Game of Thrones was a show defined by power in its many forms. Whether that was seeing knowledge as power, or it being through politics, finance, military strength, or something more magical (such as Daenerys Targaryen's dragons, or the Three-Eyed Raven's greensight), the series charted those who possessed it and would do anything to hold on, and those who lusted after it and would do anything to achieve their goals. However, as with many things across the show's eight seasons, some of Game of Thrones' powerful characters were portrayed far better than others.

Someone like the Night King is a good example of both sides. His ability to raise the dead, creating an entire army for himself from corpses he helped create, gave us one of the show's most haunting displays of power ever seen in "Hardhome." Later, however, the nature of his power came to be disappointing. When his villain story was cut short in a way that felt rushed and underexplained, audiences were left wanting more. But at least he had some of those great moments to begin with. In contrast, another powerful character - Euron Greyjoy - was completely and utterly misused by Game of Thrones.

Euron was a man who possessed several kinds of power. He took control of the Iron Islands, giving him an entire kingdom. He was from one of Westeros' great houses, giving him political leverage. He was able to accumulate great wealth, at least in the A Song of Ice and Fire books, as it's strongly suggested he sold a dragon egg to pay for a Faceless Man to assassinate his brother, Balon (which would not have come cheap).

He commands an incredible fleet not only in size, but in its strength when it comes to naval battle. He even dabbles in the dark arts, with hints of much greater powers to come. He's already expressed a desire, in the books, to take control of a dragon; there are lots of teases that point to him not simply wanting to rule Westeros, but to unleash an Eldritch apocalypse upon it that will see him reborn as a God. He's unhinged, ruthless, and a being of true evil.

So, where was all of that in Game of Thrones? The TV show adapted some of the broad strokes - yes, he becomes King of the Iron Islands and commands the Iron Fleet, but that was about it. The character was distilled down into being a basic, horny pirate, closer to Jack Sparrow than he was his own book counterpart, his motives reduced to little more than wanting to bed the Queen. He was still a villain, sure, but came off more like a drunken sailor with a bad coke habit who is a little too heavy-handed on the eyeliner than he did an evil being who could unleash hellish sea monsters and terror upon the world.

George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series has already done Euron more justice than Game of Thrones did, but there are clear signs of it going further. One of the preview chapters from The Winds of Winter that Martin previously revealed is titled "The Forsaken," told from the point of view of Aeron Greyjoy, or Aeron Damphair, Euron's brother. He has been taken captive by Euron, and is subjected to various forms of physical and mental torture throughout the chapter, as he's forced to drink shade of the evening (the potion favored by the warlocks of Qarth), which causes him to have multiple visions.

This is some of Martin's darkest work; the chapter is a Lovecraftian nightmare, and highlights just how deranged and dangerous Euron is. The visions hint at his plans and purpose, as Martin writes: "He saw his brother on the Iron Throne again, but Euron was no longer human. He seemed more squid than man, a monster fathered by a kraken of the deep, his face a mass of writhing tentacles."

Just how far Euron gets in his goals remains to be seen, and it's admittedly unlikely he's going to be an endgame villain in the series. But he's a character whose reach extends pretty far, and could impact everything from the Others beyond the Wall to Daenerys in Meereen. And more importantly, whatever happens, it seems like it is going to be fascinating to read (if and when the book is released). It's haunting stuff that paints the picture of Euron as a truly terrifying foe, something Game of Thrones never managed to do.

All eight seasons of Game of Thrones are available to stream on HBO Max.

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