Spoilers: Do not read if you haven't seen season four
Season four of Game of Thrones was a doozey: poisoned kings, epic duels (with gross endings) and a polarising encounter next to a dead monarch. What does the highly anticipated season five have in store? A bunch of pictures released by those famously cagey producers might just hold some clues.
1. Tyrion and dragon
The meeting of Tyrion and the dragon can only mean one thing, right? More storylines crossing the Narrow Sea. Which could mean many other things, most of them very, very awesome: the chance for Tyrion to battle dragons (or, you know, just stare at them from the bow of a ship); Daenerys finally ending her string of seemingly irrelevant city sackings and just joining the action proper; and that, if team Daenerys finally makes it to Westeros, her dragons will feast on the rotting corpse of poisoned King Joffrey (sorry, I just really want to see more horrible things still happen to him).
2. Margaery smiling at Cersei
This deadly game of cat-and-bigger-cat continues – rejoice, fans of Dallas-style power-bitch exchanges. Here we see Margaery playing nice with mum-in-law as she slips herself into Tommen's heart. Or could she be plain flirting with Cersei, here? That is avery wide smile, and the girl's never met a royal she wouldn't marry…
3. Varys and Tyrion in hiding
It's the spider and the Imp, incognito. With Cersei baying for blood (between those hours in the day that she's baying for wine), it looks like we're about to spend a chunk of season five on the lamb with one of Westeros's favourite odd couples. If we're going to award points for disguises here, Tyrion wins. Varys, we see that shiny noggin… we know it's you!
4. Evil Boltons are back
Hopes dashed: the horrid Boltons will be back in season five to do terrible things like hunt women in forests and betray and kill your favourite characters. That woman to the right of father and son Roose and Ramsay is Walda Fray, daughter of the decrepit traitor Walder Fray, who apparently couldn't resist the urge to name his daughter kinda-sorta after his bad self. She's marrying Roose. And God help her.
5. Pod and Brienne
Quest alert: the role of lovable duo that spends the season roaming the countryside not doing a whole lot looks to this year be filled by well-endowed Podrick Payne and everyone's favourite strongwoman, Brienne of Tarth. Look forward to quirky fireside chats galore and the occasional bit of ultra-violence with an unfortunate passerby to keep things interesting.
6. Jon Snow
Has Jon Snow never seen Aladdin? You touch the treasures and boom – the Cave of Wonders implodes! So… don't touch! Alas, it looks like Jon, not satisfied with stealing so very many hearts, is about to steal something very significant and most likely face some very tough consequences.
7. Sansa and Littlefinger
These two appear to be at the stage in the relationship where you start dressing like your significant other – which is disturbing for those who just want this relationship to get sucked down the Moon Door and be done with because it's pretty much the creepiest thing in a show overflowing with contenders for that crown. But good news: Sansa isn't looking happy with Lord Baelish – did he make one of those "too soon" Ned Stark jokes doing the rounds in Westeros? Maybe there is trouble in lush green paradise.
8. Jon's meeting with Stannis
Jon and Stannis, as per the final episode of season four, are in the same place. Which means serious talks about strategy and politics and the chance that Melisandre (not in the frame) will attempt to seduce the young knight of the Watch.
9. Cersei and Jamie
Something is missing here… Cersei's BFF, 'Wine Goblet', is present and accounted for. As is Jamie's 'I Mean Business' cape. The missing element seems to be any sort of love/affection/chemistry between Westeros' most nonclandestine incestuous couple. Not only is there an unnecessarily large table between them, but she's not even looking at him. The chances of rekindled romance are looking slim. Unless of course one of her kids dies, she finds herself in the crypt with Jamie and, well, you know how she gets…
10. Melisandre
Melisandre, last seen staring dreamily at Jon Snow (along with the rest of us), isn't going anywhere. It's obvious she's going to try something on with the hunky hero this season – the only question is how? Will she coerce him with a flaming torch and army of believers, or will she just enlist that smoke man she once gave birth to, to find young Snow and drag him to her boudoir?
11. Tormund Giantsbane
Free man Tormund Giantsbane, second in command to Mance raider, is still looking not-so-free. He and his people lost the battle at the Wall and are now prisoners, but he has a mutual-respect-thing happening with Jon Snow. Will that help him drop those manacles at some point?
12. Doran Martell
New kid on the block Doran is the brother of Oberyn, who spent most of season four being the most charming person on Game of Thrones before the Mountain crushed his skull like a watermelon. Doran will be out for revenge – watch out Cersei.
13. Ellaria Sand and Areo Hotah
Doran will be assisted in his vengeance quest by chief guard Areo Hotah and Oberyn's lover Ellaria Sand, who had to watch as her boyfriend was killed by the Mountain. However, it appears these two won't always see eye-to-eye.
14. Tommen and Cersei
Tommen – aka not-homicidal Joffrey – looks set to have his ear bent by his manipulative mummy in season five. By the look on Tommen's face, we're 110 per cent confident this is a mum-and-son 'birds and bees' chat. "Ew, I have to do what to give you another generation of Lannisters?"
15. Arya Stark
Those wanting Arya to be reunited with whatever little kin she has left might be disappointed by season five. We last saw her on a boat bound for Braavos, across the Narrow Sea, and – if we can go ahead and read too much into this picture – it looks like when she lands she's as friendless as ever. Will she find Jaqen H'ghar, or another Faceless Man to help her on her way?
16. Cersei Lannister and Meryn Trant
Cersei is looking sombre as she walks away from this mystery chest with henchman/weasel Meryn Trant (you might remember him as the charmer who once punched Sansa in her guts at Joffrey's orders). What's in the chest that made her look so upset? A crate of empty wine bottles?
17. Missandei and Grey Worm
The course of true unsullied love never did run smooth. Last we left off, Missandei was enjoying the unexpected attention that the castrated Grey Worm was giving her (mostly through being nice during tutorials and then by ogling her naked). Here it looks like she might be calling it a day. "It's not you, it's me… I have this really busy job, what with the Khaleesi and trying to get to Westeros and help her rule the known world…"
Game of Thrones airs on Foxtel's Showcase channel on April 13.
