Image from “The Door” hints at a very interesting vision for Bran

“Book of the Stranger,” the fourth episode of Game of Thrones Season 6, is over. You can watch the teaser for Episode 5, “The Door,” in any one of several places, but the one on the HBO Go website is the most notable. Let’s look at it, but first, a SPOILER WARNING:

HBO has uploaded a very interesting thumbnail photo on the HBO Go website. It depicts four Children of the Forest sitting in a grassy area, surrounded by stonehenge-like stones.

The Children of the Forest are the race of being that had the run of Westeros before men came along One of them is hanging out with Bran, Meera, Hodor, and the Three-Eyed Raven in that cave north of the Wall. If you think those stones behind the Children seem familiar, then you might be right. In the preview for next week’s episode, “The Door,” Bran can be seen standing in the snow, near a pattern of stones and what appears to be a giant frozen tree. Skip to 0:20. (The scene with the Children does not appear in the teaser.)

If you look at the stones from the photo of the Children, and compare them to the ones behind Bran in this still, they seem to be a match.

In the still, Bran is standing, meaning that this is probably a scene from one of his vision quests into the past. It seems likely he’s visiting a place far in the North, looking at the White Walkers’ army of the dead. In the thumbnail image, that same area is green and sunny. Obviously, he’s seeing it at a different point in time, but at what point? Could “The Door” explore the origins of the Children of the Forest and their eternal struggle against the Others (White Walkers)?

There is a ton of history and lore to discuss when dealing with the Children of the Forest and the Others. The History and Lore features from the Game of Thrones DVDs provide a primer.

There’s an entire playlist to watch, so if you’ve got the time, watch them all, because they are definitely worth it. Let’s hope we learn more about the Children and the White Walkers soon.