Game Of Thrones’ Big Time-Loop Twist Explained

(Quick obligatory spoiler warning: if you haven’t watched The Door, probably best not keep reading).

While the Three Eyed Raven made it clear that - during their journeys to the past - Bran can’t change anything (so there’s no point in trying to stop his family from going to that wedding), we realised in last night’s episode that he can manipulate things while he’s there, and therefore might be responsible for things that have already happened.

Let’s recap. We have Bran and Wylis in the past, and Meera and Hodor in the present. Meera and Hodor are under attack, failing to fend off an army of Wights. Meera is trying to wake Bran up, while Hodor is terrified in a corner, repeating his own name (as he so often does when he’s scared).

Bran is fully unconscious in the present, but in the past, he can somehow hear Meera, begging him to wake up, and warg into Hodor. The Three Eyed Raven tells Bran to do what his friend says, but - still in the past - Bran can’t get to Hodor. He can, however, get to Wylis.

Bran somehow uses the young Wylis to warg into the old Wylis - aka Hodor. Then, in the present, Hodor (with still-in-the-past Bran warged into him) stands up, drags Bran’s unconscious body outside, and then - as per Meera’s desperate instruction - he “holds the door”.

Despite the fact that there’s a whole army of wights on the other side of it; even when the wights start to get through, Hodor “holds the door”, giving Meera and Bran enough time to get away.

Back in the past, and Wylis - seemingly as a result of being used as a conduit to the present - is seizing. As his future self (Hodor, holding the door) is consumed by one, desperate thought, it filters back through to Wylis and he begins to repeat it. “Hold the door”, “hold the door”, “hold the door”. Hodor.

We suddenly realise that we aren’t going to find out what made Hodor Hodor in a flashback, or in another one of Bran’s journeys to the past. We’re finding out what made Hodor Hodor now, as the teenage version of Bran’s oldest and most loyal friend is being imbued with one thought, filtering down from his future. One thought that will consume him for his whole life, give him a singular purpose and eventually kill him. Hold the door. Hodor.

In a classic time-loop, the day that Wylis stopped being Wylis, and turned into Hodor, put him on the path that would see him escape Winterfell with Bran and Rickon, travel North of the Wall, and then eventually find himself in front of a door with an angry army on the other side of it. Hold the door. Hodor. And the time loop starts again.

Hodor became Hodor on two days. One, years before Bran was born and the other, the day that he gave his life for him.