What's in store for fans when "Game of Thrones" Season 8 begins airing in July? To be sure, there will be violence and numerous deaths, and the latter, if rumors are correct, will involve major characters. Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) died once and reports said he'll die a second time and drop out of the race to the Iron Throne.
The Daily Star reported that HBO has released the latest batch of Game of Thrones still images and GoT fans immediately noticed that Sansa and Arya Starks (played respectively by Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams) were donned in mourning clothes. The sisters are in black and the same goes for Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke). All three appeared to be grieving the death of major GoT character.
The same report speculated that only one man is connected to the three women - Jon Snow. Snow is stepbrother to Sansa and Arya and the two will certainly be grief-stricken if the man they know as Ned Stark's bastard son is killed off, again, in the series.
But Daenerys wearing black for Jon Snow is hard to believe at this point. The two characters have yet to share a scene in Game of Thrones and are total strangers. But it might be that the Mother of Dragons has been informed of who really Jon Snow is - that he is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark.
Now Jon Snow is not the only character rumored to die in GoT Season 8. UPROXX said the time seems ripe for the departure of Petyr Baelish (Aidan Gillen). "He's a schemer and a con artist ... but those attributes also make him a master manipulator ... Like a cockroach, Littlefinger's best skill is survival, and the longer he stays alive, the more power he gains. But also like a cockroach, only to a point," the report said.
What could have tipped the upcoming demise of Littlefinger? The recent cover photo of Arya on Entertainment Weekly was a giveaway, the report said. Arya has with her the Valyrian steel dagger that was known to be a property of Lord Baelish. Did Arya assassinate the silent operator that Littlefinger is and took the knife?
Or Petyr could have been killed by Sansa when the latter finally realized his true color.
If true that both Jon Snow and Petyr Baelish will exit the Game of Thrones in Season 7 then they'll be off the list of the solid candidates to sit next on the Iron Throne. Of the persons nominated by Mashable to rule the Seven Kingdoms someday, three names instantly stand out - Cersei Lannister, Daenerys and the Night King.
Cersei, who now rules in Kings' Landing, however is not expected to rule for long. As teased in the recent official trailer issued by HBO, enemies from all directions are gathering against the Lannisters and it's only a matter of time before the Queen Mother meets her end.
The fate seems more favorable for Daenerys. Last seen, she's on her way to Westeros and supported by the formidable Greyjoy navy, an army with the combined force of the Dothraki and the Unsullied and of course the three Daenerys Dragons.
But more a more powerful contender would be the Night King. If he is interested, there seems to be no stopping the ruler of the undead to breach The Wall, launch into a destructive march south and grab the Iron Throne for himself.
The Game of Thrones Season 7 premieres July 16 on HBO.
