With all the Jon Snow speculation and worries about Dany's Dothraki detour, I forgot something important about Game of Thrones Season 6: House Tully is coming back. Last seen in Season 3, Catelyn Stark's family, the Tullys, have been strangely absent from the story. However, now Catelyn's badass uncle Brynden is back, and it appears that Brienne will spend some time at his homestead, Riverrun. This is huge news for Brienne because it could place her (and Podrick) on the battlefield for the first time.
Now, HBO hasn't confirmed Brienne's presence at Riverrun, but they did drop a blink-and-you-miss-it spoiler in the second Game of Thrones Season 6 trailer. Around the 1:30 mark, there is a glimpse of Brienne and Podrick looking grim, and right behind them are House Tully's banner. The fish on the banner means they could only be at Riverrun with Brynden, and possibly Sansa. That's right, if Brienne and Podrick are at Riverrun, then Sansa is most likely there too — and if that isn't the best Game of Thrones news you have heard in a long time, then your priorities are very different from mine.
There has been speculation about a major battle going down in the North, and it now seems likely that the Tullys and Sansa will be at the head of that battle as the North pushes back against Ramsay and the Freys. Remember, the Freys still hold Catelyn's brother Edmure, which means Brynden and Sansa will have every reason to want to wipe out the Boltons and the Freys. Retribution for the Red Wedding could be coming, with Brienne leading the charge.
Brienne insisted a long time ago that she did not serve the Starks, but she is taking her vow to find Lady Catelyn's daughters seriously. While Arya slipped away from Brienne in Season 4, Brienne spent all of Season 5 keeping a watchful eye on Sansa's window waiting for Sansa to call for her help via candle. Of course, the moment Sansa lit the candle was also the moment Brienne left her watch to go kill Stannis, so she is probably feeling a tad bit guilty.
That only means her devotion to Sansa will be stronger than ever when she finds Sansa and Theon and takes them to Riverrun. Sansa is looking properly suited up and sporting the Stark sigil in the trailer and that strongly suggests that Brienne has finally brought Sansa to safety. Now comes the interesting part: war in the Riverlands and the North.
Brienne has always dreamed of being a knight, but so far she has not had to fight in any wars. She's been taken captive, gone on missions, and been forced to kill, but she has not actually fought on a battlefield. Brienne already swore fealty to Sansa so she is in this thing now. She and Podrick are about to become part of actual military maneuvers, and Brienne has chosen a side in this battle. If she lives through the battles, and helps Sansa take back the North, then she might be put in a position where she has to fight against the Lannisters — meaning Jaime — if Sansa decides she wants them to pay for her family's slaughter as well.
This could be a juicy storyline for Brienne who spent way too long on the sidelines in Season 5. Having her throw her lot in with the Tullys and the Starks could pave the way to some emotional choices on her part. Jaime once told her how hard it is to keep vows, especially when they start to contradict each other, and Brienne is about to find out what he meant.
First comes the actual battle though, and while seeing Brienne in the field is going to cause major anxiety, it is also going to be rewarding. Brienne has always been the show's truest knight and now she is going to fight alongside Brynden and the rest of the great warriors of the Riverlands and the North. There is no more noble cause in Westeros at the moment, and while it is going to be a bloody affair, it is going to put Brienne back in the action. There is just no way I can complain about that.
