TYRION LANNISTER
After murdering his father, Tywin, Tyrion Lannister is smuggled out of King's Landing by Varys. He arrives in Pentos at the start of ADWD, meeting with Magister Illyrio, who sets him on a course through Essos to meet with Daenerys Targaryen. Illyrio parts company with Tyrion when he drops them off with a crew who is secretly comprised of Jon Connington, Aegon Targaryen and several other individuals under false identities. The crew pilots a ship up the Rhoyne until Tyrion uncovers their true identities and they are attacked by Stone Men. Tyrion survives the attack and convinces Aegon to abandon the journey to Meereen to meet with Dany and instead invade Westeros to earn her respect and marry her as an equal. Tyrion travels to a whorehouse in Volantis where he is captured by Jorah Mormont. Jorah and Tyrion board a ship that they are told will take them to Meereen, though the ship isn't going to Meereen itself, with a dwarf named Penny (who tries to kill him) and a Red Priest of R'hllor named Moqorro. The ship sinks and Moqorro is found by Victarion while Tyrion and Jorah are captured by pirates and sold as slaves in Meereen. Tyrion and Penny participate in the same dog/pig dwarf-jousting act that Penny and her brother performed at Joffrey's wedding at the re-opening of the fighting pits of Meereen. After Drogon attacks the fighting pits, Tyrion, Penny and Jorah escape from slavery and join the Second Sons with the intention of convincing them to turn their cloaks back to Dany's side in the war. He succeeds in this effort in a preview chapter for TWOW.
That's a full-season storyline if I've ever heard one and I expect that many of the elements of this storyline will be present in S5, with some obvious omissions and some major shortcuts taken to get to the final destination. I also expect this storyline to go behind ADWD, as leaked photographs indicate that Tyrion and Dany will have direct interactions at the fighting pits, which indicate that they've allied themselves with each other before Drogon intervenes. There's a lot of ground to cover before we get there, so let's start at the beginning.
PENTOS
Leaked photographs from filming indicate that locations used to represent Pentos in Season 1 are being used this season and that characters wearing Pentoshi costumes will be appearing this season as well. Couple that with the fact that no casting announcement would be necessary to bring the actor playing Magister Illyrio (Roger Allam) back for an episode or two and my conclusion is that Tyrion will be traveling to Pentos at the start of S5. One change that I expect for the show is that the Season 4 finale indicates that Varys will be traveling with Tyrion to Pentos. Varys is a better and more popular character in the show than he is in the books, so I expect he'll stick around for the first part of Tyrion's storyline at least, though I think he may depart on Littlefinger's Season 2 jetpack to jump into other storylines this season. Perhaps Varys will accompany Illyrio and Tyrion until he departs on the Rhoyne. Perhaps he stays with Tyrion until Volantis. Then again, maybe he drops Tyrion off in Pentos and disappears until later in the season. Who knows? None of the leaked information includes Varys, so it's all guessing at this point. I'd like to think that more Varys is better than less, so let's give him two or three episodes before he parts ways with Tyrion.
THE RHYONE
We know from filming leaks and press releases that Tyrion will be stopping in Volantis on the way to Meereen (where we know he will arrive). Unless his on-screen time takes him directly from Pentos to Volantis, he'll need to travel on the Rhoyne.
Most of the key moments of Tyrion's trip down the Rhoyne will be skipped because they are connected directly to the presence of Aegon and Jon Connington, who appear to have been written out of the show. Tyrion won't get to reveal the identity of these characters and the giant turtle (the Old Man of the River) probably won't make an appearance because his presence is tied to Aegon (also, with a limited special effects budget it's unlikely that a chunk of it would be used on a large turtle that is otherwise insignificant to the story), but one of the most amazing scenes in ADWD will still take place: the attack of the stone men.
The "Bridge of Dreams" sequence where Tyrion and co. are attacked by the stone men is one of the best sequences in ADWD and it lends itself perfectly to film and television.
Picture this scene:
Tyrion looks out onto the deck of the ship and sees nothing but fog. In the distance, vague shapes of menacing figures appear on structures above the ship, on all sides. After a few moments of eerie silence, there's a loud thud on the ship's deck, followed by another and another as the menacing figures attack the ship. The crew fends off the attackers, but as Tyrion pushes the last of the attackers off of the deck, the attacker grabs Tyrion and pulls him into river with him.
Cut to black as eerie music plays and the credits roll and the episode ends on one hell of a cliffhanger.
Sounds pretty awesome, no? And leaked information from filming indicates that this scene in some form or another will be a part of S5, as there will be a scene featuring a large bridge and a lot of special effects that seems to be a perfect fit for this scene.
It is my prediction that this scene will take place after Tyrion arrives in Volantis and is captured by Jorah Mormont, however. I think that the show will cut out the boat trip or limit it to a few character development / check-in scenes as most of the important characters from Tyrion's trip down the Rhoyne have been cut from the show. It would be much more interesting if Jorah was present during the Stone Men's attack and a nice shortcut for the show to use the Stone Men's attack as the reason why the boat from Volantis sinks and Tyrion and Jorah are captured and sold into slavery.
VOLANTIS
It has been confirmed that Game of Thrones will be going to Volantis in S5 and casting indicates that the show's adaptation will stick very closely to the book, at least the part covered in ADWD Tyrion VI, if not so much ADWD - Tyrion VII.
While in Volantis, Tyrion visits a whorehouse where he rapes (though it's not possible to have consensual sex with a slave forced into prostitution, Tyrion's actions were particularly brutal) and he's captured by Jorah Mormont. Jorah Mormont is back this season and filming scenes with Tyrion and while a character very similiar to the prostitute in this scene has been cast (indicating that she'll play the same role as in the books), I doubt that GoT will portray Tyrion's interactions the same was as they are portrayed in ADWD, as I expect the show to portray Tyrion in a lighter, less monstrous way than the books. The circumstances regarding his relationship with and murder of Shae are very different in the show and I expect Tyrion to be more "sad-drunk" this season than "sadistic-drunk". Also, the show will likely feel the need to maintain the likeability of Tyrion Lannister in a way that the books don't. Plus, you have to figure that the fall-out from the poorly-directed Jaime-Cersei rape scene last season (as well as the sometimes well-deserved charges of sexism that come up whenever a scene featuring prostitutes occurs) will affect the show-runners and cause them to tone down this encounter somewhat.
After being captured, Jorah secures passage on a ship that will (sort of...) take him and Tyrion to Meereen. While doing this, Tyrion is attacked by a young dwarf named Penny. Penny was an entertainer who, along with her brother, participated in the dwarf-jousting show at Joffrey's wedding. After Joffrey's death, they fled to Essos, where Penny's brother was eventually beheaded when he was mistaken for Tyrion by individuals who hoped to win the Lordship that Cersei promised in return for the capturing or killing of Tyrion. Upon seeing Tyrion, Penny attempts to murder him out of revenge, failing to do so. She eventually joins Tyrion and Jorah and is still with them during the preview chapters for TWOW.
It's possible that the passage-booking scene will be included this season (if for no other reason than to show how desperate Jorah is at this point in the story), but it could also be skipped. What will definitely be skipped is the role of Penny, who I think will be written out of the show. The "entertainment" at Joffrey's wedding featured dwarves, but there was no indication that any of them were Penny. Also, there has been casting calls for dwarf actors, but not dwarf actresses. Penny is a significant enough role that her casting would have been announced if she were appearing in Season 5 and she wasn't. She might show up in a later season, but I doubt it.
MEEREEN
I was prepared to write about my theory that Game of Thrones would skip over the whole "Tyrion the Slave" subplot and instead have Jorah smuggle him into Meereen. This was based on a leaked image from the set that appeared to indicate that Jorah would be sneaking Tyrion into Meereen on a small boat. It seemed to me that the show might skip over the boat sinking, Tyrion and Jorah being captured by pirates, sold into slavery and escaping during the battle. This was further backed up by the leaked image of Tyrion sitting in the fighting pits with Daenerys, Hizdahr and Missandei. Clearly, the show is going further into Tyrion's storyline than ADWD did, as Tyrion never has direct interaction with Daenerys in ADWD, as he's still a slave performing in the re-opening of the pits. I was prepared to say that the "Tyrion the Slave" sub-plot would be skipped entirely in order to save time, but the latest piece of information to be released proves that incorrect.
When Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Oz, Lost) (AAA) was cast in a new role that was added specifically for Season 5, there was a lot of speculation about what role he'd be playing. It was recently revealed that his role would involve selling Tyrion and Jorah to Yezzan (whose role remains confusing as the casting information indicates that he was a wealthy man in Meereen and slavery remains outlawed in Meereen while Daenerys is present, so he must have fled the city for this to work). Since Tyrion and Jorah are sold into slavery, it's safe to assume that the storyline that brings them to that point stays intact, so it's safe to assume that their boat from Volantis sinks and they're captured and sold into slavery.
There haven't been any details released that detail the army of Slavers Bay that lays siege to Meereen (assuming that the show follows the same storyline as the books) and Brown Ben Plumm hasn't been cast for this season, so the details of how Tyrion and Jorah escape are currently impossible to know, but at some point this season they will either escape or be brought before Daenerys where Jorah is forced to fight in the pits to earn his way back into her good graces while Tyrion is accepted as an advisor. However this is managed, leaked photographs show that Jorah is fighting in the pit while Tyrion watches with the newly-married Dany and Hizdahr. Since Tyrion doesn't appear to be a prisoner or under any kind of duress in the photos, it seems as though his interaction with Dany have been productive and led to him being freed and working with her at the moment. It should be one of the most interesting story changes / advancements that the show has ever done.
It's hard to guess when exactly Tyrion will interact with Daenerys and how long they'll share the screen together. Both characters have a significant amount of story that will need to be covered before they'll be in the same place and time (Tyrion has to cross half of Essos), so it's likely that they won't meet until Episode 7 or 8, when they'll share a few highly anticipated scenes before Drogon returns and flies away with Daenerys and everything in Meereen goes to hell after the re-opening of the fighting pits. I expect this to be the climax of Episode 9. Where Tyrion's story goes from there is unknown as it will be a combination of new storylines and storylines from TWOW. I don't expect him to assume the role of Quentyn Martell and set the other two dragons loose (I'll put together some wild speculation on that in my post about Dany), so his future on the show is likely to be tied in with Jorah and Selmy, though much of that will likely be pushed until Season 6. I'll have more to say about Tyrion's interactions with Daenerys when I discuss Dany's storyline for the season.
MY SEASON 5 PREDICTIONS FOR TYRION LANNISTER'S STORY:
Tyrion will travel with Varys to Pentos, where they'll meet with Magister Illyrio. The trio (Varys may not leave Pentos) will travel together until Tyrion leaves for Volantis, where he'll visit a whorehouse and be captured by Jorah Mormont. Tyrion and Jorah will be attacked by the Stone Men, who sink their boat. They will then be captured and sold into slavery. They'll escape into Meereen where Tyrion will ally himself with Daenerys. The two will plot together until the re-opening of the fighting pits, where Drogon returns and Daenerys flies out of the city on his back. Tyrion will remain in Meereen during the fallout and the upcoming battle in Season 6.
Next Week - Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Game of Thrones Season 5 Speculation - Part 1 - Introduction, dropped / postponed storylines, M.I.A. characters and potential surprise appearances
Introduction
Season Five (S5) promises to be the most interesting season of Game Of Thrones (GoT) yet. While previous seasons have covered approx. 700 pages of A Song of Ice and Fire each, S5 looks to cover a large portion of A Feast For Crows (AFFC) and A Dance With Dragons (ADWD), books that combine for over 2000 pages of content (in paperback). To say the least, cuts will need to be made, shortcuts will need to be taken and adapatation decisions by D&D and their writers will be fascinating.
If you're an Unsullied viewer, leave now. I intend to write about all of the major storylines of the last two books and some content from The Winds Of Winter (TWOW) that I think will be featured in S5. If you don't want to have a general (and sometimes very specific) idea of what's going to happen next season, stop reading now, because the spoilers will start in the next paragraph. Seriously. Put it this way, if you had heard the words "Red Wedding" before Season Three, you would have known too much.
AFFC and ADWD contain, at minimum, 15 major storylines. Evidence uncovered by various Game Of Thrones fan-sites (http://watchersonthewall.com/ and http://winteriscoming.net/ are my preferred sites for GoT information), indicates that some of these storylines have either been dropped (Aegon), postponed (Kingsmoot?) or significantly altered (Queenmaker). I intend to analyze and make predictions about what I think is going to happen in each of these storylines that I think will be included in Season Five. I plan to break these storylines down as follows (each with their own post):
1. Dropped / postponed storylines, M.I.A. characters and potential surprise appearances
2. Tyrion Lannister
3. Jon Snow / Samwell Tarly
4. Daenerys Targaryen
5. Arya Stark
6. Cersei Lannister
7. Theon Greyjoy / House Greyjoy
8. Dorne / Jaime Lannister
9. Sansa Stark / Brienne Of Tarth
10. Stannis Baratheon / Davos Seaworth
Please keep in mind that most of the advance information for S5 has yet to be revealed (the first trailer will be released later this week) and each piece of information will alter my predictions. My predictions (some of which are complete wild guesses) will be revised frequently and due to the cascading aspect of the storytelling on GoT, most of my predictions will be completely wrong. I will probably get a lot of small details and names wrong, so if you see something, please point it out and I'll do my best to fix them. Also, once the episodes start airing, my guesses will change significantly when actual details are revealed. I can't accurately predict anything that the show-runners make up for the show or anything that isn't hinted at in trailers and leaked information.
Part 1 - Dropped / postponed storylines, M.I.A. characters and potential surprise appearances
Based on casting information and leaks revealed during the filming of S5, several large storylines from AFFC and ADWD will be omitted or delayed until future seasons.
DROPPED / POSTPONED STORYLINES:
AEGON TARGARYEN
The most significant storyline that appears to have been cut completely out of the series is the storyline involving Aegon Targaryen, the son of Rhaegar Targaryen who was believed to have been killed by The Mountain during the sack of King's Landing at the end of Robert's Rebellion.
ADWD introduces the idea that baby Aegon was switched with another baby and then spirited to Essos to be raised by the disgraced Lord Jon Connington and groomed to become the great, benevolent king that lead conspirators Varys and Magister Illyrio Mopatis intended to one-day rule all of Westeros.
This idea is almost certainly complete bullsh*t. In ADWD there are numerous hints that Aegon (dubbed FAegon by many fans) is an imposter posing (probably unwittingly) as a Targaryen. The biggest hint that Aegon isn't who he appears to be (other than his far-fetched origin story) is the vision of a Mummer's Dragon (sort of like a dragon on sticks in a Chinese New Year parade) that Daenerys sees in the House of the Undying.
Aegon is introduced in Tyrion's ADWD storyline. They later part company (more on that in my post on Tyrion), with Aegon taking his traveling companions and the sell-sword army called the Golden Company (GC) to Westeros to lay siege to and capture Storm's End. In a preview chapter to The Winds Of Winter (TWOW), it is revealed that Arianne Martell (the Princess of and heiress of Dorne) is on her way to meet with Aegon. Speculation regarding this encounter lead some (including myself) to believe that Arianne Martell (who also does not appear to be included in GoT) will marry Aegon, in the hopes of becoming the Queen of Westeros (I also think she will succeed).
Even if this speculation proves false, the Aegon Targaryen storyline is a significant part of ADWD and George R.R. Martin's (GRRM) plans for the rest of the series. It's omission from S5 is a huge alteration, which will be felt in several of the existing S5 storylines.
So how do we know that it will be excluded (or at least postponed)? There have been no actors cast as Aegon, Jon Connington or any of the other characters involved in this storyline and there haven't been a great deal of actors cast in unknown roles that interact primarily with Tyrion this season. It's not impossible that the characters could have been secretly cast and involved with filming, but it's extremely unlikely. It's also not impossible that the characters could be introduced in future seasons, but that seems unlikely due to the new cast-member press release that indicates that Trystane Martell is Doran Martell's heir and the Prince of Dorne, indicating that Arianne has been written out of the series. In my estimation, no Arianne means no Aegon, as I think that their futures in the series are tied directly to one another. I'll address my predicted work-around in my post regarding the Dornish storyline.
EURON GREYJOY / VICTARION GREYJOY
Unlike Aegon, the Greyjoys do exist in Game of Thrones, or at the very least Theon Greyjoy has multiple uncles still living during Season 1 (Tyrion mentions them while talking to Theon in Winterfell). Also unlike Aegon, it's entirely possible that their storyline will exist in some context during Season 5 or in future seasons (Tywin's lesson to Tommen in Season 4 sounds like foreshadowing if AFFC's war between the Iron Islands and Highgarden, though that may simply have been a nod to book readers).
At some point before the Red Wedding in A Storm of Swords (ASOS), Balon Greyjoy "falls" (prophecy and speculation indicate that Euron hired a Faceless Man to murder Balon) off of a bridge at Pyke and dies. The very next day, Euron Greyjoy, long exiled by Balon, returns and proclaims himself the new king. His brother, Aeron Damphair (who arguably was featured in Season 2, blessing Theon), a priest of the Drowned God calls a Kingsmoot to determine who the new king will be. Asha Greyjoy (Yara Greyjoy on Game Of Thrones) and Victarion Greyjoy (and other Iron Islands lords) each make unsuccessful claims to the throne before Euron Greyjoy is crowned as king after promising the Ironmen that he possessed a horn that would allow him to take control of Dany's dragons with the intention of using them to conquer Westeros. After successfully invading the Shield Islands that protect the Reach, Euron determines that he can't conquer the Reach and lead the Iron Fleet to Meereen, so he sends Victarion in his stead to take the Iron Fleet to Meereen and bring back Dany and her dragons, though Victarion plots to take the dragons and Dany for himself. A preview chapter from TWOW shows Victarion and the Iron Fleet arriving in Meereen to assist Dany's force in the fight against the armies of Slaver's Bay.
Why do I think that this storyline will be significantly altered, excluded or postponed until a later season? Again, casting is the biggest clue. No actor has been cast as Euron Greyjoy or Victarion Greyjoy as of yet. Also, there's been no indication of any filming involving any of the Iron Islands storylines, though there also hasn't been much in the way of filming information involving Theon Greyjoy's Winterfell storyline and that will certainly be included in S5. Also, one of the main purposes of Victarion's journey to Meereen seems to be to provide Dany with the means of reaching Westeros. In the books, Victarion delivers 93 ships to Meereen. In the show, Daario Naharis and the Second Sons have already seized the Meereenese Navy, which has... 93 ships. Dany doesn't need Victarion to bring the Iron Fleet to Meereen.
That doesn't mean that some aspects of this storyline won't take place in Game Of Thrones. There are two indicators that I think point to the fact that Balon Greyjoy isn't going to survive this season. The first indicator is Melisandre's leech "spell". I put the "spell" in quotation marks because I think that the spell itself is a long con on Melisandre's part, in that I think she saw that Robb Stark, King Joffrey and Balon Greyjoy were going to die and engineered the "spell" to make it look like she was responsible for their deaths, which would happen with no intervention on her part. In the books, all three kings named in the spell die. In the show, two of them have died so far, indicating that Balon Greyjoy will not survive long. The other indicator is that the actor who played Jaqen H'ghar will be returning in Season 5. In the books, a prophecy indicates that Balon is killed by a Faceless Man. Many readers speculate that Jaqen is that Faceless Man (it would certainly be a shortcut that would work for the show) and Jaqen is later seen in Oldtown, appearing in Samwell Tarly's storyline. It's possible that his storyline in S5 could include killing Balon Greyjoy, though many (including myself) speculate that he'll take up the role of the Kindly Man (who has not been cast yet) in Arya's storyline, an equally likely possibility.
If Balon Greyjoy dies during S5 (on-screen, I hope), it's possible that Euron Greyjoy could ascend to the throne and invade the Reach (no Kingsmoot in this scenario, sorry) off-screen with the impact of these events being portrayed through second-hand reports to other characters who receive more screen-time this season (particularly Cersei Lannister and Maergery Tyrell). Doing this would allow the show to wait until Season 6 to cast Euron Greyjoy if they decide to keep him in the story. Unfortunately, there are no indications that this is going to happen and this is all speculation on my part.
ARIANNE MARTELL / QUENTYN MARTELL
I'll address the missing Martells in my post regarding Dorne.
M.I.A. CHARACTERS:
BRANDON STARK
It has been confirmed that Bran Stark will not appear in S5. This is unfortunate, but not surprising, giving that the vast majority of storyline in ADWD has already appeared in Season 4. I had hoped for a series of scenes showing how the Three-Eyed Raven (aka the Three-Eyed Crow, aka Brynden Rivers, aka Bloodraven) trained Bran in the use of his powers, reminiscent of Luke Skywalker's Degobah scenes with Yoda. I think it would have made for a nice parallel to Arya's training in the House of Black And White, but oh well. I have no doubt in my mind that Bran will make at least one meaningful impact on S5, speaking to Theon through the Heart Tree in Winterfell and "restoring" his identity.
RICKON STARK / OSHA
Rickon Stark and Osha have been absent from the show since Season 3. In the books, they travel to Skagos, where they become a part of Davos' ADWD storyline (though they won't appear until TWOW at the earliest). In the show, they're instructed to go to Last Hearth, the seat of House Umber, last seen in Season 1, represented by the Greatjon Umber. It's unknown where they ended up on the show and there are no indications that either of the actors will be returning for S5, but little is known of the storylines they're most likely to be involved in (Jon Snow, Davos, Stannis), so anything is possible. The absence of Wyman Manderly this season indicates that Davos won't go to White Harbor or Skagos. Jon knows that Bran and Rickon are alive and that Rickon didn't join Bran north of the Wall, but he doesn't know where they ended up going because Samwell doesn't know either. That being said, Davos has to do SOMETHING this season and the Umbers are a powerful Northern house that Stannis will seek to ally with this season, so it's entirely possible that he sends Davos there instead of White Harbor. It would be an effective storytelling shortcut to have Davos travel to Last Hearth to treat with the Umbers only to discover that they've been sheltering the heir to Winterfell. Plus, I'd personally love to see the Greatjon again, but again, pure speculation.
ASHA/YARA GREYJOY / BALON GREYJOY
They seem to show up once a season to remind us that they exist and that's probably for a reason. I have no idea what Balon's storyline will involve this season, if he'll appear, but "Yara" has a role to play in Stannis' storyline after he leaves the Wall if they choose to include / show that storyline this season.
GENDRY WATERS
Gendry pops up way too often in A Song Of Ice And Fire (ASOIAF) to not have a significant role in GRRM's end-game. He was last seen rowing away from Dragonstone towards King's Landing at the end of Season 3. If he doesn't show up in S5, there's a chance that he won't be recognized later on, so it's now or never for him to re-join the show. He does appear in Brienne's storyline in AFFC, but that assumes that he never leaves the Brotherhood and never assumes the role of Edric Storm with Melisandre, Stannis and Davos. Also, Brienne's storyline doesn't seem to be taking her in that direction this season and Lady Stoneheart is unlikely to be in the series.
LADY STONEHEART
There's no indication that she'll be included in this series. This season, Jaime is going to Dorne and it looks like Brienne is going to the Vale. Michelle Fairley, the actress who would play Lady Stoneheart (LS) has repeatedly said that she won't be returning to the show and she is currently a cast member on "Resurrection", where my understanding is that she plays (I sh*t you not) a woman who returns from the dead with a secret revenge-based agenda. That doesn't mean that LS has been written out of the show for certain, but it looks that way.
EDMURE TULLY / BRYNDEN "BLACKFISH" TULLY
The Riverlands was almost completely ignored in Season 4 and I don't see any reason why it won't be almost completely ignored in S5. I haven't heard any news of the actors who play Edmure (a regular on Outlander) or the Blackfish appearing this season and it doesn't appear that Jaime will be interacting with either character as he does in AFFC, so I don't think they'll have any on-screen time in S5, though I imagine Cersei will receive reports of Riverrun returning to the King's peace or the Blackfish escaping or Edmure being taken to Casterly Rock if these storylines prove to be important to future seasons of the show. I don't think we've seen the last of either character, but it's entirely possible that they (and the Freys) will mostly be Season 3 "exclusives" for the show.
Next Post: Tyrion Lannister
Season Five (S5) promises to be the most interesting season of Game Of Thrones (GoT) yet. While previous seasons have covered approx. 700 pages of A Song of Ice and Fire each, S5 looks to cover a large portion of A Feast For Crows (AFFC) and A Dance With Dragons (ADWD), books that combine for over 2000 pages of content (in paperback). To say the least, cuts will need to be made, shortcuts will need to be taken and adapatation decisions by D&D and their writers will be fascinating.
If you're an Unsullied viewer, leave now. I intend to write about all of the major storylines of the last two books and some content from The Winds Of Winter (TWOW) that I think will be featured in S5. If you don't want to have a general (and sometimes very specific) idea of what's going to happen next season, stop reading now, because the spoilers will start in the next paragraph. Seriously. Put it this way, if you had heard the words "Red Wedding" before Season Three, you would have known too much.
AFFC and ADWD contain, at minimum, 15 major storylines. Evidence uncovered by various Game Of Thrones fan-sites (http://watchersonthewall.com/ and http://winteriscoming.net/ are my preferred sites for GoT information), indicates that some of these storylines have either been dropped (Aegon), postponed (Kingsmoot?) or significantly altered (Queenmaker). I intend to analyze and make predictions about what I think is going to happen in each of these storylines that I think will be included in Season Five. I plan to break these storylines down as follows (each with their own post):
1. Dropped / postponed storylines, M.I.A. characters and potential surprise appearances
2. Tyrion Lannister
3. Jon Snow / Samwell Tarly
4. Daenerys Targaryen
5. Arya Stark
6. Cersei Lannister
7. Theon Greyjoy / House Greyjoy
8. Dorne / Jaime Lannister
9. Sansa Stark / Brienne Of Tarth
10. Stannis Baratheon / Davos Seaworth
Please keep in mind that most of the advance information for S5 has yet to be revealed (the first trailer will be released later this week) and each piece of information will alter my predictions. My predictions (some of which are complete wild guesses) will be revised frequently and due to the cascading aspect of the storytelling on GoT, most of my predictions will be completely wrong. I will probably get a lot of small details and names wrong, so if you see something, please point it out and I'll do my best to fix them. Also, once the episodes start airing, my guesses will change significantly when actual details are revealed. I can't accurately predict anything that the show-runners make up for the show or anything that isn't hinted at in trailers and leaked information.
Part 1 - Dropped / postponed storylines, M.I.A. characters and potential surprise appearances
Based on casting information and leaks revealed during the filming of S5, several large storylines from AFFC and ADWD will be omitted or delayed until future seasons.
DROPPED / POSTPONED STORYLINES:
AEGON TARGARYEN
The most significant storyline that appears to have been cut completely out of the series is the storyline involving Aegon Targaryen, the son of Rhaegar Targaryen who was believed to have been killed by The Mountain during the sack of King's Landing at the end of Robert's Rebellion.
ADWD introduces the idea that baby Aegon was switched with another baby and then spirited to Essos to be raised by the disgraced Lord Jon Connington and groomed to become the great, benevolent king that lead conspirators Varys and Magister Illyrio Mopatis intended to one-day rule all of Westeros.
This idea is almost certainly complete bullsh*t. In ADWD there are numerous hints that Aegon (dubbed FAegon by many fans) is an imposter posing (probably unwittingly) as a Targaryen. The biggest hint that Aegon isn't who he appears to be (other than his far-fetched origin story) is the vision of a Mummer's Dragon (sort of like a dragon on sticks in a Chinese New Year parade) that Daenerys sees in the House of the Undying.
Aegon is introduced in Tyrion's ADWD storyline. They later part company (more on that in my post on Tyrion), with Aegon taking his traveling companions and the sell-sword army called the Golden Company (GC) to Westeros to lay siege to and capture Storm's End. In a preview chapter to The Winds Of Winter (TWOW), it is revealed that Arianne Martell (the Princess of and heiress of Dorne) is on her way to meet with Aegon. Speculation regarding this encounter lead some (including myself) to believe that Arianne Martell (who also does not appear to be included in GoT) will marry Aegon, in the hopes of becoming the Queen of Westeros (I also think she will succeed).
Even if this speculation proves false, the Aegon Targaryen storyline is a significant part of ADWD and George R.R. Martin's (GRRM) plans for the rest of the series. It's omission from S5 is a huge alteration, which will be felt in several of the existing S5 storylines.
So how do we know that it will be excluded (or at least postponed)? There have been no actors cast as Aegon, Jon Connington or any of the other characters involved in this storyline and there haven't been a great deal of actors cast in unknown roles that interact primarily with Tyrion this season. It's not impossible that the characters could have been secretly cast and involved with filming, but it's extremely unlikely. It's also not impossible that the characters could be introduced in future seasons, but that seems unlikely due to the new cast-member press release that indicates that Trystane Martell is Doran Martell's heir and the Prince of Dorne, indicating that Arianne has been written out of the series. In my estimation, no Arianne means no Aegon, as I think that their futures in the series are tied directly to one another. I'll address my predicted work-around in my post regarding the Dornish storyline.
EURON GREYJOY / VICTARION GREYJOY
Unlike Aegon, the Greyjoys do exist in Game of Thrones, or at the very least Theon Greyjoy has multiple uncles still living during Season 1 (Tyrion mentions them while talking to Theon in Winterfell). Also unlike Aegon, it's entirely possible that their storyline will exist in some context during Season 5 or in future seasons (Tywin's lesson to Tommen in Season 4 sounds like foreshadowing if AFFC's war between the Iron Islands and Highgarden, though that may simply have been a nod to book readers).
At some point before the Red Wedding in A Storm of Swords (ASOS), Balon Greyjoy "falls" (prophecy and speculation indicate that Euron hired a Faceless Man to murder Balon) off of a bridge at Pyke and dies. The very next day, Euron Greyjoy, long exiled by Balon, returns and proclaims himself the new king. His brother, Aeron Damphair (who arguably was featured in Season 2, blessing Theon), a priest of the Drowned God calls a Kingsmoot to determine who the new king will be. Asha Greyjoy (Yara Greyjoy on Game Of Thrones) and Victarion Greyjoy (and other Iron Islands lords) each make unsuccessful claims to the throne before Euron Greyjoy is crowned as king after promising the Ironmen that he possessed a horn that would allow him to take control of Dany's dragons with the intention of using them to conquer Westeros. After successfully invading the Shield Islands that protect the Reach, Euron determines that he can't conquer the Reach and lead the Iron Fleet to Meereen, so he sends Victarion in his stead to take the Iron Fleet to Meereen and bring back Dany and her dragons, though Victarion plots to take the dragons and Dany for himself. A preview chapter from TWOW shows Victarion and the Iron Fleet arriving in Meereen to assist Dany's force in the fight against the armies of Slaver's Bay.
Why do I think that this storyline will be significantly altered, excluded or postponed until a later season? Again, casting is the biggest clue. No actor has been cast as Euron Greyjoy or Victarion Greyjoy as of yet. Also, there's been no indication of any filming involving any of the Iron Islands storylines, though there also hasn't been much in the way of filming information involving Theon Greyjoy's Winterfell storyline and that will certainly be included in S5. Also, one of the main purposes of Victarion's journey to Meereen seems to be to provide Dany with the means of reaching Westeros. In the books, Victarion delivers 93 ships to Meereen. In the show, Daario Naharis and the Second Sons have already seized the Meereenese Navy, which has... 93 ships. Dany doesn't need Victarion to bring the Iron Fleet to Meereen.
That doesn't mean that some aspects of this storyline won't take place in Game Of Thrones. There are two indicators that I think point to the fact that Balon Greyjoy isn't going to survive this season. The first indicator is Melisandre's leech "spell". I put the "spell" in quotation marks because I think that the spell itself is a long con on Melisandre's part, in that I think she saw that Robb Stark, King Joffrey and Balon Greyjoy were going to die and engineered the "spell" to make it look like she was responsible for their deaths, which would happen with no intervention on her part. In the books, all three kings named in the spell die. In the show, two of them have died so far, indicating that Balon Greyjoy will not survive long. The other indicator is that the actor who played Jaqen H'ghar will be returning in Season 5. In the books, a prophecy indicates that Balon is killed by a Faceless Man. Many readers speculate that Jaqen is that Faceless Man (it would certainly be a shortcut that would work for the show) and Jaqen is later seen in Oldtown, appearing in Samwell Tarly's storyline. It's possible that his storyline in S5 could include killing Balon Greyjoy, though many (including myself) speculate that he'll take up the role of the Kindly Man (who has not been cast yet) in Arya's storyline, an equally likely possibility.
If Balon Greyjoy dies during S5 (on-screen, I hope), it's possible that Euron Greyjoy could ascend to the throne and invade the Reach (no Kingsmoot in this scenario, sorry) off-screen with the impact of these events being portrayed through second-hand reports to other characters who receive more screen-time this season (particularly Cersei Lannister and Maergery Tyrell). Doing this would allow the show to wait until Season 6 to cast Euron Greyjoy if they decide to keep him in the story. Unfortunately, there are no indications that this is going to happen and this is all speculation on my part.
ARIANNE MARTELL / QUENTYN MARTELL
I'll address the missing Martells in my post regarding Dorne.
M.I.A. CHARACTERS:
BRANDON STARK
It has been confirmed that Bran Stark will not appear in S5. This is unfortunate, but not surprising, giving that the vast majority of storyline in ADWD has already appeared in Season 4. I had hoped for a series of scenes showing how the Three-Eyed Raven (aka the Three-Eyed Crow, aka Brynden Rivers, aka Bloodraven) trained Bran in the use of his powers, reminiscent of Luke Skywalker's Degobah scenes with Yoda. I think it would have made for a nice parallel to Arya's training in the House of Black And White, but oh well. I have no doubt in my mind that Bran will make at least one meaningful impact on S5, speaking to Theon through the Heart Tree in Winterfell and "restoring" his identity.
RICKON STARK / OSHA
Rickon Stark and Osha have been absent from the show since Season 3. In the books, they travel to Skagos, where they become a part of Davos' ADWD storyline (though they won't appear until TWOW at the earliest). In the show, they're instructed to go to Last Hearth, the seat of House Umber, last seen in Season 1, represented by the Greatjon Umber. It's unknown where they ended up on the show and there are no indications that either of the actors will be returning for S5, but little is known of the storylines they're most likely to be involved in (Jon Snow, Davos, Stannis), so anything is possible. The absence of Wyman Manderly this season indicates that Davos won't go to White Harbor or Skagos. Jon knows that Bran and Rickon are alive and that Rickon didn't join Bran north of the Wall, but he doesn't know where they ended up going because Samwell doesn't know either. That being said, Davos has to do SOMETHING this season and the Umbers are a powerful Northern house that Stannis will seek to ally with this season, so it's entirely possible that he sends Davos there instead of White Harbor. It would be an effective storytelling shortcut to have Davos travel to Last Hearth to treat with the Umbers only to discover that they've been sheltering the heir to Winterfell. Plus, I'd personally love to see the Greatjon again, but again, pure speculation.
ASHA/YARA GREYJOY / BALON GREYJOY
They seem to show up once a season to remind us that they exist and that's probably for a reason. I have no idea what Balon's storyline will involve this season, if he'll appear, but "Yara" has a role to play in Stannis' storyline after he leaves the Wall if they choose to include / show that storyline this season.
GENDRY WATERS
Gendry pops up way too often in A Song Of Ice And Fire (ASOIAF) to not have a significant role in GRRM's end-game. He was last seen rowing away from Dragonstone towards King's Landing at the end of Season 3. If he doesn't show up in S5, there's a chance that he won't be recognized later on, so it's now or never for him to re-join the show. He does appear in Brienne's storyline in AFFC, but that assumes that he never leaves the Brotherhood and never assumes the role of Edric Storm with Melisandre, Stannis and Davos. Also, Brienne's storyline doesn't seem to be taking her in that direction this season and Lady Stoneheart is unlikely to be in the series.
LADY STONEHEART
There's no indication that she'll be included in this series. This season, Jaime is going to Dorne and it looks like Brienne is going to the Vale. Michelle Fairley, the actress who would play Lady Stoneheart (LS) has repeatedly said that she won't be returning to the show and she is currently a cast member on "Resurrection", where my understanding is that she plays (I sh*t you not) a woman who returns from the dead with a secret revenge-based agenda. That doesn't mean that LS has been written out of the show for certain, but it looks that way.
EDMURE TULLY / BRYNDEN "BLACKFISH" TULLY
The Riverlands was almost completely ignored in Season 4 and I don't see any reason why it won't be almost completely ignored in S5. I haven't heard any news of the actors who play Edmure (a regular on Outlander) or the Blackfish appearing this season and it doesn't appear that Jaime will be interacting with either character as he does in AFFC, so I don't think they'll have any on-screen time in S5, though I imagine Cersei will receive reports of Riverrun returning to the King's peace or the Blackfish escaping or Edmure being taken to Casterly Rock if these storylines prove to be important to future seasons of the show. I don't think we've seen the last of either character, but it's entirely possible that they (and the Freys) will mostly be Season 3 "exclusives" for the show.
Next Post: Tyrion Lannister
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