I agree with your analysis. Dany has been compassionate in the past but this time she is the only one who saw what had to happen. The people Cersi used to shield her were sacrificed because this is what you have to do with a people who would use innocents to save themselves. Kings Landing needed to be cleansed by fire, and it was. Dany eliminated all directions of escape for Cersi and then destroyed the palace.
Jon was willing to accept the surrender of Cersi’s army, but they had in fact been following Cersi all along. Cersi showed that she would not have given anyone quarter if she had prevailed. In Lonesome Dove we learned that if you ride with horse thieves you will hang with horse thieves.
Tyrion betrayed Dany for the final time and he will pay for it, and with him will go the Lanister line. His voice of compassion for the innocents of King’s Landing was a valid emotion, but in the end he was willing to let Jaime and Cersi go somewhere else and try to have a new life. Wrong idea.
Arya has in fact chosen to forget her “list” but she is also not going to try to punish Dany, she will accept whatever Jon wishes. I believe he will realize that Dany was correct in eliminating the evil that Kings Landing represented. Recall that Cersi did not join in the defense of the kingdom when the Night King was just about to finish them all. (How could anyone stand against a force that could resurrect the dead?)
The only true leader was the one who did what needed to be done. Daenerys will take the restored throne.
Jon was willing to accept the surrender of Cersi’s army, but they had in fact been following Cersi all along. Cersi showed that she would not have given anyone quarter if she had prevailed. In Lonesome Dove we learned that if you ride with horse thieves you will hang with horse thieves.
Except by the time those bells rang, the Golden Company mercenaries were completely destroyed, and the Lannister troops in the city had thrown down their weapons. The actual fighting was over. She literally had no soldiers left other than a half-dozen Queensguard. There was nothing left to stop the UnSullied from marching right into the Red Keep and grabbing her.
Even if she though she didn't want to take any chance that Cersei might be left alive, the most she had to do was take her dragon and destroy the Red Keep itself. But instead, she took that dragon and literally targeted all the civilians and private homes between the walls and the Red Keep. There is no conceivable moral justification for her murdering over a hundred thousand civilians given that the fighting was over.
Disagree. I have been watching her descent for a couple of seasons now. Dany just plain snapped. She wasn't satisfied with just winning a battle. She wanted blood-thirsty revenge and there was no indication at all that Jon Snow will come to any realization in favor of the now "mad queen". Dany can not be trusted with the dragon nor with Greyworm at her side.
But also now, I am curious as to where Bronn fits in all this? If Tyrion dies, Bronn doesn't get Highgarden. Will Bronn show up and effect the outcome? Does he save Tyrion from Daenerys?
Nice summary.
We have been pulling for Dany along the way
Next sunday will be interesting to see how it wraps up