He is asked some very pointed questions about specific events in ADwD. Very spoiler heavy. You have been warned...
agreed. too many POV's in stannis's camp for them to just lose and nothing be in the book. he probably tortured one of the spear wives and mance got out. whats up with arnolf karstark though?
That is a big question mark. The strange thing is that when the books started we were talking in increments of 10's of thousands when it came to armies. Now we are talking about 100's in an Army, and for some reason that frustrates me, because it almost feels like...so what.
Just speculating - and this is a super-spoiler, so DO NOT CLICK IF YOU DO NOT LIKE BIG SPOILERS - but I think I figured out what happened to Jon Snow...and his uncle Benjen. Here goes - again, you've been warned: Spoiler The Starks are skinchangers. Bodychangers. The initial chapter of Dance with Dragons goes into the life cycle of a skinchangers. This is not incidental, especially where George RR drops the rather large cookie that Snow is one as well. The Targareans, by the way, would seem to fit this definition as well, though their talent seems specific towards dragons. I'd also be very curious to see if the Starks can control a dragon...and even if most of the Starks can't, I wonder if Jon Snow can. There's still that mystery about where exactly Jon Snow came from, and I am very struck by continued mentions of the relationship between Rhaegar Targaryean and Lyanna Stark. It was originally presented as a snatch-and-rape, to hear Robert Baratheon tell it...I'm having my doubts. The Mad King Aerys was mad as a hatter, but Rhaegar was described as "solemn, serious, dutifiul, intellectual, good at everything"...not the description of a random madman or rapist. Increasingly it appears Rhaegar was an honorable man, saddened by his father's state but confined by duty and honor, and that he was very taken by the generous, kindhearted Lyanna. And Lyanna made Ned Stark promise her something. Could that promise be to take a bastard son of Rhaegar - who she knew the realm would be hunting - and hide him in plain sight, presented as Ned's own bastard? I think it was, and Jon Snow got both barrels, the Stark gift and the Targaryean gift. I also think he's the "reborn Lord of Light" Azor Ahai that the shadowbinder Melisandre has confused with Stannis Baratheon. Keep in mind Melisandre's visions are open to a lot of interpretation, and she sees images of the future but not always the context, witness the way she confused a minor lord's girl on the run for Arya Stark. But back to the skinchangers. Keep in mind they jump bodies, can control the bodies of others. And there's a wight called "Coldhands", who is clearly dead...and yet this re-animated wight is working against the Others. Coldhands is the one who got Bran Stark to the Children of the Forest, and plugged into the greenseer network. How is this possible? Simple. Because Benjen - a Stark, and therefore a skinchanger as well - was apparently killed by an ambush by the Others (certainly Benjen's men were killed, and later tried to kill the Old Bear, Lord Commander Mormont, which strongly suggests that whatever befell those rangers befell Benjen as well)...but being a skinchanger, might Benjen have been able to escape death by seizing another body? Specifically, the slain body of a re-animated wight? Why not? Bran was able to grab Hodor. If the wight body was there, why couldn't a skinchanger reach out in a time of need...and just take it? I think Coldhands is Benjen, helping where he can. He knows he can't return to the wall - the Night's Watch would kill him as a wight. But he's still a Stark, too. Back to Jon Snow. The Night's Watch traitors have just offed him. Or at least his body. But Jon Snow is a skinchanger, and can jump bodies. And there's a motherhuge, dim-witted giant right there for the taking. Also there's those two bodies he's got in cold storage, so it might be he does what Benjen did and becomes another Coldhands. Whatever, there are other bodies available for taking. But I think it'll be the giant's body he'll take. The bodies he's got in the freezer haven't stood up and started walking again on their own yet. It fits. It also neatly gets Jon Snow out of the burden of his commitment to the Night's Watch (since they turned on him and in another body he's going to have to do some serious running if he wants to NOT get dead), which also incidentally frees him up...to win the game of thrones. Sorry if this is too spoiling, but well, you were warned.
Spoiler Speculation. But it fits. Coldhands is clearly a skinchanger...and a former Brother of the Night's Watch. He rides an elk, and commands a flock of ravens...and he leads Sam and Gilly to the secret passage on the Wall that is known only to high-ranking Brothers...though he cannot pass through himself. The wards that keep the Others out are also working on him. Those three facts taken together - skinchanger, former Night's Watchman, dead-but-still-walking - make it almost impossible for Coldhands to be anyone BUT Benjen in a re-animated wight's body. There were a few wild skinchangers among the wildlings, sure, but they certainly weren't in the Night's Watch. And if Coldhands was a former Brother (and he obviously was), then he's from South of the Wall...and the Starks and Targaryeans are the only skinchangers we know of South of the Wall, and the Targaryeans seem to be connected specifically to dragons...there is no sign they have power over other animals. This means Coldhands is a Stark. I suppose it could be some other Stark, but it seems far more likely to be Benjen. The obvious insinuation, almost plainly spelled out, is that the greenseers and the Children of the Forest picked him up after he was ambushed and killed by the Others...but since he was still walking around in a re-animated wight body, hey, why not use him as an agent against the Others? Or maybe the Children of the Forest simply have the same powers to re-animate the dead that the Others do, which might even indicate a once-common origin between the Children and the Others...but at that point we're into the realm of MAJOR speculation. Whatever, Coldhands is Benjen Stark. 99.99% certain of that. Which tells you exactly how Jon Snow is going to survive - the same way Benjen did, in another body.
I didn't read what you posted before I asked if it was speculation or spoiler, it is a spoiler, but only if you haven't read all 5 books. And yea it makes a fucking ton of sense, can't believe this is the first time that I've heard that speculated. You should post that in the book 5 thread. I'm now completely on board with the Spoiler Benjen = Coldhands but only because when he was dying he took over a wight's body God Damn GRRM is a faggot but a genius
makes a lot of sense. think jon gets raised by melisandre thoros style and he's still himself. or at least thats what i hope
I honestly hadn't thought of that. It could go that way, certainly. Except, how is Jon Snow going to win the Game of Thrones if he stays in the Night's Watch? Because he's the one who's ultimately going to win, again...99.99% sure of that.
People have speculated that if he actually dies and is brought back by Melisandre then that techinically gets him out of his oath. It doesn't say anything about serving the Night's Watch through multiple deaths, just one.
I am not convinced he will get out of the Nights Watch simply because of an oath. Jon is a creature of duty. That said, I think if he does somehow bow out, than Mance is really the only man for the job.
He is a creature of duty only to a certain extent, helping Stannis and leading wildlings into Winterfell was definitely not part of his duty as Lord Commander of the Nights watch.
BTW, not picking, because I was confused too, but it is the Night's Watch, which is interesting to note, since it's who they are and what they do.
hahaha I read your post 3 times having no idea what you were talking about, then looked at my own post and was like
I don't necessarily think Jon is the one who will win the GoT, but he will be the one who pushes back the darkness.
i think jon ends up seeing the bigger picture, that to defend the realm he might have to step his game up and lead the entirety of westeros against the others instead of doing it just from the wall.
I think millisadre(sp) raises him from the grave...I don't think he will be crazy simply because he is a warg and is able to inhabit another persons body while his other body is waiting to be revived. I really believe he is the son of rhaegar and lyanne.
I'm on team, "Jon takes another body." You really can't ignore the prologue of the book, which I was just reflecting on earlier. On top of Melisandre telling Jon he needs to embrace his inner warg and the other instances of Jon living in the wolf (sharing his sense sometimes and what not.) I don't see him taking the giant or one of the dead corpses, but taking Ghost for the time being until something else is figured out. Hadn't put much thought into Coldhands being BS, but I feel like you're right with that one as well.
Yeah, but I would like to see what he has to say. Even asking something along the lines of will he be in the next book would satisfy.
In response to this thread: I don't think it would work as well for Jon to take another body IF the Rhaegar and Lyanna thing is true. A secret child with blood ties to other families won't work as well if the spirit is in another body, imo. In response to the interview, this passage gives me hope he will finish the last 2 books in a much shorter amount of time. "It’s going to be a controversial scene when it comes out" If he's already planning on seeing Cersei's walk on TV, which should be in season 6 or so, he's got to finish the next 2 books in about 4 years so HBO's production can keep on schedule without skipping a year.
I think the first Jon chapter of the next book will be in some kind of dream state where he is talking to Bran and Bloodraven. In this he would get instruction on what he needs to do, similar to the way Quaithe acted for Daenerys. Just a thought.