Daenerys Targaryen’s Small Screen Style

Daenerys Targaryen Qarth outfits

As an avid TV aficionado I’ve been wanting to join my love of TV and this blog for awhile now. With the last season of Game of Thrones, one of my favorite TV shows, upon us I figured better now than never. So welcome to a new series on BCL I’m calling Small Screen Stylehighlighting the amazing fashions of some of my favorite TV characters.

It’s only right to start this segment off with Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons. There are some amazing fashions on Game of Thrones but Daenerys’ are my favorite and have gone through quite a transformation throughout the seasons.

Season 1: Naive Khaleesi

Daenerys Targaryen season one dresses

Daenerys’ first looks showcase her vulnerability and powerlessness. She is being manipulated by her abusive older brother Viserys and sold off to Khal Drogo for a promised army. When we first meet Daenerys she is in a very basic pink dress, one that is very similar to dresses we often see prostitutes wear on the show. As she is literally being gussied up to be sold, this dress choice is particularly apt. The dress she wears during her first “meeting” with Drogo again shows the lack of power she has over the situation. She wears an incredibly sheer pale pink dress that’s about as naked as she can be without actually being naked. While in different circumstances this could be a dress worn by a powerful woman proud to show off her body and sexuality, in this scene it is a dress picked for her by her brother to show her off to the Khal.

On her wedding day Daenerys is the most clothed we’ve seen her thus far, wearing a silver/pink halter dress. Throughout the show we rarely see Daenerys in pink, a color that not only evokes femininity but also girlhood. Daenerys is young and powerless in these first scenes. She does not dare go against the word of her brother and when she speaks her mind is quickly shut down. Daenerys is simply trying to survive in a world where she is only seen as property. This, I think, makes her better identify with the slaves she later encounters and informs her later desire to “break Chains”.

Daenerys Targaryen khaleesi outfits

As season one progresses we see Daenerys become comfortable with and embrace her role as Khalessi. Her, initially rocky, relationship with the Khal turns into love and she embraces his world and people. This is heavily reflected in her wardrobe. She dresses as a Dothraki do, with mostly earth tone clothing made of leather and other natural fabrics. It is thus fitting that, when Drogo and her son die at the end of the first season, we see her go into his burial fire in her wedding dress and emerge naked from the fire the next day with her dragons. She literally sheds her life as Khaleesi and begins a new life as the mother of dragons.

Season 2: Mother of Dragons

Daenerys Targaryen Qarth outfits

In season 2 Daenerys is trying to find her new place in the world. No longer a Khaleesi she travels to Qarth in search of an army and ships that can take her back to Westeros. While Daenerys has matured since we first met her she is still somewhat unsure of herself and her wardrobe again reflects this. During her first Qarth party she wears a gorgeous blue dress gifted to her by her host, the last time she wears a dress given to her by a man. Daenerys wants to fit in with the people of Qarth and be in their good graces as she keeps her eye on sailing to Westeros.

Most of the season though she is seen in what will become her most iconic clothing style, dresses/tunics over pants. While she wore pants with the Dothraki, that was mostly due to necessity. Now however Dany begins to pair her Dothraki leather pants and boots with the more extravagant robes of Qarth. A mullet-like party on the top business on the bottom fashion choice, if you will. But more practically it allows her to simultaneously marry the perceived vulnerabilities of more feminine dress with the perceived strength and practicality of pants and boots. This outfit exemplifies Dany coming into her own and figuring out what works best for her, not just what circumstances deem she wear. In the end of the season Dany chooses to rely on herself instead of the empty promises of the men around her and forges forth to find an army.

Seasons 3 & 4: Breaker of Chains

woman in various gowns

Seasons 3 & 4 see Daenerys conquering and breaking chains. She is making new alliances and learning the realities of being a ruler. She continues her dresses over pants looks, specifically in blue. In a Vox interview with Game of Thrones costume designer Michele Clapton, it is revealed that the blue is a tribute to Khal Drogo. The costume team decided in the first season that blue was a rare color unique to the Dothraki. So, Dany wearing blue connects back to her time with the Dothraki and Drogo.

As she becomes more powerful her looks become more elegant and befitting a queen. She shows a little more skin and wears floor length gowns. Daenerys is really coming into her own in these seasons and it is exemplified by a midriff baring cutout dress she wears in season 4. The most revealing outfit since her nearly naked dress in season one, it is a dress chosen and worn by a woman who has come into herself and is in control of her sexuality. This dress is worn in a scene with Jorrah Mormont, and as Clapton tells Vox, it is a signal to Jorrah that she is now sleeping with Daario. With this dress she not only signals to Jorrah that she has slept with Daario but also signals the audience that she is a woman firmly in control of her sexuality and whom she shares her bed with.

Season 5: Queen

Daenerys Targaryen season five white gowns and dragon necklaces

Season 5 showcases some of my favorite of Daenerys’ looks. Throughout the season Dany is trying to suppress the sons of the Harpee and keep the peace in her Queendom. She is doing as Queens do, she’s ruling. Her wardrobe not only reflects her position as queen but also her continued struggle to bring peace. Only seen in white, the color of doves and peace, throughout the season she dresses in stunningly simple gowns adorned with some AMAZING jewelry. Throughout the show Daenerys is adorned with gorgeous Dragon jewelry, including brooches and pins, but it isn’t until season 5 that they truly shine. Her intricate Dragon necklaces are both beautiful adornments to her gorgeous gowns and reminders of her power.

Season 5 Dany is more confident and really coming into her own. Though she still struggles to keep the peace she’s more sure of herself than ever before. Often shown in fitted cape gowns she not afraid to show some skin and be more feminine. Many of her dresses showcase deep V or cutout for a little cleavage, but are otherwise fairly modest and elegant. Though this may seem like more of a departure from her earlier style that isn’t completely true. In fact, every outfit Daenerys wears, even her elegant gowns, have pants underneath. In an interview with VOX Clapton reveals that Daenerys is always wearing pants because she knows at any point in time something could go wrong and she may need to flee. This preparation is never more necessary than at the end of Season 5, when the Sons of the Harpee attack and Daenerys must escape on the back of Drogon. Flying away on a dragon would definitely have have been a lot more precarious had she not also been wearing pants.

Season 6: Captive

Dany season six Dothraki captive outfits and Westeros bound cape dress.

Season 6 is probably the least exciting for Dany’s wardrobe. Dany spends most of it as a prisoner of the Dothraki in her old torn dress from the season 5 finale. As the season progresses she does briefly dip back into some Dothraki fashions, as she is sent to the old maids tent when she is captured. Not one to be kept down Daenerys goes all unburnt on the Khals, and takes the rest of the Dothraki back with her to Meereen. When she leads the Dothraki to Meereen she wears a sort of hybrid outfit that mixes the simplicity of her Queen wardrobe with that of the Dothraki. Danys biggest fashion moment of the season though is in the last episode when she finally sets sail for Westeros. Dany celebrates this occasion in a Charcoal cape dress with dragon like embellishments. This is the beginning of her slowly embracing the Targaryen colors of Red and Charcoal in her wardrobe and a subtle symbol that she’s ready to take the Iron Throne.

Season 7: Usurper

Daenerys season 6 military inspired outfits and coats.

Season 7 is a dark season for costumes in Game of Thrones, almost everyone is mourning someone and thus in black. While Daenerys isn’t mourning for most of the season, she is in a lot of dark colors and coats. There is a distinct military vibe to most of her outfits this season. With strong shoulders and high necks her outfits are a lot more masculine than previous seasons. She is also embracing more of those Targaryen colors, with a lot more charcoal and red. The pièce de résistance of this season is, of course, that amazing fur coat. White fur with charcoal stripes it is fabulous. Her fashion this season not only reflect her new, colder, surrounding but also reflect her main goal in coming to Westeros, to take back the Iron Throne. This is reflected in Danys one main accessory, the dragon chain with bright red dragon scale cape she wears around her torso. In an interview with the Insider Chapman explains that this chain is used in lieu of a crown. Dany isn’t Queen of Westeros, so it wouldn’t make sense for her to wear a crown, but she still uses this adornment to show her power and intentions to take back the throne.

Season 8 (so far)

woman season 8 white fur coat with red stripes.

The fabulous fur coat continues into the first three episodes of the 8th season, but this time with deep red stripes. Perhaps the stripes are a way to yet again add some Targaryen red to her outfit, or a sign of a bloody fight yet to come. Either way this coat is even more of a stunner with those bloody red stripes. As the season progresses and Dany travels to Kings Landing, it’ll be fun to see how her outfits progress in her fight for the Iron Throne.

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