Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season six, including speculation of future events.
"Game of Thrones" has been killing off characters left and right in season six so far, but one man could help balance out the bloodshed. We're talking about Benjen Stark.
That's right — Jon Snow's lost uncle and former First Ranger of the Night's Watch might be returning to the series in this coming Sunday's episode, "Blood of My Blood."
Before we get into the how and why, let's back up and recap what we know about Benjen from the show. He appeared in season one episodes one and two, where we learned he was a leader in the Night's Watch. Shortly after Jon arrived at Castle Black, Benjen left to go on a ranging mission. He had been hearing rumors of White Walkers and other threats beyond the Wall, and decided to go see if he could root out the truth.
HBO
Several episodes later Benjen's horse returned to the Wall ... without Benjen. He's been considered missing (and likely dead) ever since. Benjen's story played out more or less exactly like this in the books, and left fans wondering the point of his character.
With George R.R. Martin's heavy use of foreshadowing, symbolism, and purpose behind nearly every character and plot, readers knew Benjen had to come into play again some time. With the show now advancing beyond the published books, there's now more hope than ever that we learn news of Benjen's fate.
We think Sunday's "Blood of My Blood" will be the day, mostly due to a few hints from trailers and behind-the-scenes photos, plus one longtime fan theory.
Benjen returns?
At the end of the last episode, "The Door," we watched as Meera and Bran escaped an attack from White Walkers and wights. Meera was dragging Bran on a sledge out into the snowy night, while Hodor held off the wights by sacrificing himself. (
Saddest. Death. Ever.)
There's almost no way Meera and Bran are making it far without more help. Meera can barely drag Bran's pseudo-wheelchair contraption herself, and the wights are right on their tail. The
upcoming episode trailer gave us this look at Meera and Bran in next week's episode:
HBO
They're clearly filming the scene shown in
the "Blood of My Blood" preview. Meera is hunched over the same sledge with Bran on it, looking around as her attackers draw closer.
Then, take a look at the
first full-length season six trailer released by HBO, also from March of this year. Watch this slowed down clip from the trailer, and see if you can guess where we're going with this:
We think this could be Benjen, swooping in to save the day by killing wights with a crazy fireball weapon while Meera cowers on the ground. Benjen — if he's not dead — has been beyond the Wall for a few years now. Odds are he's figured out a way to survive and fight back the White Walkers and wights. With Hodor, Bloodraven, and the Children of the Forest dead, Meera and Bran are going to need a new protector.
Coldhands returns?
The key reason we think this mystery savior might be Benjen lies with a book-only character. His name is
Coldhands, and in the books he is the one who helps guide Meera, Bran, and company to Bloodraven's cave. Coldhands also meets and helps Gilly and Sam Tarly when they are trying to return to Castle Black.
Coldhands is described as a sort of hybrid human/wight — both dead and undead at the same time. He wears all black (just like the men of the Night's Watch), and his hands are blackened as if the blood in his hands has congealed. Coldhands doesn't appear to eat or breathe, and we never see his face. He shows humanity, though, differing him from the usual zombie-wights. He also rides a huge elk until it dies. Then he eats it.
Many book readers believed Coldhands was Benjen. His similarity to a ranger of the Night's Watch made sense, as did his desire to help Bran. If Coldhands was an undead Benjen, it would add up that he might help his young nephew and a fellow Night's Watch man like Sam.
The editor specifically asked if Coldhands was Benjen, and Martin simply wrote back: "No."
When the show didn't include Coldhands as a character for both Sam and Bran's journeys, book readers assumed that was the end of things.
But now, season six hype has begun. A mysterious black-cloaked figure is probably about to rescue Bran and Meera. We believe it's very possible the showrunners have decided to merge the characters of Coldhands and Benjen, despite Martin's denial they are the same person.
Benhands returns?
Yes, combining Benjen with Coldhands and introducing them both in season six would be total fan-service. But that's not really a problem. The books and show are two different story canons at this point. Showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss do consult Martin for some of the major plotlines, but we believe they are on their own for a large chunk of the storytelling.
Benioff and Weiss have toyed with book readers about Benjen before, so we know this is something on their radar. Back in the season five finale, the "previously on" segment before the episode featured Benjen telling Jon he was going ranging, and then Jon finding his riderless horse. People
went berserk online, believing the show was about to reveal Benjen's fate.
HBO
But Benioff and Weiss were just playing off curiosity. They used Benjen's potential return as the bait for Jon Snow to walk into a trap. Olly told Jon there was news of Benjen, and Jon came running to see — then Alliser and other mutineers stabbed Jon and killed him. This wasn't how the scene exactly played out in the books, and Benioff and Weiss must have known the reaction they'd get from Benjen-hype.
After such a big tease, it would only be fair for Benioff and Weiss to give us Benjen. We deserve it, truly. Plus it would be a little strange to introduce a totally new character (Coldhands) this late in the series. If they were going to include Coldhands as just Coldhands, why not do it back in season three or four when his book-storyline was happening?
HBO
Our last clue comes from the episode title itself: "Blood of My Blood." Though this is a term given to Dothraki bloodriders, and will tie into Daenerys activities, Benioff and Weiss almost never have an episode title that doesn't contain multiple meanings.
Bran and Benjen share the same family blood, and Benjen coming in to save his nephew wouldn't be unlike the way Dothraki riders fight on behalf of each other. Bran has the blood of Benjen. Benjen/Coldhands (Benhands?) could be returning.
Of course, maybe we're horribly wrong about all of this and the mysterious Meera/Bran savior IS a new character. Either way, we're hyped for Sunday's episode.
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