As a long-time fan of A Song of Ice and Fire as well as Arrested Development, I was primed when Game of Thrones began airing in 2009. The comparisons almost seemed to write themselves—and the moment I realized the parallels to both Jaime and Buster losing a hand, I couldn’t wait. It was a labor of love for eight years, and while the Targaryens are just as dysfunctional as the Bluths, it ended with the end of Game of Thrones.

Below are a selection of my favorites, t-shirts that were for sale, as well as some press I’ve received.

T-Shirts

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From 2013-2019, I sold Arrested Westeros t-shirts, with a design by Claire Hummel. There are still some in storage, so who knows if we’ll see them again soon!

Press for Arrested Westeros

I’ve been fortunate to get quite a bit of love for Arrested Westeros, so I’ve collected it here!


Paste Magazine // 40 Hilarious Game of Thrones and Arrested Development Mashups, brought to you by Arrested Westeros // “Emily Hummel, creator of Arrested Westeros is, simply put, a renaissance woman. With a Masters in History, a career in non-profit, and a vast knowledge of television, she curates the hilarity that is this fantastic website for fans of both Game of Thrones and Arrested Development (and hilarious TV coincidences in plot).”

Wired // Manga Moles & Success Steve Holt: The Best Arrested Development Fan Creations // “Of all the online fandom output, one of the best – and nerdiest – Tumblrs is Emily Hummel's Game of Thrones and Arrested Development mash-up site Arrested Westeros. The Tumblr, which is composed entirely of Thrones images captioned with Development quotes, was inspired by an image Hummel saw of Hodor carrying Bran with the caption "Swoop me, Dragon!" "I just about lost it," she said. The site eventually even got a co-sign from show creator Mitch Hurwitz on Twitter.”

Wired // A Practical Guide to the Catchphrases of Arrested Development / “For readers who wish to explore the advanced use of Arrested Development catchphrases and quotations in visual memes, we can find no better example than the Arrested Development / Game of Thrones mash-up blog Arrested Westeros”

io9 // Game of Thrones Scenes + Arrested Development quotes = Pure Magic // “Well, this is why the internet exists. At the blog Arrested Westeros, Emily Hummel assiduously teases out the parallels between the scheming factions of Game of Thrones and the Bluth clan of Arrested Development by slapping dysfunctional dialogue of the latter on top of the former. The results synchronize delightfully.”

Splitsider // Why Arrested Development and Game of Thrones Are Perfect Together // “Emily Hummel, the creator of Arrested Westeros has, whether she realized it or not, hit on a fundamental truth about comedy here…Arrested quotes [are] funnier when you put them in context, but we didn’t realize just how dark and twisted that context was. In showcasing that darkness, Arrested Westeros takes something impossibly funny and somehow makes it even funnier.”

Vulture // “Check Out ‘Arrested Westeros,’ a Bluth-Stark Families Mash-Up Tumblr Arrested Development meets Game of Thrones, because when you love two television shows very, very much, you make a Tumblr with images from one and captions from the other.”

Entertainment Weekly // ‘Game of Thrones’ best fan Tumblrs, from Arrested Westeros to Joffrey Bieber / Arrested Development quotes + Game of Thrones stills = comedy gold…come on, how perfect is the post that mashes up a behanded Jaime with a behanded Buster?

The A.V. Club (and a second time!) // “Honestly, if those people who run the Game Of Thrones/Arrested Development mash-up site don’t caption every screencap of Sansa from that scene where she’s watching Joffrey punish the would-be jester with “I’ve made a huge mistake,” they are FALLING DOWN ON THE JOB.” / “By the way, if you haven’t checked out Arrested Westeros yet, you really should.”

Huffington Post // 7 Sites You Should Be Wasting Time On Right Now | If you love “Arrested Development” and “Game of Thrones,” then Arrested Westeros’ perfect blend of show quotes and screen shots is going to please you to no end.

UPROXX // #1 Best TV Mashup Tumblr | ‘Arrested Development’ Hilariously Meets ‘Game Of Thrones’ With Arrested Westeros 

WinterIsComing.net // “I’m catching up with all the hilarious Thrones mashups and blogs. And if you’re a fan of both Game of Thrones and Arrested Development, none are better than Arrested Westeros.”

BoingBoing // “…or Arrested Westeros, my current favorite site, which combines Game of Thrones with quotes from Arrested Development. You wouldn’t believe how well it works.”

Salon // “I’m calling it: best Tumblr of the year. But why can’t it work the other way around? I’d love to see Lucille Bluth with the headline ‘Winter is coming.’”

BuzzFeed // The 15 Most Unforgettable Arrested Development Mashups 

Sky Atlantic // The Best Game of Thrones Mashups | “the blog “Arrested Westeros” takes amusing quotes from the cult show Arrested Development, and makes them relevant to Game of Thrones. Favourites include GOB’s magic, Buster’s pillow and the ‘loose seal.’”

HappyPlace // Until “Arrested Development” and “Game of Thrones” return, “Arrested Westeros” will keep you from blueing your brains out. | “Game of Thrones and Arrested Development, respectively, have ended their seasons…[but] that doesn’t mean we can’t keep quoting them, reliving their traumatic moments, and laughing at the various pickles the main characters’ decisions get them into. Now, with Arrested Westeros, you can do both at the same time and also experience this traumatizing Game of Thrones season in a far more lighthearted manner.”

Unreality Magazine // “Game of Thrones might be off the air for nine months, but as one last hurrah for the series, enjoy this amazing site…Working on the internet full time, you become immune to things that are “virally funny” as it were, but this marks the first time I’ve laughed out loud at something I’ve found in a long while. The quotes match up so well, and the scenes are chosen so expertly, I can’t remember seeing a better mash-up.” // Another Round of Greatness from Arrested Westeros

Cinema Blend // “Sure, it’s too early just one season in to proclaim that Game of Thrones is of the caliber of an Arrested (or even The Wire) but the good people over at Arrested Westeros decided to combine them anyway. Yes, another meme factory but this one I like (and I don’t like many).”

Flavorwire // Best Pop-Culture Game of Thrones Mashup | “Curated by Emily Hummel, this blog juxtaposes scenes from Game of Thrones with dialogue from the critically acclaimed Arrested Development. The results are bound to make you laugh out loud.”

Geekosystem // “The one that started it all, this Tumblr shows that Arrested Development has – between deceit, betrayal, and incest jokes – more in common with Game of Thrones than you might expect. It’s a match made in heaven.”

Bustle // New ‘Arrested Development’ Episodes Premiere In 2016 & Here Are 6 Ways Fans Can Pass The Time Until Then |  “…since the story of a family who’s lost everything is universal, Arrested Development quotes superimposed on screenshots from just about any great television show a joke that never gets old.”