As I suspected, “Beyond the Wall” was full of furs and leathers to keep the characters warm on their hero’s expedition. We did, however, get one very new and very stunning piece from someone, so this week we’ll continue our dissection of the leading ladies of Westeros with that very character: Daenerys Targaryen.
Before we delve into the past, let’s look at the present. This week, when Dany received a raven from Jon and his company, she strapped on her best winter wear to swoop in and save the day. A fitting color, white, to wear as the savior of an otherwise hopeless battle. This coat is keeping with Dany’s signature silhouette this season, rendered in snow-white fur masterfully executed in thin stripped-paneling. The white signals her understanding of Jon’s cause- her realization of the intensity of the threat beyond the wall, but it also softens her in a motherly way and provides additional visual impact when Viserion is killed. This is easily one of the most striking looks of the entire series, especially given the sheer technicality of it…the coat is a work of art and, again, keeping with her Season 7 clothing evolution.
Of all the characters, male or female, Daenerys has by far gone through the most change in costuming. This makes sense as she finds herself in new lands season after season, as opposed to other characters like Cersei, Sansa, or Margaery, who all go through major costuming changes themselves, but stay otherwise sedentary in King’s Landing for a handful of seasons.
In Season 1, we meet Dany in Pentos, as her brother Viserys brokers a deal to marry her off to Khal Drogo. Her gowns are very fluid and almost Grecian-inspired, presenting a look of innocence, but there is also a sense of wanting to not stand out. The color purple in the Game of Thrones realm, seems to be representative of a desire to remain hidden, or at the very least, be ignored (this will be touched on more in a Sansa post), a very understandable tactic as she not only is resistant to her Dothraki wedding, but she has been in hiding and on the run since her birth.
Only when she and Drogo begin falling in love with each other does she start to dress like the Khaleesi of her people. The power that she feels by wearing the traditional clothing gives her the power to stand up to Viserys and others that threaten her. Once Drogo dies, Dany wears her wedding dress as she walks into the funeral pyre. She is paying tribute to her husband, but also burning away all the horror has brought her to this point and starting anew as a leader and ultimately, a queen.
Season 2 picks up where we left off with last season’s costumes, but Dany and the Dothraki are in a much less optimistic place than they were previously, wandering the endless desert land of the Red Waste until they come upon Qarth. While there, she initially adopts the dress of the noble women, but she slowly begins to incorporate elements of the dress of the men, as well as the Dothraki. The fluid gowns are replaced with quality leather armor in a Qarthian style, paired with the traditional metal cages to pay respects, until she rises up and decides to take revenge on the wrongs done to her and loots the place.
By Season 3, Dany finally has a small armada and army and is sailing for Astapor. The sacred blue color of the Dothraki signals another new chapter in her life, as well as a hopeful outlook on what is to come. Blue also is a color of power this season. Similarly, both Dany and Margaery are navigating their influence and persuasion, and both of them are in a dominant blue, outmaneuvering those around them. To add to her power, she implements a subtle dragon-scale motif in her embroidery, which grows and becomes more apparent as her dragons grow, themselves. Once she sacks Astapor, she moves on to Yunkai, continuing her power move in blue, further adding marriages of different elements of her journey. The leather armor and riding trousers are Dothraki practicality, and the cutouts at the hips of her dresses are designs that she picked up from the menswear in Qarth.
Once Dany takes up residence in Meereen in Season 4, she is no longer on the move constantly so she is able to dress in a more feminine way. Long gauzy pleated white skirts are worn under her signature blue overdresses, some showing plenty of skin with strategic cutouts, and her hair is worn soft and down with less complicated braids. The elements of white that creep in signal her rise to the untouchable queen that she presents in Season 5.
As the ruler of Meereen, Dany wants to be seen as the savior of the city with her idealistic notion of bringing peace by abolishing slavery. The beacon of purity and almost saintliness she imagines herself projecting is rendered in lofty white and dove-grey gowns with scale-effect capes and large, statement jewelry pieces either worn on her neck, or incorporated on her neckline. She also begins wearing her hair in even more complicated braids and styles, another nod to her Dothraki ties, and she shows little skin compared to her gowns from the prior season, furthering the notion of purity. Interestingly, when the massacre happens in the fighting pits at the end of the season and Drogon protects her and flies her out, tattering her long gown, she is seen to be wearing riding pants underneath as a sign that she knows she must always be ready for what comes her way.
Throughout Season 6, Dany spends most of her time wearing her tattered white dress, or ill-fitting leather pieces given to her as she enters the Temple of the Dosh Khaleen. Once she makes her power move and burns the Khals and takes her horde back to Meereen, she revisits the shapes of her blue dresses with the dragon scale embroidery, but renders them in brown tones to show unity with the Dothraki as they are now in a foreign place. Once she destroys the slavers and is back in her apartment, she is able to get back into her lofty gowns, but she is finally ready to sail to Westeros and reclaim her throne in the colors of House Targaeryen.
The pieces are in place with her loyal advisors, the Unsullied, the Dothraki, and now three advantageous alliances- the Greyjoys, the Tyrells, and Dorne. Dany feels confident and it is reflected in her impactful black looks. The gown that she wears in the final scene as they set sail is a direct call back to her white gowns that made her feel like the powerful figure she fashioned herself to be, but it is done, again, in black with intricate scaled beading at the shoulders.
Come Season 7, Daenerys knows that she is back to traveling, and even fighting, now that she has landed at Dragonstone. The regal gowns and long skirts have to be set aside until she takes King’s Landing, but the colors of her house become increasingly present, the shoulders are done in the signature Targaryen style, and she revisits the heavy dragon jewelry to further drive home her family name. With next week’s finale, we’ll see if something happens to get her back into her queenly gowns.
My Queen!
I want to hear Emilia’s words on seeing the white coat and getting to wear it. I’m guessing she wants to keep it. I have a feeling we’ll see some replicas being sold of that one.
No, no. MY Queen!! 🙂
Season 5 was my fav especially the white gown.
Clob,
That white coat was everything.
I love these articles, always such a great read. 🙂
The Meereen-style of Dany also very much highlighted her detachment from the city and its people, I would say, as it is neither a preferred color of the area, nor is it warm and welcoming. I still feel, quite like you seem to do, that the last scene of Dany in the pit when Drogon ripped her dress was the truest moment she had had so far in Meereen, showing what lies underneath her detached, symbolically queenly attire.
Concerning the new look from Ep6; I´m not sure whether a potential resemblance to White-Walker Under-armour was intentional, but it guess it could be. These down-plunging, thin lines just evoke the image of a battle-clad White Walker in me and since wintery armour per se seems to be the general motive of this dress, I think it could really be a nod to the ethereal quality of the White Walkers and their connection to the North.
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
You are absolutely right. I am surprised that no one else has mentioned yet the resemblance in Dany’s outfit to the NK’s outfit in terms of the shape and the design. The pattern of the fur on her outfit also looks like the WW’s skin with the stripes and everything. Her eyes looked intensely blue and she kinda looked out of place on Drogon. She honestly looked like she could be the Ice or Winter queen in this outfit which is really interesting because this season has been putting Dany under more “blue” light compared Jon like when they were coming out of the cave and in the last episode where Jon’s colour were warm and fiery while Dany’s looked icy . I wonder if this might be foreshadowing something about her endgame.
I wrote it in the other thread but… I’m hoping that they’re not showing Daenerys in the preview material for the finale because she’s wearing something AMAZING!
There needs to be a documentary made on the costuming and jewelry of GOT alone. These artists and their craft are beyond amazing!
Dany has always had the best costuming in the show.
Chill Pill,
I did not even actively notice the different lighting of the characters, but now that you mention it, I might have to rewatch some scenes (or episodes). Yeah, I really think that this dress could be intended symbolism/foreshadowing (or even intentional messing with our heads 😉 ). Even the shoulder-pads strongly resemble those of the NK, the motives they have incorporated into this dress really seem to point to a connection to some extent.
Top woman. Queen for sure!
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
Given that Dany’s current silhouette is apparently a Targaryen style thing, maybe the NK was a Targaryen! Takes the dragon situation to a whole new level…
Branflakes,
I´ve read some theories going in that direction, maybe there is something to that… or maybe Dany will become a Night´s Queen of some sort, also possible. Sadly, we won´t be able to tell what is true until the curtain falls, but it´s fun how after all these years, still so many theories are valid till the very end of the series and how such things like costumes can direct attention into certain directions.
Michele Clapton is superhuman. I love that the costumes Daenerys has been wearing in S7 seem like a culmination of everything that’s come before. I also like that the back of her white coat is cream fur, much like the coloring of Viserion.
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
Dany, the Night Queen????
Nah. That’s Sansa’s next job. She’s already given her two-week’s notice. She’s going to criticize, nag and undermine the NK (“I won Hardhome; all you did was sit on your horsie, walk on a dock and glare at your loser BFF Jon Snow”) until he gets fed up and retreats back to the Land of Always Winter for another 8,000 years.
Seriously, is that really a theory? And is Dany’s white outfit really meant to evolve WW imagery?
I thought the outfit was perfect winter wear – fashionable yet functional – for a young queen piloting a dragon.
A lady’s courtesy is her armor.
It is known.
What a journey she had.
I love the season 7 look for Dany! And the winter coat is amazing. I remember when that photo of her and Tyrion (and dragons) was posted as a preview photo and it just looked like a white gown of some sort but it was this intricate and beautiful coat.
Enjoyed the post!
Looking forward to the next episode, Cersei has some mighty fine threads! Love the black overcoat with black fir trim on the shoulders.
A question for you – The dress Cersei is wearing for the Dragon Pit scene in the previews, does that look like chainmail or a quilted or treated fabric/leather similar to the dresses we’ve seen her in so far this season? I did not think it was chainmail….but now I don’t know…. Your thoughts? Thanks! (I was speculating on another thread that something must be up because she was not wearing her shoulder armor but if she is wearing chainmail, well then, she has some protection. But we all know something must be up, regardless of what she is wearing, because we are dealing with Cersei, right?)
I do hope this was faux fur though.
Jack Bauer 24,
I can imagine why that’s your favorite,because it’s the one that shows the most skin right ?
Ten Bears,
Night´s Queen, not Night Queen. There is a significant difference here, but it has to do with book-related stuff and I´m not sure if you want to dive into that, especially since it all is just highly theoretical and just one of a plethora of possible outcomes. So just to answer this briefly; yes, there are theories that the NK is a Targaryen and yes, there are theories of Dany being a Night´s Queen in the end. But it´s GoT (or ASOIAF), so which theory isn´t out there? 😉
As for her outfit in E6; for me it seems to evoke the imagery of WW-armour, yes, and given the apparent thought the series gives to costume-design, it is not unlikely that there are some implications at work here. What the parallel to the WWs would be in the end remains to be seen (if there is one), but Dany flying beyond the Wall for the first time plus seeing the WWs & NK for the first time while wearing sth that can be regarded as somewhat reminiscent of the attire of WWs, all in one episode …? Could be more than just a coincidence of somewhat similar design.
In any way, it was similar enough that two other persons here have picked up a supposed similarity in design with WW-armour, so maybe there is some intention behind it. I would buy it as foreshadowing.
mau,
She really has come a long way and strangely enough, it makes me really sentimental and happy for the character. This is also one of the reasons I love these articles, so much can be expressed and interpreted just by the design-choices of the costumes. I have never been a Dany-Fan, more of the opposite to be honest, but this season I like her more than I have before and I cannot pinpoint why exactly on a character-level. On an actor-level, I feel like Emilia is really allowed to sink her teeth into some of the scenes this season after having to be stern and regal for most of her Meereen-arch.
Sou,
Looked like rabbit to me.
Sou,
Michele said in an instagram post that it was fake fur.
Oh I hope so, I would love a coat like that, the only thing is I’d love to look like Emilia in it. Unfortunately I don’t 😭
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
This is her best season by far.
” A fitting color, white, to wear as the savior of an otherwise hopeless battle. This coat is keeping with Dany’s signature silhouette this season, rendered in snow-white fur masterfully executed in thin stripped-paneling..”
—————————–
For me, the “snow white”, angelic look was appropriate – even necessary – for a defining moment in a defining episode in a defining season for Dany.
She’s finally starting to temper her imperious, self-entitled attitude, (“Bend the knee!”; “I was born to rule”; “I will take what is mine by fire and blood!”). She’s realizing her family name, reputation, ancient oaths, even her dragons, aren’t enough to earn the devotion of the people she intends to rule.
At the same time, she may be learning the oft-repeated lesson: why should soldiers be expected to fight and die for a leader who isn’t willing to fight and die for them? *
So, when Tyrion counseled her to “do nothing” when they got word that the Magnificent Seven were up Sh*t’s frozen] Creek without a paddle, because she was “too important” to risk getting hurt or killed, it said a lot that she overruled him. Her response was essentially: “Fuc* that. Our boys are in trouble. They went on this silly mission YOU cooked up. They’ve risked their lives not for gold, land, or titles, but to save people. What kind of sh*t Queen would I be if I’m not willing to risk my neck for them?”
That attitude, rather than her impressive firepower and magic dragons, is what won over Jon Snow (and ME). She HAD to look angelic and pure when assuming the self-sacrificial role of guardian angel. More than immolating Khals or incinerating Lannister troops, THIS act made her a heroine. The Snow White look was perfect.
[Damn Auto Correct keeps capitalizing Snow White]
* I thought Jon said something like that in the pre-BoB parley; Tyrion (?) may’ve argued that to the Masters’ soldiers. I forget…
Karen,
I fully agree!! There so much thought and hard work in every one of the gowns these ladies have used that it needs to be told in a documentary!
Without a doubt.
That might have keep one warm flying at altitude in arctic air but her ears would have turned black and fallen off!
That might be dernier cri but will it stop sharp projectiles?
Ten Bears,
Yup, totally agree with your regarding Dany risking her life and the lives of her dragons to help Jon &co. I also looooved that parallel between Jon’s parley with Ramsay, and it was actually Greyworm who was addressing the slave soldiers. He said something like “you have a choice: fight and die for masters who would never fight and die for you, or go home to your families” — all the while Dany is in the background defending Meereen.
Nah, she just had to have Drogon burp up a fire ball every so often to get some warm air to blow on her. In other words, she was sitting on the heater. 😛
Just a question, could wildfire actually burn Daenerys alive?
And she didn’t even hesitate. Just got on Drogon and left. Loved her before that moment , after it I adore her. And now she also has the devotion of most of the coolest characters in the seven kingdoms.
Violator,
That’s something I have been thinking about too. I personally don’t think so because the books explicitly state that dragonfire burns hotter than wildfire. It has also been implied that a certain amount of magic is required to make wildfire and its efficacy is increased now that dragons are in the world again. My own rationale is that Daenerys was already exposed to dragonfire in House of the Undying (in the show) and didn’t burn, and since she is the mother of dragons … I’m concluding that wildfire wouldn’t burn her… but who knows what D&D are up to within these last few episodes.
Ten Bears,
It is a theory and a big one that has started gaining momentum in the past 1-2 yrs. Im not gonna go into details because you will find lots of essays on it but its associated with the symbols that the WW create like the spirals, theta, and Pi and how many of Dany’s scenes seemed to incorporate them too. It also refers to the Pact of Ice and Fire, prophesies in the book, HOTU vision of Dany going beyond the Wall, and Dany’s association with the moon and darkness. Earlier this season, Sam came across the book about dragonglass and on the cover was a female WW with a crown standing on top of a cracked moon. The cracked moon also represents Dany because the Dothraki believe that the moon (Dany) came to the sun (Drogo on his death pyre) and cracked leading to the birth of the dragons. There is also the fact that there is a noticeable lack of female WW in the show which is strange because the NQ in the books has a big story behind her. D&D and GRRM have also said in the past that the song of Ice and Fire has multiple meanings including Dany/dragons being Fire and NK/WW being Ice. In GRRM’s A song of Ice and Fire book, he talks about the The Great Empire of the Dawn and how the world was in peace with normal weather under the rule of the Gemstone emperors who are descendants of the 2 Gods: the Lion of the Night (or the Great Other) and the Maiden made of Light (a female version of the Red God, God of Light, etc) that were married and had their son the Pearl emperor rule the world.
Its a big theory and I’m not sure if the show will go in that direction but it would be interesting to see what GRRM does with it in the books if we ever get them
I read recently (probably here!) that all the fur on the show, since the beginning, has been either faux or vintage.
Night Knight,
Agree 100% w/ both of you (Night King and Ten Bears). She is so “not-Cersei!”
beautiful costume, so much work.
One thing about episode 6: men were are your head coverings? Your ears are going to freeze off.
I’m so in love with that coat. I would kill for it even though I wouldn’t look anywhere near as good in it as Emilia lmao.
In general, I’ve always loved her wardrobe the most. This blue one in the top row is one of my favorites and I had a similar replica version made for a costume party a couple of years ago.
https://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/DanyS4.jpg
I like how people are pointing out that she strapped on that beautiful white coat to save her men when they were in desperate need of her help. And pointing out how she’s been going against Tyrion’s advice to not put herself in these dangerous situations lately. She is the anti-Cersei because all Cersei does is sit on her ass in her fancy castle all day while she ungratefully sends people off to be slaughtered while doing her dirty work. Dany has been putting herself out there on the front lines with her people lately for both wars knowing it could kill her, and she’s been utilizing her best asset knowing any of her children could die out there too (which unfortunately has already happened) because she wants to be part of her own battles. Tyrion isn’t exactly wrong about how everything would be hopeless if she dies without a backup succession plan for someone to take over for her, but I love how she’s still not willing to take the safe approach anymore after suffering two big losses in a row while playing safe.
She means business this season more than the other seasons and I love how her costumes express it.
I also flashed back to Jon’s speech to the sniping Northern lords in S6e10: “My father (*cough*) used to say, we find our true friends on the battlefield.”
Dany certainly lived up to that.
Funny enough I was thinking the same thing…
As always the writers on this site are 100% on point. LOVED the breakdown and history that went into this article.. THANKS for giving us quality reads during down time throughout the week… I can’t believe we only have one more show for the year…. UGH!! Now that is bittersweet!!
This is why I read posts on here…. informative and not full of drill talk… THANKS
NO ONE USES REAL FUR in TV, movies and any other media forms…PETA would stop them in a heartbeat.
I would love it if Dany wore blood red next episode!
The white costume is amazing.By far the best one of all of them.Also, I love how the back side looks like dragon scales.
It’s great seeing all these little details that I never noticed before. I suppose there are some Dothraki and former slave seamstresses who are working full time to make these gorgeous dresses but we never see them in the show! At this point Daenerys really needs some actual armor, though. Some light chain mail or leather or pocket plate would ease everyone’s mind when she’s going into battle!
Her best looks come from Season 05. That white dress is everything.
Daenerys has the prettiest dresses in the show, imo.
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
How can the NK be a Targaryen when the Targaryens weren’t around during the first Long Night. In fact Valyria itself was founded long after the Long Night ended. I think it’s far more likely that the NK was a Stark.
As for the costume resemblance, I have seen posts on the internet comparing the Night King’s costume to Bran’s. The similarity in their costumes has made people come up with the theory that the Night King is Bran lol.
You’re so right, Dany learned that it wasn’t enough to sit back like Cersi and let everyone else take all the risks and suffer any of the failures. She is a conqueror and has to be involved in the struggle to break the wheel. When she rode in to the battle and suffered a real loss in her dragon son, she won the respect of all including Jon. Dany also learned that to earn her throne she would have to risk it all and save the world first.
ghost of winterfell,
Well, I do not believe myself that the NK is a Targaryen and I would agree, if he is from a great family, the Starks are the most likely. I just wanted to point out,as another commenter had mentioned it, that there are theories claiming he could be a Targaryen, no matter how much truth is to them after all.
And a world-touring exhibition!
thorne garnet,
I think it is purely for the audience, as in if they all had hoods on it would be a lot harder to distinguish them individually and for acting purposes.
To come here after watching some youtube videos and reading certain comments there is like a journey from the hell of hateful nitpickers to the heaven of eloquent, educated, good people. I’m so grateful this site exists.
Chill Pill,
Those elements u have mentioned are part of many different theories not just one , for example I see dany not as the nights queen but the descendant of the amethyst empress who was probably sacrificed by her brother the bloodstone emperor in the blood betrayal, he worshipped this bloodstone fallen from the sky , very similar to the black stone worshipped by eliogabalus in Rome in the church of the sun god , as u can see on that book gilly was reading behind the woman , there was a sun and stars , and she held something in her hand resembling an ancient statue of Aryanne from the Greek myths , and a monkey tail , and in the WOIAF book the world is said to have been saved thx to the deeds of a woman with a monkey tail , so I don’t believe in the nights queen conclusion , there’s also the prophecy of her womb ,” when your womb will quicken again …… he will come back to u ” I think it’s a metaphor for the sun and stars after the long night . Anyway George said the ending for th main characters will be the same .
MY AMAZING QUEEN!
Her winter look in this episode is my favorite so far..i still think dany looked the best with the cape blue on S3 and S4..but also this look on S7 is now my favorite..
Me too!
Time to flash the Targ family colors 🙂
Raenarys,
literally my favorite of the entire series, along with her blue cape in season 3.
But Daenerys is entitled: she was born with the title of Princess of House Targaryen. The etymology of the word that we now use for “selfish” and/or “feeling we are owed” comes ultimately from the fact that the only way anybody ever was due anything is by having a title like “Lord” or “Lady” or “Prince” or “Princess.”
There used to be advertisements for an investment firm that boasted that they made money the old-fashioned way: they earned (“urrrned”) it. At that time, historically savvy people noted that this was really wrong: the old fashioned way to make money was to inherit it! “New money” came from being earned: but the people who made their own money were viewed as something akin to socioeconomic thieves 100+ years ago!
This story is set in that sort of world: the only thing that entitles you to anything is that your father had it before you. However, the main characters are learning that being entitled to it is not quite enough: you have to feed the dogs to keep their loyalty. Daenerys has learned that lesson, and she (like Jon and Tyrion, and now even Sansa) seems to be walking in the nether zone between the Tories and Whigs of yesteryear. (Insert the obvious joke…. here!)
And, most importantly for this thread: Daenerys looks maaahhvelous while doing it. Seriously, she’s like the winning look from Project Runway: the Renaissance Years every effin’ week. (Poor Sansa & Cersei always are in the runners up: but, then, they really are a couple of Tories! 😀 )
Oberyn´s One Good Hand,
Being a fan of Dany’s journey since the very start, i can easily say that season 3 and season 7 are the best dany seasons so far.
season 3 was her start with a army, it was a young dany having a real strong first step as a truly queen. Then now in season 7 she is more mature and on full queen mode. So, i think these two seasons are truly powerful when it comes to dany’s arc.
It’s a beautiful coat, but it looks like Dany bought it on Rodeo Drive. Way too modern-looking for the medieval context IMO. I prefer costumes that are believable for the period of history that is being evoked in this saga.
I don’t think Emilia has an obvious “And Now His Watch is Ended” Emmy episode this season, but I think she deserves recognition for delivering all the different facets to Dany with nuance and conviction in this condensed season.
Agree with you. Dany needed to see the threat the Night King is for herself. Jon needed to see the Dany so many people are willing to follow anywhere because she cares for people enough to risk her life. Can’t wait for her to make good on the promise to kill the Night King.