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Oh, I love Game of Thrones, I do, I do, I do. I read all the books (before it was cool), have seen every episode, and even re-watch random episodes for fun. Just last week, I was dipping back into Game of Thrones‘ stellar sixth season and it was great. I had a beer at my side and warmth in my heart because I was about to watch one of my favorite moments from the entire show’s run: Sansa and Jon’s reunion.
There was one problem. This time I noticed that something was very, very wrong in the world of Westeros. See if you notice it:
It’s freezing cold and snowing and no one is wearing a hat. Now, you could argue that Brienne and Pod are Southerners who may have ambled up North unprepared for the inclement weather or you could say that Sansa left Winterfell rather quickly and forgot to pack a fur cap for the road. Here’s the problem: NO ONE IS WEARING A HAT.
The men of the Night’s Watch have burly beards, huge heads of hair, and fur shrugs, but there is nary a pompom hat or warm hood in sight. For all that we hear that it’s cold up North and that “winter is coming,” why isn’t anyone knitting a fucking hat?
It’s possible that you live in that pit in the desert that’s always on fire and have never felt the cold, so you might not understand why I’m railing on and on about hats. Hats, as simple as they are, are downright magical when it comes to keeping the human body warm. Scientifically speaking, not wearing a hat means you’ll lose about 10% of your body heat. It may not sound like much, but it feels like a lot. Consider what a difference it would make in a world like Westeros, without central heat or electric blankets.
Adding insult to injury, though? Hats and hoods exist in the world of Game of Thrones. In fact, we see two members of the Night’s Watch with covered heads in the first moments of the series. Remember this? Because I do!
Look at that! The one dummy in the middle — who is canonically a dummy (aka the first person we see die onscreen in Game of Thrones) – is not wearing a hat. The Night’s Watch brothers flanking him both are covering their heads from the elements. We’ve seen Wildings wear fur hoods in the past. We’ve even seen both Catelyn and Sansa pull up the hoods of their cloaks. But for some reason, hats and hoods have gone out of vogue in Westeros at the precise time that winter is falling upon the lands.
What could be the reasons for this? Well, I understand that everyone has gorgeous hair on the show. Sophie Turner‘s locks are dyed the exact shade of liquid amber and Kit Harington has curls that put the best darn perms in the world to shame. So I get why the Game of Thrones producers would eschew headgear for the sake of style. I also understand that it’s easier to identify characters by looking at their hair. I get it. However, I don’t get how much longer we’re supposed to go along with the charade that it’s freezing cold and ice zombies are coming over the range, but no one can be bothered to put on hat. No one wants to give themselves even the slightest edge in combatting the rough and tumble elements? Seriously?!? I believe Sansa makes herself a whole new dress in the time she’s camped at Castle Black. So is it so hard to believe she’d also have time to knock out knitting a beanie?
In conclusion, if it’s finally winter in Westeros, where are all the winter hats?!?!?
Coincidentally, make sure you have a good hat put aside for our real-life winter. I hear this one’s going to be a doozy.
