Daenerys’ whole character arc is incredibly tragic, though, and probably the only ending we’re ever going to get. She’s 23, started the series at age 16, and all she wanted was a home and place to belong, and she never got it.

Her entire life she was told that Westeros was where she belonged. That everyone would love her and welcome her with open arms. And then she loses people she loves over and over and still moves forward because her home is waiting for her. The closest she gets to a payoff is the Mhysa scene (as poorly executed as it was) and she chases that high for the rest of the series. She “frees” more and more cities because she wants to recreate that moment. 

And it goes wrong, but she still moves forward because her efforts have to pay off. (”If I look back I am lost”) She thinks that Westeros will be like Yunkai, only better because she belongs there. She thinks it’ll be like the house with the red door she left behind.

And she gets there and it isn’t. They don’t want her. They don’t want another contender for the throne. And she’s betrayed and untrusted and loses more people she loves (her children!) over and over and over again and again and again.

When she destroys King’s Landing she justifies it to herself that it was necessary. Tyrion even tells Jon she thinks she’s doing right, because everyone else encouraged her earlier on. She only kills bad people, so if they die they must have been bad. She never fully realizes why she was betrayed. She doesn’t realize what she did wrong.

She dies right in front of the throne she worked so hard for. She gets so close to getting everything she wanted and then just….doesn’t.

♥ 84 — 4 years ago on 19 May 2019