‘Game of Thrones’ season 6 aftershow greenlit for HBO digital platforms

For those wondering what the first product from Bill Simmons on HBO was going to be, who would’ve guessed that it would be an aftershow for “Game of Thrones” over something sports-related? Granted, the former Grantland founder did prove himself to be a guru of pop culture during his days with ESPN, but we still assumed we’d be getting more sports from him sooner rather than later.

Nonetheless, Simmons is executive-producer “After the Thrones,” which will be released on HBO’s digital platforms the Monday after new episodes of the juggernaut hit air on the network. The show will discuss with humor and analysis the most recent “Game of Thrones” episode, and will be hosted by Andy Greenwald and Chris Ryan of The Ringer, Simmons’ new content platform.

As a whole, we love the idea. Greenwald in particular is one of the most-respected TV gurus out there, and we’d listen to him discuss just about everything. Also, we rather like making this a digital show first and foremost, since it continues to allow “Silicon Valley” to reap most of the “Game of Thrones” lead-in on the network. “Talking Dead,” while lucrative for AMC, has made it harder for them to launch other shows. If they wedge a show between that show and “The Walking Dead,” fans tend to resent it.

The one thing that we don’t love about “After the Thrones” is fairly simple: The name. It’s seriously awful. Why not just call it “After the Game” or “Game Over”? We’re sure if we had the time that HBO and their time probably had to come up with this, we’d come up with something at least moderately better.

Will you watch a “Game of Thrones” aftershow, or do you have enough podcasts / other material out there to make you happy? Share below, and head over here to get some more TV news on everything we cover, sent right over to you via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: HBO.)