The Game of Thrones finale saw the last living dragon in the GoT universe, Drogon, fly away with Daenerys Targaryen’s body after Jon Snow killed her. But the show leaves us to assume where actually Drogon went and if at all he had a destination in mind when he flew away.
There are several probable theories about where Drogon is headed and what happens to him after the season finale. For one, he may have not had any destination in mind and flew away with Dany out of sudden rage, just like he melted the Iron Throne out of rage.
Other theories include Drogon flying back to Valyria or Volantis in hopes of getting Dany resurrected. He may also have been flying around until Dany’s body decomposes and he cannot fly any more. (This theory was offered by Emilia Clarke herself!)
With House of the Dragon coming up in two weeks, it’s time to brush up on all our theories. In fact, since the upcoming fantasy prequel promises to offer us much more information about dragons than Game of Thrones did, we might even come up with some new theories.
We’ll update you then! Until then, here’s brushing up everything we know about Drogon’s fate till now.
1. Where did Drogon take Daenerys’ dead body?
Drogon could have returned to Valyria with Daenerys, where dragons first originated. He could also have taken her to Volantis, in hopes of getting her resurrected. He also may not have had a destination in mind.
In the finale, Samwell Tarly mentioned Drogon for the last time, when he told Bran Stark that he was last seen flying east. No other hint was left in the show about where exactly Drogon went or what happens to him after the finale.
From what Sam said, it is clear that Drogon is still very much alive and flying. Dragons are intelligent creatures and can figure out a lot on their own. Dany’s death definitely caused Drogon a lot of grief, so he could have just wanted to be alone with her to grieve her death.
Valyria or Volantis seems to be the most probable destination for Drogon, all things considered. In the books and the series, Valyria is the old home of the Targaryens and also the place where dragons originated in. It is located on the eastern coast of Essos, so it makes sense for Drogon to be flying east in this case.
Old Valyria is a fallen city, so Drogon could also get some time to grieve Dany alone there. But in this case, his survival would not be guaranteed because there would be no one to feed or look after him. Unless of course, Drogon decides to go search for his own food.
According to Emilia Clarke, Drogon kept flying around without a destination in mind until Dany’s body decomposed and Drogon was no longer able to fly. Her comments are not canon and are not based on any hints in the books or the series. Her theory, however, could be possible, since Drogon was in a rage when he flew away with Dany. It did not seem like he put much thought into it.
Another very far-fetched theory about Drogon is that he took Daenerys to Volantis. The Red Priestess Kinvara is based in Volantis. As you may remember, she appeared for a brief period in Season 6 of Game of Thrones.
Kinvara had powers of resurrection, just like Melisandre. So, Drogon might be flying to Volantis in hopes of resurrecting Daenerys. Though for this theory to be true, Drogon will have to be super intelligent because there’s no way he would know who has the powers to resurrect Dany.
One very important hint in support of this is that Samwell Tarly says Drogon was last seen flying eastwards towards “Volan” before he is cut off. Volantis is also where Daenerys and Viserys lived in Season 1 when we first meet them. So, Valyria and Volantis seem to be the most probable destinations for Drogon.
2. Why did Drogon melt the Iron Throne?
In the Game of Thrones finale, after Jon Snow kills Dany, Drogon bursts into rage and melts the Iron Throne by spitting fire. Drogon’s act is quite poetic and symbolic if you think about it, since the Iron Throne was the root of all the problems in the series. It’s perhaps the only thing that’s worth appreciating about Season 8.
Drogon melted the Iron Throne out of rage and anger for sure. When he sees his mother getting killed, he spits fire towards the Iron Throne, eventually melting it down. While it is symbolic of Drogon’s sense of justice, it could also be unintentional on his part.
Drogon may have melted the throne down because he realized that his mother is dead and if Dany cannot sit on the throne, then no one should. Drogon’s act brought the history of the throne to a full circle. It could also be a revolutionary act to pay back for what the Iron Throne did to his ancestors, since the throne is the reason behind House Targaryen’s downfall.
But we might also be reading too much into it. It could also be that Drogon simply lost his mind when Dany died and spit out fire, and coincidentally the Iron Throne came in his way. Even if this was true, it does not take away the sense of poetic justice associated with Drogon’s final act.
The melting down of the Iron Throne is symbolic of the futility of war, the destruction that lust and greed for power might lead to, and the destruction that a symbol of power and authority can cause. The Iron Throne was a piece of history and symbolic of the royalty of Westeros, and so the fall of the throne was symbolic of a new beginning.
3. Why didn’t Drogon kill Jon Snow?
What I found strange, and I’m sure most would agree, is that Drogon’s anger was directed towards the throne and not towards Jon Snow, who murdered Dany in front of his own eyes. He could have easily burnt down Jon Snow, but he directed his fire towards the throne.
Perhaps, Drogon too understood that it was the throne that was the root of all trouble and indirectly the reason behind his mother’s gradual descent into madness which eventually led to her death. So, he directed his fire towards the throne and not at Jon Snow.
Another reason for him sparing Jon Snow could be the fact that Jon is actually a Targaryen. Drogon, being loyal to the family, could not directly harm Jon, who is now the only Targaryen remaining after Dany’s death. So, Drogon took his anger out on the only other thing in front of him—the Iron Throne.
4. Is Drogon the last remaining dragon?
From what we have seen in the series, Drogon does seem to be the last of the dragons in Game of Thrones. But this is in no way confirmed and nowhere is it mentioned that Daenerys’ three dragons were the only dragons to exist at this point in time.
I would argue that Drogon is not the last remaining dragon in the GoT universe. The three dragons that we see in Game of Thrones and in the books are Rhaegal, Viserion, and Drogon. They were born out of the three dragon eggs from Asshai that were gifted to Dany back in Season 1 during her wedding to Khal Drogo.
But it was not confirmed in any shape or form that those were the only dragon eggs to have existed. So even if we consider that Rhaegal, Viserion, and Drogon did not have any offsprings (which too is doubtful, read up on it), there could still be more dragon eggs in existence.
As per the books and series, dragons had reached near-extinction two times before the events of Game of Thrones. First, during the Doom of Valyria, which wiped out almost the entire population of dragons. But the Targaryens were able to rebreed the population with just the five surviving dragons.
The second time, almost all dragons died during the Targaryen civil war, the Dance of the Dragons, which will be portrayed in the upcoming series, House of the Dragon. In the books, Archmaester Marwyn also mentioned that the maesters together decided to kill the remaining dragons as well.
But yet, unhatched dragon eggs remained and made their way back to Daenerys, the last of the Targaryens. So, one way or the other, dragons find their way out, don’t they?
As long as one dragon remains, or at least one dragon egg remains, we cannot consider them wiped off the GoT universe.
5. How Dragons Reproduce: Is Drogon female?
In the books, it is mentioned that dragons are “neither male nor female”, which means they’re gender-fluid. Though Drogon was addressed using male pronouns in the series, he could have been female at times. The same is applicable to Rhaegal and Viserion.
Three things about dragons are essential to remember when we consider these theories—dragon eggs are extremely difficult to hatch, it is possible to repopulate dragons with a minimal starting number, and dragons are gender-fluid and mate with their siblings, too, just like the Targaryens.
In A Feast of Crows, Maester Aemon Targaryen tells Samwell Tarly that dragons are gender-fluid. The context was that Maester Aemon thought that Daenerys was actually the “prince” that was promised and the prophecy’s mention of the prince was a mistranslation from Valyrian.
“The error crept in from the translation. Dragons are neither male nor female, Barth saw the truth of that, but now one and now the other, as changeable as flame. The language misled us all for a thousand years.”
Maester Aemon Targaryen
Going by the books, dragons are neither male nor female, so whether they can reproduce or not, most likely does not depend on their gender.
It is not clear whether dragons reproduce by mating or through parthenogenesis (asexual reproduction), but in both cases, it is probable that Dany’s dragons laid eggs. Since gender is not an issue, all three dragons could have been male or female at various points.
When Dany was ruling in Meereen, Rhaegal and Viserion were locked under the Great Pyramid of Meereen for a long time. During this time, they could have mated or laid eggs, especially considering that these creatures do not mind mating with siblings. (Cersei and Drogon could actually have been friends, now that you think about it.)
During one point in the series, Drogon flew away to some unknown destination and could not be spotted for long. There’s a chance he laid eggs in some other unknown place in Westeros, which we do not know about. He might have wanted to keep his eggs safe so he laid them elsewhere.
Maybe Drogon was flying to Volantis or Old Valyria to go to his eggs, or he could have laid some of his own there, if dragons can reproduce asexually. Going by any of these theories, there is a possibility of Drogon not being the last remaining dragon in the GoT Universe.
House of the Dragon will most likely tell us much more about dragons and how they reproduce, which will help in confirming and rejecting our existing theories about Daenerys’ dragons.
Lastly, we do not even know what’s “west of Westeros”. So, there may be no dragons in Westeros, but what about what’s west? You never know.
6. About Game of Thrones
A television phenomenon, Game of Thrones is an American fantasy drama series created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss for HBO.
Set in the fictional universe of Westeros, nine dignified families fight to mark their claim to the Iron Throne and rule over the Seven Kingdoms. The HBO production is based on the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series by George R.R. Martin and features a number of converging arcs convoluted by political conflicts among factions.
The series features a large ensemble cast including Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Nikolaj-Coster Waldau, Kit Harrington, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Emilia Clarke and many others.
No Comments on All About Dragons: Drogon’s Fate After Daenerys’ Death in Game of Thrones