7 'Game of Thrones' Characters Who Are Still Missing

Game of Thrones is taking all of our favorite lords and ladies of Westeros to some pretty thrilling, unexpected places, but perhaps the most surprising thing about Season 7 is just how many long-forgotten characters are returning, from as far back as Season 1. Sunday’s episode, “Eastwatch,” saw the long-awaited return of Gendry after he rowed his boat away four years ago. Before that, we saw Arya’s direwolf, Nymeria, who last appeared in the second-ever episode before rolling up again earlier in Season 7. Heck, the decomposing bodies of that father and daughter the Hound robbed even showed up again.

However, despite all the reunions in Thrones’ penultimate season, there are still several characters who remain totally MIA. And we’re not talking one-off characters or people whose deaths we never explicitly saw onscreen (sorry, Syrio Forel fans). No, these are characters who played a major part when they were on the show, and then disappeared, even though their stories might not have been finished. Here’s who still needs an appearance to wrap up loose plot threads:

1. Edmure Tully

We actually saw Edmure Tully quite a bit last season, but there have been some major developments in the Riverlands since then that make his absence very conspicuous. Jaime Lannister releases him from the Freys’ dungeons in order to make the Tully forces holding Riverun surrender. Although Jaime promised he’d be able to live in fairly plush captivity with his wife and son at Casterly Rock if he agreed to help, Walder Frey announced that he was back in the dungeons during the Season 6 finale.

But, in the Season 7 premiere, Arya killed all the Freys at a feast at the Twins. We never saw her free Edmure from the dungeons, so he’s probably still there. Which is a big deal, since he’s the rightful Lord of the Riverlands and a likely ally to Jon Snow up north.

Last appeared in: Season 6, Episode 8

2. Quaithe

Even book readers don’t know much about Quaithe, a mysterious masked woman from Shadow Lands beyond Asshai in the eastmost part of Essos. Daenerys Targaryen encounters her in Qarth in Season 2. In the Song of Ice and Fire books, she gives Dany some ominous prophecies, the results of which have yet to be revealed. In the show, she mostly just warns Jorah Mormont of Xaro Xhoan Daxos and Pyat Pree’s attempt to steal Dany’s dragons.

Since her prophecies weren’t as substantial on the show as they were on the page, it’s possible her role in the series has long since passed. But, she remains one of the most mysterious characters ever to grace the show, and it seems we’re not ever going to be getting any answers.

Last appeared in: Season 2, Episode 7

3. Salladhor Saan

Davos’ pirate friend helped the onion knight at the Battle of Blackwater, rescued him after he was marooned, and then helped shepherd Stannis Baratheon’s sellsword army up to the wall. Since then, he’s been MIA, which is a shame. Davos could probably use his help again, now that he’s serving under Jon Snow. More crucially, Westeros is usually such a sad, terrible place. Salladhor seems like he’s having a good time. Let’s have more of that.

Last appeared in: Season 4, Episode 6

4. Robin Arryn

The location of the Lord of the Vale isn’t that big of a mystery. We last saw him at Runestone training under Lord Yohn Royce. But, what is this milk-drinking twerp doing in the Vale while Littlefinger’s chilling in Westeros and pledging all of the Vale’s armies (which rightfully belong to Robin) to Sansa Stark? And, if something happens to Littlefinger, what becomes of the Vale? Sweetrobin’s the missing, easily duped key.

Last appeared in: Season 6, Episode 4

5. Ilyn Payne

The man who took Ned Stark’s head hasn’t poked his head out for several seasons, although there’s a somewhat sad IRL explanation for that. Wilko Johnson, the actor who played the mute royal executioner, had been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, and so he was phased out of the show due to his declining health. Happily, in 2014, he underwent a major surgery and is now cancer free.

Despite the actor’s recovery, Ilyn Payne hasn’t come back. We know he was alive as recently as the Season 4 finale, because Tywin Lannister mentioned his name while having his final conversation with Tyrion. One imagines, if he’s still around, Cersei probably has a lot of people whose heads she’d like Ilyn to take.

Last appeared in: Season 2, Episode 9

6. Illyrio Mopatis

Illyrio, a magister of the Free City of Pentos, probably bears more initial responsibility for Daenerys Targaryen’s rise to power than anybody else in the story. He kept Dany and Viserys safe for a while and supported the Targaryen effort to retake the throne. He arranged Dany’s marriage to Khal Drogo, and he gave her the stone dragon eggs that would later hatch into her three fire-breathing children.

And yet, we haven’t seen him since he strolled through the crypts of the Red Keep conspiring with Varys. He didn’t even show his face in the Season 5 premiere, when Varys and Tyrion were chilling at his palace in Pentos after having just crossed the narrow sea. Now that Dany’s actually making progress in conquering Westeros, doesn’t the man who first equipped her want to check out what’s happening?

Last appeared in: Season 1, Episode 5

7. Ser Pounce

Literally all of these other characters can go sail off into the Sunset Sea, never to be seen or heard from again, because all I care about is the late King Tommen Baratheon’s cat, Ser Pounce. The regal feline (who in the books was just one of three cats Tommen owned) appeared in just one scene in Season 4. Ser Pounce jumped on Tommen’s bed when Margaery Tyrell snuck into the king’s bedroom to flirt with an underage youth.

Dean-Charles Chapman, the actor who played Tommen, said Ser Pounce might’ve only made one appearance, because the cat who played him was kind of a pain to work with. He also hoped that the kitty didn’t get caught up in the blast when the Sept of Baelor exploded. “I like to think he’d also move on with his life and get a girlfriend maybe,” Chapman told HuffPost, which sounds great. Now, if only Game of Thrones would confirm that by showing us the cuddliest knight in all the Seven Kingdoms.

Last appeared in: Season 4, Episode 4

Some of these characters may appear when Game of Thrones Season 7 continues on Sunday nights at 9 p.m. Eastern on HBO. Or not.