Book-Accurate Daenerys Targaryen Art Makes Me Realize A Huge Missed Game Of Thrones Opportunity (2024)

Game of Thrones missed one big opportunity when it came to Daenerys Targaryen's story, and it took a great piece of fan art to fully make me realize it. Of course, much of the discussion about Daenerys' story, and what went wrong with it, centers around Game of Thrones' ending. That saw her transform into the final villain of the show, and was controversial, to say the least.

However, HBO's adaptation made plenty of changes to Daenerys' book story - and some missteps, though also lots of smart decisions - long before Game of Thrones season 8. This extends down to basic elements such as her appearance, with Emilia Clarke's version not having the purple eyes that are typical of Valyrians, as shown in book accurate Daenerys fan art from @paparinka_art on Instagram. That itself isn't a huge problem, given it was a practical reason (the purple contacts were uncomfortable to wear), but what's really notable in the art is the crown Daenerys wears.

Game Of Thrones Missed The Chance To Use Daenerys Targaryen's Crown

Daenerys Does Wear A Crown In A Song Of Ice & Fire

Although she styles herself as Queen, Daenerys never wears a crown in Game of Thrones - but that's not true in the book. In A Clash of Kings, she's presented with a crown as a gift by the Tourmaline Brotherhood in Qarth. It's mostly gold, but fashioned to look like three dragons, with heads of ivory, jade, and onyx, representing Viserion, Rhaegal, and Drogon, and is described similar to what's depicted in the artwork from @paparinka_art. Unfortunately, Game of Thrones chose to omit this from Dany's story.

Even just on a superficial level, it would've been cool to see Daenerys wear a crown, and this one in particular could've looked stunning if done right, as it's truly befitting of her and looks unique. But it runs much deeper, too. In A Dance with Dragons, Daenerys wears the crown while ruling in Meereen, and she literally and figuratively feels the weight of it upon her. Game of Thrones somewhat explored Dany's struggles to rule in Meereen, but this could've added more visual and thematic heft to it.

The symbolism of the crown then could've continued in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. Rather than taking a Targaryen crown, this would perfectly highlight her own personal journey to the Iron Throne. Not just one of birthright or destiny, but of how far she's had to come to reclaim it. It signifies her status as the Mother of Dragons, too, and how important they are to her. She, like so many Targaryens before her, can rule because of her dragons, and that's reflected in the crown she wears.

Daenerys wearing a crown would also fit with her trying to be a different kind of ruler. While you could argue that not wearing a crown at all does this, Daenerys' idea of "breaking the wheel," was never quite as radical as she seemed to think, because ultimately she was still trying to restore the Targaryen dynasty. With that, then I think still having a crown, but one that's different from the previous Targaryen kings and queens in Game of Thrones, could've struck the right balance.

Daenerys' Crown Could Be More Important In The Book

Targaryen Crowns Add Legitimacy To The Ruler

Though it didn't appear in the show, Daenerys' three-dragon crown could be of greater importance when The Winds of Winter releases (or A Dream of Spring) and she finally makes it to Westeros. That's not just for all the reasons outlined above, but for how it could actually undermine her attempt to take the Iron Throne, based on what happens with a key rival: Young Griff, aka Aegon Targaryen, the shocking-still-alive firstborn son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell.

Game of Thrones cut Aegon Targaryen in its efforts to streamline the narrative (and avoid Jon Snow confusion), but in the book it's very possible we're going to see a situation where he and Daenerys fight for the Iron Throne. It's very possible that Aegon is actually a fake, but what matters is what people believe, and a crown could help with that - especially with one theory that he will get the crown and sword of Aegon the Conqueror.

Blackfyre, Aegon the Conqueror's sword, was taken to Essos by Aegor Rivers, aka Bittersteel, the man who founded the Golden Company... the group of sellswords that are now in the service of Young Griff. Meanwhile, the Conqueror's crown was lost in Dorne decades earlier - and Prince Doran Martell is looking to marry his daughter, Arianne, to Aegon. It's possible both items could make a surprising return and fall into the possession of Young Griff/Aegon.

If that were true, then it would give him a huge degree of legitimacy over Daenerys as the rightful Targaryen ruler, with similar reasoning used for King Aegon II Targaryen in House of the Dragon. Daenerys' crown has no Targaryen history behind it, which is the point in terms of her creating a new order, but could count against her if Aegon beats her to King's Landing and claims the Iron Throne before she arrives.

That could all be a fascinating battle for the right to rule, albeit one Game of Thrones would've needed many more seasons to get into. That would have made the story a lot more complicated, and I'm not entirely convinced it would've worked on the TV show, given Aegon is such a late-in-the-day twist, but should certainly work in the books (if and when they happen) where there's a lot more room. Even without Aegon, though, Daenerys' crown - and more importantly, its meaning - would have added to her Game of Thrones story.

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Created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Game of Thrones is a TV series based on the book “A Song of Ice of Fire” by George R. R. Martin. It tells the story of the ongoing battle between the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros - as they fight for control of the coveted Iron Throne. Friction between the houses leads to full-scale war. All while a very ancient evil awakens in the far north. Amidst the war, a neglected military order of misfits, the Night's Watch, led by House Stark's Jon Snow, is the first to encounter icy horrors that threaten all realms of men. The series premiered on HBO in the United States on April 17, 2011, and quickly became one of the biggest event series in the "Golden Age" of TV. Winner of 38 Primetime Emmy Awards, Game of Thrones has attracted record viewership on HBO and has a broad, active, international fan base.

Cast

Emilia Clarke , Lena Headey , Richard Madden , Michelle Fairley , Kit Harington , Maisie Williams , Alfie Allen , Peter Dinklage

Release Date

April 11, 2011

Seasons

8

Streaming Service(s)

HBO Max

Franchise(s)

Game of Thrones

Showrunner

David Benioff , D.B. Weiss