Now that Jon Snow has spent some quality time at Dragonstone with his aunt and three large dragons, we have to wonder: Is Game of Thrones about to give Jon Snow one of those dragons?
When the most popular fan-theory on Game of Thrones was finally confirmed in the season 6 finale, “The Winds of Winter,” the dominoes began to fall toward an outcome that could possibly see Jon Snow-Targaryen-Stark become a dragon rider.
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“R+L=J” has been around since George R.R. Martin began publishing his wildly popular book series on which the HBO show Game of Thrones is based — A Song of Ice and Fire. Spelled out, the theory was the Rhaegar Targaryen (R) ran away with and Lyanna Stark (L) and together they conceived a bouncing baby Jon Snow (J).
And, now that the newly minted King in the North has traveled to Dragonstone in season 7, the show may be setting us up for a massive reveal, using Jon’s parentage as the key.
Jon’s real father was Rhaegar Targaryen, the son of Aerys “The Mad King” Targaryen. Rhaegar was also Daenerys Targaryen’s brother, and when her three dragons hatched in the season 1 finale, she named them for Khal Drogo (Drogon), her cruel brother Viserys (Viserion), and the brother she never knew — Rhaegar (Rhaegal).
When Jon first arrived on Dragonstone, he was met by Tyrion Lannister and brought to see Dany, by way of walking up the sea-wall path and stairs that led to her throne room. On the way there, a dragon buzzed Jon, just as he was reminding Tyrion that he was in fact, no Stark.
You’ll notice the dragon that did the buzzing is a good size smaller than Dany’s biggest child, Drogon. Here’s a comparison from “The Spoils of War.”
If Drogon didn’t do a flyby on Jon, then which dragon is it? Well, we believe that dragon is Rhaegal. And, as we mentioned, he was named after Jon’s father, Rhaegar, which would make sense if Game of Thrones wanted to set up Jon’s potential Targaryen connection to the dragons.
Further proof of this possible major game-changing reveal, is from the preview for this Sunday’s all-new episode, “Eastwatch.” In the preview, Dany rides atop one of her dragons and seems to be attempting to intimidate Jon Snow.
Again, for comparison, here’s Drogon from that climactic battle in “The Spoils of War.”
The size difference is considerable. So, what if Dany is riding Rhaegal in episode 705, “Eastwatch,” because Drogon was obviously injured in 704. “The Spoils of War,” and what if there is some kind of “Targaryen recognition” in both Jon and the dragon?
With only three episodes remaining in the season, if Jon were to learn of his real parentage, it might put him and Daenerys at odds. Being the son of the previous heir to the Iron Throne would make his claim stronger than Dany’s…but would Jon even want it?
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Regardless, we believe the fact that Jon doesn’t even flinch when Rhaegal runs up on him, combined with the fact that he does indeed have Targaryen blood running through his veins, could be the show’s way of setting us up for a Jon gets a dragon type of reveal.
Next: 30 Predictions for Game of Thrones Season 7
What do you think? Will Jon get to ride a dragon before the season’s end? Is that Rhaegal in the preview for “Eastwatch?” Let’s discuss in the comments below.