WARNING: There are Game of Thrones spoilers ahead! Fans are still struggling to make sense of the biggest death in Westeros history — Jon Snow’s murder of Daenerys Targaryen in the series finale. While many fans have written off the ending and given up on understanding it, some are still trying to work out how it was meant to be interpreted. A new post on the main Game of Thrones subreddit this week even broke down Dany’s arc from start to finish, pointing out the flaws in this development. For the most part, fans searching for some logic here are hoping for some insight on the ending of the novels — if it ever comes. However, a few are still willing to meet the show on its own terms for good-faith analysis.
For those that have forgotten (or repressed their memory of) Dany’s death, the Mother of Dragons claimed King’s Landing with excessive force, burning much of the city and killing civilians with dragon fire. Afterward, she blames Cersei Lannister for the civilian casualties, and announces plans to continue traveling the world and “liberating” more cities and countries using her dragons and armies. Hearing all this, Tyrion resigned from Daenerys’ service, and she had him arrested. Tyrion then persuaded Jon Snow to kill Daenerys for the safety of the realm and all their loved ones. Confronting Dany, Jon feigned understanding and hugged her, but while they embrace he stabs her while she’s distracted, killing her.
Over the years, the biggest criticism of this ending has Dany’s rushed heel turn. We saw her process severe trauma many times in previous seasons, and channel that into protecting innocent, powerless people like slaves and peasants. No matter how much grief and suspicion she was experiencing in Season 8, it was out of character for her to take it out on the smallfolk of King’s Landing. Tuesday’s new post by u/nivlaccwt takes a slightly different perspective, focusing on the perpetrators of the murder and their part in all the fallout leading up to this mess.
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“She loses one of her dragons [in] an endeavor that should never have happened on the advice of the self same Jon Snow,” they wrote. “She listens Tyrion her Hand and has a sit-down with Cersei after she single-handedly saves the realm from the White Walkers. Of course she’s betrayed by Cersei and her best friend is killed by the self same Cersei… He should be renamed Jon Snow the Queenslayer.”
Commenters agreed that the show’s apparent veneration of Jon and Tyrion in the end was one of the worst parts of this reviled ending. If it had been a bit more morally gray, leaving the viewer to judge the actions of Dany, Jon, and Tyrion for themselves, it might have been easier to accept as a tragic finale. Instead, the show’s falling action seems to justify the murder, and vilify Dany.
Same Events, Different Ending
On that note, fans often analyze the ending of Game of Thrones for clues about the ending of George R.R. Martin’s novels, A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin has said that his books will have some major events in common with the TV show, and some major differences as well. Based on statements from Martin and the showrunners, fans are fairly confident they know some of the things that will carry over into the books — Bran Stark as king, for example. However, we don’t know whether Martin plans to develop Dany into a villain, or to have Jon Snow kill her in the end.
This makes predicting and theorizing a bit more difficult, as some try to work out how this ending might look with better pacing and more careful writing, while others explore other possibilities for Dany and Jon in the end. Both are fair approaches — the show deviated wildly from the books even before running out of source material, and it ignored many of the magical elements of the story in particular. Jon Snow will likely think and act very differently after he is resurrected in the books, which would go a long way in explaining why he would do something like this. On the other hand, the ripple effects of all these changes might lead Jon and Dany to a completely different place in the novels, with no regicide at all.
Perhaps the most frustrating part of this equation is the fact that Martin himself likely hasn’t decided on a concrete ending, even in his private thoughts. The author has said that he doesn’t write outlines, instead allowing the story and characters to develop organically as he writes. He may have an idea — or several ideas — of where the ending is going, but he won’t know for sure until he gets there. Martin has reported great progress on the next book, The Winds of Winter, but has said it’s still not finished, and he has no release date in mind. Even then, Martin still has at least one more book to go before the saga is finished, and many fans are losing hope that he’ll ever get that far.
That means the show’s ending is the only ending we have for now. Game of Thrones is streaming now on HBO Max. Martin’s books are available in print, digital, and audiobook formats.
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