Game of Thrones 30 Day Challenge: Day 2

Challenge for Day 2: Favorite House

HOUSE TARGARYEN

A lot of people tend to hate the Targaryens. They see them simply as crazy incestuous bullying conquerors. All of that is true, by the way. Insanity tends to run in the family. They did intermarry quite often. They weren't originally from the Seven Kingdoms. The family showed up some 400 years ago and conquered everyone 100 years after that. They conquered everyone using dragons. I suppose that could be seen as bullying.

The truth is, when the Targaryens were still in Valyria, they weren't all that important, just one of 40 or so noble houses of dragonlords. But that all changed when Daenys the Dreamer began to have visions. Daenys, daughter of Aenar Targaryen, was gifted with foresight. She wrote down her visions in a book called Signs and Portents. When she told her father that Valyria would fall, he uprooted the whole family and moved to the Isle of Dragonstone in Westoros.  Twelve years later, Valyria was destroyed.

Of course, Daenys didn't just have visions about the end of Valyria. She also knew her family would produce the Prince who was Promised, the one who could save the world from darkness. The conquering of the Seven Kingdoms was more about positioning themselves to save the world than it was just to conquer things. Actually, who am I kidding? They wanted to rule the place.

Still, the Targs, to be a family we only have roughly 400 years of history about, are a fascinating bunch. They're obsessed with fire. A lot of them have visions. Several of them have had magic. They have interesting coloring. And, of course, they're so crazy and irresponsible, they lost their dragons AND their throne.

I don't know if Tyrion is half-Targ (though I hope he is). I don't know if Jon is Rhaegar's son (though I hope he is). I don't know that Dany will ever show up and save the planet or if she'll even make it back with all three dragons (though I hope she does). What I do know is that even out of power, the Targaryen dynasty shapes the current events. The shadows of the dragonlords and the promise of what it could mean if they come again is always in the background. Call them what you will, but the Targaryens are an important part of this story, as important as the Starks.

In fact, I personally believe the ties between the two families are what shapes all of this anyway, but that's an essay for another day.