John Bradley talks about Sam’s conflicts with the maesters

Last night, we got our first good look at Sam Tarly’s life at the Citadel will be like. To make a long story short, it’s going to be gross — there’s a lot of cleaning bedpans and dissecting bodies involved. But as actor John Bradley explained to TV Line, it’s all in service of a higher purpose. “He’s not gone to the Citadel for an easy life for himself,” Bradley said. “When he appealed to Jon Snow, he said, ‘Send me to the Citadel because that’s where I can do the most good… I will help you win this war.’ He wants to go to the Citadel and work, and find knowledge that he can apply that’s going to change the course of things for everybody.”

"People at the Citadel are very keen on academia and knowledge for the sake of it. They’re quite keen to store all this knowledge and leave it on the shelf for a long time and never apply it. Sam doesn’t believe in that relationship with knowledge. He knows that knowledge isn’t powerful if it’s on the shelf… and not being applied."

Bradley may be throwing some subtle shade at Archmaester Marwyn (Jim Broadbent) there. Although kindly, Marwyn shot down Sam’s request to access the restricted section of the Citadel library. But like Harry Potter before him, Sam snuck into the section and grabbed the books he needed, cause he’s a rebellious, take-no-prisoners kind of scholar-in-training who’s there to get s**t done. (Sidenote: Broadbent also played Professor’s Slughorn in the Harry Potter movies, and you can bet the internet picked up on the parallels between these two stories.)

Okay, that last one wasn’t Harry Potter-related but the point stands.

Still, it sounds like Sam and Marwyn will have a positive relationship going forward, larceny or no. “He’s a fatherly figure,” Bradley said. “He’s a very wise old soul that Sam develops this relationship with.”

Elsewhere, on HBO’s Making Game of Thrones blog, several cast members shared what they were looking forward to most about the new season. Bring on the bullet points.

• Jerome Flynn, who plays fan-favorite Bronn, added, “Arya’s kind of been a favorite since the word go. I really hope she gets through [the season] and ends up not too disturbed.” 
• Gemma Whelan (Yara Greyjoy) said that she’s “intrigued by Jaime Lannister, because I started off hating him. But he’s become beguiling and interesting. I’m always happy to see him.” We’re eager to watch him walk through his moral crises, as well.
• Who’s Sophie Turner’s (Sansa) favorite character? Cersei Lannister. “I love what she does. Always entertaining.”
• Circling back to Bradley, he’s eager to see what happens with Theon Greyjoy. “He’s come so far, and he’s experienced so much,” Bradley said. Kit Harington (Jon Snow) agrees. “I think he’s got a really incredible part this season and one that we’ve been waiting to see. We’ve seen him as Reek being tortured season after season. Finally, there’s some change in him; Something comes back to life. And Alfie Allen is an astonishing actor who’s been doing it more than justice.”

Finally, the stars gave fans advice for watching the new season. “[G]rab tissues and comfort food,” Turner said. “You’re gonna need it.” Eep.

Next: Watch the trailer for 'Stormborn'

Of course, it’s hard to know when the cast members are being serious and when they’re just trolling. But Flynn seemed to have some sage advice. “Strap yourself in, and savor it while it lasts.”