Game of Thrones showrunners justify Daenerys's character arc in season 8

'There is something chilling about the way Dany has responded to the death of her enemies'

**Spoilers for Game of Thrones season eight, episode five 'The Bells' ahead**

The once saviour of Westeros has become the Mad Queen. During the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones, Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) burnt down King's Landing as Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) watched from the Red Keep.

The dramatic transformation of Daenerys from "Breaker of Chains" into "Queen of Ashes" has upset many fans of the character. Following the episode's broadcast, the showrunners, David Benioff and Dan Weiss, attempted to justify the character arc.

"There is something chilling about the way Dany has responded to the death of her enemies," Benioff said, using the death of Dany's brother Viserys (Harry Lloyd) as a specific example.

"Even when you look back to season one when Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa) gives the golden crown to Viserys, and her reaction of watching her brother's head melted off. He was a terrible brother, so I don't think anyone was crying when Viserys died, but…"

Speaking about Dany's decision to burn King's Landing, Weiss said: "I don't think she decided ahead of time that she was going to do what she did. Then she sees the Red Keep, which is to her the home that her family built when they first came over to this country 300 years ago.

"It's in this moment on the walls of King's Landing where she's looking at that symbol of everything that was taken from her, when she makes the decision to make this personal."

Benioff added: "If circumstances had been different, I don't think this side of Dany ever would have come out. If Cersei hadn't betrayed her [in the agreement to fight the White Walkers], if Cersei hadn't executed Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel), if Jon hadn't told her the truth… if any of these things happened in a different way, then I don't think we'd be seeing this side of Daenerys Targaryen."

The Independent's critic described "The Bells" as "out-of-tune" and criticised the episode's writing, asking: "What is the logic here?" Meanwhile, Varys actor Conleth Hill called his character's demise "frustrating" and that the "last couple seasons weren’t my favourite". Lena Headey has also spoken cautiously about her character's death, revealing the reason why she initially felt “mixed” about the scene.

You can find a ranking of every character – from worst best – here. Flick through the below gallery for our ranking of every episode.

The final season of Game of Thrones continues every Sunday. The show is available on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV in the UK.