Game Of Thrones: 12 Ups And 4 Downs From Season 6

1. Tower Of Joy

R(haegar Targaryen) + L(yanna Stark) = J(on Snow).

It's the most well-known, oft-repeated, and widely believed fan theory across the entirety of Game of Thrones and book series A Song of Ice and Fire (and that's saying something, given there are a lot of fan theories).

The evidence that Jon was not Ned Stark's bastard, and instead the son of Lyanna and Rhaegar, was so compelling that it's really been a plot point awaiting confirmation rather than a theory. Now, finally, we have that confirmation.

It started when Bran's visions took him to the Tower of Joy, and the fight between Ned Stark and his men against two members of Aerys II Targaryen's Kingsguard: Ser Gerold Hightower and Ser Arthur Dayne. Tower of Joy Part I was fantastic in its own right, delivering a thrilling and violent sequence that stands as one of the best swordfights the show has done, and getting to see such a key part of the show's lore (and a character as renowned as Dayne) was a wonderful moment. However, it was all just setup for the main event.

Tower of Joy Part II was everything fans had hoped for. Ned arrives in the tower of find his sister Lyanna in a bed of her own blood, and a crying baby is delivered into his arms. It's a tearful, touching, and tragic scene as Lyanna explains to her brother what must be done, and the honourable Ned Stark accepts that he'll have to forgo his honour in order to raise the child as his own. Finally viewers get to hear the words they've so desperately longed for - "Promise me, Ned." - before a cut to a close-up of Jon's face, just incase there was any doubt who that baby was.