#lemong gates theory

[mesillusionssousecstasy]

ASOIAF: Daenerys’ theory / Lemon Gates

I just watched this video of David Lightbringer about episode 5 of HOTD and let me tell you this “Lemon Gates theory” is just wrong.  Daenerys was truly in Bravos and not in Dorne. 

Explanation at 30:55, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5ArTJBl0vI&list=WL&index=20&t=1201s&ab_channel=DavidLightbringer

[aegonbeingfakeisracist]

Do you have any opinion on the Lemon Gate theory or the idea that Dany is allegedly by the theory the child of Aerys and Ashara?

The Lemongate theory is...well. I suppose that depends on what specifically you mean. The basic principle that Dany misremembers her childhood seems to be pretty definitively true, whether that be because the house with the red door wasn’t in Braavos as she believes it was or because she’s simply idealizing a past period in her life to the point of wishing she could go back to something that never existed. From the lemon tree in a place where it’s been reiterated that citrus doesn’t grow to the master of arms with soft hands, it’s clear that Dany’s memories are inaccurate. The questions arise when we start questioning what that means.

I don’t buy into the idea that she was in Dorne at all - that would involve either Doran continuing to lie to Arianne in a way that I vehemently disagree that he’s doing or him somehow completely unaware of the kind of things going on within his country, on top of necessitating Viserys and Dany to somehow get from Dorne to Essos on their own - and I don’t believe it indicates that Dany is anyone other than who she believes herself to be. Which brings us to the Aerys Ashara thing, which seems to me almost both as absurdly complicated as the idea that Aegon is Lyanna’s and kind of silly.

Logistically, it doesn’t work - Ashara was explicitly at Starfall at the end of the war. Meaning Dany would have been in Dorne, and something crazy would have had to happen to unite her with Viserys. If the Lemongate theory were true, Willem Darry would have had to take Viserys and flee Dragonstone to Essos, doubling back to get to Dorne. Then somehow, after Darry’s death, Dany and Viserys had to get all the way to Essos on their own. If we ignore that, Dany still would have had to be taken out of Dorne and brought to wherever Viserys and Darry were - which there would have been no reason for because she would have been safely with her mother’s family. Why the hell would the Daynes want to send their granddaughter/niece/whatever away from somewhere safe, where no one ever had to know about her Targaryen heritage, to somewhere far away and very definitely more dangerous? To her half brother whose father had presumably raped Ashara? And Viserys never indicated any of this had happened? Not once?

Far more importantly than any of that, though...Rhaella and Aerys. Rhaella was pregnant! People knew about it! There were other people on Dragonstone. What motivation would she have to fake a pregnancy? And Aerys swore off sleeping with women other than his wife before Viserys was born. We have no indication he broke that vow. Why would that have changed? If Dany’s parents are not who she believes, that’s because Aerys isn’t her father, not because Rhaella isn’t her mother, and that’s not likely either.

Now. I’m willing to accept any number of crazy thought processes and dumb decisions in storytelling because I’m generally a staunch opponent of fiction where everyone only does what’s ~reasonable. But here, it wouldn’t add anything to anyone’s character or story. As I’ve complained about before, Dany doesn’t think about her mother. Parts of her story are about whether she’ll follow in her father’s footsteps, but none of it is about whether she’ll follow in Rhaella’s. So Rhaella not being her mother adds nothing. It wouldn’t even change her self perception. Aerys not being her father, on the other hand, could be fascinating. But that’s not likely, either.