Season 5 of Game of Thrones is drawing to a close, and we need to start emotionally preparing to say farewell to some characters. Relatively speaking, with only the deaths of Maester Aemon, Mance Rayder, and Ser Barristan so far, this season has been pretty light. Will Shireen Baratheon die next on Game of Thrones? The little girl seems doomed no matter how you look at it.
The official press release for the upcoming upcoming episode "A Dance With Dragons" reveals that "Stannis confronts a troubling decision" — is he going to give in to the Red Priestess' demands? Earlier in the season, we learned that Melisandre wants to use Shireen's blood to give them a better chance at victory in Winterfell. Stannis may have initially refused Melisandre's offer, but what if she takes matters into her own hands? What if Stannis' wife, who has been giving her daughter dirty looks all season, does it instead?
Shireen's death is not in the A Song Of Ice And Fire books (yet) so I'm afraid I can't comfort or warn fans of the series either way. In the books, a Wildling settler woman named Val calls for Shireen's death because she is "unclean," but Lord Commander Jon Snow does not allow it. That's the extent of her danger.
However, it sure seems like Shireen is going to die this season on the HBO series. We've had a whole bunch of scenes with her, establishing her backstory and her relationship with her father. Davos promised her that she would be nowhere near the fighting when it was time for a battle. These are huge red flags. On most television shows, this is how you smell a death coming from weeks away. Game of Thrones is usually not like most shows, but I'm still worried.
Because Shireen might just die another way. The most tragic deaths on Game of Thrones, or really any story, are seemingly meaningless. What if Shireen just gets caught in the crossfire of Ramsay's attack? He took 20 men to sneak attack Stannis' troops, and even the Onion Knight can't protect against the element of surprise. What if her Dragonscale relapses, spreads, and consumes her? On the other hand, what if she's sacrificed for a different, more urgent reason?
Not only will I be upset to lose Shireen, a sweet female character on this show who has only ever brought happiness and a love of reading to her surroundings, but it will most likely be in vain. The Red Priestess' spells don't seem to work all that well. Stannis' army was defeated in the Battle of Blackwater thanks to the combined efforts of Tyrion and Tywin Lannister. Remember the leeches that represented the five false kings, or usurpers, that Melisandre wanted dead? They were Joffrey Baratheon, Robb Stark, and Balon Greyjoy. Two of those men are now dead. Balon Greyjoy is still living. How does she explain that?
The fact that this season hasn't offed a ton of major characters may just have me on edge as we approach the final two episodes of Season 5. However, little Shireen Baratheon is definitely in danger, and we should all brace ourselves for what happens next.
Image: Helen Sloan/HBO; Giphy
