Solo4114
Master Member
In general, I agree, but I think the Harpy guys had enough men to ultimately overwhelm the Unsullied. The other part of the equation is that they might win the initial fight, but if more Harpy guys show up, they're screwed. Eventually they could end up overwhelmed.
I mean, look, any way you slice it, the Unsullied came off REALLY badly except for Grey Worm. They're supposed to be badasses and they come across like wusses instead, while the Harpy guys come across as badasses precisely because of the dagger vs. spear-and-shield power differential. The way the show made it look to me, though, the Unsullied would eventually have been overwhelmed even if they'd gone into formation, and their weapons aren't as useful for offensive combat in the tight confines of the streets.
I get the point of the storyline. It's basically about teaching Dany what it means to rule, and bringing her to a place where she's willing to abandon peace and use war to take what she wants. She's the blood of the dragon, after all, and of Aegon the Conqueror. She's in Mereen to grow the **** up, basically, and recognize that politics requires compromise, and warfare requires ruthlessness and brutality. Fire and blood. I think the next book will showcase Dany as far more of a warrior than a liberator. She'll still liberate people where she can, but her primary purpose will be focused back on getting to Westeros and taking her ****ing throne there through fire and blood.
The thing is, she'll still have to grow past that, and ultimately, that's what Mereen teaches. Conquest is easy. Ruling is hard. It's doubly hard when you don't understand the culture you're trying to rule. And that brings up an interesting bit about Dany -- she'll never FULLY understand Westeros, because she didn't really grow up there. She'll always be a bit alien to the place, and it will mean that her rule of Westeros -- if she ends up ruling at all -- will be....difficult, much like it as in Mereen. She'll need people by her side who can also support her and guide her AS EQUALS. The dragon, after all, has three heads.
In a way, Dany's path in the book -- while certainly overlong and bloated -- takes her to the same place that Jon ultimately needs to go where he learns to "Kill the boy so that the man might live." Both Jon and Dany want an easier life, but that life is the life of a child. Doubly so, in their more brutal, demanding world. Both need to learn to embrace their true nature, and both struggle with their perceived obligations.
Ultimately, I suspect that Jon and Dany will come together to unite Westeros, but they'll have to undergo serious change to do so, and to rule it successfully after the fact. Their paths actually mirror each other, in a way. Both fell in love with a "barbarian" and learned to respect their culture. Both fell into roles that probably weren't appropriate for them (Dany as Queen of Mereen, Jon as Lord Commander). Both ultimately leave these roles (Jon with a knife in his back, Dany on a dragon's back). I suspect we'll see both end up ultimately fighting for the same throne and eventually joining with each other. If they win the war and rule together, they'll need Jon's Stark tendencies towards justice to leaven their respective Targaeryan tendencies to violence and conquest. But it'll be interesting seeing how they get there.
The thing is, she'll still have to grow past that, and ultimately, that's what Mereen teaches. Conquest is easy. Ruling is hard. It's doubly hard when you don't understand the culture you're trying to rule. And that brings up an interesting bit about Dany -- she'll never FULLY understand Westeros, because she didn't really grow up there. She'll always be a bit alien to the place, and it will mean that her rule of Westeros -- if she ends up ruling at all -- will be....difficult, much like it as in Mereen. She'll need people by her side who can also support her and guide her AS EQUALS. The dragon, after all, has three heads.
In a way, Dany's path in the book -- while certainly overlong and bloated -- takes her to the same place that Jon ultimately needs to go where he learns to "Kill the boy so that the man might live." Both Jon and Dany want an easier life, but that life is the life of a child. Doubly so, in their more brutal, demanding world. Both need to learn to embrace their true nature, and both struggle with their perceived obligations.
Ultimately, I suspect that Jon and Dany will come together to unite Westeros, but they'll have to undergo serious change to do so, and to rule it successfully after the fact. Their paths actually mirror each other, in a way. Both fell in love with a "barbarian" and learned to respect their culture. Both fell into roles that probably weren't appropriate for them (Dany as Queen of Mereen, Jon as Lord Commander). Both ultimately leave these roles (Jon with a knife in his back, Dany on a dragon's back). I suspect we'll see both end up ultimately fighting for the same throne and eventually joining with each other. If they win the war and rule together, they'll need Jon's Stark tendencies towards justice to leaven their respective Targaeryan tendencies to violence and conquest. But it'll be interesting seeing how they get there.
