The Bells & The Mad Queen

Published May 13, 2019 · Updated July 6, 2022

Gene and Big D,

So much to talk about but I don’t want to write an entire thesis, so I’ll focus mostly on the Mad Queen. For everyone who thinks Danaerys’ turn to the Mad Queen was too quick (agreed, it would have benefitted from a few more episodes), this is from James Hibberd’s EW recap:

Tyrion also brings up Meereen, which is an important reminder of Mad Queen foreshadowing. Remember Dany’s first instinct when Meereen was under bombardment by the slave cities in season 6? “I will crucify the masters,” Dany declared. “I will set their fleets afire. I will kill every last one of their soldiers and return their cities to the dirt. That’s my plan.” Tyrion talked her out of it. At the time we thought, “Well, Dany probably didn’t really mean it”. But she did. She’s said other things like this too along the way.

In season 2, Dany likewise promised, “We will lay waste to armies and burn cities to the ground.” And in season 6, she asked the Dothraki to pledge to “kill my enemies in their iron suits and tear down their stone houses.” Time and again, we dismissed such talk as bluster. It wasn’t. https://ew.com/recap/game-of-thrones-season-8-episode-5/

He has a lot of other good stuff on Dany as well, pointing out that she was very loving and benevolent when things were going well, but when it wasn’t, the brutal destruction of her enemies was always the answer.

I think it’s also important to remember that Danaerys was essentially raised by Viserys, whose megalomania drilled into her that they would utterly and completely destroy anyone who stood in the way of regaining their throne. Crazy parental/guardian influence often leads to a crazy kid.

She has lost two of her “children”, one just a few days ago. Everyone seems to be betraying her. The man she loves not only betrays her request to keep his secret but appears to reject her romantically (he may be a Targaryen but he has raised a Stark and schtupping your aunt – not quite in the Stark playbook). I totally missed Varys trying to poison her on the first watch (She won’t eat . . We’ll try again tonight . . . The greater the risk, the greater the reward . . . they’ll miss you in the kitchens), although Dany may not have known that. She feels alone and unloved. She hasn’t freed anyone in Westeros, she hasn’t given them a reason to love her (well, except helping defeat the Night King – bad on Sansa and the North for not appreciating that). She feels her life’s goal slipping through her fingers when it’s right in her grasp. She’s under incredible stress. Ruling is her ultimate goal and if she can’t rule by being loved she will accept ruling by fear. God forbid Jon Snow says something like “Let’s give them a reason to love you.” Love Jon, but damn the boy ain’t too bright sometimes. While I was hoping she wouldn’t turn, I don’t have a hard time accepting the fact that she went Mad Queen.

Other thoughts: Euron vs. Jaime – unnecessary.

The Hound’s remaining reason for living was to kill his brother. He said he was going to die there. His story was over after Clegane Bowl, unless he was going to become a new version of Ian McShane’s peaceful preacher type. If it meant dying to take out his brother, I have no doubt he made that choice with little regret.

Curious about Arya’s path next episode. I did not expect it when she chose life over vengeance but cheered when she did – I want her to have a good life going forward (not likely in GoT I know). Now that she’s experienced all of that senseless destruction, is this her Michael Corleone moment – “Just when I think I’m out, the pull me back in”? Or is she going to rev it up just one last time and go after Dany before she lays down her swords for good?

Jon may or may not be the one to kill Dany now that Arya appears to be back in the game, but either way, if he lives he refuses to be king and ends up going into self-imposed exile beyond the wall to hang with Tormund and Ghost.

Tyrion on the throne or Sansa? Both? Tyrion may not survive the first 10 minutes of the next episode if Dany knows he freed Jaime.

Thanks for all you do, you bring a lot of people enjoyment. Keep up the good work.

Brian

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