Game of Thrones season 6 episode 4: Daenerys' naked fire twist explained

A rare case of the show playing up, rather than down, a magical element from the books

*This article contains spoilers for Game of Thrones S06E04 ‘Book of the Stranger’*

A good leader should be wise, brave, strong and, in the Seven Kingdoms at least, flame retardant.

The ending of the latest Game of Thrones episode saw the Dothraki kneel before Khaleesi after she escaped imprisonment by the Khals by burning their hut to the ground and emerging from it unscathed.

Read the rest of our Game of Thrones coverage here

So her immunity during the hatching of the dragons wasn’t a one-time thing then?

In the books it is, but it seems the TV show is taking her immunity to fire further.

George R. R. Martin previously said it was a ”common misconception" that Targaryens are immune to fire, and described Dany’s season 1 survival as "unique, magical, wondrous, a miracle” that ”probably" wouldn't happen again (assuming he hasn’t changed his mind while writing The Winds of Winter).

The show already went off-book with this in season 2 however.

You may remember that when Dany’s dragons save her from the House of the Undying, one of her captors is killed when a dragon fires a jet of fire straight through her and into him.

So what’s the significance of this?

It really just serves to cement Dany’s claim to the Iron Throne. By making her not only the Breaker of Chains and Mother of Dragons but immune to fire - truly The Unburnt - she is even more of a fearsome figure to rally behind.

So we now have a man who has beaten death (Jon Snow) and a woman who has beaten fire (Daenerys Targaryen), will we see them team up to fight ice in next year’s (potentially final) season?