WARNING: Possible season 1-4 spoilers.
April sees the return of the award winning HBO show, Game of Thrones, now entering its fifth season. The show boasts the largest TV-show cast ever, which will grow even larger with the arrival of a host of new characters this season including the Martells of Dorne. The plot in the show is nearing the halfway point of the story that has already been told in George R.R. Martin’s books, however Martin seems oblivious to this and seems to be ignoring the pressure from fans to complete the next book, The Winds of Winter, not to mention its sequel. In preparation for the eagerly anticipated new season, we will look at some of the new characters that are about to be introduced and some of the things we can expect from our favourite characters, Jon Snow probably still knows nothing…
Dorne and The Martells
This new season will introduce a realm we have not visited as of yet, Dorne, the home of the Martells. During season 4 we encountered Prince Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal), Prince Oberyn volunteered to fight for Tyrian (Peter Dinklage) during his trial by combat; it’s hard to forget Oberyn’s disastrous final moments on screen with The Mountain crushing his skull. While the Martells already have enough to hate the Lannisters for, this just added a little extra fire to that hatred. The first of the Martells is Prince Doran Martell (Alexander Siddig) who rules Dorne. Doran will surely be under pressure to seek vengeance against the Lannisters, especially from Ellaria (Indira Varma), Oberyn’s partner. Areo Hotah (Deobia Operai) is Doran’s bodyguard, an intelligent servant with an appetite for extreme violence. Hotah will presumably be in charge of keeping the Sand Snakes in check. The Sand Snakes are comprised of Obara Sand (Keisha Castle-Hughes), Nymeria Sand (Jessica Henwick) and Tyene Sand (Rosabell Laurenti Sellers), these three lethal females are the offspring of Oberyn Martell who, we can only assume, have not taken the news of their father’s death particularly well. The Lannisters will need to watch their backs this season.
Daenerys
Last time we saw Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) she was locking away two of her precious dragons after Dracarys killed a young boy. It’s hard to imagine dragons enjoying being locked away; this could cause problems for Daenerys when it comes to the loyalties of her dragons later on in the show. However, since she now has an army of Unsullied to go with her three dragons, now seems like a good idea for her to make a play at the Iron Throne, however this doesn’t seem to be the case after season 4. It’s evident Daenerys is concentrating on controlling the land she has conquered already, possibly to learn how to rule before she heads over to Westeros to claim her father’s throne.
Jorah
Jorah (Iain Glen) has now been banished by Daenerys and is going to have to fend for himself while he finds a new path, or a path that leads him back into Daenerys’s good books. Jorah has been important to Daenerys’s rise to power and his love for her is unrivalled. I cant imagine him staying away for too long, he is far too important to Daenerys’s story arc to go quiet in this season.
Tyrion
Everyone’s favourite Imp, Tyrion Lannister had a hell of a ride throughout season 4 after he was accused of killing his nephew King Joffrey, losing his trial by combat then escaping with the help of Varys (Conleth Hill), not to mention he killed his ex lover Shae followed swiftly by killing his father on the toilet. His escape across the sea with Varys could present one of the more interesting narratives within this season. During the trailer we see Varys and a bearded Tyrion discussing their views on who should sit on the Iron Throne, and this conversation leads us to think that they will become important players in Daenerys’s quest for power.
Stannis
Stannis (Stephen Dillane), arguably the rightful heir to the throne has spent the majority of two seasons regrouping after his defeat at Blackwater Bay, however he now seems ready to mount an attack on the capital again after we saw him arrive with his army north of The Wall. Stannis is a character hard to root for, with his steely demeanour and lack of compassion for those close to him, yet he still is a major player in the game of thrones. Backed by one of the only characters we have seen to truly possess magical ability, Melisandre (Carise van Houten), Stannis truly has the power to rival any of the contenders for the throne. Not to mention he seems to be acquiring the Night’s Watch into his ranks.
Jon Snow
Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) is as close as you will get in the Game of Thrones universe to an all out good guy. Jon is in an interesting situation entering season 5 after helping the Night’s Watch defeat the Wildlings’ assault on The Wall. Will Jon and the Night’s Watch stay at The Wall and protect the seven kingdoms from what lies north of The Wall, or will they join with Stannis’s quest? A compromise between both seems to be the likeliest of outcomes with the men of the Night’s Watch being some of the most loyal men in Westeros when it comes to their duties. Someone needs to do something about the White Walker problem, and quickly…
Sansa
Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) spent the majority of the first 4 seasons being a naïve young girl who was constantly abused by those in power around her. However, the end of season 4 taught us that this girl has a plan. Her partnership with Littlefinger (Aiden Gillen) should be fun to watch. Littlefinger is possibly the most manipulative character in the seven kingdoms (that’s an impressive title to have) and if he starts to pass this power of manipulation onto Sansa then the Starks have an interesting trio of youngsters who could have a major part to play from here on out.
Game of Thrones season 5 airs in the UK on 13/4/15 on Sky Atlantic.