Bran Stark is one of the most important characters in the world of Westeros and Game of Thrones, and his character development is a major part of that. He goes through a ton of changes throughout the show, both in terms of his abilities and his personality.
Starting out as just a young boy in the first episode, he goes through an incredibly difficult journey to become the person he ends up being in the finale. Bran is responsible for some of the shows major moments, and while he is a divisive character, he is certainly crucial to the plot.
The changes in his character are absolutely essential to the survival of men, and to the Stark family in general. Within this list, we will take a look at his journey and reveal his 10 biggest changes from the first episode to the last.
Being In A Wheelchair
Perhaps the clearest and obvious change that takes place for Bran Stark in the show is the fact that he ends up losing the ability to walk. Fans don’t get to see Bran being able to walk around much, as he is pushed from the tower at the end of the first episode.
However, it was very clear that he enjoyed running and climbing around as a child, which is taken away from him by Jamie Lannister. While he does actually almost die from the fall, he thankfully doesn’t but does become disabled, which leaves him in a wheelchair for the remainder of the series.
All-Knowing
Something that really changes for Bran is his intelligence and knowledge. Starting out on the show as just a young boy who knew very little of the world outside of what he was taught in lessons, Bran quickly became one of the smartest people in Westeros.
Bran is able to see things in several places all at one time. Bran can exist in those places and see different things, which is why he ends up being one of the most powerful characters in the entire show, which nobody expected early on.
Three-Eyed Raven
The reason he has that ability to see things in totally different places is because of the powers he learns and develops as he becomes the Three-Eyed Raven. This is the big quest that Bran personally goes on, trying to learn the skills to develop himself in order to save Westeros.
When he manages to take on the responsibility of becoming the Three-Eyed Raven, there’s a bunch of benefits that come with that. He gains a lot of powers and quickly becomes one of the most important people on the entire show.
No Filter
When he becomes the Three-Eyed Raven, Bran seems to lose all human aspects of himself and his personality. This is clear and obvious by the way he talks to people afterwards, having absolutely no filter in his thought process, saying things that others find slightly strange or offensive.
Because he has seen things that others don’t think he knows about, it always shocks people when he mentions something. This is clear when he mentions Sansa’s wedding day to Ramsay, which was a moment she would rather forget, but Bran brings up anyway.
Warg
An ability that Bran quickly learns that he has is the ability to warg. This means he is able to take over the mind of other people and creatures in order to make them do certain things, which he does often in order to protect himself or to gain information.
This is something that he does with Hodor a lot, and as we learn, it is also the reason Hodor ends up with brain issues, only being able to say one word. However, he does this most commonly with ravens, sending them flying around in order to gain information.
Connection With The Night King
Something else that changes for Bran Stark is his connection with the main Game of Thrones villain, the Night King. This goes from being someone he has only heard vague details about in stories, that he questions about being real to someone he has a very close, personal connection with.
Bran is the only human to have this connection with the Night King and it provides positives and negatives. It allows both parties to see what the other is doing at times, and this is why Bran ends up being key in actually killing him.
His Family Connection
The Stark family are incredibly close, that much is clear from the very first episode. All of the siblings are tight and share a unique bond, but throughout Game of Thrones, they get separated and spend large chunks of time away from each other until the final season.
When they all come back together the family bond is certainly different. While there is love for each other still, each of the characters has become slightly jaded from their personal experiences, including Bran. He is no longer the same playful, loving brother that he was when they all last saw him.
Lack Of Sympathy
Early on in Game of Thrones, Bran Stark was quite a sympathetic person. He was always thinking of others and didn’t want to see anyone get hurt physically or emotionally. He knew when people were upset and he was able to help them as best he could.
However, as the show developed and particularly after he became the Three-Eyed Raven, Bran lost all of that. He was like a robot at times in terms of his emotion, not caring at all about what people had gone through, coming out with some harsh and hurtful comments along the way.
From Boy To King
The biggest and most important change that Bran Stark goes through is the fact that he ends up becoming the King of Westeros. While it was quite a controversial decision that many fans didn’t enjoy, Bran the Broken does end up taking charge, despite the fact that the Iron Throne no longer exists.
With his knowledge and power, it certainly makes sense, and it was positive to see a Stark end up in charge of everything. Going from one of the young boys in the first episode to the man in charge by the end is a huge change for Bran, which really was a shocking moment.
He Can Lead?
Bran becoming the King opens up a rather major change that seems to take place in a very short space of time for him. During one conversation Bran makes it clear that he isn’t able to be in charge of anything as a leader due to his position as the Three-Eyed Raven.
Bran specifically states “I can never be Lord of anything.” However, by the end of the series, that totally changes as he becomes the King. It’s quite a confusing change that really did sum up the final season in general, as this was never really explained.
