George R.R. Martin’s ‘Winds of Winter’ Can Make Daenerys’s Mad Queen Story Canon by Undoing the Worst Game of Thrones Death

SUMMARY

• Daenerys Targaryen's mad queen story in Game of Thrones felt rushed and undeserved.
• A popular theory suggested that Ser Barristan Selmy's betrayal in The Winds of Winter can work as the cause of Dany's madness.
• Fans will have to wait to confirm this as George R.R. Martin has not yet provided updates on his writing progress.

David Benioff and Dan Weiss made a lot of changes in Game of Thrones that did not satisfy fans, but there’s still hope that George R.R. Martin can give loyal readers a proper and fitting conclusion to his A Song of Ice and Fire story, especially with the much-debated arc of Daenerys Targaryen and how she became the Mad Queen.

Emilia Clarke in Game of Thrones / Credits: HBO

It’s evident that the HBO showrunners rushed her insanity plot as the series was planned to wrap up in Season 8, but there’s a popular theory that Martin can fix this with his upcoming novel, The Winds of Winter.

How The Winds of Winter can fix Daenerys Targaryen’s descent into madness

Ian McElhinney’s Ser Barristan Selmy died in the fifth season of Game of Thrones after he was attacked by a group of masked rebels in Meereen. His death became controversial as many believed it did not make sense to have one of the best sword fighters in Westeros perish at the hands of commoners.

Thankfully, Ser Barristan is still alive and kicking in George R.R. Martin’s novels. He is still a loyal ally to Emilia Clarke’s Daenerys Targaryen, and he could be instrumental in designing a proper story of the queen’s downfall.

Ian McElhinney in Game of Thrones / Credits: HBO

A Redditor explained how it is possible for Ser Barristan to turncloak on Dany in favor of another Targaryen. One of Martin’s entries in his site, Not a Blog, prompted the fan to formulate a theory that the noble knight would abandon his queen in The Winds of Winter to pledge allegiance to Young Griff, who claims to be Aegon Targaryen, the son of the late Prince Rhaegar Targaryen and Princess Elia Martell.

Ser Barristan both served Aerys Targaryen and Robert Baratheon, and he supported Daenerys believing she would not turn mad like her father. When he started seeing signs of violent tendencies in the queen, his loyalty would start to falter.

The theory suggests that the famed knight would learn of Aegon’s claim to the Iron Throne, and Ser Barristan would believe he is a more rightful heir than Dany. The betrayal of her trusted knight and Young Griff’s possible claim to the crown would slowly eat Dany’s confidence and this would make a better reason for her descent into madness.

George R.R. Martin hasn’t provided updates on The Winds of Winter

George R.R. Martin via TIFF Originals / Credits: YouTube

Much to the disappointment of fans, Martin is yet to release The Winds of Winter as he struggles to make positive writing progress due to his hectic schedule. Readers will have to wait as he hasn’t been giving any hints of a potential release date.

The theory of Ser Barristan’s betrayal of Daenerys becoming the cause of her downfall is a plausible one, and many fans believe the author will treat this controversial arc in her story with so much care and logic – this is, of course, if Martin will give Dany the same fate in his books.

Both characters’ deaths in the series were huge disappointments, so we’ll see if Martin will give them proper send-offs in his novel series.

Game of Thrones is currently available to watch on HBO.

Written by Ariane Cruz

Articles Published: 2824

Ariane Cruz, Senior Writer. She has been contributing articles for FandomWire since 2021, mostly covering stories about the latest movies and series. With a degree in Communication Arts, she has an in-depth knowledge of print and broadcast journalism. Her other works can also be seen on Screen Rant and CBR.