Tyrion, Jon, and Daenerys: The Three Headed Dragon Theory - A Blog Of Thrones

Tyrion, Jon, and Daenerys: The Three Headed Dragon Theory

The resemblances and parallels between these three characters are uncanny. They go beyond mere coincidences, and definitely connect them in a way that makes them the key component of the entire A Song of Ice and Fire/Game Of Thrones story.

Obviously, this into account the R+L=J theory which is only a few episodes/chapters away from being confirmed once and for all about Jon Snow’s parentage and the events that occurred at the Tower of Joy at the end of Robert’s Rebellion, 20 years before the current events of the story.

Parallels between Tyrion, Jon and Daenerys go as follows, and they are plenty:

They Are Outcasts In Their Own Way:

via HBO
via HBO

– Tyrion is a Dwarf

– Jon is a Bastard

– Daenerys is a Female Exile

They Each Descend From A Different Lineage Of Humans

via HBO
via HBO

– Tyrion descends from the Andals

– Jon descends from the First Men

– Daenerys descends from Old Valyrian

Their Mothers Died During Childbirth

credit: leela1007, Dreambeing, HBO
credit: leela1007, Dreambeing, HBO

– Joanna Lannister when birthing Tyrion

– Lyanna Stark in the Tower of Joy in a “Bed of Blood”, hinting during childbirth

– Rhaella Targaryen while hiding in Dragonstone after the Sack of Kings Landing

All Three Lost Their Father:

credit: Karla Ortiz, HBO
credit: Karla Ortiz, HBO

– Tyrion killed Tywin

Rhaegar died at the Trident at the Hands of Robert Baratheon during his Rebellion

The Mad King Aerys Targaryen was killed by Jaime Lannister.

Each Is The Third Child In Their Family

via HBO
via HBO

– Tyrion is younger than Jaime and Cersei Lannister

credit: Elon Tirien, Juliana P, HBO
credit: Elon Tirien, Juliana P, HBO

– Jon is younger than Rhaenys and Aegon Targaryen (Children of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell)

credit: Karla Ortiz, HBO
credit: Karla Ortiz, HBO

– Daenerys is younger than Rhaegar and Viserys Targaryen

Each Has A Tragic Love Story:

via HBO
via HBO

– Tyrion with Tysha (and Shae in the show)

– Jon with Ygritte

– Daenerys with Khal Drogo

At Some Point In The Story, Each Made An Unlikely Alliance:

via HBO
via HBO

– Tyrion with the Mountain Clans of the Eyrie

– Jon with the Wildlings beyond the Wall

– Daenerys with the Unsullied and the Slaves she’s liberated.

They Each Attract Attention From Red Priests Of R’Hllor

via HBO
via HBO

There is a very strong relation between the Old Valyrian civilization and the Religion that worships the Lord of Light. Valyrians descend of fire, just as the Lord of Light has fire as its symbol of purity. Many Red Priests are encountered in the series in both Westeros and Essos, yet something weird always happens when one of these three characters either encounters them, or mentions them.

via HBO
via HBO

– When Melisandre first notices Jon across the fire at Castle Black. She sees something in him over the flames.

via HBO
via HBO

– Her first alone time with Jon at the Wall. She senses something particular…

via HBO
via HBO

– This Red Priestess of Volantis, speaking of Daenerys Targaryen as “The Savior that was promised” before being distracted by Tyrion’s presence nearby. She too, sensed something in him….

via HBO
via HBO

– Kinvara, the Lead Red Priestess from Volantis, travels in Season 6 at Tyrion’s request to spread the good word for Daenerys Targaryen in Mereen. She agrees with no hesitation, claiming Danaerys is “The One That Was Promised”.

They Are All Targaryens

via HBO
via HBO

While it’s obvious Daenerys, as she bears the last name of the Dragon Family, the same is a bit trickier for Jon, and especially Tyrion. With the current Tower of Joy flashback sequence, the theory that has been lurking around ever since the first book was written in 1996 might be confirmed: that Jon Snow is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. He could be the “Song of Ice and Fire” himself.

For Tyrion on the other hand, the hints are more present in the books. This simple video from “Alt-Shift-X” explains how it could be a very likely possibility, even more so now with the scene of Tyrion and the Dragons in Season 6

That’s Nice, But What Could It Mean?

via HBO
via HBO

When Daenerys is having visions in the House of the Undying, one of these visions is her late brother Rhaegar, stating that “The Dragon has Three Heads”. Considering that the Targaryen sigil consists of a 3 headed red dragon, that their ancestor Aegon I conquered Westeros with 3 dragons, and that Danerys currently has 3 dragons, the theory points that there may be a need for 3 riders for the dragons to appear.

Three Heads = Three Riders

via HBO
via HBO

– We’ve seen Daenerys ride Drogon from the Fighting Pits in the last season.

Tyrion has shown some sort of non threatening connection with the dragons in the 6th season.

– While not present in the show, Jon can warg into his Direwolf Ghost in the books. It has yet to be seen how he could connect with a third dragon, again, provided the R+L=J theory is true (which it most likely is).

The House Of The Undying: HBO Edition

via HBO
via HBO

Daenerys’ Visions At The House Of The Undying: Sadly, the show did not give this somehow important part of Daenerys’ storyline the proper attention it should have received. From an extensive 16 visions in the books, the show made her have 3 visions, all pointing to Tyrion, Jon, and herself:

– The Throne Room of the Red Keep covered in snow and ashes. At the time,  Tyrion is the Hand of the King in Kings Landing.

– The Wall opens and she is walking beyond the Wall, near where Jon Snow would become the Lord Commander.

– A Tent where she sees what a life as a Khaleesi could have been, had Khal Drogo and their son Rhaego both lived.

The Battle Of Ice And Fire

via HBO
via HBO

The Starks Words “Winter Is Coming” do not only refer to the cold season, they refer to the what lies Beyond the Wall in the Land of Always Winter, ever since the First Men set foot in the North. Winter is now upon the North and Westeros and the Army of the Dead are coming with it after being dormant for thousands of years.

As shown in Hardhome, the army can double its size with all the defeated combatants of the opposite side, making them the most serious threat to the realm. Their “rebirth” thousands of years later, plus the rebirth of dragons, hundreds of years later, clearly indicate a clash between “Ice” and “Fire” (as the books are titled) to end the epic GRRM Story.

11 Comments Join the Conversation →


  1. Peacemonky

    Pretty cool. I never realized all three had two older siblings- “child of three!”

    Reply
    • GOT SuperFan

      But the theory that Tyrion is the illegitimate son of the Mad King contradicts this observation. If Tyrion really is the Mad King’s son, then Daenerys is the fourth child. These are cool observations and theories, but they seem to contradict each other if you look closely.

      Reply (in reply to Peacemonky)
  2. Elki

    The supposed occasion of Aery’s Targaeryan taking his claim to take Johanna Lannister’s maidenhood upon her marriage to Tywin Lannister means that if that is so, Cersei and Jaime are half Targaeryans not Tyrion.

    Reply
  3. BCR

    Season One’s big reveal was that the hair color of Cercei’s children proved that their father was a Lannister, not a Baratheon. All Targaryens have platinum hair. Jon has the hair of a Baratheon. How does your theory explain that?

    Reply
    • Akkad47

      He has the Hair of a Stark! It seems that in Westeros Genetics, Stark and Baratheon genes are dominant, while Targaryen genes are recessive. Which would explain why the Targaryens always wed and procreated amongst themselves…

      Reply (in reply to BCR)
      • BCR

        Where is the evidence that “Stark and Baratheon genes are dominant, while Targaryen genes are recessive”? Season 1 ended up revolving around hair color, and Ned Stark lost his head over it.

        Reply (in reply to Akkad47)
        • GOT SuperFan

          Umm… because it is scientifically proven. Just because they didn’t have the scientific advances back then to prove genetics, doesn’t mean that they weren’t able to make observations and draw conclusions. Anybody that has taken a middle-school level science class nowadays would know that Jon only has dark hair because his Stark genes dominate over his Targaryen genes in regard to hair color. I think it is heavily implied that real-world genetics applies to this storyline even though this is a work of fiction.

          Reply (in reply to BCR)
    • Mac

      In the books, the Targaryen hair is shown to be from recessive genes. This is most prominently pointed out by Baelor Breakspear and his son, Vaalar, having dark hair of their mother/grandmother’s Dornish line. John taking after his mother would make sense. Tyrion has one eyes that is said to be a dark purple and golden/platinum hair. This bit makes sense.

      Reply (in reply to BCR)
  4. Traildude Paul

    WHO MOURNS FOR ASHA?

    GOT is a story that was written as medieval history & fairy tales have been written. Medieval history is basically a genealogy of royalty & fairy tales are the handsome prince & the beautiful princess. The common people rarely enter into either one.
    Asha may have been a mere side character in the series, but she was almost the only one with no ties to either royalty or the landed gentry. She is a simple wildling girl that proved to be brave, loyal, & resourceful. Her death after shortly reappearing in the series was almost like an afterthought. Maybe the death toll was not numerous enough for the time & was merely used to bulk up the body count. If this story ends with just royal blood lines in charge again, I might consider this as just another fairy-tale ending. So I ask: Who Mourns For Asha?

    Reply
  5. Scott Hoffmann

    Heres the thing, if you remember the 3 eyed raven before he died told Bran he would never walk ahain but he would fly. Do not remember the exact episode.

    Reply
  6. FredQ

    So disappointed the TV show outpaced the books….and changed/omitted so many things. I realize they are 2 distinct projects, but over time, the stories are becoming muddled, confusing and misleading.

    Reply

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