Prime Video's 56-Episode Game Of Thrones Replacement Is A Fantasy Masterpiece

While it took a while for Prime Video to create the true successor to HBO’s Game of Thrones, this newer fantasy franchise’s flawless critical reception proves it was worth the wait. As divisive as its series finale may still be even years later, there is no denying the fact that HBO’s adaptation of author George RR. Martin’s A Song of Ice & Fire saga remains one of the most important TV shows in the history of the medium.

With astronomical budgets of over $5 million per episode, Game of Thrones changed the game and paved the way for later ambitious streaming shows like Stranger Things and Wednesday. The series also proved that there was a massive market for big-budget, R-rated dark fantasy shows. Without Game of Thrones, viewers would never have gotten Netflix’s The Witcher, Arcane, and Castlevania franchises, Starz’s Outlander, or even AMC’s Interview with the Vampire.

Even Prime Video’s Lord of the Rings prequel, The Rings of Power, owes some of its success to Game of Thrones. The prequel is nowhere near as R-rated as Game of Thrones, but its huge budget and ambitious scope would have been unthinkable before the success of HBO’s 2011 series. Thus, it is a little ironic that the titles which ousted Game of Thrones as the best fantasy series ever are another, less expensive pair of shows. Prime Video’s Critical Role shows, The Legend of Vox Machina and The Mighty Nein, are the true successors of the seminal series.

Prime Video’s Critical Role Shows Deserve Their Incredible Rotten Tomatoes Scores

Based on the actual play podcast of the same name, Prime Video’s Critical Role shows are two R-rated animated fantasy adventures that combine the grit and gore of Game of Thrones with a more playful and thrilling tone. Where Game of Thrones was infamously downbeat and dour, Prime Video’s The Legend of Vox Machina succeeds precisely because the series feels more like a bawdier Discworld or a more mature spin on The Princess Bride.

This means that, even though the Critical Role shows have plenty of stakes and depth, they are more outright fun than Game of Thrones. In particular, The Legend of Vox Machina, with its winning band of mismatched antiheroes Grog, Pike, Percy, Scanlan, Vax, and Keyleth, takes the brutality of HBO’s iconic show and pairs it with a sense of humor that was sadly absent from the slower, weaker seasons of Game of Thrones.

The Legend of Vox Machina and The Mighty Nein Highlight The Critical Role Universe’s Versatility

To be fair to the earlier HBO fantasy franchise, the second Game of Thrones spinoff, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, clearly learned from the success of The Legend of Vox Machina. That 2026 series, adapted from Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, has a lighter, more upbeat feel despite containing the same explicit gore and foul language as its franchise predecessors.

However, The Mighty Nein means that Prime Video’s Critical Role franchise still has the HBO show beat. Sweet 20 years after The Legend of Vox Machina, this spinoff still has a dark sense of humor, but its characters are more complex and multi-faceted, and the storylines are more dramatic and occasionally tragic. Thus, just as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms proved that Game of Thrones could be fun, The Mighty Nein proved Critical Role is more than just some good fantasy fun.

As a result, Prime Video’s animated fantasy franchise feels like it has something for every discerning fan of the genre. The Legend of Vox Machina is lighter and funnier than Game of Thrones but still has plenty of stakes, while The Mighty Nein has gravitas and edge for viewers who prefer their fantasy a little darker. Both The Legend of Vox Machina and The Mighty Nein prove the Critical Role universe’s shows have earned their near-flawless Rotten Tomatoes scores, and outdone even Game of Thrones in the process.