Why Jon Snow is NOT Dead, and Other Game of Thrones Musings

We’ve had a couple of days to digest the shocking season finale of Game of Thrones. And when I say digest, I mean we’ve had a couple of days to eat our feelings while curled up in bed, sobbing hysterically every so often.

But we’re up now. We’ve processed. Or, we’re processing. Whatever. We’re ready to talk about this!

Whether you’ve spent the past few days re-reading, cursing at the show runners and George R. R Martin, devouring every interview or re-reading the casting calls for Season 6 in the hopes of figuring out what’s coming, there’s one thing we probably have in common.

Denial.

You don’t say it out loud, of course. You use the word theorize, and common sense and cliffhanger. You cozy up to the same book readers you shunned before, because we’re all in the same boat now. You’re not in denial, not really. You’re better than that. You’re a fan, a real one, and you can read the clues. You can see beyond the obvious.

Jon Snow is not dead. He can’t be dead.

Welcome, my friends, to my very own personal hell.

I’ve been here for four very long years, ever since I first read the ending to A Dance with Dragons. All the theorizing, the pleading, the desperation… I recognize the pattern. I’ve lived through it more than once. In fact, I thought I was over it. I didn’t need to discuss whether Jon was dead, because I was sure he wasn’t.

Then Sunday came. And if the episode wasn’t definitive enough, we got all those interviews. And Kit Harington’s haircut. They all point to the same very definitive and heartbreaking truth: Jon Snow is dead.

Except he isn’t. He can’t be. Because we know too much about him. Because we don’t know enough. Because it just doesn’t make sense. And George R.R Martin is many, many things, but he’s no Shonda Rhimes. He understands that you can shock your readers, you scandalize them, you can even disappoint them, but you absolutely cannot lie to them.

And Jon being dead? That’s a lie.

It’s a lie because both the TV show and the books have set up Jon as one of the main characters in this saga. “So what?” you say. Ned Stark was the main character, and he died! Robb was the heir apparent, and he died. Why shouldn’t Jon die as well? Because you say so?

No. Because Jon’s is the only death that doesn’t make sense. Ned’s beheading was about showing you that this was not Lord of the Rings, where all the main characters come out alive. This was going to be hard, and bloody, and real. Robb’s was about driving home the fact that this was not the story you expected. Neither of those deaths left any loose ends that could not be tied up somewhere else. We mourned, them, yes, but with time, we understood. The real story was elsewhere.

The real story was with Daenerys, and Tyrion, Bran and Arya.

And Jon.

Yes, Jon. The one who spent five seasons on the Wall, being woven into the narrative of how to defeat the White Walkers. The one with a valyrian steel sword. The one who’s grown from a green, scared boy, into a leader.

The same one who, back in the second episode of the first season asked Ned Stark who his mother was, only for him to promise that next time they saw each other, they’d talk about it.

You know how well that turned out.

In fact, Jon has had more than one character promise him the truth of his parentage only to disappear. Let’s not forget Uncle Benjen, who made a similar promise. He’s also had many a person remark as to how out of character it is that the honorable Ned Stark fathered a bastard.

Which all leads to this conclusion: The truth of Jon’s origins is very, very important. It’s probably completely different from what we’ve been told. It’s the kind of secret that can change everything.

Of course, it doesn’t matter one way or another if Jon is really dead.

This is not my only reason, of course. There’s the fact that Melisandre conveniently returned to the Wall just before the whole stab your commander thing, and the TV show has previously established a red priest that can bring people back from the dead in Thoros of Myr. There is also the speculation that Jon’s true origins are of the dragon riding variety. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, Google R+L=J).

And, finally, there’s this:

If Jon is really and truly dead, where does the story go? Who will defeat the White Walkers, unite the North and the South, and maybe, possibly, ride a dragon alongside Daenerys? Who else can tie all the storylines together?

(No one. The answer is no one.)

So, TV show viewers, welcome to the land of speculation. We’re happy to have you. There’s a lot to discuss in the long, dark winter ahead. But not this. Never this.

Jon Snow is alive. (Or is soon to be revived). Nothing else makes sense.

What about you, Game of Thrones fans? Do you agree? And how are you dealing with that season finale? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Game of Thrones returns next year for Season 6 on HBO.

Lissete Lanuza Sáenz

Lawyer. Writer. Columnist. Geek. Falls in madly in love with fictional characters. Hates the color yellow, misogyny, and people who are late. Can always be found with a book. Watches an absurd amount of TV every week, often, while eating coffee ice cream. She has no regrets. You can check out her blog here: Absurday. Lissete is a senior writer for Tell-Tale TV. Follow @lizziethat