Game of Thrones fans rage at ‘critical’ Daenerys blunder as lover Daario cut from final series
GAME of Thrones' final season was controversial for all manner of reasons, but recently fans have dragged up a notably absent character.
The HBO fantasy drama's concluding episodes saw Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) burn King’s Landing to the ground, only to be subsequently murdered by her lover Jon Snow (Kit Harington).
Before that point, Daenerys found herself in grave danger during the Battle of Winterfell, where if not for the sacrifice of Ser Jorah Mormon (Iain Glen), she surely would’ve been murdered by the White Walkers.
Many fans accused show bosses of “rushing” or “oversimplifying” the final season, which consisted of just six episodes.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that a lot of familiar faces didn’t make the cut – and one name to ruffle feathers is Daario Naharis.
The character, first played by Ed Skrein and later by Michiel Huisman, was introduced as a lieutenant of the Second Sons.
He allied himself with Daenerys during her quest for the Iron Throne and the pair even became lovers, albeit on a casual basis.
Considering his impressive martial prowess, some fans were baffled that Daenerys didn’t take him north with her to take on the White Walkers.
“Daario stayed back with the second sons in Mereen. Specific orders were left for him regarding the welfare of Mereen and the Bay of Dragons,” one fan wrote on Screen Rant.
“That was the last time anyone heard from him,” added.
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They went on to point out that given Daenerys’ vulnerability in a new environment, it would make sense for her to keep her closest allies by her side.
“After Jorah Mormont gave away his life protecting Daenerys in The Long Night, Dany felt isolated and weak from within. One by one, all her close aids were betraying her,” the fan continued.
“Shouldn't she have called for Daario Naharis at this critical juncture? The one who begged to fight for her?”
The point was met with many messages of agreement and claims that show bosses were simply trying to trim down the cast given the lack of screen time available to share.
“In my opinion they just couldn’t be bothered writing him in,” one wrote, alongside a shrugging emoji.
A second opined: “The guy swore to protect her to the end so it makes no sense whatsoever.”
The furore comes after it emerged that Jon Snow’s Targaryen bloodline was teased was back in the show’s first episode by uncle Benjen.
Elsewhere, one of the Game of Thrones writers revealed the original plans for Jorah Mormont in the final series.