“R + L = J,” the little fan theory that could, gained credence outside the Tower Of Joy
The moment
Bran travels back in time, teasing “R + L = J”
The episode
“Oathbreaker” (season six, episode three)
Bran’s plodding arc with the Three-Eyed Raven finally began to pay dividends in “Oathbreaker.” Learning how to move through time, Bran travels backwards to witness events at the Tower Of Joy, where he watches his young father, Ned Stark, fight some goons just outside the imposing battlement. Ned is there to save his sister, Lyanna, whom he (and Bran) believes has been captured by Rhaegar Targaryen. But book readers and internet fan theorists saw a greater purpose: They’d long promoted the concept that “R + L = J”: Rhaegar Targaryen + Lyanna Stark = Jon Snow. And here, at last, was, if not proof, then at least solid evidence.
Because unfortunately, all Bran and the viewers see is Ned outside the Tower, where Lyanna’s screams are audible. This is just a tease: The Three-Eyed Raven pulls Bran out of the vision before he can see more. But this scene all but confirmed the theory of Jon Snow’s parentage. Why else bring up the long-dead Lyanna Stark? Why else have Bran travel to this particular moment in time? It’s laying a foundation for what’s to come later in the season, stoking the fire of the theory and, in all likelihood, introducing it to a much wider audience. “R + L = J” isn’t unequivocally confirmed until the sixth-season finale, when Bran returns to see the rest of the scene. But we’re introduced to it here, in a clever way to build anticipation for one of the biggest reveals of all: That Daenerys is not the only remaining Targaryen. We’re also introduced to an intriguing aspect of Bran’s time travel that has yet to be explored. When Bran calls out to his father, Ned pauses and looks around in confusion, suggesting Bran’s time travel powers come with the ability to alter and influence the past.
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