Direwolves: Where are they now? We catch you up on the Stark family pets
By Corey Smith
3. Summer
While there was a long break between the deaths of Grey Wind and Shaggydog, it wasn’t long after Shaggydog’s death that another direwolf was sent to the next world. Bran Stark’s direwolf Summer followed his siblings into the grave defending Bran from a horde of undead wights in “The Door.” Throughout the series, Summer has defended Bran moreso than perhaps any of the other direwolves, as Bran was incapable of defending himself due to his paraplegia.
Rivaling only Ghost for the direwolf with the most screen time, Summer was the most balanced of the direwolves. Summer was capable of extreme acts of violence in the defense of his master, but otherwise remained a mild-mannered and well-behaved companion, never striking out unless necessary. Summer was also the only direwolf to be directly controlled by its master, as Bran was able to warg into Summer early on their relationship, something none of the other Stark children have managed, at least not consciously. This direct control provided a deeper level of protection for Bran, but he was warned against staying inside Summer for extended periods of time however, as it could lead to a loss of his identity.
Considering Summer’s significant presence throughout the series, some have suggested that the death of Summer has signaled the coming of winter. With the looming invasion of the White Walkers, this analogy could be apt.
