Jon was still a loyal man of the Night’s Watch. Let’s stay here awhile longer,” she told him, “I never want to leave this cave, Jon Snow, not ever.”īut they didn’t stay, because responsibility called him away. Jon experienced true happiness for a brief moment in those untamed lands, with Ygritte in that cave. They are the Freefolk, and they don’t play the game of thrones. The wildlings admire and respect Jon, and they would welcome him beyond the Wall. There’s a place he could go, one far away from King’s Landing and the Realm’s problem, to find peace. Jon doesn’t have to die to rest though, or fight everyone’s battles forever. But not you, Lord Snow, you’ll be fighting their battles forever.” Power has certainly never brought him peace or happiness, just more wars to fight like Alliser Thorne predicted before Jon executed him. That’s why Jon would make the perfect leader, and yet it’s brought him nothing but pain. Jon always does what he thinks is right and best for others, no matter the personal cost. Though he brought them the allies (and dragons) they needed to fight the White Walkers, they didn’t trust him. Jon’s brothers in black killed him for saving the wildlings, and his own people hated him in the North for bending the knee to Daenerys. But his entire journey leads him to walking away entirely now. He immediately followed that by leading the fight against Ramsay. It took losing his life and rising from the dead to make him abandon the Night’s Watch. But he’s also not the type to walk away from responsibility. Especially if it will come at the expense of the woman he loves and swore an oath to. There’s nothing Jon wants less than to be named King of the entire Seven Kingdoms. Daenerys said to him everyone enjoys what they’re good at, and he answered, “I don’t.” He’s never relished that though he certainly doesn’t want responsibility, even if he’s good at. He didn’t ask for the role of Lord Commander or King in the North, but he’s a natural leader people believe in and want to follow. The only “good” outcomes for Jon are terrible, unless he leaves it all behind. Neither will ever be truly safe so long as the other lives. The world will learn his secret, and his mere existence will always be a threat to her, whether they want to be together or not. Even if everyone agrees Daenerys should be queen, their relationship is likely ruined forever. If Daenerys dies, either in battle or because someone betrays her, Tyrion and Varys will try to place him on the Iron Throne, which he doesn’t want. If Cersei loses, though, and he survives, Jon will still find himself in a difficult position no matter what.
Sansa and Cersei cannot co-exist in Westeros, and he’ll always protect his family. It’s a bittersweet possibility Game of Thrones could set up for Jon Snow.Īs long as Cersei lives and rules, Jon will be there to fight her. “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die.” What if you refuse to keep playing though? What happens if you choose to walk away from power and responsibility? You’ll live, and you might find happiness.
Jon might still seek out a life of peace beyond the Wall, but he might also view it as the safest place he can go to keep the Realm safe. If it could corrupt someone like Daenerys it could corrupt anyone, and since he’s a Targaryen himself he might not even trust himself to avoid a similar fate. Could Jon walk away from the Seven Kingdoms after watching that destruction and leave Westeros in the hands of a monster? It seems almost impossible he would, but that doesn’t mean he won’t still leave if someone – himself included – kills her first.ĭaenerys cannot rule, that much is clear, but her descent into madness should also show Jon the perils of power. Just as Varys worried, her “coin” landed the wrong way, and hundreds of thousands died needlessly as a result. But we didn’t think he would be dealing with the fallout of Mad Queen Daenerys burning King’s Landing to the ground.
UPDATE: Before “The Bells” we thought Jon Snow might walk away from the Realm at show’s end to find happiness beyond the Wall, rather than accept an Iron Throne he didn’t want.