6. Sam Will Visit His Family
Sams story has paused with him making the hard decision to leave Jon and Castle Black with Gilly for the Citadel to train as a Maester. This does indeed happen in the books, though the time and circumstances are vastly different. Nevertheless, it will be good to see Sam set out on a journey of his own next season, and judging from the casting, it will be taking him back home. A major character being cast for next year is described as a humourless and highly disciplined 50-60 year old father and one of the greatest soldiers of Westeros. This sounds remarkably like Randyll Tarly, Sams grim father who banished him to the wall. Remember, Stannis commented how Randyll was the only man to beat Robert on the field at the Battle of Ashford. In addition to Randyll, the show also looks to be casting Sams mother, brother, and sister. What could be bringing Sam back to his home at Horn Hill? Well, in the books Sam plans to send Gilly to live with his family under the guise of her child being his bastard. It appears that the show will be going down this route as well, albeit with changes along the way. Sam will probably accompany her there on the way to Oldtown instead of sending her away after. This major change allows Sam to actually return to his family in person, and most importantly, confront his father Randyll, which should be an interesting and cathartic interaction.