If Bran is not just capable of greensight and warging, but is actually a time traveler who was also Bran the Builder, the Last Hero, and Azor Ahai, the promised savior, what does it portend for the story? On the surface, it gives him massive influence over the entire world. Could the whole thing be his creation, or at least highly subject to his influence? If he has that kind of control over events we’ve already seen, does it undermine the agency of the other characters, who would now be essentially just acting out a script that Bran writes and directs?
Or would this version of Bran have less control than we think? Will it be ambiguous whether his works are positive or negative? One theory making its way around at the moment is that in the same way that he broke the magic of the cave when he allowed the Night King to touch him, perhaps he’ll also break the magic of the wall when he finally moves south. Jon Snow’s parting warning to Dolorous Edd—”don’t tear it down”—might actually foreshadow the collapse of the Wall. Hell, even if he played a role in driving the Mad King to insanity, he might be responsible for the war starting in the first place.
There’s so much we don’t know, and it’s possible that Bran is just Bran, and that he’ll decide the best course of action is not to change the past—beyond perhaps providing some solace to his father at the moment of his death. That would restore a sense of order to the story, and end the speculation that he’ll become a kind of living God who can bend fate to his whim.
Regardless of how it plays out, we’re standing at the brink of a wide chasm of narrative possibility. At this time yesterday, Bran was a gifted boy struggling to find his purpose after a life-defining tragedy. Today, he’s expanded into something almost beyond recognition, and we can only guess at where—or even, if—his limits begin.
E.H. Ruddock wrote:I mean, if this whole thing plays out with Bran controlling a lot of stuff, it will make me lose interest in a lot of the other characters.
I don't think this will be the case. If anything, as others have mentioned, Bran will dial back his powers after being traumatized by Hodor's death.
EJ wrote:It was like a bad M Night Shamalayan reveal.
only if they choose to use Bran's ability to affect the endgame. its very possible that he learned his lesson with hodor and chooses to only observe. in fact, i'd bet they dedicate a few episodes of bran refusing to use his powers because of what he did until he is forced to use them to get out of a bad situation
I thought early on he'd play a huge role. Glad someone brought this up.
Gendry had a chance to play a role when the game of thrones was still being played; at this point, only the Lannisters and the Tyrells seem invested in the Iron Throne, and they're barely pretending that Tommen is Robert's son anymore, so his importance has basically fallen off the map. However, I still think it's possible he'll come back--maybe a 15-20% chance it'll be this season. Remember: Davos pointed him towards King's Landing, so chances are he's somewhere in the seven kingdoms. He probably wouldn't feel safe in the capital...I'll put the rest in a spoiler...
Brotherhood without Banners will make a appearance when Brienne makes her way to the Riverlands to meet up with the Blackfish. I wouldn't be surprised if they have Gendry and the Hound with them.
E.H. Ruddock wrote:I mean, if this whole thing plays out with Bran controlling a lot of stuff, it will make me lose interest in a lot of the other characters.
I think it all depends on where it goes and how it develops. Martin's never been very interested in black & white conflict nor in anything that's especially easy. He likes messes and disappointments. I can think of several different ways this could turn out to be fucking amazing.
And, like Mecca said, there's still the possibility Bran's learned his lesson. Lot of story left. I'm not willing to jump ship on this thing yet.
E.H. Ruddock wrote:I mean, if this whole thing plays out with Bran controlling a lot of stuff, it will make me lose interest in a lot of the other characters.
I think it all depends on where it goes and how it develops. Martin's never been very interested in black & white conflict nor in anything that's especially easy. He likes messes and disappointments. I can think of several different ways this could turn out to be fucking amazing.
And, like Mecca said, there's still the possibility Bran's learned his lesson. Lot of story left. I'm not willing to jump ship on this thing yet.
Good point about the messes. Probably will be a lot more failures, accidents, and disappointments.
Steve Albini wrote:Whenever there's active promotion on the part of somebody else, whenever I see somebody all dolled up for a fancy photograph and someone's handing out flyers or whenever there's active promotion for something like that, as an imposition on my day, I hate all those people and I want them to fail. I have a visceral reaction to advertising and promotion. There's just something about salesmanship that grates on me on a very base level and I react very negatively towards it. I want those people to suffer and I want their enterprises to fail.
Last edited by tragabigzanda on Sun January 11, 2026 3:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Chris_H_2 wrote:is bran able to time travel whenever or only we he touches the roots from that tree? i seems to me to be the latter.
We talked about this a few pages back, and the latter seems more likely. The prevailing theory is that the Children carved faces into the Weirwoods so they could keep an eye on the First Men, and most of the trees were cut down by the Andals to prevent this (or, if they didn't know about the power, than simply because they followed the Seven).
Chris_H_2 wrote:is bran able to time travel whenever or only we he touches the roots from that tree? i seems to me to be the latter.
We talked about this a few pages back, and the latter seems more likely. The prevailing theory is that the Children carved faces into the Weirwoods so they could keep an eye on the First Men, and most of the trees were cut down by the Andals to prevent this (or, if they didn't know about the power, than simply because they followed the Seven).
To expand: so, basically, it seems like Bran can tap into the Weirwood "network" and see/experience anything that the trees have seen, but he's gotta be at one in order to log on.
Chris_H_2 wrote:is bran able to time travel whenever or only we he touches the roots from that tree? i seems to me to be the latter.
We talked about this a few pages back, and the latter seems more likely. The prevailing theory is that the Children carved faces into the Weirwoods so they could keep an eye on the First Men, and most of the trees were cut down by the Andals to prevent this (or, if they didn't know about the power, than simply because they followed the Seven).
To expand: so, basically, it seems like Bran can tap into the Weirwood "network" and see/experience anything that the trees have seen, but he's gotta be at one in order to log on.
Chris_H_2 wrote:is bran able to time travel whenever or only we he touches the roots from that tree? i seems to me to be the latter.
We talked about this a few pages back, and the latter seems more likely. The prevailing theory is that the Children carved faces into the Weirwoods so they could keep an eye on the First Men, and most of the trees were cut down by the Andals to prevent this (or, if they didn't know about the power, than simply because they followed the Seven).
To expand: so, basically, it seems like Bran can tap into the Weirwood "network" and see/experience anything that the trees have seen, but he's gotta be at one in order to log on.
Chris_H_2 wrote:is bran able to time travel whenever or only we he touches the roots from that tree? i seems to me to be the latter.
We talked about this a few pages back, and the latter seems more likely. The prevailing theory is that the Children carved faces into the Weirwoods so they could keep an eye on the First Men, and most of the trees were cut down by the Andals to prevent this (or, if they didn't know about the power, than simply because they followed the Seven).
To expand: so, basically, it seems like Bran can tap into the Weirwood "network" and see/experience anything that the trees have seen, but he's gotta be at one in order to log on.
