Game of Thrones SE06EP5 ‘The Door’ Retrospective

*contains spoilers for this episode*

“No one has died yet,” I announce out loud to my wife as the realisation comes that in just ten minutes this episode is due to come to an end. It’s unsettling that Game of Thrones has conditioned us to expect death on a grand scale but that’s a story for my therapist. My outburst proved to be just the overshadowing and jinx that the programme needed to pull out the guillotine. Not only did, as far as we know, all the remaining Children of the Forest die (making the species extinct), we also lost series favourite and regular, the ever lovable yet simple, Hodor (Krisitian Nairn). The death came at the cost of allowing Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) and Meera (Ellie Kendrick) to escape the White Walkers as they burst into the lair of the Three Eyed Raven. Yet how and why Hodor had to ‘die’ was one of the coolest reveals of the whole programme.

Under the guidance of the old greenseer who has let the Heart Tree grow around him with age, Bran can see back in time to important events. Whilst there he saw the then eloquent young Hodor (some 40 years previous) and put him in some sort of trance, although not knowingly. Hodor was actually a jumble of “Hold the Door”, the ultimate act that allowed Bran and Meera to escape the hideaway of the Three Eyed Raven as the Night’s King killed the greenseer. This then explains one of the longest pay offs in the series. Bran gave Hodor a glimpse of the future and his purpose was ultimately to hold that door. The revelation and affect that this had on young Hodor was to destroy his speech and send him into a seizure. It was an incredibly emotional scene and one that came at the cost of one of the most innocent souls left in the world of Westeros. The troubling thing is we never saw Hodor actually die on screen, as pointed out by actor Kristian Nairn, and Hodor would make a formidable Wight.

There wasn’t just one epic reveal given to us in this episode, there were two. The other was one of the most interesting and shocking reveals of the entire series. The Children of the Forest actually being responsible for the birth of the White Walkers by using live human hosts and magic. It makes sense as the humans (Andals in the series) came to the continent of Westeros and began to wipe out the native creatures known as The Children of the Forest. Once the Andals had the upper hand and the Children had all but lost, they created the White Walkers as the ultimate weapon against the Andals by using our own people against us. Leaf, the little Child of the Forest who Bran came to know, placed a dark shard (which could be drag glass) into the host body as he was tied to a heart tree. This turned his eyes icy blue. This birthplace of the species is where the Wights and White Walkers return to. I have a theory that that man could possibly be a Stark ancestor and also, being the first, it is incredibly likely that he’ll be the Night King. That could add an interesting angle if and when Jon and Bran have to fight the army of darkness.

What did you think about the two big world altering reveals in this episode and how are you finding the series in general? Let us know by tweeting your thoughts and feelings @CelebrityCutout.