Chicago Cubs: Game of Thrones and the Cubs’ Long Winter (Part 1)

With Game of Thrones and the Chicago Cubs in the long winter, it seems appropriate to begin our series dedicated to how the two are related.

Since Game of Thrones and Major League Baseball are in the long winter at the moment, it seems apropos to delve into something we all find awesome:  A Song of Ice and Fire (ASOIAF) and The Chicago Cubs on a Sunday night.

So, in that spirit, if we had to swap out our favorite (and less than favorite) characters from GoT and insert our favorite (and less than favorite) Cubbies in their stead, who would play each part? Read on, North Side Westeros fans. That is, of course, where (Cubbie) Bear Island sits.

Game of Thrones and the Chicago Cubs have been two of the most popular franchises in the world over the last decade.  In the last five years, both have experienced an exponential boom in fandom and financial success that has furthered an already solid and established fanbase.

The Cubs were able to put a crown on their recent successes with a championship in 2016.  Westeros, while still looking for someone to stick on the throne, has had its own clash of kings and would-be monarchs, all while crowning its show, Game of Thrones, as the most popular brand currently on television.  In the spirit of a baseball series, feast your crow’s eyes on a three-part series of Wrigleyville and Westerosi proportions.

Of course, you wanna know who my Cubs picks for Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen and Ned Stark are… but I’m gonna make you wait.  Who will Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and Kyle Schwarber be tapped to play in our GoT remix? Read on, read on.

Without further ado, we must start at the beginning: to finance this fantasy world, one needs to look no further than The Iron Bank of Braavos.  And, if rich and powerful Tywin Lannister was once the Tribune Company of Westeros, The Ricketts (especially Tom, the face of the family) have to be the Iron Bank, right?

Controversial political baggage, tons of money, and financiers of some of the most powerful men and women in the world.  While not entirely a “person” per se, The Iron Bank (Ricketts family) is no doubt the iron that makes the Cubs go, and sometimes that iron can be molded or squeezed to make dreams come true- for the right price, and in the right hands.