Game of Thrones is just straight-up teasing fans now. It's almost cruel. Everyone already knows the R + L = J theory, which would make Jon Snow a Targaryen. His parents have to be Rhaeger Targaryen and Lyanna Stark at this point, anything else would be a massive disappointment to the fans. The ultimate Game of Thrones fan theory has been hinted at time and time again over the course of the series, and just when it finally looks like the big secret is going to be revealed — that's exactly when something else happens.
Season 6 of Game of Thrones doesn't feature the buffet of R+L = J hints that Season 5 offered. But that's because the show is having too much fun playing with fan's expectations. Trading back and forth between revealing and withholding information, Season 6 has been an exercise in restraint on the part of the writers. However, at some point, someone has to come out and say that Jon Snow is Rhaegar Targaryen's son, right? But while the show hasn't been hinting at his lineage as much, Season 6 has provided more ways than ever for Jon Snow to possibly discover the truth behind his heritage. And, at the very least, the show has introduced characters that could conceivably reveal the truth to each other if it isn't revealed directly to Jon. Here are all the major signs in Season 6 that hint at Jon's Targaryen blood is running thick.
Tower Of Joy
This is the big one. The Tower of Joy is the Rosetta Stone of the R + L = J theory. It's the place where Lyanna Stark was found in laying in a bed of blood and asked Ned to keep a promise. Sometime after this promise, Ned returned home and revealed that he had a child that was his own bastard, Jon Snow. That's awfully coincidental, no? When would Ned Stark, one of the most honorable fighters in Westeros, even find time to have an affair? Besides, what purpose does the Tower of Joy serve if not to confirm that Jon Snow is of Targaryen blood?
Benjen's Back
Who else would know the truth behind Ned's bastard than his own uncle who has been hanging out with an omnipotent tree-embedded Three-Eyed Raven? Clearly the Three-Eyed Raven had big plans, and there's a good chance it involves Bran hooking up with Jon to fight the White Walkers. There's no one better to break the news to Jon about his true heritage than his long-lost uncle, who has a knack for getting to the point and explaining things that people need to know. Every time Benjen appears onscreen the audience is going to be thinking about one major theme: Truth. Perhaps if the Three-Eyed Raven were as upfront about everything as Benjen is, fans would've learned that R + L = J in Season 4. The final words of the season may have been, "You will never walk again... but you will fly. Also your half-brother is actually your cousin and he's one of the last surviving Targaryens."
Jon's Not Dead — And He Should Be.
Jon Snow is one of a handful of characters to come back to life in Game of Thrones. When he came back it was as though he had been pulled out of a freezing-cold pool, his wounds still fresh. There's another character on Game of Thrones that hasn't been resurrected per se, but has been in fatal situations and come out alive. Daenerys Targaryen has, twice now, stood in the middle of a raging fire and emerged alive, unburnt, reborn. Jon Snow, similarly, has returned to life with a new focus and a drive to take back what is his — Winterfell — just like Dany seeks to take back what she believes is hers: The Iron Throne. The sign of the Targaryen house may be the Dragon, but perhaps at this point it should change to the Phoenix? Although they are continents apart, these parallels are far too similar to ignore. If only they had tried to burn Jon at the stake, then fans would have some more concrete visual evidence.
Game of Thrones loves this mystery far too much to make it super obvious to fans. While the showrunners have been holding off any concrete clues, they like keeping the idea of R + L = J fresh in the minds of the viewers. They want the audience to think about Ned, Lyanna, and Benjen and how close they all are. They want the audience to watch Jon Snow come back to life and then see Dany cheat death once again. All these hints and clues and connections all lead to one conclusion — Jon Snow is a Targaryen. Or it could all equate to something else and Jon Snow is just a random bastard child and every Game of Thrones fan will be very angry.
Image: Helen Sloan/HBO, Giphy (3)
