My Opinion on (Almost) Every ASOIAF Theory

Hello everyone! I've been getting into a lot of ASOIAF Theories lately, and wanted to give my opinion on a bunch of them quite quickly. What do you think? Is there anything I missed? What do you think of #houseofthedragon so far? Be sure to leave a comment, as well as like the video and subscribe if you enjoy. I'd love to hear your favorite theories, as well as whether or not you agree with me!
(Disclaimer: This isn't EVERY ASOIAF theory, but it's a very large number of them and I thought that title was catchy. I may rank more in the future!)
My Twitter: / quinnthegm
Make your own tier list! tiermaker.com/create/asoiaf-t...
00:00 Preface
00:45 Theory Ranking

[@superballsfour20]

GRRM wrote the Pink Letter

[@Derekivery]

so that's why he hasn't finished Winds of winter

[@Tomcat13436]

No, no, he has a point 🤔

[@turtleanton6539]

He did actually 😊

[@staytuned2L337]

It's been a while since I've gone through it, but has anyone suspected Littlefinger of penning the letter? 🤔

[@judeconnor-macintyre9874]

GRRM wrote ASOIAF.

[@drakengarfinkel3133]

I find it hilarious that “the real Azor Ahai was the friends we made along the way” is a legitimate opinion many fans have.

[@pyropulseIXXI]

It isn't a legitimate option; it is called a joke

[@burtan2000]

@@pyropulseIXXI Building lasting friendships by enduring horrific trauma together is no joke. It's every &'kgq

[@kaemonbonet4931]

It's kind of a rebuke of the "great man" view of history. That kind of aligns with the themes of the books. Still, someone's gonna hold the special sword. Gonna be fun finding out!

[@turtleanton6539]

Yes😊😊😊

[@turtleanton6539]

​@@kaemonbonet4931 agreed

[@tonyvazquez7612]

The Boltons are full of Vampire references because the Starks are Werewolves and there's the classic feud.

[@glipgloppapi9959]

ohhhh now wait a minute 😗

[@siyabongamkhize692]

😮all the pieces matter

[@aaronthomson3639]

🤯. THAT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE!

[@ArjunaR-wt9xe]

Weirwolves***

[@wolf-xf6hf]

Damn you just destroyed my belief in that theory

[@ScrapperTBP]

"This is going to go above Ned being a pigeon" is a hell of sentence

[@melonramune]

i'd never heard of the joffrey had a food allergy theory and i'm very amused by it. i mean with 77 courses it's possible he ate some ingredients he'd never tried before. but yeah we'd never know

[@herbertschulz4313]

Its the second funniest purple wedding Theory, right After everyone at the wedding Was involved in killing joffrey

[@DWEGOON]

"Your Grace, my gift to you is a delicacy from the Yi Ti Empire. They call it, 'peanut butter'"

[@thomasmartin4281]

It would be funny if LF actually did none of the crimes he’s accused of but just takes credit and gains power for it (besides shoving Lysa out the moon door)

[@dekuuchiha9990]

haha i love that @@herbertschulz4313

[@Ballin4Vengeance]

@@herbertschulz4313A murder on the Orient Express kinda situation.

[@Golgari213]

One that I personally like is that Bran accidentally makes Arys Targaryen Mad. He shows him the threat of the Others, hence why he says "burn them all"

[@dingo1547]

He doesn’t say that in the books.

[@jjh2456]

@@dingo1547what does he say then?

[@00dude3]

except it's nonsense, read Jamie's chapters in the books and Aery's was coherent when he died.

[@luciamota1249]

@@00dude3 what do you mean by coherent? That man was everything but coherent. I agree that he wasn't having seizures or rocking in the floor like Hodor in the show or in Queen's Crown or as Thistle as she was possesed by Varamyr (so I don't think that theory is true) but still "coherent" is not something that Aerys was....

[@BigBalvin]

No I think It was Blood Raven. Probably went into his dreams also. Also telling him about plots making him distrusting but I think Aerys just thinks it's his own thoughts and doesn't realize someone is telling him he just hears voices.

[@InterestingNerdClub]

If there's one theory we can be confident in it's The Pounce that was Promised.

[@QuinnTheGM]

It Is Known.

[@za1du]

@@QuinnTheGM it is known!

[@stan_dnr]

"We haven't seen [Euron] do anything but drugs" really is a thing to remember if that whole dragon-binding kraken-invoking shit doesn't work for him in Winds of Winter.

[@stephengrigg5988]

It would be pretty interesting to have a mysterious villainous character be revealed to not know what they're doing at all.

[@TheworldaccordingtoJake]

I think it would be really fun if we get a…nothing happened moment with Euron

[@Cheese23145]

@@stephengrigg5988eh,it would fit more for TV show Euron then book Euron.

[@kaminsod4077]

I get the feeling it'll work too well, and backfire on him. It's been hammered home repeatedly that magic is not a toy in ASOIAF, and the level of sorcery Euron is trying to pull off may be far beyond his abilities.

[@thomasvrielink299]

UnTommen is another candidate for the Valonqar. The theory goes that after dying either Tommen becomes a wight if the White Walkers ever get far enough south, or that Qyburn revives him on Cersei's orders. Then, the undead Tommen fulfills the prophecy by killing Cersei. It fits the language of the prophecy better than any other candidate, since the prophecy is discussing Cersei's children at that point (Gold shall be their crowns and gold their shrouds. And when your tears have drowned you, the Valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you), but other than that there isn't much to go on. I like it though.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I read about this theory after the video, it’s certainly an interesting one.

[@eduardocherry7268]

Tommen is a little brother technically

[@thomasvrielink299]

@@eduardocherry7268 not only A little brother, but of Cersei's children he's THE little brother, that's why linguistically Tommen makes the most sense.

[@hecticscone]

i think it'd be more likely that he does that without dying first. after seeing how crazy his mom really is, all of his pent up aggression and fear will be taken out on her

[@mappingshaman5280]

​@@hecticsconeI doubt a living tommen would be strong enough to strangle cersei though. She could easily push him off. The only way it would make sense is if he ordered someone to do it. But ultimately to me it only makes sense if he's undead.

[@einherjar9364]

When they say "Bloodraven is going after Bran's body", I think they're wording it wrong. They're not talking about just possessing him physically; as you said, there's a bunch of far more mobile people around that he could mindsteal. Instead, the Theory is that Bran's potential actually surpasses Bloodraven's. While Bran is not yet more powerful, he has far more natural ability and will one day be the superior greenseer. I think this is incredibly likely; Bran is only 9 years old, and is already incredibly advanced. By contrast, Bloodraven is fairly well mentioned, and we have no evidence that he started having this kind of power at any point leading up to the Blackfyre Rebellions, or even after. There *is* the "Thousand Eyes and One" thing which I do think could hint to him starting to have some skinchanging ability, but he would not be able to skinchange peopl, and I don't think he was advanced because with how nosy people are in Kings Landing, if he was overly powerful they would have noticed. Which means in my opinion he did not truly blossom until he went beyond the Wall. But regardless, the theory says that Bran will be the superior greenseer. Brynden is not just looking to steal Bran's body, he's looking to "absorb" him, for lack of a better word. He will take Bran's body as his own and join it to the tree (wherein mobility won't matter anyway) and will use Bran's potential with his own experience to become incredibly powerful. Bran will thus either be annihilated, or will be forced to the very depths of his mind (narrative link to Bran himself doing this to Hodor despite recognising how deeply uncomfortable it makes Hodor) and has to fight back to get Control.

[@luciamota1249]

Also I don't think it's Bloodraven who wants to occupy his body, it's the Hive mind of the weirwoods and the Children of the Forest who serve it. Honestly, if that's the case they will probably prefer sickly/crippled people. By the way, has anyone ever wonder how Bloodraven ended up there, tied to the tree? Those motherf***rs abducted him, I am pretty sure of it, they were calling him through dreams and once there they took him. I can't believe anyone would chose to stay there tied to a tree, but well that's just me.

[@animatedmonkey5882]

So basically bran has a higher midiclorian count?

[@za1du]

This gave me a new theory idea, weirwoods enhance abilities like greensight or skinchanging, which is why it is mostly seen in the north, a place with a lot of weirwoods. Like the first men blood is only the basic condition and weirwoods are some sort of catalyst

[@nayncat17]

Could you imagine Ser Pounce riding a dragon over Kings Landing? Could you imagine Ser Pounce breaking the wheel?

[@VerbenaComfrey]

Pounce would bat the wheel off the table and it would break.

[@Alduin_el_Compadre]

Ashara Dayne and Raeghar Targaryen swaped places via glamour by the second half of Robert's rebellion. I'm not mad. It was revealed to me in a dream!

[@AncientOrange]

I think one of the first Sansa chapters in A Feast For Crows Littlefinger says something like, "We'll serve them lies and arbor gold", "We'll tell them lies that they want to believe more than the truth." In reference to convincing Nestor Royce to become his ally. Then in the Cersei POV chapters she serves Taena Merryweather and other political players arbor gold, and Taena is nearly always lying to her.

[@lutilda]

I think this ranking needs a row for "No way, but this is so fun, I wish it were true"

[@digitalmojave]

Varys + Illirio = FAegon is basically just an extension of Aegon is a Blackfyre, and that he's Illirio's son and Aegon's mother was a relative (sister) of Varys. He keeps his head clean shaven to hide his Valyrian hair coloring.

[@soter8253]

Only Mance has enough enough data to write the pink letter but Ramsey has the motive. It’s an issue

[@QuinnTheGM]

I go back and forth on which of the two of them sent it pretty regularly. I think the focus on Mance and the notable deviations from Ramsay’s previous letters are what have made me think it’s more likely to have been Mance.

[@arjintiryaki6464]

@@QuinnTheGM i still think mance's motivation for writing this letter seems shaky

[@etharchildres3976]

I also think a lot of the phrases in the letter are codes: Tell his red whore, the use of Crow, False King. The only catch is Reek, it’s unlikely Stannis or Mance would call Theon that, but maybe that’s a bait for the reader. George’s plot lines are like 5D chess sometimes.

[@kingtreck7117]

But when you look at Ramsey's other letters their completely different from how the pink letter was written

[@soter8253]

@@kingtreck7117 yup. Both sides have big points against them

[@noahadams8305]

I’m kind of shocked A+J=J/C didn’t even get ranked. There is a TON of evidence to show that Aerys had an obsession with Joanna. It’s said that he made comments about preforming the first right at her and Tywin’s wedding and it definitely seems like something happens just before Tyrions conception causing her to be send back to the rock. And I think it would be poetic for Tyrion to be Tywin’s only real child. I think both A+J=J/C and A+J=T are both on the lower end of possible

[@GRB-tj6uj]

Wouldn't it be beautiful if after all that, it turns out that Joffrey actually had a legitimate claim on the throne?

[@thomasmartin4281]

I’m kind of there on if anyone’s a secret targ it’s them and not Tyrion, it would be the ultimate irony for him to be Tywin’s only true son, and for Jaime and Cersei to inherit their incest drive along with their children having a claim to the throne

[@ufoash440]

​@@GRB-tj6uj He'd be a bastard so not really

[@DadReadsAndCooksMeat]

I always thought Tyrion was more likely the mad king's get. Tywin says something like "and since I can't prove you're not my son... speak to me no more of your rights to Casterly Rock." And in blood and fire there's another Targ with mismatched eyes. But the incest thing and the irony of J&C. What if NONE of them are Tywin's kids?

[@noahadams8305]

@@DadReadsAndCooksMeat I could get down with none of them being his. But I really could go either way. I think it’s poetic and ironic if Tyrion is his only true born son. I also think Tyrion’s obsession with dragons and dragon imagery makes him more of a targ candidate than Jon if you go by symbolism.

[@jfparhamutube]

In GRRM's interview with History of Westeros he kind of confirmed that the Valyrians caused the Doom. I found this interesting because he was cagey about other things and sometimes feigned innocence or ignorance about other theories.

[@acksawblack]

Would Sandor killing Gregor not still work given that Gregor is now undead? Rather than using violence as a tool of anger and revenge, Sandor killing his brother could be a final act of love and a way for him to make peace with his brother and their past.

[@agentmysterian1461]

was thinking that aswell. I believe Cleganebowl could be thematically fitting, if executed in the right way

[@millibillionth]

Perhaps it's fitting in that Sandor is the gravedigger and Gregor is a walking corpse.

[@YoungSavage]

@@millibillionth you just blew my mind, cant believe i never connected that.

[@jacobrichards3635]

Would make even more sense thematically if Sandor used fire to kill the undead Mountain too

[@TheworldaccordingtoJake]

A theory I came up with myself is that Lann the Clever was a dwarf. Lann and Tyrion are both Lannister tricksters and both really clever, so it parallels the two. Also, being a little person is sometimes genetic, so it would show that the Lannister’s have that gene. Lastly, it creates an interesting wrinkle with Tywin, despising Tyrion because he’s a monster and no true Lannister, despite the fact that (if my theory is true) Tyrion would be closer to a real Lannister than Tywin.

[@mavenous22]

One theory I like is that Meera and Jon are siblings...Meera and Jon are the same age, both Ned and Howland were at the tower of Joy, and Bran thinks Meera reminds him of Arya (who in turn looks like Lyana Stark)...

[@CrackingCody]

I think the V+I = fA is in reference to the fact that Verys and Illaryio may have "made" fAegon and shaped who he was and what he was supposed to do, as another player in the game. Not that they literally birthed him..... Hard truths cut both ways, Sir Quinn.

[@QuinnTheGM]

When it comes to theorizing about ASOIAF, nothing’s off the table

[@CrackingCody]

Well regardless, the idea that Verys has some involvement in fAegon is fairly sound, given his involvement with Dany at least. Surprised there weren't any Coldhands theories on that board. Or Night's King stuff.

[@dr0g_Oakblood]

I think the implication is that Varys is actually secretly a woman with Eunuch as a cover, but yeah still a tad strange, as Varys would definitely still have been in KL at the time of (f)Aegon's conception.

[@Botar48]

@@dr0g_Oakblood Varussy??

[@vicious5367]

There is a theory that Varys is a Blackfyre and he had a sister, Saera (?) who eventually became Illyrio first wife and they birthed FAegon

[@InquisitorThomas]

I’d probably put Cerci and Jamie being Aerys’ kids in Unlikely as opposed to What?! because we’ve been informed a couple of times that Aerys did lust after Johanna and was a bit improper towards her on several occasions. I really doubt that it’s the case, but there’s at least enough textual evidence that it wouldn’t be that out of left field if revealed.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I realized that after I recorded, I totally agree with you. The what was mostly because I had thought it was saying that Aerys and Joanna ARE Cersei and Jaime initially.

[@bierwolf8360]

@@QuinnTheGM I think it's a very legit theory because it would fuck over Tywin a lot, as in, his only real child would be Tyrion, which he tried to have killed. Tywin's beloved legacy a lie. Also, it would fit in with Jaime being AA.

[@Dadordemiel]

​@@bierwolf8360 I think Tywin that is sooooo worried about the family and his legacy is in fact esterile and not only Cersei and Jaime are Aerys rapy sons but Tyrion as well. That's the you're not son of mine line for. Don't remember if in the books he says it as well, think he does.

[@Pigraider268]

​@@Dadordemiel No that wouldn't make sense. It is said Aerys was using the law of First Night on the wedding night and Tyrion is younger then twins

[@Dadordemiel]

@@Pigraider268 I think the theory of Tyrion Targaryen explains it. Don't remember, read it a long time ago. The only thing I'm doing here is combine the A+J=J+C with the Tyrion Targaryen one, because I think, again, Tywin is sterile.

[@leftofyou]

The theory is that Bloodraven is not the 3 eyed crow. When asked about it by Bran, he seems confused at the notion.

[@QuinnTheGM]

My thought is that that line is talking about how much he’s been depersonalized but becoming a magic tree-man.

[@leftofyou]

Could be, but the theory that it's future Bran leading himself and others through their dreams is pretty great too.

[@ivanacvetanovic7611]

@@leftofyou A one eyed albino who talks about a brother he hated? Why would that be Bran rather than Bloodraven?

[@leftofyou]

@@ivanacvetanovic7611 were talking about thr 3 eyed crow in Bran's vision. No doubt the old guy under the tree is Bloodraven, lured to the cave and trapped inside in his own way.

[@ivanacvetanovic7611]

@@leftofyou You really think there's some other Three-Eyed Crow? That is really unnessarily overcomplicating things.

[@bouel2709]

My personal favorite is that Osha and Tormund are brother and sister Also, I am pretty sure that Hot Pie is Tom Seven's son (because he said that all his children sings very well and Arya is impressed by how good Hot Pie is at singing)

[@yguiyughoi1728]

Have you seen any videos on that, or is this a personal theory?

[@yguiyughoi1728]

And then I remembered google existed

[@niofalpha]

For Azor Ahai, I’m guessing there’s a trick and there’s more than one, or it’s all just a metaphor.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I’ve always been partial to the thought that Jon is Lightbringer, with Rhaegar as Azor Ahai.

[@niofalpha]

@@QuinnTheGM That’s a good one! I assumed that Jon/ The Night’s Watch were since their vows mention being the sword in the darkness

[@Jesse-fd5bv]

It's definitely a trick. GRRM is an atheist author and would not make his existential story come down to prophets / prophecy

[@gendeld]

Danny is the "obvious" Azor Ahai - she represents the classical Arthurian prophecised hero - she matches all the signs in a clean way (too clean for George who likes his prophecies to manifest in a way the reader won't expect). Stanis is the contrived Azor Ahai, he only matches the signs because Mel manufactures them (you can't force a prophecy). Jon is the secret prince that was promised, which probably makes him the truest one

[@spideregg]

I'd like the very last chapter of the series to be set 7,000 years in the future where a young boy is listening to the tale of how a single hero saved the world.

[@mouton-jk9xm]

What are you talking about? Euron Greyjoy being Daario Naharis is absolutely possible. The TV show has shown us an exemple of the Ironborn's teleportation powers

[@RoleCrow]

Mance Rayder= Arthur is a "What" lol he was literally at winterfell when king Bobby went to make Ned the Hand, you would think somebody would have seen the sword of the morning there posing as a bard and be like "dude what?"

[@QuinnTheGM]

Fair, though I mostly reserved “what?” for theories I’d straight-up never heard of before.

[@luciamota1249]

That and also Stannis literally talking to him at the Wall and just let it be. There were people who even tried to convinced me that Stannis accept it just as if nothing and even included Mance Dayne in his plan to conquer the North...

[@spideregg]

Future readers of these books after we have all the answers will never understand the joys and frustrations of trying to solve the myriad of mysteries he has given us. I hope that when we finally do get answers that there won't be a mass deletions of posts and videos by those who turn out to be wrong. Future sociologists will have a treasure trove of data to be gathered in the way that people dealt with these debates.

[@luciamota1249]

That's the thing, my friend. What makes you think that isn't that what GRRM has ever wanted? Maybe he'll deliver to us TWoW, but let the final completely open to have us discussing his works through ages. I think it can backfire to him cause we are mortals, and next generations would never pick and unfinished saga but still, I can picture him laughing at us from the Great Beyond.

[@neuralmute]

@@luciamota1249 My own theory is that GRRM is fucking with us. He's already finished both books, but is refusing to release them until he's dead. He saw the mess when GOT ended terribly, and doesn't want to deal with fan drama if/when his own work fails to satisfy his fans, who have been a massive pain to him for over a decade now. I think he's got a lot of spite toward a large portion of his fan base at this point, and no reason to even try to please them. So we're only going to get WOW and ADOS posthumously, and George gets the last laugh.

[@millibillionth]

Except I don't think George will give us the ultimate answers, just more clues and stuff to chew on. The enormous work he put in crafting these puzzles and leaving them open-ended and ambiguous would sort of be undone if he just laid out concrete answers in the end.

[@animatedmonkey5882]

@@millibillionthi agree with this but I also think we should get a little bit more information. Many of the magical mysteries of the series are pretty integral like the inconsistent seasons and the motives of the others

[@elijahalbiston]

@@neuralmute Honestly that's not a bad theory... I don't believe he's finished both books, but he could very well just be stalling until his death for their release. Personally I believe that, with all the evidence, time, and content meant to be in Winds that the books must be done or nearly done. He might just be chilling and creating A Dream of Spring, Fire and Blood part two, and more. That'd be great.

[@EdgedShadow]

Honestly, they should ALL be "we'll probably never know" since the series will never be finished.

[@michaelpearce9582]

Meera Reed is John snows twin sister. Lyanna died giving birth to twins. They separated them to keep them safe. Howland took Meera. Meera looks nothing like jojen. She has stark like features and has lyanna’s skills. In the cave she will most likely being acquiring dark sister. She is the literal dark/hidden sister. The dragon has 3 heads. Rhaegar thought Jon would be a girl. Thinking that it was like aegon and his 2 sisters. BGG. Jon’s name will be Aemond like his great uncle and the dragon knight and not Aegon. The horn of winter says it will wake giants from the earth. It will not bring down the wall but raise the dead starks up from the crypts of winterfell to fight the nightking. Jon will get to see his mother and maybe Ned. Cat will find out Jon’s not Ned’s son and will redeem herself by bringing him back. Bloodraven will talk to Jon inside of ghost or Jon will sense his presence.

[@rhomboidq7001]

A part of me likes to believe George is on these theory videos probing for fan reactions. This story would be awesome! Wow

[@MrMythul]

The faceless men causing the doom of valyria is actually practically confirmed. So Jacquen does take credit for it when talking to Aria, however, it seems like this is almost a secret not known amongst a wide amount of people. An external group also determined that the most likely cause was the death of many fire mages. These same fire mages prophesized that the gold of casterly rock would lead to the doom. Prophecies can often be self-fulfilling, so the valyrians never took money from the Lannisters. Despite the Lannisters offering them quite a large sum of it for a valyrian steel blade. However, we know that the Lannister still ended up with of valyrian steel blade within 100 years before the doom. We know that the faceless men take longer amounts of time for higher profile targets, and what's a higher profile target than an entire nation. Let alone the most powerful nation on the planet. So, who hired the faceless men? It would need to be someone who could reforge valyrian steel, have a storage of the stuff and distaste for dragons/magic. They would also need to know the lannisters wanted a blade. Who else do we know very likely killed the targeryon dragons? The maesters. Marwin tells us that they killed all the dragons, perhaps he ment more than just the targeryon dragons.

[@thisisabcoates]

I like the theory that Euros is skin changing the dusky woman. It's a bit tinfoil because of the logistics, but it's also right up Euron's alley to do something so screwed up

[@mwfp1987]

It would also explain why the dusky women freaks at the sight of a red priest. The logistics are not the problem because Arya and Nymeria works just fine. Even crazier theory is that all of Eurons mutes are his worgs

[@stephengrigg5988]

I buy it. Victarion shares so much to her too

[@Pigraider268]

I honestly think Jaime and Cersei being halftargaryen is completely legit theory. "Whenever Targaryen is born gods flip a coin" It would make so much sense insanity in Cersei her love for fire and siblings incestuous preferences

[@godemperorofmankind3.091]

except that saying doesn't really make sense, because less than half the Targs went mad. far less than half.

[@louisbinns1144]

re-reading the Cersei POV chapters and honestly, with all the references to wildfire and revenge fully convinced she is the Mad King's daughter

[@realbabyeater]

@@godemperorofmankind3.091And most of them went mad for absolutely legit reasons

[@juanpablomina1346]

Bloodraven being the three-eyed crow is an issue because Bran asks him if he is and Bloodraven ignores him as if he didn't understand the question. One possibility is that Bloodraven doesn't know what shape he takes in Bran's dreams. Another possibility is that time-travelling Bran is the three-eyed raven. Bran seems to get different dreams with different patterns, so it's possible that they're from different people.

[@jaredbrady5566]

On the Cersei poisoning Joffery theory. I have thought that a possibility for a while, and it's a case of "unreliable narrator". As she is so egotistical and unhinged, Cersei blames Tyrion for Joff's death because it should have been him dying instead (before tasting his own slice of pie, Joffery jams his fingers into Tyrion's slice and eats some of it). Her hubris is so extreme that she can't fault herself for the error, it's Tyrion's fault for not eating his pie before Joffery had a chance to touch it. However, there are too many things indicating a group effort incorporating the all important hairnet and amethysts. Also, George being somewhat of a hippy feminist vibes well with Olenna the aged woman being the one getting her hands dirty in the murder.

[@gaybowser4967]

Yeah the whole 'fAegon' theory literally has to be true otherwise it shatters all of Varys's actions over the past 20 years of that universe. Whether certain characters learn it is true is another question but without him being a Blackfyre, it doesn't work.

[@midlandsdruss6006]

There's 2 theories that I really like and think they have some credibility that were not on this list but you might enjoy : preston jacobs' purple wedding theory and lml's a+f=doom/the doom was an inside job/abolition.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I’ve seen the first one, and I like it quite a bit! I’ll have to look into the second.

[@raven772]

The purple wedding one is on there with Tyrion being the target. I like that theory video a lot.

[@ahealthkit2745]

I really think that the theory around 'ASOI&F is scifi post-apocolypse' is just nuts. It's a clear 'Absolutely not', there is definitely examples of fiction where that *is* the case, but it is evident in how certain aspects of the fantasy operate. Technology *looks* like technology. We never see a red priest pull out a magic stethoscope before reviving them, and the dragons are pretty clearly flesh and blood creatures that have existed for a long time (long enough that their bones have been fossilized). If there was an intent to have the series be set in a distant post-apocalypse, there would be more clear signs and hints of that. It seems far more likely that this is just a low-fantasy setting that takes place on a timeline where magic has its ups and downs in popularity/accessibility.

[@QuinnTheGM]

Definitely agree with you there. I think the thing that people use to explain the absence of technology away is potential mutations brought on by radiation, but I don’t think that’s the case despite loving the X-Men.

[@luciamota1249]

Hell no! I put my hands on fire about Dawn being a damn jedi lightsaber!!!! The clues are there in the description!!!!! xD Jokes aside I really enjoyed PJ's theory about it, specially situating ASOIAF in the interregnum period of the 1000 worlds cause I really wanted this world as a part of all other worlds by George, but I think he already denied it :( I was creaming when I read The Pale Child Bakkalon mentioned in the Forsaken chapter but everyone broke my heart saying it was just a cool easter egg.... I wanted the freaking weirwoods being a Hrangan mind but no, those were just dreams.... 😞

[@kyleellis1825]

Low fantasy is set on Earth. High fantasy has it's own world. It has nothing to do with the tech/magic level.

[@TheDiabeticGameMaster]

Perfect sort of light content I need in the morning whilst getting ready for work. Thanks, man! Will update later with more substantial comment, lol.

[@kieran10202]

I think Euron is Azor Ahai, and its going to be just the worst possible thing. He's born amidst salt and smoke, he's going to take the sword Red Rain from his bannerman, I think he's going to stab his lover with the sword to gain power, and I think ultimately he'll do the same ritual that the bloodstone emperor did and become a second night king, south of the wall, before we even get to meet the first.

[@dirtysheepdog]

I love the idea of Dany going East to Ashai and learning how to better control her dragons. Then continue East to battle Euron at Oldtown. Kraken v Dragon battle 🤞

[@QuinnTheGM]

That’d be interesting! Though I feel like there might be another undiscovered continent in the way.

[@millibillionth]

I think that might've been the initial plan, but George ended up increasing the distance to Ashay as he developed the geography of Essos and he left Dany for too long in Slaver's Bay at this point for him to have the time to still take her further east.

[@dirtysheepdog]

@@millibillionth I can see what you mean. Scrapping the 5 year gap probably ended this possibility

[@animatedmonkey5882]

I hope we atleast learn more about ashaii. It seems to me to be the most important location for the story in the wider world outside of westeros and western essos. Since it seems like one of the most magical places in the world and is where melissandre is from I'd hope there'd be some hints there as to what is really going on with the magic in the world.

[@maxmustermann9058]

"Grand Northern Conspiracy" and "Southern Ambitions" are good examples of how people go overboard with trying to connect all possible dots, when there really is just hints at general, opportunistic scheming. It's a issue with all sorts of theories about any topic.

[@QuinnTheGM]

Wholeheartedly agree. Just because there are many little pieces doesn’t mean there’s an interconnected whole.

[@luciamota1249]

I recently read a theory that literally debunks Rickard Stark's southron ambitions explaining that the one who actually was making all the marriages was Hoster Tully, but simply cause he was trying to stop Walder Frey from becoming too powerful in the area with all the alliances he made marrying all his prolific family. It made a lot of sense to me.

[@tieranalexander4475]

My personal favorite theory is Stannis wrote the pink letter to get Jon and the Free Folk to fight for him. Once Jon deserts his choice is to fight for Stannis or die, going back isn't an option. Stannis has wanted Jon as his Lord of Winterfell to rally the North behind for a long time, he also has no reason to believe there's an alternate play that gives him the North with Rickon and Bran believed to be dead. He has all the information and some sort of motive. I don't think Jon dying was his plan but maybe he left Melisandre behind for a reason. Even if Ramsey had caught Mance the likelihood of him also catching all six (Or at least knowing about all six) of the free folk woman sent with him in such a such a short time is incredibly slim. Mance it really doesn't make sense for it to be him unless it's at least under Stannis' direct instruction.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I initially thought that it was Stannis, though it really just doesn’t seem like Stannis’s style. What’s more, it already seems like Stannis is going to best the Boltons without aid (see the Night Lamp theory).

[@tieranalexander4475]

@@QuinnTheGM I don't doubt Stannis can beat the Boltons without aid but to what end? Why would the North fight for him in the South just because he beat the Boltons? He needs a figurehead to rally them behind because their loyalty right now is to hating the Boltons- not to Stannis himself. He has no reason to believe Rickon is alive and Arya is believed to be Lady Bolton now so she's not a reliable FF figurehead. He needs a Stark to lead the North and Jon is the only candidate he knows of.

[@college54114]

Great tier list, loved the video

[@Certosinij]

Keep up the good work! Love your content. You should go hard and make a 4 hour theory post (like alt shwift x)

[@BlackHand531]

17:16 N+A=J The thing that deals ned and ashara for me is the beginning of the book. GRRM hides things in his writing. Several times Jon is said to be his father's son. Also ned thought in Edard 2 or 3 that he never thought of reigar in YEARS! How could he do that, if he's raising his son? These are very common things that he does in his writing.

[@rpproductions6241]

New subscriber here. I really liked your tier list and actually agree with most of your choices. Something strange that I don't see people bring up about Syrio Forel is why was he in King's Landing at all? It's mere days after Arya talked to her father about swordsmanship that he became her instructor. So he must have been around before then. I can't help wonder why. It may support the Syrio = Jaquen theory though. We still don't know why Jaquen was even in the black cells.

[@cam1772fsu]

I have often wondered about Syrio. He's not just any waterdancer, he's the "first sword" of Braavos. That seems...important? Was he lying on his resume? If not, why's he in the west slumming as some barbarian girl's private tutor? Jaquen being in the dungeons is pretty sus too. Getting caught at murder seems pretty amateurish for a professional magical assassin. If Jaquen is Syrio though, that means he was there for Arya all along, but why? So many questions...

[@fletcherw32]

@@cam1772fsu Arya is a literate skinchanger without her warg. Those are pretty valuable traits for a guild of Assassin’s.

[@elijahalbiston]

I think how and why Jaqen was in the Black Cells will never be answered tbh

[@rpproductions6241]

@elijahalbiston3105 I don't think so either. There's the theory that Littlefinger hired him to take Ned out and Jaquen put himself in the cells basically, but that doesn't make sense to me either. Why not pretend to be a guard and poison Ned instead, then just leave?

[@ErikBjornSmith]

I'm an N+A=J fan and I think R+L=J would have just as easily been given away in Ned's PoV chapters. Him not calling Jon his nephew at some point whenever he thinks of him or of his sister is hard to imagine for me. Especially when he hasn't thought of Rhaegar in years, which would be odd if Jon's his son. The only time he thinks of Rhaegar is when he's with Robert and we can assume the last time he saw him was during the Iron Islands Rebellion, which happened about 7/8 before the first book, which would be counted as years and therefore, only whenever he sees Robert. You'd think he'd think of Rhaegar a lot if Jon was his son.

[@thecommoncliche5444]

The whiplash of kindof sane theories, and then 'Varys is not a merman'

[@sardonically-inclined7645]

28:51 First I'm hearing of it, but if I had to guess. Stannis' wife would be their queen and is their relative, so independently sabotaging Renly's armour on the eve of the battle would make it so he's more likely to die in the fighting, and so minimalise casualties during the fighting. Renly falls, Stannis accepts their surrender and fealty, and they confide in Selyse about their contribution for favour.

[@QuinnTheGM]

Ahhh makes sense. I tried to research that one after the fact and came up with nothing, but i like this explanation!

[@samd2013]

After rereading Dance with Dragons last year, I feel like I had an epiphany after reading the prologue. I used to be 100% sure that Jon was going to get resurrected in the next book. But I now think that the ADWD prologue is straight up foreshadowing what will happen to Jon; in his last dying moments he warged into ghost. I mean Jon’s direwolf is named “Ghost”. It all just makes so much sense. Jon will not get resurrected because his consciousness never died, only his body did. However it he will probably slowly forget himself as that’s what happens when you’re warged too long.

[@saranonimus9211]

Not saying this outcome is likely, but imagine an end to magic as a major ASOIAF plot point. If it happens in a Thanos-snap kind of moment...all glamours disappear (likely exposing various Faceless assassins), all types of wights would de-animate, and who knows what other effects (spells woven into objects/places). If the only way to stop the Others was to press the End-Magic button, would Bran choose to do it?

[@QuinnTheGM]

That’s an interesting proposal! I think bran would push that button, however, I doubt the three-eyed-crow would.

[@inigo137]

The Pounce that was Promised

[@E-Brightvoid]

Queen Selyse wrote the Pink Letter.

[@sardonically-inclined7645]

22:44 It might not just be about navigation, per se. Bran is the oldest living true born son of Ned Stark, so both his abilities and claim to the north may be important to Bloodraven. As well as the Winterfell Godswood.

[@jaspersong7959]

lol jon is his own father got me rolling

[@cheffdonty]

Yeah I never heard about that Jamie's hand thing. Guess I should go back and re-read some Storm of Swords chapters.

[@QuinnTheGM]

Main point there being that Qyburn both has Jaime’s hand and resurrected the Mountain.

[@cheffdonty]

@@QuinnTheGM Yea hence I wanted to go back to see if Qyburn actually did have the hand. Seems like the text implies that Bolton let Vargo Hoat use it as he will but I'm gonna keep rereading.

[@blackeyedlily]

I agree with the majority of your thoughts on these various theories. There are just a few that I think are unlikely that you felt were possible. It is interesting that the theories about the Pink Letter include just about every potentially good suspect. InDeepGeek has a good video that debunks the idea of Jaqen being Syrio. He is really good at laying out whether various theories are true or not through a very logical perspective. I do think that several aspects of the television show influenced peoples thoughts on that particular one. Just like the people who thought that Jon Snow and Meera Reed could be siblings. This was primarily based on the fact that the two actors had similarly colored and curly hair! Which is a very silly thing to base a theory on IMO. It is interesting how the television show influenced a number of people about book theories. I do think that Jaqen does show back up in the prologue to Feast as the Alchemist. And I do like another InDeepGeek theory that wasn’t included on your list. He believes that Ashara Dayne married Howland Reed and is probably living at Greywater Watch. He lays this out by looking at the story of the Knight of the Laughing Tree as a “how I met your mother” story that Howland told his children. I recommend that video for anyone who wants to know more about the details of that idea.

[@Gridironwarplans]

My favorite theory is that azor ahai is actually Trey Anastasio, lead singer and guitarist of the band phish.

[@superballsfour20]

Sam Tarly is Jon Snow's mother

[@bjam27]

Sam is a Sam.

[@E-Brightvoid]

Azor Ahai is the Neravarine. But seriously, I like the idea that anyone meeting the criteria can become Azor Ahai.

[@E-Brightvoid]

“Walk as they walk until they walk as you walk.”

[@bjam27]

it's more of a concept than a real thing.

[@thehonestaspy102]

I would love my boy Jamie to be Azor Ahai but if he is he really needs to learn to use that left hand!

[@bierwolf8360]

why do you think it's Jaime?

[@neuralmute]

I've been rereading the series, and I think there's a hint dropped in COC that Jaime will actually surpass his previous skills now that he's fighting lefty. It's in one of the Jon chapters where he's out scouting with Qhorin Halfhand, and it mentions how, after losing most of the fingers on his right hand, Qhorin trained and trained until he was far more skilled fighting left handed than he had even been before his right hand was maimed. I really don't think GRRM put a detail like that in the story by accident!

[@thehonestaspy102]

@@neuralmute that's a really interesting detail to notice well spotted! I agree George doesn't drop hints like that without a purpose and I'd love Jamie to end up that good now he's learnt the value of humility and regained his honor

[@HerbCoswellBornAgain]

"Varys is not a Merman" I wish he was though. Lol.

[@jordanbrown3816]

Why is Theon being castrated a possible theory, isn’t it pretty much heavily implied in the text many times, did I miss something?

[@stofsk]

yeah should be in Basically Confirmed imo

[@Buford_T_Justice1]

Great video! My favorite ASOIAF theory is Li’l Finger is the best rapper in Westeros.

[@ferodrigues1211]

4:05 - the Inn at the Crossroad's Clanking Dragon story pretty much confirms Aegon's a Blackfyre.

[@KetilK]

I've been wondering if coldhands could have been a strong skin-changer who started skin-changing wights shortly after his body died. We know he "died" a long time ago, but maybe that just referred to his body and that his mind is still alive.

[@QuinnTheGM]

Interesting theory! Perhaps he was a student of Bloodraven.

[@likerofvideos4534]

There’s some theories that the starks have white walker blood. Part of me has always wondered if benjen stark having some of that blood through his stark heritage allowed him to resist the other collective

[@bookswithike3256]

@@likerofvideos4534 Coldhands is confirmed not to be Benjen.

[@renaigh]

Theory; No one poisoned Joffrey, he really did just choke.

[@kyleellis1825]

The Three Eyed Raven warged the boar that killed Robert.

[@godemperorofmankind3.091]

im pretty sure the Ned + Cat = Jon is meant to indicate some switching at birth went on between Jon and Robb. Meaning Jon is heir to winterfell but doesn't know it, and Robb was Lyanna's son but never knew it.

[@lutilda]

It's interesting that some theories, like the tragedy at Summerhall being to birth dragons, ARE still theories. I definitely thought that was confirmed in cannon to be true. 😅

[@DawudSandstorm2]

23:00 I honestly think that Jon's Night Watch brothers wrote the Pink Letter to test his commitment to the watch and get other conspirators on board with the assassination. Either that or the Queen's men at the wall, considering how fast the assassination came after the arrival of the Pink Letter, and the seeming coordination between the distraction with Wan-Wan and the assassination itself, considering that could only have been done with the help of Queen's men.

[@zaraandrews600]

I hope your finals went well!

[@QuinnTheGM]

Ha! Forgot this video was right before finals. They did go well!

[@jibbedol2968]

If Robert strong has Jaime's hand, does he also have the skills Jaime's right hand had with a sword?

[@herbertschulz4313]

Thats not how skills work. Swordfighting is mostly hand-eyecoordination, and happens in the brain

[@jibbedol2968]

@@herbertschulz4313 yes I know. Thanks for blowing my mind🤯

[@zeoxyman]

For him to be the Valonqar, all that is required is to choke Cersei with that hand. So I would say no. Definitely the most surprising-yet-plausible theory for me out of the lot

[@Cecil_Harvey]

Lyanna as KotLT is actually pretty garbage albeit very popular. Ned is almost certainly KotLT based on the booming voice and him being the only stark of his generation we see with any relationship with weirwoods.

[@kelleycondon6504]

the main thing that sticks out to me was the entire chapter leading up to bran eating the paste even though itnseems to be his perspective over the course of living in the cave for a long time but the line about the crescent moon being as thin as a blade is reoccurring over the entire chapter

[@lumbdame]

Brynden Rivers or Bloodraven is the old man in the cave that Bran met. But the Three-eyed crow is a different entity completely 31:18

[@carsonneel464]

Surprised the Northern Conspiracy wasn't higher but I get what you mean by it's probably just not on the scale people think it is.

[@thisguy8106]

The taking of brans body would make show Bran make way more sense. In the show.. Bran is still Bran when he gets to The Wall and talks to Benjen. The next time we see him..he's passed through the Wall..and he's a completely different person. A robot almost. If it was just bc he became the "3 eye Raven" on the show..then..why was he *still* normal Bran at the Wall with Benjen??.. Idk. Either way.. I'm ready to read the books and to stop guessing at so many theories.. So ready to weed them down a bit..

[@unreal306]

The roast of the atom en and Joff legit one was hard

[@gustavovaniterson9474]

Nice video, thoughts on A + H = M? And that Ashara is still alive and hiding in Greywater Watch.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I’m unfamiliar! Is that Ashara + Howland = Meera?

[@Methus3lah]

I just came up with a prediction that I think would be really amazing and heartbreaking: When Dany invades King’s Landing, the bells will probably cause JonCon to go crazy and try to burn everything (this isn’t my prediction, just context). At this point, I think JonCon’s greyscale will spread rapidly over his body as he gives in to madness. And in order to save his city and his kingdom, Faegon hugs JonCon to calm him down, knowingly dooming himself to greyscale in the process. Tears stream down Faegon’s face, the dampness letting greyscale get a foothold in the trails they leave. “Father, please, don’t do this.” JonCon raised Faegon as his own. It’s only fitting that he sees him as a father. In the end, love is not the death of duty. Faegon fulfills his duty by expressing his love for his father. But that’s just a theory.

[@markd.s.8625]

i think the three eyed crow is a distinct entity, maybe even the great other, or an aspect of it, or some other eldritch entity

[@PfcDupuis]

I think that Bloodraven isnt the 3EC. He has no clue what Bran means when he asks if he is him

[@QuinnTheGM]

My thought is that that line is meant to show how depersonalized Bloodraven has become in his time connected to the trees.

[@PfcDupuis]

@@QuinnTheGM Maybe, but since the 3EC would be his persona in the Weirnet, seems to me that it would be his first identity. Also All crows are liars - Old Nan 👀

[@spideregg]

I don't like it either. George basically spoon fed us the idea that Bloodraven is the 3EC, and that isn't his style. I think he gave us what appears to be a softball so that we wouldn't be wondering what became of Bloodraven. Same thing goes for Sarella.

[@ivanacvetanovic7611]

@@spideregg This is what happens when so many years pass and you start overthinking things and saying that theories where you have to connect the dots are "spoon fed" just because they actually make sense.

[@HerbCoswellBornAgain]

Personally, I believe Euron Greyjoy is Azor Ahai, as I believe Azor Ahai is actually the secret/twist villain of the story, and not the hero, and like on the show, I believe Jaime will kill Euron, but it will be to save the world from the Mad God King Euron, rather then...whatever the hell that stupid fight in the show was.

[@Max-oi4it]

I think lemongate is fun... but it's probably just an oversight since Daenerys was not brought up in Braavos in the first draft but in Tyrosh. Lemon trees would grow there

[@colinmanning9080]

25:15 “it’s in my top five books of the series” in a five book series!! 🤣🤣

[@laioren]

Sir Pounce is clearly Azor Ahai, so glad to see you got that correct. Of all your picks, the only ones I disagree with are Daenarys going mad (I think it's pretty certain that was the original plan. Not sure if GRRM is going to go through with it now), and Aerys + Joanna = Jaime and Cersei. I think that last one makes a lot of thematic sense.

[@QuinnTheGM]

My main reasoning for Dany not going mad is because I think there’s a better candidate. I actually talk about this in a video I’m releasing tomorrow, but I think JonCon is going to go crazy when he hears the bells (due to his PTSD from the Battle of the Bells) and end up burning the city with wildfire.

[@laioren]

@@QuinnTheGM I'll check that out. And yeah, I think that's likely. I guess my point is that Dany is gonna become a "bad guy." She might not go "mad," and it might not be related to "bells," but she's gonna go bad. At least, I'm pretty sure that was the original intent. No telling what's going to happen now given the strong fan backlash to the final season of GoT.

[@mikes5637]

I always thought that was the plan, but over a period of time through mistrust and paranoia like her father. Not snapping when hearing bells on arrival at King's Landing.

[@6tiple6ix6afia]

Here is the thing about the Valonqar being Jamie that I NEVER see people mention. Why would George go out of his way to make sure we know that JAMIE WAS BORN AFTER CERSEI. It is enough to say they are twins, but it is specifically mentioned that he came AFTER she did. He is her "little brother" by just a fraction of time.

[@YouLittleRascal]

I don't get the "Varys shaves his head to hide his Targarien features", he is Lyseni (at least supposedly), those features are common there, even with the commonfolk

[@jenny_of_oldstones3523]

David Lightbringer does a Jojen Paste one too - I think ASX did it first and LML did a REALLY FUNNY shtick about it.

[@loririnaldi3408]

I think Tyrion is part Targaryan. He spoke about always reading about and being facinated about dragons. He is the least Lannister-like of the family. Tywin always doubts he is his. I always thought he was the 3rd head of the dragon along with Dani and Jon.

[@jessecook4466]

I actually think we will get more info on the doom. If arya stays at the house of black and white, I bet she’ll get more expo on it.

[@Seven_Leaf]

Littlefinger Debt Scheme, Karl fookin' Tanner was TV Show Azor Ahai

[@family26ful]

Aria is dead and the faceless god is controlling her. She drank the koolaid, the waif was a figment of her imagination.

[@michellemahar9030]

Best of luck on your finals!

[@QuinnTheGM]

Thank you! I will need it.

[@michellemahar9030]

@@QuinnTheGM you've got this! It's always stressful, but you are a clearly organized and intelligent person. You will be fine :)

[@whensomethingcriesagain]

As I understand it, UnTommen is the theory that Tommen will die and be resurrected by Qyburn at Cersei's behest, and the tie-in to it is the idea that Tommen is the Valonqar and his reanimated body will kill her

[@jmt4909]

Euron, for sure is one of the big villains of the books.. i think he will summon Krakens in A Wind of Winters

[@brockvinson1712]

Jorah being azor ahai in the show was fact for me for so long I had all my chips on it I’m just now starting the books

[@jorikrouwenhorst7220]

I like Cleganebowl theory mostly because I keep imagening the fight from a wrestling/bosker commentator perspective.