We’ve known for some time now that former Deadwood star Ian McShane would be joining the cast of Game of Thrones for Season 6. McShane, ever the elusive professional, gave little away about his role, so we began to speculate wildly as to who he would be playing. Would he be the third Greyjoy brother, Victarion? Or could he be Randyl Tarly? How about Septon Meribald?
Enter the actor’s recent interview with BBC Breakfast, where he gave just a little too much away. We now have a very good idea of who he’s portraying in Game of Thrones Season 6.
My character is an ex-warrior who’s become a peacenik. So I have this group of peaceful…it’s like a cult, peaceful tribe… who have brought back…I bring back this beloved character that everyone thinks is dead. So, I’ll leave it at that.
Warning: Spoilers abound!
Ian McShane in Pillars of the Earth
What character from the books matches the description of an ex-warrior who became a peacenik, and who helped bring a thought-dead character back to life (metaphorically speaking)? The Elder Brother from the Quiet Isle.
Earlier in his life, the Elder Brother was a knight in a family full of them. He followed and fought for House Targaryen at the Battle of the Trident against Robert Baratheon’s army, where he was knocked unconscious and his comrades assumed him dead. They stripped him of his armor and dumped his body in the river. He washed ashore at the Quiet Isle, a place where people sworn to the Faith of the Seven could take refuge. The Elder Brother then in charge took him in and healed him, and he started a new life of religious asceticism.
And which beloved character will the Elder Brother be bringing back from the dead? Popular fan theory has it that it’ll be Sandor Clegane, the Hound. In A Feast for Crows, Brienne comes to the Quiet Isle in search of Sansa Stark. She happens across the Elder Brother, who tells her how Clegane died and even shows her his grave. The reason he tells her this is because Pod notices the Hound’s infamous warhorse, Biter, is kept in the stalls on the isle.
I know a little of this man Sandor Clegane. He was Prince Joffrey’s sworn shield for many a year, and even here we would hear tell of his deeds, both good and ill.
If even half of what we heard was true, this was a bitter, tormented soul, a sinner who mocked both gods and men. He served, but found no pride in service. He fought, but took no joy in victory. He drank, to drown his pain in a sea of wine. He did not love, nor was he loved himself. It was hate that drove him. Though he committed many sins, he never sought forgiveness.
Where other men dream of love, or wealth, or glory, this man Sandor Clegane dreamed of slaying his own brother (Gregore Clegane, aka the Mountain), a sin so terrible it makes me shudder just to speak of it. Yet that was the bread that nourished him, the fuel that kept his fires burning. Ignoble as it was the hope of seeing his brother’s blood upon his blade was all this sad and angry creature lived for … and even that was taken away when Prince Oberyn of Dorne stabbed Ser Gregor with a poisoned spear.
The group also passes an unusually tall novice with a limp. He’s digging graves, and when Septon Meribald’s dog runs to him, the novice bends down to pet him. Many Song of Ice and Fire suspect that this is Sandor Clegane, having turned over a new leaf and living the peaceful life on the Quiet Isle.
Now, if McShane’s character will bring back Sandor Clegane, the question is, will Sandor accompany Brienne back to King’s Landing, and why? Well, let’s consider what’s going on in the capital at the moment: Cersei is about to undergo a trial for regicide and adultery and a bunch of other stuff. In A Dance with Dragons, she chooses a trial by combat, and her champion will be none other than Robert Strong, the man who used to be Gregor Clegane before Qyburn messed around with him. The High Sparrow, currently the leader of the Faith of the Seven, must choose his own champion. The brothers of the Quiet Isle serve the the Faith of the Seven, and who better to face Cersei’s monster than Sandor Clegane, who’s wanted to kill him nearly all his life? This theory, that the brothers Clegane will square off during Cersei’s trial, is known as “Cleganebowl.”
Over the years, Cleganebowl has become an internet sensation and the source of many memes, but I think we really are on the cusp of seeing it come to fruition, and I believe it can be plausible if done the correct way. Here’s just one possible way it could play out on Game of Thrones:
The Elder Brother gets a raven from the High Sparrow: it’s time to send the Gravedigger to King’s Landing. He must serve the Seven. Sandor makes his way to the Sept of Baelor where the High Septon garbs him in the armor and weapons of the Faith. Cersei’s trial begins, and she smiles that cocky, knowing smile, sure that her gargantuan champion will crush whoever the Faith picks…but what’s this? The Faith has found a champion almost as big as Ser Robert Strong? All of the sudden, Cersei is beginning to feel what her twisted imp of a brother must have felt when Oberyn Martell took up his cause. Her stomach is queazy, and her mouth is dry, and all of the sudden, the Queen Regent is no longer as confident.
The two giants meet in the center of the ring and the contest begins, with Ser Robert raining blow after blow upon the Faith’s champion. One of those blows glances off his helmet, and it flies off, clanging against the ground, and the crowd gasps: Sandor Clegane is revealed. Cersei is stunned, and for the briefest of moments, Ser Robert Strong is taken aback by the familiar face. Sandor, taking advantage of the momentary lapse in Ser Robert’s judgement, and knowing that he would not be able to withstand another barrage of blows, swings with both arms, and separates Ser Robert Strong’s head from his body.
A fount of black blood begins to gush as Strong’s body falls to its knees. With the exception of Cersei retching, the crowd is hushed. The Faith’s Champion walks out of the circle to the waiting Warrior’s Sons, where they clap him on the back, but he doesn’t seem to notice. His job is done. It’s time to return to the Quiet Isle; he has some more graves to dig.
Via http://winteriscoming.net/2016/03/03/boarding-the-hype-train-is-cleganebowl-happening-in-game-of-thrones-season-6/
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