Did Sam Tarly just become one of the most powerful men on 'Game of Thrones'?
Now that Game of Thrones is picking up the pace of plot development, there's a lot to process. One thing we've barely had time to deal with is the brutal death by dragonfire of Randyll and Dickon Tarly, father and brother of our good friend Samwell.
The Tarlys were executed by Daenerys in episode 5 for refusing to bend the knee after that loot train massacre. Back in Oldtown, Sam was blissfully unaware of the news; the Archmaester apparently didn't have the heart to tell him.
Some fans -- and actor John Bradley -- have suggested this gruesome development has a silver lining for Sam. "He's now technically head of House Tarly, whether he knows it or not, but I don't know if that would register with him," Bradley said in an HBO production diary. "That's a previous Sam who doesn't really exist anymore."
But is he the only Tarly left now? Does this make him the head of his House? Are the Tarlys the new lords of the Reach, the largest and the most prosperous of the Seven Kingdoms, given that they were the next house down from the "traitorous" Tyrells? Does all this make one of the show's most beloved characters also one of its most powerful?
To which the answers are very clear, according to Game of Thrones lore: No, no, no and no.
No, Sam is not the only remaining Tarly heir. You may not remember this because she had very little screen time during our visit to House Tarly in Season 6, but Sam has a sister. Her name is Talla.
No, Sam is not the head of his house now -- well, no more than he ever was. Dickon was actually his younger brother; Sam was always supposed to succeed Randyll. But tough-loving dad decided his eldest son was too fat and weak, which is why he packed him off to the Night's Watch in the first place.
Being a brother of the Night's Watch prevents you from gaining titles -- and the vow isn't something Sam has foresworn, even if he has sort of broken it by taking a wife in Gilly. His brothers need him and his maester knowledge, desperately. We've only seen one member of the Night's Watch abandon the service: Jon -- and his get-out clause was that he had literally died, after being murdered by his sworn brothers.
Sam is probably the closest thing to a feminist in the Seven Kingdoms. Can you really see him forsaking his vow because he thinks his sister isn't up to the job of leading House Tarly?
No, the Tarlys do not automatically become Lords of Highgarden (capital of the Reach), nor are they likely to take on that role any time soon. It's a royal gift -- and as Jaime Lannister told Bronn earlier this season, Highgarden is to remain empty for the duration of the war. It's anarchy out there, people.
Even if Daenerys takes the throne, putting the Reach in her gift, she's hardly likely to look kindly on the claim of House Tarly given that she burned its two leading members for insubordination. Far better to reward a loyalist -- Ser Jorah, perhaps, or Missandei.
As has been the case for five seasons, Sam has a greater calling: stopping the White Walkers. The death of his father and brother, both of whom disliked him, need not sway him from that solemn duty.
Topics Game Of Thrones
Chris is a veteran tech, entertainment and culture journalist, author of 'How Star Wars Conquered the Universe,' and co-host of the Doctor Who podcast 'Pull to Open.' Hailing from the U.K., Chris got his start as a sub editor on national newspapers. He moved to the U.S. in 1996, and became senior news writer for Time.com a year later. In 2000, he was named San Francisco bureau chief for Time magazine. He has served as senior editor for Business 2.0, and West Coast editor for Fortune Small Business and Fast Company. Chris is a graduate of Merton College, Oxford and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He is also a long-time volunteer at 826 Valencia, the nationwide after-school program co-founded by author Dave Eggers. His book on the history of Star Wars is an international bestseller and has been translated into 11 languages.
