You Might Not Recognize This Stark

“Spot The Stark” might become a real game next season if Maisie Williams isn’t pulling our leg.

As we reported earlier this week, Game of Thrones took home Best International Program at the TV Choice Awards in London. Williams was on hand to accept it on behalf of the production.

During the post awards interview scrum, Yahoo UK asked Williams if she could give away any details for Season 5. She played it mostly coy, and for anyone who hasn’t read the books, it might have just sounded innocent. We “might not recognize Arya this year,” she said.

In any other production, one might take that as Arya ready to under go a serious make over. For you 90s kids, it suggests she might be getting a radical haircut, a la Felicity? I may or may not be having sudden nightmares of Maisie showing up on a red carpet with this haircut.

But no, this is Game of Thrones. Radial hair make overs, er wig make overs, are probably not what Williams is referring to. Book Spoilers and Show speculation ahead!

As we know, Arya was put on this path after she met Jaqen H’ghar, a Faceless Man on the road to Harrenhal. He became her friend in that dark and terrible place, and like all good friends do, killed her enemies. (Too late she realized the real enemy was Tywin Lannister. If only she had cottoned to that quicker–the whole of Westerosi history would be different today.)

I bring Arya’s Faceless Friend back up, because it was he who gave her that Braavosi Iron Coin, and the advice to use it for safe passage across the Narrow Sea if she ever needed it. The difference pulling that coin out and showing it to the Braavosi trader at the end of last season was startling. Suddenly she was no longer some beggar child on the warf to be swatted away. Instead she was an honored guest, with a real bed and her own cabin. That coin carried far more weight and conferred on Arya a respect I don’t think she was expecting. But after spending the last year or two as a fugitive on the run (it’s hard to keep track of time in Westeros), she wasn’t going to turn it down.

In the books, Arya doesn’t quite realize by buying the ticket with that coin and taking the ride, she’s chosen her future–that of becoming a Faceless (wo)man herself. It’s not until she’s reached the House of Black and White and stayed there a while that she decides to follow that path, and heads out as “Cat of The Canals.” With the show condensing down Books Four and Five together, will we see that period of decision truncated? When we meet Arya again, will she already have started the training to be no one?

• Published on 09/11/2014 at 7:00 AM CDT
• Last updated on 10/21/2016 at 12:40 PM CDT