Game of Thrones premiered their newest and final season April 14, and fans and the internet have already picked apart every little aspect of the first episode. However, a new fan theory from ComicBook suggests that Jason Momoa’s Khal Drogo character from Season 1 is still very much alive.
Spoilers for Game of Thrones Seasons 1 through 7 and the first episode of Season 8 to follow.
Season 1 of the hit HBO series Game of Thrones saw the main lead of the show, Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), be forcefully married off to brutal and savage warlord Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa) of the Dothraki, a ferocious warrior-people. Through her own cunning and perseverance, Daenerys is able to make Drogo fall in love with her, and despite a tumultuous beginning, the two begin to respect and care for one another.
Drogo himself was initially hated for his savage ways, however, ends up earning her and the audience’s respect during the season. Later on in the season, Drogo suffered a mortal wound that killed him. Attempting to bring him back using blood magic, Daenerys stepped onto the flames of his funeral pyre, along with three unhatched dragon’s egg relics. While Drogo’s life wasn’t returned, she emerged from the flames with three newly hatched dragons.
The theory from ComicBook suggests that Drogo never really perished and that his soul was transitioned into the largest and possibly Alpha dragon of Daenerys’ Drogon.
The theory showcases many similarities between Drogo’s and Drogon’s names as well as visual looks. But the most credible is how the Season 8 premiere clearly showed Drogon staring at his owner, Daenerys, as she locked lips with her new lover, Jon Snow (Kit Harington).
It was a moment that wasn’t unintentional, but rather a calculated frame that was focused on Drogon’s eyes, as well as Jon Snow reacting to him being eyed by the creature. While it’s unclear what the purpose of this in the show itself was, it does make the fan theory incredibly credible.
While the dragons in Game of Thrones have so far been utilized as weapons in the war against Daenerys and her enemies, this theory would add a different layer to their depiction, maybe even showing them as being sentient or self-aware beyond animal urges.
Given that one of Daenerys’ dragons now does the bidding of the Night King, as see in Season 7, it remains to be seen if this possible emotional connection will have any bearing on how Season 8 plays out.
Game of Thrones Season 8 airs Sundays on HBO.
