With just a few weeks to go until the season 6 premiere of Game of Thrones , HBO is still maintaining that a certain character is really dead. Fans are still not believing a single word said about the matter.
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains information about the season 5 finale of HBO’s Game of Thrones, as well as news on season 6. Please proceed with caution if you wish to avoid spoilers.
Ever since the season 5 finale of Game of Thrones, HBO has been repeating the mantra “Jon Snow is dead.” This has followed through into the official synopsisfor episode 1 of season 6. The episode is entitled “The Red Woman,” was written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and is directed by Jeremy Podeswa:
“Jon Snow is dead. Daenerys meets a strong man. Cersei sees her daughter again.”
While the three sentences are short and direct, fans are already reading plenty into them — especially that first sentence. Jezebel points out that “dead doesn’t mean anything in a fantasy world.” And many fans agree with this stance – especially when the title of this episode of Game of Thrones is “The Red Woman.” This title has often been given to Melisandre (Carice van Houten), the woman who mysteriously turned up at the Wall at the exact moment Jon Snow (Kit Harington) was stabbed multiple times by the Night’s Watch. Even if Jon Snow is really dead, it is possible Melisandre could bring him back from the dead, something that has been evidenced in earlier seasons of Game of Thrones .
As the Watchers on the Wallfan site points out, HBO “doth protest too much.” Considering HBO has told anyone who listens — including US President Barack Obama–that Jon Snow is dead, Kit Harington has backed the claim also, as well as other cast members. Then HBO released the script that killed Jon Snowas extra evidence that the much-loved character was really dead.
Ok. We KNOW Jon Snow is dead. The question is whether he’ll be resurrected. https://t.co/j7OL3o3T2A
— Human v.2 (@TrinbagoTolkien) April 8, 2016
But, no matter how much HBO insists Jon Snow is dead, fans are still insisting they are, at worst, lying, or at best, stretching the truth. As one fan below points out, the bastard known as Jon Snow is most likely dead, but there is no reason why Jon Stark cannot be resurrected at the hands of Melisandre.
Jon Snow is dead, but Jon Stark lives. #GoTSeason6
— Samuel McIntyre (@Samuel_Isaac7) April 7, 2016
Some fans, however, suggest it will not be Jon Stark that returns but Jon Targaryen, thanks to the R+L=J theory , which is a fan favorite for just who Jon Snow’s parents actually are.
While many fans are still insisting Jon Snow will return in season 6 of Game of Thrones , some are just over the constant mantra uttered by HBO.
I wish they would just default to No Comment on this Jon Snow nonsense. Sigh.
— Jonathan Lack (@JonathanLack) April 7, 2016
HBO has also expanded on their brief synopsis with an overview on season 6:
“Following the shocking developments at the conclusion of season five, including Jon Snow’s bloody fate at the hands of Castle Black mutineers, Daenerys’ near-demise at the fighting pits of Meereen, and Cersei’s public humiliation in the streets of King’s Landing, survivors from all parts of Westeros and Essos regroup to press forward, inexorably, towards their uncertain individual fates. Familiar faces will forge new alliances to bolster their strategic chances at survival, while new characters will emerge to challenge the balance of power in the east, west, north and south.”
Once again, in this synopsis, the utterance of “uncertain individual fates” seems to be another way HBO can muddy the water over the fate of Jon Snow. As per usual, it seems fans will just have to tough it out until the next season of Game of Thrones premieres on April 24. What do you think? Is Jon Snow really dead? Let us know your thoughts and theories by commenting below!
Season 6 of HBO’s Game of Thrones premieres on Sunday, April 24.
[Image via HBO Inc.]