Ending Explained

‘Game of Thrones’ Ending Explained: What Is Jon Snow Doing?

By Meghan O'Keefe @megsokay
Published May 20, 2019, 1:45 p.m. ET

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The series finale of Game of Thrones left us on a somewhat optimistic note. Despite the bloodshed of “The Bells,” and the tragic death of Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), the show’s final moments follow Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and his sisters Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) and Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) as they each welcome the future. Arya is setting sail to see what lies “west of Westeros” and Sansa is being crowned “the Queen in the North,” but what exactly is Jon Snow doing? Is he really a part of the Night’s Watch? What’s up with the Wildlings? Are those the Freefolk? Is Jon actually getting a happy ending? And how did the show seed the Stark girls’ futures in the very first season?

Here’s everything you need to know about the ending of Game of Thrones.

What is Jon Snow Doing North of the Wall? Is There Still a Night’s Watch at the End of Game of Thrones?

In Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 6, “The Iron Throne,” Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) is stuck in a diplomatic impasse. The Stark sisters want Jon Snow to be freed, while Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) wants him dead for killing Daenerys. Tyrion’s solution is for Jon Snow to take the Black and join the Night’s Watch. Jon asks if there still is one, and Tyrion is like, “Sure. You won’t own lands, you won’t bear children, you’ll wear black, okay?”

When Jon Snow gets to Castle Black, the fortress isn’t full of Night’s Watch, but Wildlings. Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju) is there, along with Ghost, and once they are all united, they leave Castle Black, heading north.

Jon Snow and Ghost
Photo: HBO

Where Is Jon Snow Going With Tormund Giantsbane and the Wildlings?

North, the “real” North. As Tormund tells Jon in Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 4, “The Last of the Starks,” his plan was to hold the Wildlings at Winterfell until the snows stopped and then take them to Castle Black. After that, they would go home north of the Wall to where the Wildlings, aka Freefolk used to live.

It seems that Jon might not be a member of the Night’s Watch after all, or if he is, his task is to protect the Wildlings and not fight with them. North of the Wall, Jon can live freely as he did years ago with Tormund and Ygritte (Rose Leslie). He is also seemingly going to be a de facto leader.

Is This a Happy Ending for Jon Snow?

Emphatically yes! We’re not just projecting a sliver of a smile on Jon’s face as he rides onwards into the wilderness. Back in “The Last of the Starks,” Jon admits that he would like to join Tormund and the Wildlings, and that he would be happier there than in King’s Landing.

Before they part, Tormund tells Jon, “You’ve got the North in you. The real North.”

He might not be King of the Seven Kingdoms, but Jon Snow is living his dream now.

Young Sansa pleading for her mom to help make her queen
Photo: HBO

Has Sansa Stark Always Wanted to be Queen in the North?

Not exactly, but all the way back in the Game of Thrones season premiere, a blue-frocked Sansa tells Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) that she hopes that her father will let her marry Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) because it means that one day she’ll be queen. She follows this up with a pleading look at her mother and says, “It’s the only thing I ever wanted.”

So Sansa Stark has always harbored an ambition to be Queen, but she probably didn’t consider being Queen in the North until after she escaped Ramsay Bolton. Everything she does after that has to do with taking back Winterfell, securing the Stark family’s control, and then maintaining the kingdom’s independence.

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Did Arya Stark’s Ending on Game of Thrones Really Come out of Nowhere?

Last night was the first we ever heard about Arya wanting to sail off the edge of the map, but there has always been a tiny Easter egg that suggested she had an interest in exploring. Arya’s direwolf was named Nymeria after the famous Rhoynish Princess who sailed to Dorne with 10,000 ships. She is considered the mother of Dorne because of her courage, cunning, and push towards exploration.

So, like, Arya idolized a lady with ships? However that’s never really pushed in the series. Oh well, guess she’s a pirate now.

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