Why Jon Snow Isn't Dead on Game of Thrones

1 The Writers Focused Too Much on This Theory to Leave Us Hanging

Image Source: HBO

Game of Thrones's writers foreshadow the hell out of a story when they want to, and in season five, they laid hints everywhere about this theory of who his parents are. The writers didn't reveal his true parentage by the end of the season, but they are also in the habit of thinking about the bigger picture. I still think the long game is to reveal Jon as being of royal blood, because they alluded to it so heavily. The writers regularly leave out subplots and details from the book for time and story constraints, so there would have been no need to drop those hints if they weren't going to point to something in the future.

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2 This Glimmer of Hope From George R. R. Martin

Image Source: Getty / Steve Jennings

George R. R. Martin giveth, and George R. R. Martin taketh away. We are very accustomed to the author being the bearer of very bad news for our favorite characters, but in this case, he may not be the angel of premature death. When Martin weighed in about Jon's death, he said, "Oh, you think he's dead, do you? . . . My readers should know better than to take anything as gospel." Good enough for us.

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3 This Lie

Image Source: HBO

Hey, remember back in June 2015, right after the finale, Kit Harington gave an interview and said, "I'm not coming back next season."? Then we saw him in Belfast, where the show was shooting, when the show was shooting? Oh, and then we saw that clip on Conan with Harington's body literally in the frame?!

Why you always lyin', Kit Harington? I mean, yeah, that scene shows him dead, but the fact is, he totally lied. What else is he — and the rest of the cast — lying about?

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4 This Conversation Between Jon and Maester Aemon

The name of the fifth episode of season five might be a big clue. It's called "Kill the Boy," and it refers to this advice that Maester Aemon gives to Jon when he's asking what he should do about inviting the wildlings to the Wall. Imploring him to be strong, Aemon says, "Kill the boy, Jon Snow. Winter is almost upon us. Kill the boy and let the man be born." In context, Aemon means it figuratively, but given what we know — that Jon dies as a result of the very decision he's asking about — could it be that it's actually literal, especially if you buy one of these theories about how he could return? It would be so fitting to have Maester Aemon get to deliver such a profound clue.

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