Every Fan Theory About the ‘Game of Thrones’ Series Finale (and the One We Think Is Probably Right)

"The dragon has three heads" theory has always puzzled us. But the moment when Jon and Dany make out in episode one, season eight, by the waterfall makes so much sense if you believe the prophecy. When Daenerys named all her dragons in season two, she named them after actual people because the dragons are literally reincarnations of these people: Drogon is Khal Drogo (which makes sense given the fact that he's Dany's dragon and the biggest of them all), Rhaegal is Rhaegar Targaryen (Dany's older brother and Jon's true dad, which is why Jon was his rider and why he stared knowingly at Jon as he and Dany made out...R.I.P.). Finally, Viserion is Viserys (Dany's evil brother who was no "true dragon," just as Viserion is no longer a "true dragon" but a now-extinct ice dragon).

Sansa's taking Littlefinger's "chaos is a ladder" advice to heart and is kind of (by a little stretch of the imagination) the reason Dany went full Mad Queen and killed everyone in King's Landing. Think about it: If Sansa hadn't spilled the beans about Jon's true identity to Tyrion, Varys wouldn't have known and would still be alive, Dany wouldn't have known Jon betrayed her trust, and Daenerys may not have felt so isolated... So is this cunning connivery enough to earn her the title of Queen of the Seven Kingdoms? It just might be. 

Oh, and about that Littlefinger bit: Is he still alive? Yep, that slippery son of a gun might’ve fooled us all. The theory, which has gained loads of traction on YouTube and Reddit, posits that Littlefinger (portrayed by Aidan Gillen on the HBO show) faked his own death, and that he’s actually hiding out until it's safe to come back. The evidence: Lord Petyr Baelish says his great-grandfather was originally from Braavos, aka the home of the Faceless Men and where Arya goes to be trained by Jaqen H’ghar to be the assassin she now is, aka “no one.” Perhaps Littlefinger is a descendant of the Faceless Men himself, or perhaps he has enough connections with the Faceless Men to pay one off to take his place and “die” at Winterfell at the hands of the Stark siblings, while the real Littlefinger is off in hiding? In a scene in season seven, he exchanges a coin with a woman at Winterfell before his death...and it's one of the same coins that Arya was given by the Faceless Men. Dun dun dun.

Quick refresher: Azor Ahai is the great warrior who is prophesied to return and save all men from the Others (aka the White Walkers). So it should be Arya then, right? But since we now know Jon Snow is actually Aegon Targaryen, son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark and rightful heir to the Iron Throne, it seems pretty possible that he could unite the Seven Kingdoms (by plunging a Valyrian steel sword through Dany's heart, more on that later). Plus, he’s already died and come back to life…so he’s really got nothing to lose.

Aunt Dany also checks a bunch of the boxes for the Azor Ahai prophecy: She was reborn in fire (during that unforgettable scene in season six), amidst salt and smoke “to rewake dragons out of stone.” The prophecy is also gender-neutral, meaning it could be a woman who comes to save all men, and one witch in the books predicted the parents of the "Prince (or Princess) That Was Promised" were Dany’s parents, Prince Aerys and Princess Rhaella. But since she's gone all Mad Queen on us, it's looking less and less likely the prophecy is referring to her.

In order to understand this theory, we have to rewind to long before our characters were alive. Since the first season of Game of Thrones, the Starks said, “There must always be a Stark in Winterfell.” We never really knew what they meant by this. Was it a metaphorical statement, meaning that a Stark must always be home to rule? Or was the phrase meant literally? “There must always be a Stark in Winterfell, or else we’ll be in violation of a pact we made with the Night King thousands of years ago.” When Theon turned on his former hosts and took the castle away from the Starks in season two, causing Bran and Rickon to flee to the Wall, there wasn't a Stark in Winterfell. Is this what set off the chain of events that led the Army of the Dead to march into battle on the Stark's home turf?

Two-thirds of Melisandre's prophecy to Arya has already come true: “I see a darkness in you. And in that darkness, eyes staring back at me: brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes. Eyes you’ll shut forever.” Brown eyes = Walder Frey, Blue eyes = the Night King, and we all thought green eyes would mean Cersei. But perhaps the prediction was referring to another evil queen with green eyes: Daenerys. Perhaps the tiny assassin will ride her pale white horse to deliver justice and dispense death to the Dragon Queen in the final episode.

Back in season one when Dany’s “sun and stars” is left in a vegetative state by a witch, she tells Daenerys that he will return only when “the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. When the seas go dry, and the mountains blow in the wind like leaves. When your womb quickens again, and you bear a living child. Then he will return, and not before.” And we know back in season seven that Dany absolutely cannot have kids since she makes a point to let Jon and everyone else know her dragons are her only children…but then she and her nephew (it’ll never not be weird) Jon get it on in the boat. And now we’re sorta wondering if this is the sign that Drogo could return (maybe as Azor Ahai?), when Dany bears a living child (with Jon Snow). 

Say it ain't snow! This traumatizing theory predicts the Battle of Winterfell and defeating the Night King are just red herrings for the real conflict: a battle of the heart. George R.R. Martin has given us a major clue, saying, “The only thing worth writing about is the human heart in conflict with itself.” The quote is from William Faulkner, and GRRM has expressed agreement with it in the past, meaning he’s of the mind-set that the great battle of the series isn’t about life and death…it’s about love.

We’ve already seen evidence of discord between Jon and Dany in the first two episodes and the fifth episode of season eight: Arya and Sansa are wary of the dragon queen, and Arya tells Jon never to forget he’s a Stark. Sam Tarly now has reason to be against Dany after she breaks the news about his father and brother to him. And the audience is left with a feeling of dread now that she's gone crazy and burned down all of King's Landing. The fallout will force Jon and Daenerys to pick sides, especially since Jon’s view of power and the just way to wield it is in such opposition to Daenerys.

Just as much is predicted via a prophecy from the books, which means it’s almost guaranteed to come true. The Azor Ahai theory about the Prince That Was Promised spells out doom for the Prince’s lover. In the prophecy, the original Azor Ahai had to stab his wife, Nissa Nissa, through the heart in order to create the sword Lightbringer.

Pass the tissues, please.