How is show Jon different from book Jon?
In multiple ways, thanks for asking! Iām just gonna bullet point a few:
We get an insight into his head in the books, and we can see that heās very politically minded, and a really fast learner. This narrative of him being a stupid northerner in the show is FALSE.
Heās 14 when the books start and 17 when heās stabbed by his brothers in book 5, and if we take that timeline into account a lot of his mistakes make more sense and can be attributed to him being young and not dumb (show Jon is older so his mistakes are more chalked up to stupidity than inexperience by the audience.)
āYou know nothing, Jon Snowā in the books is said by Ygritte to let Jon know that he knows nothing about the Free Folk and how they live their lives, and that he comes from a position of privilege. Jon then makes a conscious effort to learn and respect their ways and traditions, which puts him at odds with the prejudiced nightās watch members. In the show this saying is often used to be āhaha look how dumb Jon is!ā
The show dumbs him down. A lot. Jon is intuitive, and due to his bastard status had to interpret and understand peopleās motives from a young age. In the show heās literally referred to as a northern fool and made fun of multiple times for how stupid he is.
HEāS POLITICALLY MINDED. He understands how to manipulate people. None of this ānoble Jon wouldnāt manipulate peopleā that the show perpetuated.
Heās often vicious when he has to be (he makes Gilly give her child away! He plans on betraying Ygritte the ENTIRE TIME theyāre together! He beheads Janos Slynt out of duty, yes, but he sets the situation up knowing that Janos will not listen to him, knowing that heāll have to deal with Janos refusing his Lord Commander, knowing that heāll be able to behead a man responsible for his fatherās death)
He holds his own against pressure that Stannis puts on him in, which just shows us that heās a formidable politician in the making.
He has to deal with the iron bank in the books, and talks them into a loan for the watch even tho the watch basically has likeā¦ nothing to bargain with. Heās a smart cookie.
He puts the needs of many over the needs of the few. Show Jon wouldnāt be defending Dany for her rampage in KL (that was badly written and executed as well on the show, but thatās a separate post)
Heās so scary that people ACROSS THE SEA WHO ARENāT EVEN WESTEROSI talk about him as the black bastard of the watch
Heāll say fuck duty and honor if it saves people
Heās not above lying (that show scene. In the dragonpit. Where he refuses to lie to Cersei in exchange for troops. Was. Fucking. Stupid. Book Jon would have lied to her without regret.)
The whole Ygritte thing is put in a different perspective in the books. Because heās using her to blend in with the wildlings. Heās broken up about it but he does it knowingly and the entire time is ready to betray her, no matter what his feelings for her are. In the show it makes it seem like itās more of a last minute decision to betray her bc a farmer was being threatened.
Thatās all I have for now, as Iām on the train and this is getting long. Feel free to add on!
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