One thing is clear, the (previously) rightful heir to the Seven Kingdoms, Daenerys Targaryen, can definitely deliver some sick ‘burns’. After spending years under the tyrannical hand of her brother, she stood expressionless as she watched Khal Drogo give him the “golden crown” he so desired. Ever since then, it has been a series of poker-faced badass moments for the Khaleesi.
Daenerys, the breaker of chains, has had one of the most astonishing character arcs on the show. She went from a timid sister to the most formidable contender to the Iron Throne.
And even as the recent episodes have taken her character to a place where she could descend into madness, and meet a tragic end, she is the only character that has consistently served us with unforgettably powerful moments. In honour of that, here is a list of the 10 most savage Daenerys moments from the show: (P.S, if you’re new to Game of Thrones, Spoiler Alert!)
10. Sailing to Westeros- 6x10
By the sixth season, Daenerys has already taken over cities and freed many slaves, and that is what makes this one an often ignored, but deserving, badass moment. As the mother of dragons stands on the deck, sailing to Westeros, she is flanked by a massive fleet of ships, filled with those loyal to her. Her majestic dragons circle the air and the Targaryen banner flutters. Behind her stand her trusted advisers- Varys, Tyrion, and Missandei, and our Khaleesi looks more powerful than ever.
9. Daenerys meets Jon Snow- 7x03
The first time Daenerys meets Jon Snow is in complete contrast to their relationship later on the show. Missandei introduces the queen with her full title- “Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, Rightful Heir to the Iron Throne, Rightful Queen of the Andals, and the First Men, Protector of the Seven Kingdoms, the Mother of Dragons, the Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, the Unburnt, the Breaker of Chains.” After that, Dany reminds Jon and Davos that the last rightful King of the North was her father and Torrhen Stark swore fealty to House Targaryen in perpetuity.
8. Dany at the Daznak pit- 5x09
On Daenerys’ mission to liberate Slaver’s Bay, she defeats Yunkai and marches to Meereen where she abolishes slavery, but is forced to reopen the fighting pits. Tyrion and Jorah are sold into servitude and manage to reach the Great Games where they fight in the Daznak Pit in front of the Queen. However, the rebellious Sons of the Harpy launch a sneak attack and have Dany and her loyal men surrounded. Just when all hope seems lost, Drogon flies in like the hero he is. Till this point, the moment is mostly Drogon’s badass moment, but Dany shares the spotlight when she gets on Drogon and rides a dragon for the first time on the show, as Tyrion looks on bewildered, much like the viewers.
7. Daenerys holds the North- 7x06
After Jon refuses to bend the knee and Dany refuses to believe that the Wall faces a real threat, Jon and his gang must face the advancing Army of the Dead alone. It is no surprise that the war bends in the Night King’s favour pretty soon. Jon orders his remaining men to retreat. Just then, Daenerys rides in on Drogon and burns the Dead to the ground. Even though she loses her faithful Viserion, it is still one of the most badass Dany moments.
6. The birth of the dragons- 1x10
There was once a time when Dany’s power came from being the Khaleesi to the mighty Khal Drogo. However, when the conniving Mirri Maz Duur’s blood magic results in the death of her unborn child and her husband, she burns her alive in his funeral pyre.
Just when everyone believes that that is where the badass moment ends, she proceeds to walk into the pyre herself. The Khaleesi goes from having lost a child to having three new ones when she emerges from the fire unscathed with three dragon babies around her.
5. House of the Undying- 2x10
In the second season, Dany has led her Dothraki army across the Red Waste and is basically starving, after having been widowed and losing her child. Granted, she became the mother of dragons, but she was still vulnerable enough for the blue-lipped warlock to take the baby dragons hostage.
The House of the Undying is the Qarth warlocks’ headquarters, and since the dragons seem to make their magic stronger, they conspire against Dany and capture her dragons. Also, Daenerys makes the dragons stronger, so Pyat Pree captures her as well.
Even when the viewers thought that all was lost for the Khaleesi, she seemed calmer than ever. Without warning, she whispers the command, “Dracarys” and one of her dragons burns Pyat alive. Daenerys doesn’t just show us that she always has the upper hand, but we now also know that her dragons are getting stronger.
4. Daenerys vs the masters- 6x09
If you had to go against someone, you shouldn’t choose the mother of dragons. The masters at Meereen learned this lesson the hard way. Even though Tyrion believed that he had successfully created a diplomatic alliance between the masters and Daenerys, the masters betray her and lay siege to the city they lost.
On Tyrion’s advice against burning down the land, Dany agrees to negotiate the masters’ surrender. However, the masters threaten the Khaleesi and ask her to leave Meereen, surrender Missandei and the other salves to be resold. They also claim that her two babies, the dragons, will be slaughtered. This is when she decides she has had enough and rides Drogon away to free the other two dragons, destroying the masters’ ships. Meanwhile, two of the masters are executed for their betrayal and one is released as “mercy”. Like she says, “my reign has just begun.”
3. The spoils of war- 7x04
The Lannister army and their allies move east to reach the upper waters of the Blackwater Rush. Jaime and Bronn are caught off-guard when they hear the sound of oncoming cavalry and they form up. When Bronn asks Jaime to ride ahead to King’s Landing, he refuses and claims, “we can hold them off.” Boy, was he wrong. Just then, they hear a chilling cry in the distance, a sound that hasn’t been heard in Westeros in more than a century. Daenerys rides in on Drogon and calmly commands, “Dracarys” and Drogon burns through the cavalry lines.
2. Daenerys, the breaker of chains- 3x04
Ever since the Unsullied managed to defeat the Dothraki army 3000 years ago, and the Dothraki cut their braids and placed them at their feet, the Unsullied have been known to be elite warrior eunuchs. They are trained in Astapor, a major city of the Slaver’s Bay where Daenerys makes a stop. She travels to Astapor and convinces one of the Good Masters, Kraznys mo Nakloz, to sell his 8000 Unsullied in exchange for Drogon.
Throughout the negotiations, the Master keeps insulting Dany in Valyrian while the translator, Missandei, conveys the much cleaner versions. This goes on until she finally gets control of the Whip and turns to the Master. “A dragon is not a slave,” she says, in Valyrian. The Valyrian queen then frees the Unsullied and they accept her as their new leader.
1. The khalar vezhven massacre- 6x04
In the sixth season, Daenerys is captured by the Dothraki and is offered to Khal Moro as a gift. After she convinces them that she is the widow of a Khal, she is taken to the Temple by the High Priestess of the Dosh Khaleen where she finds out that the Khals will get to decide whether she joins the dosh khaleen or not, during the khalar vezhven.
Even though Moro believes she should join the dosh khaleen, the other khals have other ideas like trading her for horses while another wants to make her his khaleesi. When Dany remarks that she is going to lead the Dothraki, the khal starts to threaten her. She looks on, her smile getting wider, and slowly tips the braziers one by one, burning all the khals alive in one of the sickest burns of the show. She emerges out of the fire, naked and un-burnt.
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