two continents,  dragons, giants, direwolves and enough backstabbing and broken alliances to make a war historian's head spin.

"Thrones" has 80 minutes (9 EDT/PDT)  to bring everything to a close, and it's all but guaranteed that some of our questions will remain unanswered. 

Based on the topics, characters and plots highlighted so far, and those from the George R.R. Martin books that TV writers have left out, we predict a few things that won't get a satisfying ending come Sunday. But maybe when (or if) new books are published, fans will find some of these answers. 

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What magic, science and religion really mean 

From dragons, red priestesses, foreign wizards, maesters, frozen zombies, Kingsguard zombies, weirwood trees, Children of the Forest to whatever Bran is, "Thrones" has introduced characters and devices from the realms of magic, science and religion over the years without ever fully explaining most of them.

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In terms of religion, the Lord of Light, worshipped by Melisandre and Beric Dondarrion, both pivotal in the Battle of Winterfell, appears to be real and powerful, considering the resurrections and other magic his followers have performed. The Seven, worshipped by most of the southern half of Westeros, have proven to be false gods, or at least completely impotent. The series also introduced the Drowned God, the Many-Faced God and several more in Essos that were never explored. 

But the Old Gods, worshipped by the Starks at the base of weirwood trees with faces carved into them, are hazier. Did they turn Bran into the Three-Eyed Raven? Is he a god himself of sorts? Why does he only care about the White Walkers and Jon Snow's parentage? Couldn't Bran help with some other things, too? Even the Lord of Light seems to be a shady guy. He helped the living defeat the White Walkers, so now what? 

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Thematically, it's disappointing if religion is just another plot engine for big battles. It's such a powerful, emotional aspect of so many characters' lives. Religion also is part of the real world, of course, and while Martin comments on it in the books, the TV series has wasted an opportunity to make a deeper point. 

The same fate befalls magic and science, although those forces have been less pivotal to the "Thrones" plot. Much of magic is tied with religion, although Varys always talked about the man who castrated him, whether he's a priest or a different kind of practitioner. But science, including Qyburn's (Anton Lesser) mad experiments,  most definitely was not. How Qyburn brought the Mountain back from the dead, and whether anyone else can or will experiment with life and death, are questions that likely won't be answered, especially now that Qyburn's head was bashed in by his own creation. 

The fate of forgotten characters

Where, might we ask, is Edmure Tully? Last we saw him, in Season 6, he was Walder Frey’s prisoner. Jaime manipulated him into helping pry Riverrun out of the hands of the Blackfish, and then he was sent back to the Frey dungeon. Soon after, Arya crossed the Narrow Sea and massacred the Freys as vengeance for the Red Wedding. Did she know her uncle was in their dungeons? Did she care? Wouldn’t Sansa, Bran and Jon want to know where he was, if they knew he survived the Red Wedding? And what about his kid?

Edmure is one of several characters that "Thrones" hasn't killed off, but no longer needed, and their fates remain a question mark. Meera Reed, Bran's companion for years, up and left Winterfell after they arrived in Season 7 and never returned. Dany abandoned Daario Naharis in Slaver's Bay; Davos apparently has a wife somewhere who's never been onscreen; Sansa, Arya and Bran's cousin Robin Arryn is in the Vale; Sam's mother and sister are at Horn Hill without his father and brother; and Yara took the Iron Islands back for Dany, but is probably just chilling there. 

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It's nearly impossible that we'll see closure for any of these characters in the finale, but some side characters might not get much time, either. Gendry, Pod, Bronn, Gilly, and even Sam, Brienne and Grey Worm may be left by the wayside so Dany, Jon, Arya, Tyrion and Sansa can have it out. 

How cold is it, really

For years we were promised that winter would come and bring hardship and blistering cold, even in the south. But honestly, it doesn't look so bad, from what we've seen. The snowfall at Winterfell has been remarkably light, and temperatures seem to hover near springlike levels down in King's Landing, where everyone is fine wearing a nice long-sleeved top. 

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For all that "Winter is Coming" hype, "Thrones" has largely ignored the whole weather thing.

Some logistical questions

Is there a Night's Watch anymore? Will Iron Bank ask Dany for the money Cersei borrowed? Who is that "new prince of Dorne" mentioned in Episode 4? Who's running most of the kingdoms? Do the maesters of the Citadel finally believe the White Walkers exist? How is the economy? Did Dany burn all of King's Landing's food supply for winter when she leveled the city?

For all the talk of that Iron Throne – and whether that piece of furniture survived Drogon's fire will certainly be addressed Sunday – no one really wants to bother with the business of governing. 

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