Full Disclosure: Proceed with caution, for spoilers lie ahead. This article will focus on HBO’s hit television series “Game of Thrones,” but if you wish to discuss the books then seek me out.
Attention! People of the realm, fear not! For the time has come to delve back into Westeros. This Sunday evening at 9 p.m., HBO will premiere season 6 of their hit series “Game of Thrones.” The most anticipated season to date, show runners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss claim it is “the best season yet.”
With promises of war, deception and mysteries yet to be uncovered, this season will separate the knights from the squires. We will finally feel the bite of winter’s chill and witness the horrors of the one true war. Familiar faces will re-appear; new characters will be introduced, and of course, death will be bestowed upon many, altering the ever-changing power struggle for the throne.
Dragons in the east and White Walkers to the north, George R. R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” is truly a tale to be sung for decades to come. The clash between heroes and villains will leave a bloody path across the Seven Kingdoms. Shields will be broken, swords will be shattered, alliances will rise and fall as the gears of war continue to decimate all those involved, until only the true, the strong and the destined are left standing.
With the bloody conclusion of season 5, many beloved characters have been left for dead, but fans have only been obsessing over one casualty –Jon Snow. Winter is coming, and the men of the Night’s Watch are left leaderless as the result of a deceptive mutiny. If Jon Snow is truly dead, will someone rise above the rest to take command and continue Jon’s wish of uniting all men against the ruthless hordes of the dead? Or will our hero, the Bastard of Winterfell, be somehow resurrected?
We head into this season with many unanswered questions. Will Tyrion Lannister, the ‘Imp,’ rise to his full potential as a leader? Will Daenerys Targaryan, the ‘Mother of Dragons,’ ever cross the Narrow Sea? Will a destructive division between loyal Stark supporters and the murderous Boltons doom the North? Will the wildlings beyond the Wall find their place amongst the realm? Will House Lannister continue with their deceptions? What of the younger Stark children? Will Bran, crippled in season 1 after being pushed from a tower by Sir Jamie Lannister, play a pivotal role in the future of Westeros? Is Arya destined to fulfill her assassinations? Is Sansa ever going to find her courage? What of Theon Greyjoy? Is he worthy of redemption? What strings will the new Lord of the Vale, Petyr Baelish, a.k.a. ‘Littlefinger,’ pull this time? For Stark loyalists, will there ever be a taste of vengeance? Not to be forgotten is the underlying threat of the Dornish, lurking in the southern sands waiting to strike; and the ruthless Greyjoys who roam the seas attempting to establish a foothold in the realm through the use of brutality and merciless force.
So gather around, for season 6 is upon us, and our watch has begun, vigilante will be our gaze, like sentinels upon the walls. It shall not end until the finale, once blood has been spilt and heads have rolled.
MUSO will be holding a season premier viewing on Sunday at 9 p.m. in MUB Theatre 2.
