Having covered off what’s happening with the Lannisters and Starks in Westeros, the time has come to turn our attention to the East, where we check in with Daenerys Targaryen, or as she is introduced during her time in Slaver’s Bay:
Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, the First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of Meereen, Queen of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons.
Now you know why we tend to just call her Dany and go from there.
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Where Season 3 was about Dany freeing slaves and beginning to assemble her army, Season 4 was about the young would-be-ruler learning about the responsibilities and challenges that come with her new position. It was also about realizing that her once cute, controllable baby dragons were growing into large, scary monsters that spit fire.
All of Dany’s time in Season 4 was spent moving towards or taking up residency in the city of Meereen. As they approach, Daario Naharis kills the champion of Meeren and Dany instructs the slaves to rise up against their masters. The road to the city is adorned with markers indicating the distance left to reach the city and each is adorned with the body of a dead slave child. As justice for those children, Dany orders they be taken down and replaced with bodies of the slavers instead.
After taking control of the city, Ser Jorah informs Dany that the last two slave towns she “freed” – Astapor and Yunkai – have fallen back into slavery. This prompts “The Mother of Dragons” to postpone her invasion of Westeros and instead take up residence in Meereen, at least for the time being. It is here that “Queen Dany” starts to learn of the challenges of being a ruler, as she listens to the issues brought to her by the townspeople, including Hizdahr Zo Loraq, who lobbies Dany to allow him to give his father, one of the deceased slave masters, a proper funeral, telling her that he was against the crucifixion of children. She also has to deal with a sheppard whose goat was barbecued by one of her unruly dragons.
When Daario asks Dany to let him do what he’s good at – killing people – she decides instead to test his skills in the other talent he claims to have and instructs him to undress. Following their romp, she dispatches him to Yunkai. Ser Barristan intercepts a letter intended for Ser Jorah, discovering that he’s been spying on Dany upon reading it. He confronts Jorah and brings the news to Dany, who banishes Jorah from Meereen, despite his pleading and apologizing.
Season 4 closes with Dany listening to more requests from the people of Meereen, including a former slave that wishes to be returned to slavery. She allows him to sell his services to his former master on a contractual basis. The next person that enters her chamber is a man carrying the charred remains of his daughter, who was killed by her dragons. As a precaution, Dany chains them up in the catacombs.
What Can We Expect This Season?
As we see in the above trailer to Season 5, Dany isn’t interested in stopping the wheel – “(She’s) going to break the wheel!”
She was ready to invade Westeros last season before Ser Jorah (that traitor!) advised her against it, so there is a very good chance that “The Mother of Dragons” finally crosses departs Essos and crosses the Narrow Sea. Of course, she also has to figure out what the hell she’s going to do with her dragons that continue to become, well, increasingly dragon-like.
This feels like it could be a turning point season for Dany – she’s developed from basically being sold into marriage by her weasely brother to rising from the fires as “The Mother of Dragons.” In the last two seasons, she has become the “Breaker of Chains” and the “Queen of the Andals” and now it feels like she’s either going to keep pushing towards claiming the iron throne or become a casualty in the constant battle for supremacy. That’s just speculation, but this show has always hit us with surprises and unexpected deaths, so would it really be crazy to see Dany follow in the footsteps of Ned Stark and KIng Joffrey?
Only two more weeks until we start learning where Season 5 will lead us.
Next Week: The Smaller Factions
