Jon Snow in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series was more powerful and interesting than his television counterpart. One of the most crucial plot points in the show was his resurrection in Season 6, and what he saw during his death debunked a long-standing theory that he warged on his direwolf, Ghost.
His ability to warg in the novels was not explored in the series, which was quite a bummer for those who expected to see the extent of Jon’s connection with Ghost. The Stark children all had this gift, but none of them ever reached the level of Bran’s power. The show left out a lot of these details to streamline the plot, though at the cost of Jon’s arc and a compelling storyline.
Jon Snow and his nonexistent warging ability in Game of Thrones
Avid fans looked forward to Jon Snow’s return in Game of Thrones after he was stabbed to death by his own men. During the interim of his demise, the Red Priestess Melisandre tried to revive him only to fail and eventually succeed. This brewed speculation among fans that Jon possibly warged into Ghost since the direwolf stayed with him throughout the ordeal.
Kit Harington telling Entertainment Weekly that his character saw “nothing, there was nothing at all” immediately snuffed all hopes that he warged with his direwolf. George R.R. Martin’s A Dance With Dragons already introduced this idea in the prologue where a minor character slipped into his wolf’s consciousness after he was killed. It also didn’t make sense for the show to ignore this since Jon’s last word when he perished in the book was “Ghost.”
David Benioff and Dan Weiss omitting this part in Jon’s arc simply demonstrated their disregard for Martin’s direwolves and the Starks’ warging abilities. Had the Lord Commander actually slipped into Ghost’s mind while he was dead, he might have seen what was happening the entire time—which also introduces an exciting possibility that Jon’s spirit could remain alive inside Ghost.
Jon’s death in the show would have carried more weight had they shown him warging into Ghost or at least hinted at his special ability. But, as Harington said, “At first I was worried that he’ll wake up and he’s the same, back to normal—then there’s no point in that death.” Exactly.
Why Game of Thrones left out Jon Snow’s warging skill
Game of Thrones actively ignoring Jon’s warging ability could be due to several reasons. The budget constraints and creative choices to focus on the political storylines rather than the mystical aspects played a major part in this letdown.
Jon’s arc was mostly centered on his duty at the Night’s Watch, and his warging skill could have proven to be advantageous in sensing dangers, especially with the looming presence of the White Walkers.
While his gift was better explored in the novels, we’ll likely discover more of this once The Winds of Winter is finished—that is if Martin revives Jon in the books.
Game of Thrones is currently available to watch on Max.
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