With the show caught up to the books and only a couple of plot threads still to be adapted, it’s open season for Game of Thrones speculation…

 

Bran will encounter the White Walkers

The White Walkers and their army are still pretty far from the Wall, so we’ve not seen anybody further south have anything to do with them yet. But Bran is the only major character north of the Wall not to face the Walkers yet apart from a small skirmish with some Wights at the end of Season 4.

Apart from Jon, Bran has the greatest connection to the White Walkers. He may not have seen them in person yet but he is firmly tied to the supernatural elements of Westeros, being a Warg and training under the Three-Eyed Raven and the Children of the Forest for the past year. And while the Walkers aren’t omnipotent as far as we know, they’ll probably find out what Bran is up to sooner rather than later.

There’s also the small matter of Sam giving Bran and his companions a Dragonglass dagger and arrowheads back in Season 3 but them not coming into play yet. Because they’re working from a pre-established story, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss love to plant the seeds for forthcoming stories long in advance. And it would be pretty surprising if something as rare and useful as some of the last few Dragonglass weapons in the Seven Kingdoms didn’t end up being important.

Because his journey is to become able to save Westeros from what lies beyond the Wall, Bran needs to face the White Walkers in some way or another. And since he’s now well into his training, Season 6 might be when it happens. Just don’t expect everyone to get out alive.

 

Ramsay will kill Roose

Although Ramsay Bolton’s character arc is him striving for his father Roose’s approval, there are always hints of conflict between them. Ramsay and Roose have different ways of doing things. Roose is evil but he’s sensible, always thinking of his House’s public image and how best to keep control of the North.

Ramsay on the other hand is completely psychotic with no sense of planning for the future. And their relationship will probably only get worse now that Sansa and Theon have escaped, stopping them from legitimately claiming the North by producing a Stark heir. But apart from the loss of Sansa, there’s also the issue of Roose’s unborn child.

Roose’s wife Walda is pregnant, threatening Ramsay’s position as the Bolton heir. Although he has been naturalised by Tommen Baratheon and is no longer a Snow, Ramsay is still a bastard. Which means that if Roose and Walda’s baby is a boy, Ramsay will not inherit the Dreadfort or Winterfell. Obviously the easy solution would be to kill Walda and the child, but if Roose dies; Winterfell is Ramsay’s until the child can rule for itself.

Even though he wants Roose’s approval, somebody with Ramsay’s bloodlust and lack of sense probably wouldn’t be above doing a Gregor Clegane and killing his father to speed up his inheritance. And as we hear him say in the latest teasers “Winterfell is mine. Come and see”. Arrogant boast? Or the truth? We’ll soon find out.

 

Continued on next page…