Potential spoilers ahead, continue reading at your own risk!
Game of Thrones left off on one heckuva cliffhanger with “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” with basically everyone at Winterfell preparing for imminent death at the hands of the Night King’s army — with the exception of those hiding out in the crypts of course, which, we are assured, are the super safest place to be! Emphasis on Night King’s army, however, because as we saw the White Walkers about to bear down on Winterfell, he of the glowing blue eyes and spiky head was nowhere in sight, and neither was the zombified Viserion.
So where is the Night King, anyway? Well, a popular theory making the rounds makes Winterfell’s crypt problem seem like the least of anyone’s worries. Last week Redditor u/qp0n predicted that we wouldn’t see the Night King ahead of the battle of Winterfell … as he’s actually on his way to King’s Landing with Viserion. Because why would old pointy head waste his biggest weapon fighting at Winterfell, where it could easily be toasted by Daenerys’ two remaining dragons, as wights are not immune to fire — not even dragon wights, evidently.
We know that Cersei is chilling out in King’s Landing expecting that the White Walkers and the human army at Winterfell will essentially cancel each other out, taking care of both problems for her. And the Night King probably knows this, too. So what would be stopping him from heading straight to King’s Landing with Viserion to take out the entire population to recruit into his army of the undead? Nothing, that’s what.
We’ve been reminded plenty of times that one million people live in King’s Landing, and what’s more, now Cersei has an extra 20,000 men and 2,000 horses from Euron Greyjoy.
It would be perfectly ironic for Winterfell to defeat the Night King’s 100,000 White Walkers only to turn around and realize that’s he’s got literally one million newly minted ones, which would significantly up the stakes, to say the least. The author of the theory also points out that this may be the entire reason Bronn was sent north — to pass the Night King and Viserion and deliver the bad news to the survivors at Winterfell.
What’s more, this theory is supported by a vision Daenerys had in the season two episode “Valar Morghulis,” in which she arrives at King’s Landing only to find the throne room destroyed, deserted, and covered in snow.
Another clue supporting this theory can apparently be found hidden in the season eight opening credits. Redditor u/jeetermeat points out that as the camera pans over the Last Hearth (which was decimated in horrific fashion by the Night King in the season eight premiere, R.I.P. Ned Umber) it makes a spiraling motion, which occurs at 0:16 into the clip.
As the camera moves over the map, it makes a similar spiraling motion at the tower at King’s Landing, as it moves down the stairs at 1:13.
A bit of a stretch? Maybe. But we wouldn’t put it past Benioff and Weiss, especially given all of the other evidence that supports the theory.
This is not to say that everyone you love still may or may not die in next week’s episode, but viewers had better be prepared for an even bigger gut punch if this theory comes to fruition. Oh well, at least it will wipe that smug smile off of Cersei’s face, anyway. Imagine Euron Greyjoy being your last sex!
(Via Reddit)
