FOXBORO, Mass. — First off, a spoiler warning for anyone who has not yet watched the latest “Game of Thrones” episode, “Eastwatch,” which premiered Sunday night.
And for those who don’t watch the show … well, a lot of this story probably will sound like gibberish.
Still here? Great. Let’s continue.
In addition to being a New England Patriots wide receiver, Malcolm Mitchell also is a massive “Game of Thrones” fan. He devoured the books while he was in college at Georgia, and he’s currently engrossed in Season 7 of the HBO series, which now has two episodes remaining.
” ‘Game of Thrones’ is the show where you think it’s peaked,” Mitchell said after Monday’s training camp practice. “And then the next episode comes, and it gets a little better.”
With the latest episode — which set the stage for what should be a doozy of a battle this Sunday night — still fresh in his mind, Mitchell devoted more than three minutes of his post-practice presser to “Thrones” talk, including a few predictions he has for the show’s future.
“I thought I had a couple theories until (Sunday) night,” Mitchell said. “And that’s usually how ‘Game of Thrones’ does it. You think you have an idea of what’s going to happen, and then they switch it up. I didn’t foresee the tensions between the two sisters (Sansa and Arya Stark) coming back as intense as it was, but we’re seeing that in a different form. Don’t make me go geek mode on you.”
Told that his geekiness was encouraged, Mitchell continued, offering his prediction for who will end up on the Iron Throne once the show concludes next season.
“Well, Jon Snow is the rightful heir to the throne,” he said. “We all know that.”
But what about the decision Jon made in this last episode to venture north of The Wall to basically pick a fight with the army of the dead?
“I don’t know if that was the best idea,” Mitchell said. “I’ve got to rewatch (the episode). I usually watch it back-to-back, but (Sunday) night, we had to be here early, so I only got to watch it one time. But when they were talking about (their plan), and Tyrion (Lannister) gave that advice, I was baffled by how they would just roll with trying to capture (an undead soldier)? How are you going to capture one when there’s an army of them?”
What’s going to happen to Jon and Co. this Sunday? Here’s Mitchell’s theory:
“But what’s about to happen — this is the theory — they’re going to go beyond The Wall, and they’re going to realize they’re in over their heads. Obviously. We all know. Then the White Walkers and the Night King, they’re going to chase them, and they’re going to run back to The Wall thinking they have security. That The Wall’s going to protect them.
“But remember, Brandon Stark was touched by the Night King, and then (the Night King) was able to go where the Three-Eyed Raven was. The same thing’s going to happen with The Wall.
“I don’t know if The Wall’s coming down, but the White Walkers will definitely get past it.”
Photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
