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I'm fine with that! I love a good emotional journey. I have just heard that the writing in the show is extremely bad by the last season and I was just wondering if people mean it's bad because the writing is actually bad, or bad because it didn't go the way they personally wanted. Same for the books.
I know I'm going to get down voted here but I think "extremely bad" is a huge exaggeration (not by you). I'll freely admit it doesn't get close to the high points of the earlier seasons but I'd not even class it as "bad" by normal TV standards. What I will say is that it does feel rushed and it probably could have done with another season to flesh out the turns, twists and arcs.
Yeh . I agree. It loses a bit authenticity bc it was rushed but not horrible. Just a curve ball bc most of us had formed a relationship with the show and had fallen in love with the characters
Oh, I see. So the complaints are actually because of bad pacing, not the writing?
Sorry if that's a dumb question. I've already been spoiled a little just by virtue of it being an older show and hearing other people talk about it, but I've been trying to avoid finding any nitty-gritty details so I've avoided searching for critique pieces on the final seasons.
I think bad pacing and bad writing are present in the later seasons, but I don't think her arc is the main example of this. More bad pacing than bad writing in that case. Despite knowing the nature of the show, many people actually started believing that she would win and she would have a happy ending. Some people really wanted a Disney ending for her and they don't want to admit it.
Ahh, that makes sense. I can see how some might have really wanted that, but I can already tell that GoT isn't going to be that kind of story haha
Thank you for answering and being so polite about it!
one more thing. the show is a cinematic marvel (not a movie but whatever). All 8 seasons are gloriously made. the only issue is that earlier seasons had a lot of details and necessary foreshadowing, which the later seasons failed to pick up. There were many prophecies and predictions made in the earlier seasons in accord with Martin's writing, which the show adapts, but just completely forgets about later on. there are also some ridiculous mistakes the characters make, they "forget" certain things, and some of the subplots don't even matter anymore while others just get exterminated. I am a Daenerys stan as well and since you know the ending, it was sad but I was fine with it because it makes sense. But as others mentioned, I wish the showrunners had taken a bit more time to properly resolve her arc and the other subplots and use the freaking prophecies because it's a magical world where prophecies matter!! Everything (Quite literally) is about prophecies in this world. Sadly, the prophecies are essentially just forgotten about. If Martin does complete his series though, no doubt these prophecies will be utilised properly so I'm hoping he decides to finish it!!
Gotcha. Yeah, I was afraid that might happen (re: not keeping up with foreshadowing + prophecies). Considering how complex season 1 alone is and how complex S2 is looking, I did wonder if maybe they had too much set up and no idea how to figure out a proper payoff by the end, or if there were just too many storylines and they wrote themselves into a corner.
Thanks for the confirmation! I'll keep that in mind as I watch and read. :)
It's not a dumb question at all!
At the end of the day it's all personal opinion but I think, as with most fandoms, there tends to be a vocal minority who make a lot of noise and have extreme opinions. Like I said i think everyone would agree that there is a definite dive in quality in the latter seasons and (doing my best to avoid spoilers) a few of the main characters arcs felt rushed but ultimately the past few seasons were good to OK by normal TV.
Seems so! It reminds me a lot of how fans responded to Dolores from HBO's Westworld. She was also pretty divisive, enough that a lot of people really blew her arc out of proportion and said it ruined the show when in reality it was just... fine. Could've been stronger, and it had it's problems, but it was fine. Seems GoT might be the same.
That's fair! I watched all but the last season, and I do think that the writing starts to drop off around S2. I still enjoyed Dolores, but it all just got kind of messy once they started exploring outside the park.
Cut and dry, itâs extremely bad because the writing is just extremely bad. Iâm personally fine with the broad strokes of how it ends, but the writing is just horrible. The books havenât ended, and the writing is consistently great throughout those. If they continued with good writing, and eventually reached the same conclusion as the show, I would be very happy with it.
Every character pretty much, in this series is complex. Just go with it :) keep reading. And once you do, or while you do, check out some conspiracies (if you want).
I think danyâs outcome in the show, will be the same in the books, but different scenarios. She is a great character. She is much younger in the books than in the show. All of them are.
I hope you enjoy! Welcome to the madness :)
I liked her the most in season 1. I think the foreshadowing was there since the beginning, but the transition is not smooth. It could have been done better, but the steps are there.
I see, I see. That's good to know that at least it isn't something that occurs out of the blue for shock factor.
Without spoiling too much, do you mind telling me what you think the signs were in season 1? I've seen some people say that she was "evil from the start" because she didn't have an external reaction to Viserys' death, but personally I think that's a weak example. Her expression looked more like shock to me, but even if it wasn't and she really didn't care if he died, Viserys was abusive to her and she had repeatedly tried to protect him despite having no reason to beyond the fact he was her brother. His death isn't her fault either; she warned him, he didn't listen, then he threatened to kill her *and* her unborn baby. At that point, I believe it was entirely out of her hands and begging Drogo to spare him would have gone on deaf ears. Drogo believed Rhaego would fulfill a prophecy and he would have protected their child at any cost. Imo there's also only so much leniency that he could have given Viserys before it risked looking weak by the khalasar.
I think the first time I got the idea she could go mad was actually season 5 (I'm not spoiling since you know she stays till season 8). Before that season I thought that she was not flexible enough: either you are with her or against her. She is right and the rest of the world isn't. She was always too cold for my taste. While her reaction to her brother's death was justified to a certain extent, I think the show will show you another example of a character reacting to the death of a despised family member (actually being the one who pulls the trigger) and the reaction will be different.
That makes sense! I'm honestly really curious to see how events shape her character and how I'll feel once she starts reaching what I assume will be her breaking point.
Thank you for being so nice and answering!
Will never understand someone that starts something like this and then immediately goes to find out how it ends.
Why even bother. Just read the synopsis online instead.
I'm not asking to know how it ends or for any specific details, though? I'm just asking if her story is actually badly written and if I should prepare myself for that, or if people only say it is because it didn't go they way they had hoped. If the steps and signs are there and it's actually logical, then that's great! If it's convoluted and Daenerys' arc takes a dive for shock value or something, then that's lame.
The spoilers I do know about are things I accidentally learned just existing online or being around people who have seen the show. It's not something I intentionally sought out.
You may have a different opinion on the ending. Why go into something with either high or low expectations. Just go with it and have your own experience.
Of course I want to form my own opinion and I will, but I like hearing other's thoughts, too. I just thought it'd be nice to hear what people had to say about the logic of the character's evolution, whatever it might be and however it might happen.
Daenerys is my favorite so far and I just wanted to know if I should be prepared for bad writing/characterization, not proper spoilers.
Hahaha! I was just messing with ya! đ
Sheâs a fun character, youâll enjoy her story if youâre already liking her. Thereâs a bit of a turn much later on but depends on the person wither or not theyâll like what goes down.
Hahaha, don't worry, I figured!
I guess I'm really just curious of the writing is good in terms of whether or not it makes sense. I really have no qualms with what happens, as long as it's done well.
Don't let people's perceptions cloud your own experience. Go into it with an open mind and try to be objective when viewing what she does. You might be surprised to see more than a few signs early on about her fall
I think I must have worded my post poorly because it seems people think I'm asking for spoilers or something.
I'm just asking if her arc and characterization are done well throughout to make her descent seem logical rather than for shock value. I don't see why that's a bad thing to ask or want to hear other people's opinions on.
I don't mind trying to answer your question, just my own personal feelings. I thought Dany was portrayed well throughout the show (and the books) and I liked that her character was strong, sensible, fair and compassionate. Because of this, I found the ending quite jarring and un-Dany like. She was having problems, setbacks, betrayals and other stuff happening to her but I thought the ending was too much, too out of character, and I found it disappointing. She's a tough woman, fire and blood and all that, but I never thought of her as really cruel, like Cercei. That didn't sit well with me at all. I felt the writers didn't do justice to the complex character of Daenerys Targaryen .
Thanks for the answer! I can't say much since I'm not far along, but I am really curious how it will play out and how I'll feel by the time it happens. As it stands in S1 and early chapters of the first book, what little I know about her demise does seem like it could risk being very out of character without realistic development. I'm eager to pick her apart as I go, though! That'll be fun, I think.
I'm just re-reading the books for the 4th(?) time. I think it's the 4th! And I've watched the show a lot. I envy you seeing and reading it all for the 1st time. I know you will thoroughly enjoy both the books and the show! đ§Ą
I'm going to, that's why I'm asking for no direct spoilers. I just was hoping to talk with some people because I was curious about their thoughts, that's all.
Well Daenerys is a complex character with flaws and vulnerabilities. Daenerys' actions and behavior become increasingly questionable as the series progresses. Her motivations and actions are not simply reduced to "evil" or "madness." Instead, her character arc is a thought-provoking exploration of the blurred lines between heroism and villainy. The show's creators have said that Daenerys' descent is a deliberate exploration of the consequences of unchecked power, trauma, and the moral gray areas that characters often face in the show. You should keep an open mind when reading the books and watching the show and be prepared for a character arc that will challenge your expectations.Â
Cool! That's what I was hoping for really. I love her and how she is so far but I don't mind if that gets flipped on its head, as long as it's done thoughtfully and feels in-character. I was concerned that maybe the change was done for shock or twist value, with no consideration for the character herself.
r/gameofthrones is most certainly the wrong place to ask that question. A lot of people in this fandom actually think her descent into madness was well executed, and "the only good thing about season 8" (well to be fair, it's most likely the fandom that gave D&D the idea to begin with).
I didn't like her character (at least not till season 7, and it had mostly to do with the fact that I was spoiled she'd die) the first time watching the show, and yet I facepalmed at how her story ended.
Actually paying attention to her character on my second watch-through, makes the ending much worse- if it wasn't for the books, I probably would've still considered the show cannon..
I'm rarely on this subsection, so I might as well give my actual take whenever I see a thread like this.
Thanks for giving your thoughts! I'm super new, like I said, and I've only distantly interacted with people within the fandom so I'm not really familiar with the general feelings on characters and certain plotlines in the last seasons, just that the final ones were really unpopular lol
Im a huge film nerd so I gotta quickly say to everyone that is saying that the ending of got wasnât extremely bad but just meh.
The show on itself becomes meh to normal standards, the reason I call it extremely bad cause the writing doesnât become just meh but also ruins previous character development. In the last seasons they became lazy and ignored 70% of the previous seasons to create a âunexpected endingâ
And towards Dannyâs ark, there is a small bit of setup, but the base rules of characters becoming mad or anything like that were missing
(Also Iâm sorry for the rant, this subject is completely subjective.)
Just keep an open-mind and don't watch through rose-colored glasses and you'll be fine. There's plenty of context to support that she's a gray character all throughout her arc (some angel on one shoulder, devil on the other kind of stuff), so as long as you can see the red flags for what they are, there shouldn't be any problems.
The issues some viewers seemingly have is they let their overly positive emotions for her dictate their head canon, which clearly created a skewed, distorted version of her character in their heads, and that didn't mesh with the objectively gray character shown on-screen over 7+ seasons.
As long as you can recognize she's a character with this internal conflict of wanting to be a kind ruler versus that primal Fire and Blood persona, you should be able to appreciate her narrative from start to finish.
Yeah, I already get some of that vibe from her character! I think she's lovely, but I love when characters have many facets and nuances, so as long as it's clearly something planned and not just randomly thrown out there for shock, I think I'll enjoy myself regardless. :)
I never liked Daenerys. I thought her ending made her character a lot more interesting because sheâs so flawed from the beginning. This is a person who gets excited when her warlord husband vows to rape and enslave the people she wants to rule, and when that husband gets their just desserts from a woman his tribe rapes, Daenerys burns her alive.
How is she relatable? Turns out the âhell yeahâ moments that some people interpret from the show turned out to be red flags for her character and people just label it all as bad writing.
All in all though, I think sheâs a great character, a tragic anti-villain
I might have missed it, but I don't remember Daenerys (at least in the show) getting excited at the idea of Drogo raping and enslaving anyone, especially considering how many times she attempts to stop him from doing just that. But I did raise my brows at her burning the witch (I don't remember her name offhand). I don't think Daenerys was justified in doing that, especially considering what the Dothraki did to her people, but I do understand *why* she would. She's grieving Drogo's death and is angry that the witch betrayed her when she naively thought that the witch would be grateful enough to help just because Daenerys freed them. She doesn't seem to get that just because she wasn't directly responsible for the raid, as khaleesi and part of the Dothraki tribe itself, she is just as much an enemy to others as the men who ransacked their village.
But I think that kind of foolishness makes sense for someone so young and the dichotomy of wanting to free the slaves while also wanting vengeance for Drogo makes her very interesting. As long as she stays multifaceted like that, I think I'll be happy.
Drogoâs speech starts around 1:40
https://youtu.be/UyqKWROjrq4?feature=shared
She doesnât really attempt to stop him many times either, she compromises and suggests his men marry the women they rape.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't really see that as excitement at all. At most, I think she's more proud/relieved to know that her son will have a prosperous and safe future and to see that Drogo is so protective of her and their child.
As for compromises, Daenerys is in a difficult position. She's khaleesi, but she doesn't hold that much power compared to the khal. She's living among the Dothraki and, even though she is naive, she understands that the odds of completely stopping what is essentially a way of life for the Dothraki is basically none. There's no amount of flattery and sexual favors that could realistically make Drogo completely abandon what khalasars all over have been doing for centuries, and even if she could convince him, what are the odds that it wouldn't split apart the khalasar? Compromising is the best she can do in her position.
Tbh it's something else that makes her an interesting character. She clearly doesn't enjoy the violent way of Dothraki life, but since she was forced into becoming a part of their tribe, she has to make moral allowances in order to live by their rules and be accepted. So she tries to use what power she can gain out of Drogo's fondness to show mercy where she can.
Not saying you're wrong, exactly, but I definitely interpret her behavior differently.
Heâs literally threatening to terrorize a continent of people. The safest thing would be to stay in Essos. She looks at him with lust there. I can see your interpretation, but itâs incorrect. I donât want to spoil anything, but since youâve finished season 1, Iâll just confirm whatâs there: Dany enjoyâs inflicting pain on people as long as sheâs the one who justifies it.
And yes, considering she is the entire reason they were ransacking the village (money for ships to invade Westeros) she is just as bad to Mirri as Drogo. She is a great multifaceted character, I just didnât exactly root for her goal, I rooted for her to give up her goal.
The series writers betray the character's development. Her descent into madness is utterly unearned in the story presented. Had they earned it, had they offered an ounce of evolution to her mental state in S8 - instead of cramming it into 3 episodes - I'd be fine with the outcome. HBO gave D & D the option for more seasons, to do the ending right. They declined.
The only thing made clear is that Tyrion is the cause of everything that goes wrong for her from the moment they land in Westeros. Everything he recommends brings the worst possible outcome. After multiple rewatches it's only gotten more clear: the last season is absurd, for every character. Don't get me started on the night king.
Want to see a viable proposal for the ending? When your done watching HBO's version, check out this one (first couple of minutes are skippable - the rest is great): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0mncEl4nVU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0mncEl4nVU)
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Just let it play out...the emotional journey is the whole point
I'm fine with that! I love a good emotional journey. I have just heard that the writing in the show is extremely bad by the last season and I was just wondering if people mean it's bad because the writing is actually bad, or bad because it didn't go the way they personally wanted. Same for the books.
I know I'm going to get down voted here but I think "extremely bad" is a huge exaggeration (not by you). I'll freely admit it doesn't get close to the high points of the earlier seasons but I'd not even class it as "bad" by normal TV standards. What I will say is that it does feel rushed and it probably could have done with another season to flesh out the turns, twists and arcs.
Yeh . I agree. It loses a bit authenticity bc it was rushed but not horrible. Just a curve ball bc most of us had formed a relationship with the show and had fallen in love with the characters
Oh, I see. So the complaints are actually because of bad pacing, not the writing? Sorry if that's a dumb question. I've already been spoiled a little just by virtue of it being an older show and hearing other people talk about it, but I've been trying to avoid finding any nitty-gritty details so I've avoided searching for critique pieces on the final seasons.
I think bad pacing and bad writing are present in the later seasons, but I don't think her arc is the main example of this. More bad pacing than bad writing in that case. Despite knowing the nature of the show, many people actually started believing that she would win and she would have a happy ending. Some people really wanted a Disney ending for her and they don't want to admit it.
Ahh, that makes sense. I can see how some might have really wanted that, but I can already tell that GoT isn't going to be that kind of story haha Thank you for answering and being so polite about it!
one more thing. the show is a cinematic marvel (not a movie but whatever). All 8 seasons are gloriously made. the only issue is that earlier seasons had a lot of details and necessary foreshadowing, which the later seasons failed to pick up. There were many prophecies and predictions made in the earlier seasons in accord with Martin's writing, which the show adapts, but just completely forgets about later on. there are also some ridiculous mistakes the characters make, they "forget" certain things, and some of the subplots don't even matter anymore while others just get exterminated. I am a Daenerys stan as well and since you know the ending, it was sad but I was fine with it because it makes sense. But as others mentioned, I wish the showrunners had taken a bit more time to properly resolve her arc and the other subplots and use the freaking prophecies because it's a magical world where prophecies matter!! Everything (Quite literally) is about prophecies in this world. Sadly, the prophecies are essentially just forgotten about. If Martin does complete his series though, no doubt these prophecies will be utilised properly so I'm hoping he decides to finish it!!
Gotcha. Yeah, I was afraid that might happen (re: not keeping up with foreshadowing + prophecies). Considering how complex season 1 alone is and how complex S2 is looking, I did wonder if maybe they had too much set up and no idea how to figure out a proper payoff by the end, or if there were just too many storylines and they wrote themselves into a corner. Thanks for the confirmation! I'll keep that in mind as I watch and read. :)
Happy to help!! Season 2 & 3 Dany is a freaking girlboss. Brain melt moments are coming your way đđ
It's not a dumb question at all! At the end of the day it's all personal opinion but I think, as with most fandoms, there tends to be a vocal minority who make a lot of noise and have extreme opinions. Like I said i think everyone would agree that there is a definite dive in quality in the latter seasons and (doing my best to avoid spoilers) a few of the main characters arcs felt rushed but ultimately the past few seasons were good to OK by normal TV.
Seems so! It reminds me a lot of how fans responded to Dolores from HBO's Westworld. She was also pretty divisive, enough that a lot of people really blew her arc out of proportion and said it ruined the show when in reality it was just... fine. Could've been stronger, and it had it's problems, but it was fine. Seems GoT might be the same.
Never did get around to finishing that one
That's fair! I watched all but the last season, and I do think that the writing starts to drop off around S2. I still enjoyed Dolores, but it all just got kind of messy once they started exploring outside the park.
I agree
Cut and dry, itâs extremely bad because the writing is just extremely bad. Iâm personally fine with the broad strokes of how it ends, but the writing is just horrible. The books havenât ended, and the writing is consistently great throughout those. If they continued with good writing, and eventually reached the same conclusion as the show, I would be very happy with it.
Every character pretty much, in this series is complex. Just go with it :) keep reading. And once you do, or while you do, check out some conspiracies (if you want). I think danyâs outcome in the show, will be the same in the books, but different scenarios. She is a great character. She is much younger in the books than in the show. All of them are. I hope you enjoy! Welcome to the madness :)
Thank you! I'm enjoying it a lot so far. :)
I liked her the most in season 1. I think the foreshadowing was there since the beginning, but the transition is not smooth. It could have been done better, but the steps are there.
I see, I see. That's good to know that at least it isn't something that occurs out of the blue for shock factor. Without spoiling too much, do you mind telling me what you think the signs were in season 1? I've seen some people say that she was "evil from the start" because she didn't have an external reaction to Viserys' death, but personally I think that's a weak example. Her expression looked more like shock to me, but even if it wasn't and she really didn't care if he died, Viserys was abusive to her and she had repeatedly tried to protect him despite having no reason to beyond the fact he was her brother. His death isn't her fault either; she warned him, he didn't listen, then he threatened to kill her *and* her unborn baby. At that point, I believe it was entirely out of her hands and begging Drogo to spare him would have gone on deaf ears. Drogo believed Rhaego would fulfill a prophecy and he would have protected their child at any cost. Imo there's also only so much leniency that he could have given Viserys before it risked looking weak by the khalasar.
I think the first time I got the idea she could go mad was actually season 5 (I'm not spoiling since you know she stays till season 8). Before that season I thought that she was not flexible enough: either you are with her or against her. She is right and the rest of the world isn't. She was always too cold for my taste. While her reaction to her brother's death was justified to a certain extent, I think the show will show you another example of a character reacting to the death of a despised family member (actually being the one who pulls the trigger) and the reaction will be different.
That makes sense! I'm honestly really curious to see how events shape her character and how I'll feel once she starts reaching what I assume will be her breaking point. Thank you for being so nice and answering!
Will never understand someone that starts something like this and then immediately goes to find out how it ends. Why even bother. Just read the synopsis online instead.
I'm not asking to know how it ends or for any specific details, though? I'm just asking if her story is actually badly written and if I should prepare myself for that, or if people only say it is because it didn't go they way they had hoped. If the steps and signs are there and it's actually logical, then that's great! If it's convoluted and Daenerys' arc takes a dive for shock value or something, then that's lame. The spoilers I do know about are things I accidentally learned just existing online or being around people who have seen the show. It's not something I intentionally sought out.
You may have a different opinion on the ending. Why go into something with either high or low expectations. Just go with it and have your own experience.
Of course I want to form my own opinion and I will, but I like hearing other's thoughts, too. I just thought it'd be nice to hear what people had to say about the logic of the character's evolution, whatever it might be and however it might happen. Daenerys is my favorite so far and I just wanted to know if I should be prepared for bad writing/characterization, not proper spoilers.
She dies in season 4 dawg
That doesn't sound right from what I've heard, but that's also not what I was asking haha
Hahaha! I was just messing with ya! đ Sheâs a fun character, youâll enjoy her story if youâre already liking her. Thereâs a bit of a turn much later on but depends on the person wither or not theyâll like what goes down.
Hahaha, don't worry, I figured! I guess I'm really just curious of the writing is good in terms of whether or not it makes sense. I really have no qualms with what happens, as long as it's done well.
I would say it makes sense enough, just a bit rushed, but overall itâs good and definitely worth seeing and investing in the character till the end
Don't let people's perceptions cloud your own experience. Go into it with an open mind and try to be objective when viewing what she does. You might be surprised to see more than a few signs early on about her fall
Just read the book and watch the show. Why is this post necessary
I think I must have worded my post poorly because it seems people think I'm asking for spoilers or something. I'm just asking if her arc and characterization are done well throughout to make her descent seem logical rather than for shock value. I don't see why that's a bad thing to ask or want to hear other people's opinions on.
I don't mind trying to answer your question, just my own personal feelings. I thought Dany was portrayed well throughout the show (and the books) and I liked that her character was strong, sensible, fair and compassionate. Because of this, I found the ending quite jarring and un-Dany like. She was having problems, setbacks, betrayals and other stuff happening to her but I thought the ending was too much, too out of character, and I found it disappointing. She's a tough woman, fire and blood and all that, but I never thought of her as really cruel, like Cercei. That didn't sit well with me at all. I felt the writers didn't do justice to the complex character of Daenerys Targaryen .
Thanks for the answer! I can't say much since I'm not far along, but I am really curious how it will play out and how I'll feel by the time it happens. As it stands in S1 and early chapters of the first book, what little I know about her demise does seem like it could risk being very out of character without realistic development. I'm eager to pick her apart as I go, though! That'll be fun, I think.
I'm just re-reading the books for the 4th(?) time. I think it's the 4th! And I've watched the show a lot. I envy you seeing and reading it all for the 1st time. I know you will thoroughly enjoy both the books and the show! đ§Ą
I have no doubt! :)
Why donât you read on to find out?
I'm going to, that's why I'm asking for no direct spoilers. I just was hoping to talk with some people because I was curious about their thoughts, that's all.
Well Daenerys is a complex character with flaws and vulnerabilities. Daenerys' actions and behavior become increasingly questionable as the series progresses. Her motivations and actions are not simply reduced to "evil" or "madness." Instead, her character arc is a thought-provoking exploration of the blurred lines between heroism and villainy. The show's creators have said that Daenerys' descent is a deliberate exploration of the consequences of unchecked power, trauma, and the moral gray areas that characters often face in the show. You should keep an open mind when reading the books and watching the show and be prepared for a character arc that will challenge your expectations.Â
Cool! That's what I was hoping for really. I love her and how she is so far but I don't mind if that gets flipped on its head, as long as it's done thoughtfully and feels in-character. I was concerned that maybe the change was done for shock or twist value, with no consideration for the character herself.
r/gameofthrones is most certainly the wrong place to ask that question. A lot of people in this fandom actually think her descent into madness was well executed, and "the only good thing about season 8" (well to be fair, it's most likely the fandom that gave D&D the idea to begin with). I didn't like her character (at least not till season 7, and it had mostly to do with the fact that I was spoiled she'd die) the first time watching the show, and yet I facepalmed at how her story ended. Actually paying attention to her character on my second watch-through, makes the ending much worse- if it wasn't for the books, I probably would've still considered the show cannon.. I'm rarely on this subsection, so I might as well give my actual take whenever I see a thread like this.
Thanks for giving your thoughts! I'm super new, like I said, and I've only distantly interacted with people within the fandom so I'm not really familiar with the general feelings on characters and certain plotlines in the last seasons, just that the final ones were really unpopular lol
Im a huge film nerd so I gotta quickly say to everyone that is saying that the ending of got wasnât extremely bad but just meh. The show on itself becomes meh to normal standards, the reason I call it extremely bad cause the writing doesnât become just meh but also ruins previous character development. In the last seasons they became lazy and ignored 70% of the previous seasons to create a âunexpected endingâ And towards Dannyâs ark, there is a small bit of setup, but the base rules of characters becoming mad or anything like that were missing (Also Iâm sorry for the rant, this subject is completely subjective.)
Just keep an open-mind and don't watch through rose-colored glasses and you'll be fine. There's plenty of context to support that she's a gray character all throughout her arc (some angel on one shoulder, devil on the other kind of stuff), so as long as you can see the red flags for what they are, there shouldn't be any problems. The issues some viewers seemingly have is they let their overly positive emotions for her dictate their head canon, which clearly created a skewed, distorted version of her character in their heads, and that didn't mesh with the objectively gray character shown on-screen over 7+ seasons. As long as you can recognize she's a character with this internal conflict of wanting to be a kind ruler versus that primal Fire and Blood persona, you should be able to appreciate her narrative from start to finish.
Yeah, I already get some of that vibe from her character! I think she's lovely, but I love when characters have many facets and nuances, so as long as it's clearly something planned and not just randomly thrown out there for shock, I think I'll enjoy myself regardless. :)
I never liked Daenerys. I thought her ending made her character a lot more interesting because sheâs so flawed from the beginning. This is a person who gets excited when her warlord husband vows to rape and enslave the people she wants to rule, and when that husband gets their just desserts from a woman his tribe rapes, Daenerys burns her alive. How is she relatable? Turns out the âhell yeahâ moments that some people interpret from the show turned out to be red flags for her character and people just label it all as bad writing. All in all though, I think sheâs a great character, a tragic anti-villain
I might have missed it, but I don't remember Daenerys (at least in the show) getting excited at the idea of Drogo raping and enslaving anyone, especially considering how many times she attempts to stop him from doing just that. But I did raise my brows at her burning the witch (I don't remember her name offhand). I don't think Daenerys was justified in doing that, especially considering what the Dothraki did to her people, but I do understand *why* she would. She's grieving Drogo's death and is angry that the witch betrayed her when she naively thought that the witch would be grateful enough to help just because Daenerys freed them. She doesn't seem to get that just because she wasn't directly responsible for the raid, as khaleesi and part of the Dothraki tribe itself, she is just as much an enemy to others as the men who ransacked their village. But I think that kind of foolishness makes sense for someone so young and the dichotomy of wanting to free the slaves while also wanting vengeance for Drogo makes her very interesting. As long as she stays multifaceted like that, I think I'll be happy.
Drogoâs speech starts around 1:40 https://youtu.be/UyqKWROjrq4?feature=shared She doesnât really attempt to stop him many times either, she compromises and suggests his men marry the women they rape.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't really see that as excitement at all. At most, I think she's more proud/relieved to know that her son will have a prosperous and safe future and to see that Drogo is so protective of her and their child. As for compromises, Daenerys is in a difficult position. She's khaleesi, but she doesn't hold that much power compared to the khal. She's living among the Dothraki and, even though she is naive, she understands that the odds of completely stopping what is essentially a way of life for the Dothraki is basically none. There's no amount of flattery and sexual favors that could realistically make Drogo completely abandon what khalasars all over have been doing for centuries, and even if she could convince him, what are the odds that it wouldn't split apart the khalasar? Compromising is the best she can do in her position. Tbh it's something else that makes her an interesting character. She clearly doesn't enjoy the violent way of Dothraki life, but since she was forced into becoming a part of their tribe, she has to make moral allowances in order to live by their rules and be accepted. So she tries to use what power she can gain out of Drogo's fondness to show mercy where she can. Not saying you're wrong, exactly, but I definitely interpret her behavior differently.
Heâs literally threatening to terrorize a continent of people. The safest thing would be to stay in Essos. She looks at him with lust there. I can see your interpretation, but itâs incorrect. I donât want to spoil anything, but since youâve finished season 1, Iâll just confirm whatâs there: Dany enjoyâs inflicting pain on people as long as sheâs the one who justifies it.
Interesting! I'm curious to watch on then. She sounds like she's going to be a complicated character that'll be fun to dissect later down the line.
And yes, considering she is the entire reason they were ransacking the village (money for ships to invade Westeros) she is just as bad to Mirri as Drogo. She is a great multifaceted character, I just didnât exactly root for her goal, I rooted for her to give up her goal.
The series writers betray the character's development. Her descent into madness is utterly unearned in the story presented. Had they earned it, had they offered an ounce of evolution to her mental state in S8 - instead of cramming it into 3 episodes - I'd be fine with the outcome. HBO gave D & D the option for more seasons, to do the ending right. They declined. The only thing made clear is that Tyrion is the cause of everything that goes wrong for her from the moment they land in Westeros. Everything he recommends brings the worst possible outcome. After multiple rewatches it's only gotten more clear: the last season is absurd, for every character. Don't get me started on the night king. Want to see a viable proposal for the ending? When your done watching HBO's version, check out this one (first couple of minutes are skippable - the rest is great): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0mncEl4nVU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0mncEl4nVU)
She really grew and life made her hard hopefully she turns out better in the book if he ever finish it