'GoT' Episode "Hardhome" Has Major Jon Snow Clues

Jon Snow is alive. That is if the writers on Game of Thrones aren't purposely misleading the audience, which could be possible. But, a re-watch of Game of T hrones episode "Hardhome" confirms that Jon Snow is alive... or that's how I'm choosing to interpret it. I'm no GoT purist, and I've certainly been more invested in other shows' mythology. So, I feel pretty confident that I'm not letting Jon Snow love blind me, especially since he's not even one of my absolute favorite characters on the show (for the record, my faves are: Peyter Baelish, Olenna Tyrell, and no one else). But, because "Hardhome" was Jon Snow's big episode of the season, it seems that the writers purposely foreshadowed his demise in every scene that takes place up north at the Wall.

And, after they foreshadowed that demise, they continued foreshadowing. Foreshadowing that even though Jon Snow might seem gone forever, in reality he'll be back in some form, and not as a ghost — though, perhaps, he could be Ghost, if the rumors about him warging into his direwolf are true. Personally, I think the most evidence in this episode points to Jon being "Azor Ahai," the prophesied hero from thousands of years ago that is due to return. But, seriously, you don't have to believe crazy theories to see that Jon Snow is totally still alive. Just re-watch "Hardhome."

1. Theon's Confession To Sansa: "They Weren't Bran & Rickon"

One interesting thing is that even though Jon isn't in this scene, when Sansa forces Theon/Reek to confess that he never murdered Bran and Rickon. Now this is fairly out there, but it could be a clue that the "real" Jon Snow isn't the person who was stabbed by the rest of the watch. The books are filled with doubles and tricks, and maybe eliminating characters like Jayne Poole happened so audiences wouldn't have fakeout fatigue when the real (alive) Jon Snow pops back up.

2. "Sometimes A Man Has To Make Choices"

The very first scene at the Wall is between Sam and Olly, and it has some huge moments (see below). But, before that, Sam basically assures Olly that the writers know what they're doing with a monologue that's hilarious if you imagine it as Benioff and Weiss trying to reassure the skeptical audience that when they have to "make hard decisions," everything will ultimately be alright — like making Jon's supposed death into the season finale, even though, like Jon's trip above the Wall, everything that once seemed like a death wish will ultimately work out.

3. New Lives And Second Lives

A big theme of Jon's speech as he tries to convince the wildlings to join him is that he can promise them "new lives" and "second lives." Of course, he's talking about giving them farmland below the wall. But, isn't it pretty odd that a guy who will be stabbed in just a few short episodes has so much to say about "new lives?" Perhaps Jon will get his own "new life" either by resurrection, switching his consciousness into a new body, or finding that he can't actually be killed for some reason.

4. "The Long Night Is Coming. And, The Dead Come With It."

Again, he is quite literally talking about the White Walkers here. But, he used the phrase "Long Night," which carries with it some Westerosi legend, known as a period where a long darkness and very long winter ravaged the world, and the "Others," White Walkers, took over. Since Azor Ahai helped to defeat the Others... to me, this is a big clue that is supposed to keep the audience thinking of those parallels.

5. The Valyrian Steel Swords

This episode is also the first time it's specifically revealed that Valyrian steel can destroy Walkers, and Jon is the first person to do so. I can't imagine that the show would go through the trouble to introduce the idea about the sword only to have it die with Jon up north. Oh, and it's another thing that makes Jon Snow = Azor Ahai, too, because Azor Ahai was known for his sword, Lightbringer.

6. "Jon Snow Always Comes Back"

It doesn't get more straightforward than that. Sam is one of the few trustworthy, smart characters in the story, and he's also somewhat educated. Putting these words in his mouth implies that they're true. And, those words have significance in Game of Thrones, because that is how Azor Ahai is spoken of, that he will "come back" in order to save Westeros.

Using the exact same diction for both Sam's words and the prophecy? No accident. The way I see it, there are two options. Either Benioff and Weiss are laying some major pipeline for proof that Jon Snow is really alive (or will be incredibly soon via some resurrection), or they're completely screwing with everyone. It wouldn't be the first time Game of Thrones changed the rules and completely axed a character, but it certainly would make all of those clues they dropped in "Hardhome" seem like a waste.

Image: Helen Sloan/HBO (7)