page_title: The Bells (Game of Thrones)
section_title: Daenerys's arc
hierarchical_section_title: The Bells (Game of Thrones) / Reception / Critical response / Daenerys's arc
caption_attribution_description: English: Emilia Clarke at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con International in San Diego, California.
context_page_description: "The Bells" is the fifth and penultimate episode of the eighth season of HBO's fantasy television series Game of Thrones, and the 72nd and penultimate episode of the series. It was written by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Miguel Sapochnik. It aired on May 12, 2019.
  "The Bells" features the final battle for control of the Iron Throne, with Daenerys Targaryen's forces commencing their assault on Cersei Lannister's forces at King's Landing.
  The episode received criticism from critics and audiences alike. Critics praised the episode's visuals, as well as the acting and direction, but criticized the pacing and logic of the story, as well as its handling of the character arcs of Tyrion, Jaime, Cersei, Grey Worm, Varys, and particularly Daenerys. It received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations and was also picked by Lena Headey to support her nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. It eventually was awarded the prizes for Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes and Outstanding Special Visual Effects.
context_section_description: Daenerys's turn from hero to villain was especially criticized, with many reviewers and fans feeling that, because she was built up as a morally good protagonist for seven seasons, it made no narrative sense, or that it was not executed properly within the provided timescale. Mike Hogan of Vanity Fair said that although the show had been clear that Daenerys has a temper, "we have seen her balance that violence with mercy, kindness, and above all shrewdness." Zack Beauchamp of Vox argued that Daenerys's previous cruelties were somewhat logical because she killed people who "committed crimes deserving of punishment" and Samwell Tarly's father and brother because they "refused to submit to her rule," but that there was no reason to go after harmless civilians. He said although the show had been "building toward Daenerys becoming the Mad Queen" and this route could have worked, "its execution was sloppy and rushed" and "it felt as if Daenerys had become a monster simply because the show needed her to become a monster, not because it was paying off a thoughtfully developed character turn." Slate's Sam Adams said "the show spent far more time making Dany a hero" than building her up as the Mad Queen.
  The Atlantic staff opined, "Game of Thrones could have easily demonstrated the nasty reality of [Daenerys's] fight for Westeros without putting the choice to massacre innocents directly on her shoulders. Instead, 'The Bells' ended up painting one of the most pivotal plot points in the final season as an emotional lashing-out from a tired, lonely, paranoid young woman." Kathryn VanArendonk of Vulture also criticized the episode for "ultimately hing[ing] on a trope as painfully stale as 'and then the scary powerful woman goes crazy'." Eliana Dockterman of Time criticized the analyses of Daenerys's advisors as also playing "into the terrible trope of the crazed, power-hungry woman" and Tyrion's advice as having kept Daenerys from taking the Iron Throne much earlier and without as much bloodshed. She said she understood the idea of power corrupting "a heroic figure like Daenerys" and Daenerys falling prey to a messiah complex, but that the show needed to evolve her to that point like it evolved other characters to their points. Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone stated that Daenerys's descent into madness is the kind of development that requires "at least another half of a regular-length GoT season to feel earned."
  Myles McNutt of The A.V. Club said that Daenerys's final arc comes down to two aspects – story development and character development. He said Daenerys burning down King's Landing is a logical and effective way of ending the story on a thematic level, adding that how "it reshapes the rest of the episode is a striking reframing of the violence that has defined the show." Character-wise, he felt that the choice was "undeniably trickier" because one might be led to believe that Daenerys's choice was purely reflexive when it was instead due to "a collection of life experiences that left her believing that ruling with fear was the only path ahead of her." He said "the writers failed to create the necessary structure for [the villainous turn]" and they could have better highlighted Daenerys's destiny as a villain by referencing things such as her prophecy in Qarth. Variety's Daniel D'Addario also argued that it made sense that Daenerys would burn the city because her "tactics have always been more deeply rooted in dominance than in empathy." Arguing that the change in Daenerys's arc has likely been planned by George R. R. Martin from the beginning, Vox's Andrew Prokop stated, "If Game of Thrones ended with a triumphant Daenerys Targaryen heroically taking the Iron Throne, it wouldn't be Game of Thrones. This is the show of Ned Stark's death. This is the show of the Red Wedding. This is the ending it was headed toward all along."
  Screen Rant's Alexandra August felt that "ultimately it comes down to your interpretation of Dany's arc and how much that interpretation was diluted by pacing, execution and cultural context, if at all." She 
caption: Critics generally considered Daenerys Targaryen's (Emilia Clarke) villainous turn in this episode unearned.[19]
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