Published on September 1, 2013
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Ship Name: Dany/Doreah
Show: Game of Thrones Book: A Song of Ice and Fire series Ship Characters: Daenerys Targaryen ("Dany") and Doreah Subtext or Main text: Main text (on the show and in the book) Status: Over (due to a character death - ASOIAF and GoT (implied)) Gist: Dany/Doreah is a relatively uncomplicated ship from the Game of Thrones / A Song of Ice and Fire universe. Doreah enters into Dany's life as a handmaid, intended to engage with her in a sexual manner, but they almost immediately form a sincere relationship, characterized by their steadfast loyalty and |
real affection for one another. Doreah, in the books and in the series, is not Dany's one true love or, arguably, even a love of Dany's, but their relationship is one of few in Dany's story so far that demonstrates a genuine connection between two people that is not based upon politics, ulterior motives, or an unequal power balance. Yes, Doreah is Dany's handmaid, but their relationship as friends and lovers quickly supersedes the khaleesi/servant dynamic, and Doreah takes on a role in Dany's life that few, if any, have filled.
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Huge Caveat
Normally, a television show's divergence from the canon of its book series is not per se a bad thing. It completely depends. The television show Game of Thrones has been relatively true to the book series with some expected differences here and there. That is...until we hit Doreah's closing storyline in season 2. It will be discussed in detail below, but you are being forewarned that the show drastically changes the manner in which Doreah departs Dany's life, thereby drastically changing the way their relationship may be viewed in retrospect. |
Not fucking happy with the show's choices
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Appearances
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A Song of Ice and Fire (Books)
Book 1: A Game of Thrones
Book 1, Dany 3 Book 1, Dany 4 Book 1, Dany 6 Book 1, Dany 9 Book 1, Dany 10 Book 2: A Clash of Kings Book 2, Dany 1 Book 5: A Dance with Dragons Book 5, Dany 7 (Reference) Book 5, Dany 8 (Reference) Book 5, Dany 10 (Reference) |
Game of Thrones (Television)
Season 1:
1.02: The Kingsroad 1.04: Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things 1.06: A Golden Crown 1.07: You Win or You Die 1.09: Baelor Season 2 2.01: The North Remembers 2.05: The Ghost of Harrenhal 2.10: Valar Morghulis |
The Beginning
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In both ASOIAF and GoT, Doreah is given to Dany as a wedding gift by Dany's brother, Viserys Targaryen. As Doreah had grown up in the "pleasure houses," she was intended to be a handmaid for Dany, and specifically, she was intended to teach Dany how to sexually satisfy her husband, Khal Drogo. So, yes, ew, gross on many levels.
Regardless, Dany received three handmaids from her brother: two Dothraki (Irri and Jhiqui) women and one Lysene woman (Doreah). In the first scene where Dany is alone with her handmaids, she curiously asks Irri and Jhiqui what they know of dragons. Both women quickly assert that all dragons have been killed and that they no longer exist. Doreah, though, without solicitation, speaks up: |
Eyes on the prize
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First Words to One Another
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A Song of Ice and Fire (Books)
A trader from Qarth once told me that dragons came from the moon. - Doreah The moon? - Dany Book 1, Dany 3 |
Game of Thrones (Television)
A trader from Qarth told me that dragons come from the moon. - Doreah The moon? - Dany 1.02: The Kingsroad (32:22) |
Doreah goes on to tell Dany the story of what a Qarth trader told her of dragons, which results in the two Dothraki handmaids laughing at Doreah, finding her story to be foolish and patently untrue. Soon, though, Dany dismisses Irri and Jhiqui, and requests that Doreah remain with her. Oh Khaleesi...
I'm going to make her call me "Khal" tonight
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Heh, we're gonna get it on
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Oh, it is known, Khaleesi. It is known
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The Lovin'
Once alone, the reader gets another description of Doreah, but this time, it seemingly is coming from Dany's point of view: "The Lysene girl had hair the color of honey, and eyes like the summer sky." (Book 1, Dany 3). Contrast that with an earlier description of Doreah, appearing to come from the third-person narrator: "Doreah, a fair-haired, blue-eyed Lysene girl." (Book 1, Dany 2). The description of Doreah from (presumably) Dany's point of view is much more romantic in its sensibility and conveys a greater
Ready or not, here I come
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appreciation and attraction. In the book, we are told: "Long after the moon had risen, they sat together, talking." The television series, though, goes much further than discussion. It is HBO after all.
On the show, when Dany learns of Doreah's history in the pleasure houses, she asks Doreah whether she could teach her how to please Khal Drogo. With a small smirk on her face, Doreah confirms that she can and will. The next time we see them (38:19), the two of them are in bed together, with Doreah atop a very timid Dany. When Dany |
shyly turns her head away, Doreah gently chides her, "No, Khaleesi, you must look in his eyes always. Love comes in at the eyes." She says this while gazing longingly at Dany. Apparently, eye sex is alive and well in the world of Westeros and Essos. Also, actual sex is too.
Doreah: Look at me when I'm lovin' you
Doreah: Did I wake the dragon?
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Awwww...
Totes
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Doreah places Dany's hands on her waist and begins a hypnotic swivel of her hips that seems almost too adult for my eyes to look upon. Looking at the mix of desire and awe in Dany's expression, it's pretty obvious that Doreah's moves are having the intended effect. Dany, wishing to try out some of what she has been taught, quickly grabs Doreah and flips her onto her back, reversing their positions. Soon, though, as she is unused to being the top, Dany questions whether she is able to do this. Doreah lightly touches Dany's face, reassuring her, and it appears that Khal Drogo is far from Dany's thoughts at this point.
*Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" plays softly in the background
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Hot for teacher
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On a side note, the boudoir looks amazing, particularly for a Dothraki hut. I mean, they've got more candles in there than the Phantom of the Opera has in his lair, which besides likely violating a few fire codes, is indicative of a well-planned night of seduction. Well done ladies!
The Protection
One consistent trait of Dany's throughout GoT and ASOIAF is that she is very protective of women, and specifically, those women that are close to her - which, of course, includes Doreah. Likewise, Doreah also watches over Dany in an effort to keep her safe.
In Book 1, Dany 4, Dany cites the fact that one of Khal Drogo's bloodriders "left bruises on Doreah's soft white skin whenever he
In Book 1, Dany 4, Dany cites the fact that one of Khal Drogo's bloodriders "left bruises on Doreah's soft white skin whenever he
Doreah and Dany: Shit, it's Viserys
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touched her" as one of the reasons she dislikes and fears the man. Later in that chapter, a furious Viserys responds to Dany's invitation to dinner by dragging Doreah by the arm back to his sister, after having hit her in her eye. When Viserys continues to scream at Doreah for her actions, Doreah "quailed, but Dany calmed her with a touch." Dany goes on to tell Doreah, "Don't be afraid, he won't hurt you." This scene is similarly played out in 1.04: Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things (37:11).
By Book 1, Dany 5 and 1.06: A Golden Crown (46:46), Viserys' uncontrollable madness is hitting its peak and by the end of the episode, everyone has had about enough. Viserys enters a Dothraki feast, drunk and combative, particularly towards Khal Drogo and Dany. He immediately demands to see his sister, and when he spots her, sitting beside Doreah, |
he menacingly approaches her with a sword. As he does so, Doreah steps in front of Dany to face Viserys' sword, but Dany pushes Doreah behind her with her arm.
Doreah: Not my sweet baby angel!
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Doreah: Oh God, that looks sharp...
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Dany: Baby...baby, no. This is my fight
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Both of them gallantly take on a madman in protection of the other. Oh hello, feelings, there you are.
Eventually, Viserys gets what's coming to him, and while he does not survive the episode, Dany and Doreah certainly do.
In Book 1, Dany 6 and 1.07: You Win or You Die, Dany and her handmaids visit a traveling market that has come with traders and merchants. Unfortunately for Dany, in this market awaits a potential assassin posing as a wine seller. As he attempts to serve
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Dany with poisoned wine, Ser Jorah Mormont steps in, demanding that the wine seller sample the drink first before Dany. As he is backed into a corner, the man darts off and throws a wine cask towards a pregnant Dany. "Dany stumbled and lost her feet. 'No,' she screamed, thrusting her hands out to break her fall...and Doreah caught her by the arm and wrenched her backward, so she landed on her legs and not her belly."
Did someone say "Hero?" The GivingIn Book 1, Dany 6, before Dany engages with her attempted assassin, she and her posse enjoy the walk through the market. While out, it is noted that, "[w]hen Doreah looked
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Doreah: What's this bro up to with my baby mama?
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longingly at a fertility charm at a magician's booth, Dany took that too and gave it to the handmaid, thinking that now she should find something for Irri and Jhiqui." Irri and Jhiqui are always seen as distinct in their relationship with Dany, as compared with Doreah. Here, as Dany played "Sugar Khaleesi" to Doreah, she felt obligated to then gift something to the other handmaids, so as not to make them feel excluded. Maintaining a harem is hard work. Also, expensive.
The Loyalty
In Book 1, Dany 8-9 and also in episode 1.09: Baelor, Dany loses Khal Drogo and also her unborn son Rhaego due to putting her trust in Mirri Maz Duur, a healer who intentionally uses dark magic to take vengeance on Khal Drogo and his family. When this
Wait, aren't I supposed to be dead right now?
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happens, most of Dany's khalasar abandons her, and some even threaten her life, but Doreah, among a few others, remains by Dany's side, even though she doubts or does not agree with the choices she is making.
By Book 2, Dany 1, Dany and her "ragged band" are struggling to exist and aimlessly drifting. When Dany spots a red comet in the sky, she believes it to be an omen and plans to follow it. Doreah, though, is frightened by this and tells Dany, "That way lies the red lands, Khaleesi. A grim place and terrible, the riders say." Dany, though, feels there is no other choice, and her diminutive khalasar enters the barren wasteland in hopes of finding a safer home. Soon though, "Dany learned the truth of Doreah's words," and people, horses, and children start dying off. Dany notices "Doreah grew gaunt and hollow-eyed, and her soft golden hair turned brittle as straw." She eventually "took a fever and grew |
worse with every league they crossed. Her lips and hands broke with blood blisters, her hair came out in clumps, and one evenfall she lacked the strength to mount her horse. Jhogo said they must leave her or bind her to her saddle, but Dany remembered a night on the Dothraki sea, when the Lysene girl had taught her secrets so that Drogo might love her more. She gave Doreah water from her own skin, cooled her brow with a damp cloth, and held her hand until she died, shivering. Only then would she permit the khalasar to press on."
Feel free to take an hour or two to sob.
Doreah dies with Dany comforting her until the very end, after following her into a place she did not wish to go. Throughout her appearances in the two books, Doreah never disobeys or betrays Dany, and the way her death is depicted shows the uniqueness as well as the depth of the relationship she shared with Dany. In the long list of people who interact with Daenerys in the series, Doreah is one of a very small group who contributes positively and sincerely to Dany's life. She's never a negative and is there for Dany in ways that no one else is.
Feel free to take an hour or two to sob.
Doreah dies with Dany comforting her until the very end, after following her into a place she did not wish to go. Throughout her appearances in the two books, Doreah never disobeys or betrays Dany, and the way her death is depicted shows the uniqueness as well as the depth of the relationship she shared with Dany. In the long list of people who interact with Daenerys in the series, Doreah is one of a very small group who contributes positively and sincerely to Dany's life. She's never a negative and is there for Dany in ways that no one else is.
The Divergence
Peculiarly, the television series shows Doreah surviving the khalasar's time in the red wasteland. Yay! Well, let's not celebrate just yet...
Dany: Do you think Irri heard us last night?
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Doreah: I think all of Westeros and Essos heard us last night
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In 2.05: The Ghost of Harrenhal (31:16), the scene opens with Doreah and Dany playing with one of their dragon-babies. Like two parents watching their child take his first step, Doreah and Dany erupt in glee when the dragon responds to Dany's command of "Dracarys," breathing fire upon a raw piece of meat. Noticeably, Irri, the other handmaid, is standing by herself at Dany's bed,
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either not invited or not choosing to join Dany's mini-family. When Dany turns back towards the room, Doreah extends her hand, which the tiny dragon immediately climbs onto. Dany sees this and says adoringly, "He loves you." This results in Irri giving the look to the right.
Irri knows, and the show goes out of its way to show Irri's annoyance with Doreah and Dany's closeness. Doreah flirtatiously urges Dany to wear a dress provided by their host Xaro Xhoan Daxos, and after Irri begrudgingly supports this idea, Dany returns an amused smirk towards Doreah, excited to wear the new dress. The next time we see Dany, she is adorned in Xaro's beautiful gift and talking to some citizens of Qarth while at a gathering |
Irri: If I have to listen to them have sex one more time...
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in her honor. While she's chatting, her eyes look towards Doreah, who is across the garden, speaking with some gentlemen. Neither one of them is paying attention to those they are speaking to, and instead, their eyes lock and they give each other a look that only two lovers would give one another, dripping in desire and containing a message only the two of them know.
The Definition of Eyesex:
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The Horror
In 2.06: The Old Gods and the New, at the end of the episode (51:33), Dany returns to her quarters with host Xaro Xhoan Daxos, finding her dragons missing and her guards and handmaid Irri dead. When Jorah inquires about Doreah in 2.07: A Man Without Honor (23:49), Dany tearfully responds, "We can't find her. She must be dead too." Her voice is weak with despair at this point.
It is not until 2.10: Valar Morghulis (51:32) that we find out what became of Doreah. After Dany escapes the House of the Undying, she storms in to Xaro Xhoan Daxos' bedroom, finding Doreah asleep beside him. WHAT?!?!
It is not until 2.10: Valar Morghulis (51:32) that we find out what became of Doreah. After Dany escapes the House of the Undying, she storms in to Xaro Xhoan Daxos' bedroom, finding Doreah asleep beside him. WHAT?!?!
Doreah: This is why I only stick to the book versions of stories
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Doreah tries to explain herself, but Dany has her scary "Don't curr" face on and things are about to get really bad for this ship. Dany forces Doreah and Xaro to Xaro's vault, which is massive and about as air tight as one can get. Horrifyingly, she has Xaro and a sobbing Doreah, who is screaming for mercy, locked in the vault and left to die. I mean, really? We couldn't have just given them quick deaths or something? Yikes. If you want an example of a terrible way for a ship to go down, this is it. Why Game of Thrones decided to change this part of the books is beyond me. It completely transforms the character of Doreah into one of great love and loyalty to just another person |
who ends up betraying Dany. Also, in the books, it is made very clear that Xaro Xhoan Daxos is a big ole' gay guy, so his affair with Doreah is bizarre in and of itself, besides the fact that he lives on in the books and has a role (though not a large one) down the line.
Sigh.
I choose to ignore the last part of Dany and Doreah's storyline on the show because...well, I can. It also is nonsensical to me and does not make sense even from a plot furtherance perspective. These are the times where a book is most comforting (even though the book ends in a tragic death for our ship too). Such is life. Also, such is life in a George R. R. Martin universe. We'll always have that one night on the Dothraki sea...
Sigh.
I choose to ignore the last part of Dany and Doreah's storyline on the show because...well, I can. It also is nonsensical to me and does not make sense even from a plot furtherance perspective. These are the times where a book is most comforting (even though the book ends in a tragic death for our ship too). Such is life. Also, such is life in a George R. R. Martin universe. We'll always have that one night on the Dothraki sea...