Jon Snow’s death and jaw-dropping flashbacks are at the heart of the show’s new season. On Tuesday, the new trailer gave fans a mouthful of information to chew on.
After months of waiting, we now know what will befall each character and how the story will continue. Here are 5 takeaways from the over a minute-long trailer we all watched.
1. Snow more questions
After months of back-and-forth debate, the matter is officially settled: Jon Snow, the 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, is dead. Ghost sits with his fallen master in one scene, while Ser Davos Seaworth wields Jon’s Valyrian steel sword, Longclaw, at the conclusion of the trailer — either in solidarity with the mystery man in the room, or potentially as a means of stopping this individual.
2. The fires of life
Don’t lose hope yet, Snow-hards. Jon’s dead, yes … but death didn’t stop Beric Dondarrion from springing back to life, did it? Indeed, Melisandre of Asshai is at the heart of many theories about Jon’s return, and the trailer adds fuel to those fires, so to speak. She’s despondent throughout much of the footage (“The great victory I saw in the flames … all of it was a lie,” she says), but there’s also a moment where she disrobes, with determination in her eye. Classic Melisandre move, but is there more here? Are Melisandre and Davos planning some kind of ritual, perhaps involving Ghost, with the intent of bringing Jon back from the great beyond?
3. The Night’s King returns
It’s no surprise to see the leader of the White Walkers once again, even if it’s a bit of a shock to see him in the first full trailer for the new season. The real surprise, however, involves Bran Stark, the green-seeing “broken thing” training under the mystical Three-Eyed Raven. The Night’s King and Bran stand side-by-side near the end of the trailer, indicating that this is nothing more than one of Bran’s visions. How else to explain Bran standing on his own two feet? Regardless, even if this is nothing more than a fantasy, Bran’s close brush with the deadliest force on Thrones should have fans of the second youngest Stark son very worried indeed.
4. The Tower of Joy
These are words that mean very little for show-only viewers, but for book readers, it’s everything, short of a flashback to the Tourney at Harrenhal. At numerous points in the trailer, we see what appears to be a young Eddard Stark battling against warriors wearing the dragon of House Targaryen on their armor — all part of one of the most storied battles in Westeros history, and one with enormous ramifications for the future of Thrones, and Jon Snow specifically. Some fans believe that Jon was born moments after this epic battle, the secret son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. Based on the trailer, it looks like season six might confirm this longstanding theory after all. If nothing else, it’s worth getting excited for Ser Arthur Dayne and Howland Reed, two of the most legendary figures in Thrones lore.
5. Power in powerlessness
How can the impoverished and disenfranchised masses of King’s Landing break their cycle of oppression? The High Sparrow has a suggestion: team together. Jonathan Pryce’s holier-than-thou zealot looks ready for a prominent role in season six, pledging his desire to “overthrow an empire.” The conflict between his Faith Militant and the traditional power structure of the Iron Throne looks like it will result in new shades of blood in the coming year, based on one scene where armed forces march up to the Great Sept of Baelor, mere feet away from the High Sparrow’s own army of fanatics.
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