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“Dany kind of forgot about the Iron Fleet” has become shorthand for all the issues affecting the later seasons of Game of Thrones, but that infamous moment, and hopefully many others, should be very different when it comes to A Song of Ice and Fire. That’s assuming it gets finished, of course.

I’ve spent a lot of time grumbling about the last few seasons of Game of Thrones. And you know what? I’m not going to stop now. They were bad (except for season 6) and could have upended the whole franchise if House of the Dragon didn’t restore my faith. ASOIAF will hopefully avoid those “surprise Iron Fleet” pitfalls.

Daenerys “Kind Of Forgot About The Iron Fleet” In Game Of Thrones

In Game of Thrones season 8, episode 4, “The Last of the Starks”, the survivors of the Long Night mourn their dead and then quickly move on. Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) and her armies go to Dragonstone to begin planning their attack, which feels like an afterthought once you’ve slain an undead magical ice king.

Daenerys must not have been feeling the pressure because she decides to take Rhaegal and Drogon flying around the sea near Dragonstone. Her dragon-walk turns tragic when, suddenly, a ballista bolt slams into Rhaegal’s side. Before Daenerys can even react, another one strikes the dragon’s neck, and he falls into the ocean, dead.

The camera swivels to reveal Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk) and his large Iron Fleet sailing through the open ocean. There are a few rocky outcrops, but it’s basically an empty patch of sea. To add insult to injury, Euron’s ships smash Daenerys’ fleet, and he captures Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel). It’s a bad day for Daenerys.

It’s a staggering failure in reconnaissance for Daenerys’ professional army that they didn’t notice a giant enemy fleet sailing their way. It’s made even more absurd considering that Daenerys is riding Westeros’ version of a drone when she gets ambushed. It was a logical leap too far for a lot of fans.

And what was showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss’ explanation of this scene? In the “Inside the Episode” on HBO Max after the episode, they said, “[Daenerys] kind of forgot about the Iron Fleet and Euron’s forces.” It’s probably the most hand-wavy plot point I’ve ever heard a creator admit to.

Euron And The Iron Fleet Will Be Better Treated By George R.R. Martin

The problems with Euron Greyjoy and the Iron Fleet began long before he no-scoped a dragon hundreds of yards in the air with a weapon that he could only have been practicing with for a few weeks. Euron was first introduced in Game of Thrones season 6, episode 2, “Home,” where he reveals himself as Balon’s crazed but bewitching brother.

From the first, book readers knew something was up. The Euron in Game of Thrones was barely recognizable as the one introduced in George R.R. Martin’s fourth A Song of Ice and Fire book, A Feast for Crows. In the books, he’s a half-mad, magic-inclined, utterly fearless pirate lord.

In the shows, he’s Jack Sparrow combined with Ramsey Bolton. He’s a cad with a violent streak, but the same can be said for a lot of villainous characters in GOT. In ASOIAF, Euron cuts his crew’s tongues out, ties women to the mast of his ships, ventures to Valyria, and has a horn that can supposedly control dragons.

His plans in the books are grander. Euron intends to wed Daenerys and bind her dragons to him, and his sights are on the Iron Throne, willing to use witchcraft to get it. Martin is setting up Euron to be one of the final villains of the series, rather than an occasionally frustrating henchman like he is in the show.

Will Dany Be In Westeros By The End Of Winds Of Winter?

All of this, of course, is couched in the assumption that George R.R. Martin is going to finish The Winds of Winter, the sixth novel in the ASOIAF series, that he’s been writing for over a decade now. Will Dany forget about the Iron Fleet? The question is, will Dany even be in Westeros in this book?

At the end of A Dance with Dragons, Dany is flown to the Dothraki Sea by Drogon and encounters the Dothraki horde led by Khal Jhaqo, a scene which occurs in Game of Thrones season 5, episode 10. Dany doesn’t arrive in Westeros in the show until season 7, episode 1.

That means, The Winds of Winter will need to cover Daenerys’ abduction and trip to Vaes Dothrak, her imprisonment with the Dosh Khaleen, her defeat of the khals and elevation to Khaleesi of all the Dothraki, defense of Meereen, and meeting with the Greyjoys.

That’s a lot to cover in one book, and concerningly, Daenerys has not been confirmed as a POV character in The Winds of Winter. If she accomplishes these feats, they will need to happen in other characters’ POV chapters.

If we’re going to see Daenerys heading towards Westeros at all, it’s going to come at the very end of The Winds of Winter, and that’s a best-case scenario. Hopefully, Martin will figure out a way to improve some Game of Thrones failures, but he’ll have to get some books published first if he wants to do that.