The Role of Aerion Targaryen in the Winds of Winter

Hello everyone! Today I'm discussing Aerion Brightflame, as well as why I think he's important to the future of #asongoficeandfire.
Be sure to subscribe if you enjoyed this video! What do you think? Is there anything I missed? What do you think of #houseofthedragon so far? More #asoiaf content is on the way!
Thank you all for watching! I'll be back with more theories next week, in a collab video! Character art in this video is by TheMico! Art in the thumbnail is by Mathia Arkoniel
My Twitter: / quinnthegm
00:00 Targaryen Madness
00:53 Reputation in History
01:41 Aerion's Background
02:08 Parallels to Euron
02:42 The Hedge Knight
03:43 Trial of Seven
04:08 Later Life and Further Madness
04:49 The Demise of a Dragon
05:42 Aerion's Importance
07:09 Plans and How They Change
08:09 The Garden
09:37 Conclusions

[@fantasyhaven1]

Sponsored by Wild-Fuel, the official energy drink of Targaryens

[@stepanpazderka5497]

“Discover your inner dragon!”

[@CxerRy96]

Gives you wings

[@justadjustor8993]

Fire + Blood!

[@Flipdip32]

How ironic would it be if baby Maegor actually turned out to be a pretty great guy lol

[@thedemonhater7748]

Fire and Blood 2 is gonna spend a whole chapter discussing his plans to build an orphanage in fleabottom before he dies at summerhall lol

[@KingOfWinter]

@Flipdip32 Do we know who the hand of the king was around that time? I could totally see Maegor being Aegon the 5ths top advisor, a protege of politics and HOTK or was about to be appointed thus until his tragic death at summer hall.

[@mykofanes]

there is theory that he is Marwyn

[@cliffordrose4335]

@@mykofanes Is Marwyn the Mage in his 70's? I had the feeling he was middle aged not elderly 😲

[@thalmoragent9344]

​@@KingOfWinter Would've been dope tbh, a Maegor who's dope and actually a decent ruler

[@MagmaProductions1948]

Not ego tripping here, just that I'm the guy who made the Aerion shield used in the thumbnail, first time I've ever seen someone using my art before for anything, so very happy right about now 😁

[@QuinnTheGM]

Oh my god, I thought that was official! What would be the best way to credit you? I can link to any social media of yours in the description!

[@damienhughes1996]

That's cool the creator is not going the ego route and is a down to earth guy Iike the person who designed the badass Targaryen shield. Good people all around glad I subscribed to this channel.

[@FrithonaHrududu02127]

Dude AWESOME job. That's far and away the coolest set of personal arms I've seen. Have you created others?

[@MagmaProductions1948]

​@@QuinnTheGMthank you so much and I'd really appreciate it! It's just two deviantart profiles, 'thehive1948' and 'barricade102', Thanks so much! And yeah I have two DeviantArt accounts, 'thehive1948' and 'barricade102' the first is for making wallpapers of the ASOIAF, Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon wallpapers (it's where you'll find the one used here), the second is for making my own personal spins on them. (Hopefully this comment makes it through, tried posting several comments to this video over the last three months but they've all self-deleted?, trying a different method, hopefully it works).

[@Philipp.of.Swabia]

Looks better than the official one 👍🏻 I always thought the official ones colours were to „Neon“ like, your version looks dope though.

[@KingOfWinter]

I like to think George was thinking about cadet branches of House Targaryen and he crossed out would be houses like Darkflame, NightFire, DayFlame, Dawnfire and finally he came up with the perfect foil House BrightFlame. And he worked it into the story and was completely satisfied with this new direction when he was at a fellow writer/friends house talking about it and the writer was like “oh you know what would be a cool name for a cadet branch, House BlackFyre! With a y instead of I.” And George knew in his heart of hearts the name was way cooler (like brightflame was a solid 8/10 disguised as a 10/10 because he had yet to hear the words House Blackfyre a true 10/10 house name lol) and he had to write them into the story. That’s my head canon and nothing you say can change that lol.

[@Khaled91]

Daemon Blackfyre only took the name for himself after his father Aegon the Unworthy gifted him the sword 🗡️ Blackfyre over his trueborn son. Daemon took the name of the sword for his House.

[@thor30013]

@@Khaled91 Yeah, but that's the in-universe explanation. I mean, if you're a writer and you come up with a names as awesome as "Daemon Blackfyre," you _have_ to use it.

[@Khaled91]

😂😂I agree... It's a badass name!

[@Ravi9A]

This is canon.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​@@thor30013 Facts, I agree. I'm loyal to Daeron II but the name Daemon Blackfyre is HARD 😅

[@eternalistmorqan9476]

I mean, whats the guy thinking chugging down wildfire like lemonade?

[@void.lawyer]

I mean, who doesn't want to be dragon?

[@SennaHawx]

He had it standing right next to his bottle of Mountain Dew and mixed them up. Since Mountain Dew tastes like wildfire, he didn't notice until it was too late

[@judeconnor-macintyre9874]

Say what you want about Aerion, but that man had style. He looks great in that red cape.

[@nuralibolataev4474]

Who are your favorite background characters? For me its Stannis' entourage. They seem almost like a sitcom cast; Justin Massey, Richard Horpe, and Godrey Farring. Justin and Richard especially, "the smiler and the slayer". I also love how Stannis lowkey hates all of them.

[@emilianomerinoflandez5786]

Same. And there's also always this sense of danger emanating from them, which contributes to the unpredictability of the Mannis' situation as a whole.

[@Getwright-]

Mine is probably Yoren from the nights watch. I love how Martin writes him in aGoT. As this background character who you barely notice who turn out to be one of the few people with a big picture of whats going on. Also love that he saves ayra but isnt afriad to whup a princess when she mis behaves

[@ilovemesomme]

Prince Duncan was the maddest of them all, he gave up his birthright and relinquished his duty for a woodswitch.

[@PfcDupuis]

if she made him happy, he traded a life of duties and court for a life of quiet wealth with his love. Doesnt seem too bad to me lol

[@loooongneck]

Choosing personal happiness over power is not madness lol

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

I would’ve did my duty if I was him and married the Barretheon girl but he may have been under the influence of a love potion

[@thor30013]

@@mysteryjunkie9808 I think it's more that his father got to marry for love, so he felt he should be able to do the same.

[@nathanielregan289]

And her bride price was paid in blood

[@madhog81]

This Maegor has always interested me. A claimant to the throne, linked to the Brightflame, exists at a time when the Blackfyre's run out of male heirs. You are likely right, however, that this is a plot point that has now become un-important but I think he has a lot of potential.

[@Rougarou99]

Not to mention that Maegor could still be alive by this point in the story.

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

@@Rougarou99he probably died at Summerhall if I had to guess

[@ReporterRed]

there are theories that the Blackfyres not going extinct in the female line may mean that a female Blackfyre married Maegor Targaryen. "Brightfyre theory," a way for GRRM to synthesize both plots he was setting up. but he could also just have Maegor killed off in Summerhall or across the Narrow Sea or something

[@mappingshaman5280]

I had a bit of a joke theory that ramsay is descended from maegor and is azhor ahai lol

[@thor30013]

@@Rougarou99 I mean, I guess he could _technically_ still be alive, but he'd be up there with Walder Frey in terms of age.

[@crazybrainiacjr]

the ASOIAF youtuber "Company of the Cat" has a great video on Targ madness too. They posit that it's due to the Targ kings misinterpreting and obsessing over Aegon's Prophecy (the one mentioned in HOTD). It's a solid theory and really builds on the notion that much of what is known about Targ history is by and large second or third hand accounts.

[@MrWestbrook11]

he might’ve never been king but Aerions uncle Rhaegal was definitely mad as well. dancing naked through the red keep 😂

[@lukebarroso449]

I love the dunk and egg series. Really hope the casting for each of the characters especially Dunk, Egg, Baelor, and Aerion are good.

[@heathcliffheritage4515]

Agreed with one addition…the casting of Daeron, I believe, will be equally as important.

[@michaelsilver253]

I think the designation of Targ's being mad isn't just actual outright insanity but also eccentricity and acting incredibly out of line. In addition to Aerion and Aerys II I would say Maegor, Aegon II, Aegon IV, Baelor, Daemon II Blackfyre (visions + delusions of grandeur), Meleys the Monsterous, Viserys and likely Danaerys in the main series, Daemon from the Dance, and Daeron the drunkard could be considered mad. Plus there's plenty of Targs that we don't know much about that might've been some flavor of what the Westerosi would've seen as mad. Plus Aerion's mentally handicapped daughter, maybe even Aegon III- his was for sure horrifying PTSD that even some of the Maesters recognized, but that probably wouldn't have stopped people from labeling him as mad.

[@thor30013]

It was Daeron's daughter that was mentally handicapped, not Aerion's. Aerion's only known children was the Maegor mentioned in the video.

[@michaelsilver253]

@thor30013 yeah I fucked that one up lol. Like right after I finished writing the comment it hit that part of the video

[@YourGrace_06]

Baelor was mad as well. I wouldn’t consider starving himself to death and giving the high septon crown to a stone mason who couldn’t read & a 7 yo he heard talking to doves, necessarily “good “

[@SoCalSon395]

Neat find! I first read the Dunk and Egg novellas this year and I hadn't realized the first one came out so early, but I did notice how the Blackfyre rebellions seem to take place before all three books but aren't really acknowledged in the first one, which lends credence to your idea that Martin came up with a better idea for a rift in the Targaryen line and adjusted his story to fit it. There's a quote from Martin that gets used a lot in relation to the show where he talks about foreshadowing that the butler did it and how you can't suddenly change it to the maid because people already guessed it was the butler before you could give them the reveal, but this shows a way that you can shift the direction of the story if you want. Much the same way Martin has "killed off" Davos, Arya, and Theon multiple times before later deciding there was more to tell with them and keeping them alive, it makes sense that he would course correct on the Brightflames vs the Blackfyres like this, and when you read the books you can see the ways he leaves himself opportunities to do so like the one you point out here.

[@cliffordrose4335]

Hey . . . I love you line of logic. I still harbor a faint hope that GRRM will make 👑 Rhaella Targaryen a much better mother during Robert's Rebellion and her gestation sanctuary on Dragonstone Castle 🏰 than she has currently been portrayed. She had over half a year to put her last living male heir to House Targaryen into a security protocol somewhere safe before the naval invasion of Stannis Baratheon . . . so did she use her considerable assets of ships, men, money, prestige and influence to do so ?!? Look att all the security precautions and protocols that Lord Hand Tyrion Lannister took to enhance the survival probability of his niece and nephew before the naval invasion of Stannis Baratheon in CLASH. Please 🙏 make it make sense that an UNCLE would do more for his niece and nephew than the Queen Mother Rhaella Targaryen would do for her last living son . . . especially after the sack of King's Landing and the horrific slaughter of her beloved Targaryen grandbabies ~ Princess Rhaenys and Prince Aegon VI 😭😢😭. Make it make sense GRRM!!

[@Getwright-]

I think its not so much that many Targaryens go mad, that those that do have A LOT of power. Its like giving a nuclear weapon to that guy who stands out in front of the 7-11 and accuses the pigeons of spying on him

[@t_hetty1758]

Cant wait to see the griff is actually a descendant of aerion theories now.

[@ReporterRed]

Brightfyre theory is a theory that Griff descends from Maegor marrying a female Blackfyre

[@GreyWasteTim]

I do like the idea of Aerion parallels Euron as in the worst possible option. While the Blackfyres are presented as antagonistic there were great qualities about Daemon Blackfyre that inspired men to follow him (see Eustace Osgrey) and why they were able to continue garnering support up to the War of the Ninepenny Kings. Aerion Brightflame, with his cruelty, does not inspire that kind of loyalty or confidence beyond just a few cronies, the way Euron is not likely to garner genuine support outside of his Ironborn henchmen. People who already have a low opinion of Ironborn, aka most of Westeros and those who remember stories of Harren the Black or Dagon Greyjoy, aren't gonna be jumping in line to support Euron. In the same way, trying to build support for the descendents of infamous mad Aerion Brightflame probably wouldn't do well among the populace, not the way valiant underdog Daemon Blackfyre still can.

[@SSWNowhereMan]

Isn't it also said that Rhaegel was crazy?

[@alias9236]

Do we think he drank wildfire because of a dragon dream or do we go the funnier route and say he had tge idea and thought he was just that smart

[@cliffordrose4335]

I have never seen an illustration of Prince Maegor Targaryen ~ son of Prince Aerion Brightflame. It is curious 🤔 that he has very reminiscent features as an infant to the fully grown Ser Gerold Dayne with a streak of midnight black in his Silver-White head of hair. What could this possibly mean😮😮? Could it all be coincidence?!? There are theories that King Aegon V may have arranged for his grandmother's family and noble kin ~ House Dayne to accept custody for the baby orphan as a proactive precautionary measure to get Prince Maegor out of the political landscape of King's Landing and be allowed to grow up as a Dayne down at Castle Starfall on the Tourantine. Could Prince 🤴 Maegor Targaryen be the father of Ser Gerold Dayne?!? He would have fathered newborn Gerold Dayne as a 42 year old so it is plausible!?!

[@invincibleluis]

Awesome, love your videos

[@sam_i5961]

i haven't watched the video but my personal pet theory that i can't prove is that Illyrio a descendant of Aerion and that by marrying Serra he has in some way combined the blackfyres and brightflames. (This way george can have the brightflames be important to the young griff plotline lol).

[@emilianomerinoflandez5786]

I also wanted that to be how it played out in the books.

[@blackeyedlily]

I went and listened to your video on Maekar because you said that it covered the Trial by Seven from Dunk and Egg quite a bit. I enjoyed the Maeker video, but don’t think it goes into the Trial by Seven much at all. I would suggest that you consider a video that focuses specifically on that topic, as I think there is a lot to delve into there. Perhaps more as the Dunk and Egg television show begins to take shape.

[@miguelromero9189]

Love your vids and how well informed they tend to be. Also, I’d want to ponder the idea of Dany being actually drawn to the idea of having a relative? I know it may seem folly or naive considering Martin s style, but given her character and way of thinking, wouldn’t she be open to the idea of actually bonding even at first with a relative? Sometimes I think she will be with this F-Aegon and maybe both of their counsellors will be the seed of conflict between them? I read somewhere that Martin has hinted the idea of a new Dance of the dragons being happening, so maybe Aegon will claim either Viserion or Rhaegal, but maybe it’s just silly of me to hope but I’m crossing my fingers she could actually form an alliance with her relative and it’s another foe like the Others the piece that will take this relative down? Jajaja one can only hope. Dany as a character has suffered enough at the hands of her family

[@robertsmiley2207]

I really like the brightflame surname it's pretty badass 😎

[@user-kl4qf4vb2w]

Yes slay with the tampex ad

[@samuelcoomes5517]

I don’t think he was mad but just corrupted. Maybe going to Essos simmered him down. Beware the mummer’s dragon might just be telling Dany don’t let pride and power make you do stupid stuff.

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

He drunk wildfire thinking it would make him a dragon. When he was set to inherit the Throne

[@samuelcoomes5517]

Who said that? Bloodraven? The maesters?

[@thor30013]

@@samuelcoomes5517 Well, it's explicitly mentioned in both Storm of Swords and the World of Ice & Fire, and there's no indication anywhere that it _isn't_ true in-world. Plus, it only happened about 60 years before the events of the main books, so it's not like it was in the distant past.

[@samuelcoomes5517]

@@thor30013 Sorry if my tinfoil hat is on too tight haha. But the most descriptive we here about it comes from Jeor and Jon's conversation. Who are the friends gathered? None of them stopped their drunk friend from doing something stupid? Jon knows about it from an Old Nan story. Are those credible or just bedtime stories? Maesters wrote about some crazy dragon guy to veer future generations away from restoring them??? Insert Charlie Day gif haha Just some good fun here!

[@AlexanderGriff]

Nice

[@cadencumming7795]

One other mad Targaryen, at least from what's rumored; Rhaegel, son of Daeron II. Admittedly , dancing naked in the Red Keep isn't as bad as burning people alive, but it definitely suggested a bit of kookiness

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

Wasn't Rhaegel heir to the Throne at some point ?

[@cadencumming7795]

@nicksmithnutmilk yee, he was Aerys I heir after Baelor, Valarr and Matarys all kicked it

[@Monotremewisdom]

I clicked on this while loudly announcing “What The Fuck” So I am very excited thank you for continuing to post good shit my dude

[@raylast3873]

I hesitate to call Martin’s style a detriment. Arguably this is what allows him to write S-Tier characters that behave like people rather than plot devices, and have them move the plot along, not the other way around. And it‘s also how the story itself managed to become truly epic in scale, and accordingly engaging. I think an architect would have had trouble executing a story of this depth and magnitude. Fight me.

[@X525Crossfire]

Martin's style is a detriment because he has no self-discipline: he keeps planting new seeds, and now the garden has grown wild. Beautiful new flowers are all well and good, but there's not enough space for everything and they're competing for nutrients and sunlight. George has to trim the overgrowth, but he's allowed everything to grow into such a tangle that one careless move could cause the whole thing to come crashing down. Hence why the series grew from the original planned trilogy to four books, then to seven, and a decade ago George's editor said she thought it might end up being eight.

[@amaanhabib4131]

good someone acknowleged that aerions line has a greater claim

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

Maegor II had the best claim and I think when Maekar was alive he probably thought so too.

[@amaanhabib4131]

​@mysteryjunkie9808 even greater than vaella since he was rhaegals grandson

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

@@amaanhabib4131 Vaella was a female and mentally challenged

[@niallgaffney2475]

Do we not consider Egg mad for what happened at Summerhall?

[@Philipp.of.Swabia]

There seem to be quite a lot of Targaryen sons that are not highlighted yet, Maegor is just one, but there is also the son of Aemond and Alys Rivers. Although I don’t think he and his kin will play any more roles in any of the upcoming books of the main story, but maybe GRRM will write something about him in a new prequel book.

[@juanmfernandez5123]

Maegor II is Illyrio Mopatis, the description of his statue can match whit a Targaryen

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

New theory just dropped

[@cliffordrose4335]

What color are his eyes described as?!?

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

Combine this theory with the " Illyrio is the father of Young Griff " . Illyrio/Maegor married a Blackfyre = Aegon Brightfyre

[@catxborsuq1]

You forgot to mention that after fighting in the third Blackfyre Rebellion, he along with Bloodraven urged his uncle king Aerys I to execute Bittersteel rather than send him to the Wall; while it was probably due to his cruelty rather than foresight, it's still worth mentioning that he was right. Also worth remembering is that Aerion was very, very drunk when he decided to drink the wildfire.

[@joewalker4710]

I remember reading a theory that the blackfyres did not exist in GRRM's mind untill after ACOK was written. I do wonder if theres any room for the brightflames in TWOW. It seems to me like enough is happening already hahaha

[@renferal5290]

I really like Jaehaerys I . I read Dunk and Egg. Good story

[@callidus9421]

Where did you get the Targaryen family tree chart from?

[@stephaniecruz4153]

Kinda really like this theory. Imagine how many mad people there would be haha

[@dink0011]

VIDEO REQUEST : would be great to see a video about the targaryen's group of dragon trainer guys. they speak valeryan. can they ride dragons? are they trained to fight? any info on them?

[@misabelrodriguez1163]

Man I'd love video about that!

[@user-ti5cw1ug6l]

Aerys II, Maegor I, Daemon, Aemond, and Aerion are all the crazy kind of mad. I'd say a lot of people can't really conceptualize how crazy some of them were because of the fantasy context they exist in but the truth is that even by the standards of actual medieval times these characters would be considered nuts. They all did things that would be grounds for deposition. Kings couldn't really do whatever or kill whoever they wanted without justification (unlike what fantasy tells you) so if we hold the King's of Westeros to this standard like the people of Westeros do then suddenly some of them seem more like bloodthirsty tyrannical warlords rather than heads of state and government. There are also characters like Aenys I, Baelor I, Rhaegal who were definitely not mentally stable. In real history, more stable monarchs were called mad. I have my suspicions about Aerys I. We saw how obsessed with prophecy Viserys I was and it's hardly even mentioned. Aerys I is the one who was said to be obsessed. Even with Rhaegar, he modeled his life around fitting a prophecy. Also, how did Aegon V accidentally burn down a palace? What crazy ritual could he have come up with for his dragon obsession for that to happen. Yeah, he was trying to make Westeros more progressive and that must've been hard. Dragons would've helped enforcing more liberal policies I know, but there was definitely a noted intensity about his obsession later in life. On a different note, does anyone think that Aerion was attained (Stripped of all ranks/holdings and barred from succession)? To me it was always implied and would explain a lot of things. He isn't remembered with the Targaryen last name and his son was disregarded for an uncle at the Great Council. I get that him being an infant was a huge factor in that (Medieval times disliked child monarchs) but then he's never spoken of again despite his claim. He and his line never show up again. We are naver told what happened to Maegor. Did he die young, did he leave Westeros, was he killed at Summerhall? If he did grow up, did he try to claim the throne? Nothing is ever said. How could someone so important just disappear from the records? If Aerion was attained his descendants would also be barred from succession and thus, if he had descendants they would fade into obscurity with time. Even kings and princes can commit treason against their country. Aerion was literally banished and once he was it was well known that his behavior got even worse.

[@amaanhabib4131]

He was named Prince of dragonstone at the time of his death

[@cliffordrose4335]

I'm still processing this new information but . . . the numbers add up that Prince 🤴 Maegor Targaryen could be the father of Ser Gerold Dayne as Maegor was born in 232 AC. We don't have an exact year to define how old the Darkstar is via birth year (270-274 AC). The slight streak of midnight black in the Platinum head of hair displayed by Baby Maegor Targaryen gives me chills that he could be the biological father of the newborn Gerold Dayne . . . if there ever was one which I have serious doubts about.

[@carlrood4457]

The thing with "madness" is it doesn't necessarily mean they were always mad. By all accounts Aerys was pretty stand up in his younger years. He let suspicion and paranoia take over, especially in regards to Tywin's competency as Hand. There's a theory that Summerhall was due to "madness" on Egg's part due to his obsession with bringing back dragons to enable him to enforce his reforms.

[@Ashbrash1998]

Aerys really didn't turn "mad" until he was a prisoner by the Lord of Duskendale for a total of six months.

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

​@@Ashbrash1998that and his sister wife Queen had several miscarriges

[@Dani.G_German]

1:38 audio bug?

[@jeremyj8153]

“Provided this does come out” is doing a LOT of lifting, there, sir

[@GreyWasteTim]

Locking his sisters in the Maiden Vault was not good for the realm. Not siring children and opening the way for Aegon IV was not good for the realm. Naming an illiterate stone mason and a child he believed could perform miracles to the position of High Septon was not good for the realm. Baelor the Blessed - mad lad not good for the realm.

[@QuinnTheGM]

The main good I counted for him was reforms for the peasants, and that observation of him being "good" was mostly in the court of public opinion, as he's not often considered a mad Targaryen in universe.

[@paulusillyriusiudathaddaio2530]

His handling of the situation after daeron I-st assassination was pretty... mad but turned out quite good at the same time (probably just an accident)

[@wingwangtingtang]

considering how GRRM likes to subvert expectations about a huge amount of his characters i reckon the blackfyres under young griff will end up being a ''good'' faction and the brightflames will come back as the ''extreme evil'' faction under a descendant of maegor brightflame

[@sophiawilson8696]

Sir you can whole series of missing Targaryens in history Do the Queen of West. The real Queen who push off The Throne by the nobles, She was sister wife of uncrowned Aegon. She was first born of King Aenys!

[@user-ti5cw1ug6l]

Does anyone think that Aerion was attained (Stripped of all ranks/holdings and barred from succession)? To me it was always implied and would explain a lot of things. He isn't remembered with the Targaryen last name and his son was disregarded for an uncle at the Great Council. I get that him being an infant was a huge factor in that (Medieval times disliked child monarchs) but then he's never spoken of again despite his claim. He and his line never show up again. We are naver told what happened to Maegor. Did he die young, did he leave Westeros, was he killed at Summerhall? If he did grow up, did he try to claim the throne? Nothing is ever said. How could someone so important just disappear from the records? If Aerion was attained his descendants would also be barred from succession and thus, if he had descendants they would fade into obscurity with time. Even kings and princes can commit treason against their country. Aerion was literally banished and once he was it was well known that his behavior got even worse. Thoughts?

[@QuinnTheGM]

I think if he had been, that would be somehow marked in the historical record. Martin has tended to keep certain aspects of this era secret, but Maekar’s line of succession is pretty well-publicized.

[@user-ti5cw1ug6l]

@@QuinnTheGM There was a Great Council after Maekar I died so either he didn't actually draw up a succession or he did and the Great Council just ignored it.

[@OurHiltsHurt]

How do you make your videos?

[@valkillmore1190]

My favorite Targaryen :)

[@micahmcfadden8082]

Baelor the blessed was insane

[@micahmcfadden8082]

He locked his sisters away so they wouldn’t tempt him he is a religious zealot the other targaryens seem to not even acknowledge the faith of the seven

[@carlrood4457]

I really want to know where all the Starks are. They've been top house in the North for thousands of years and have usually married their vassals and not people from the south. Logically, nearly every house in the North should be branches of House Stark. Did they only marry off daughters? Was every younger brother sent to the Wall once and heir and spare were born to their elder brother?

[@alexiavya722]

I think the only fan theory he is required to keep in the book is that Rhegar and Lyanna are Jon’s parents. If they aren’t that’s kinda weird and disappointing :(

[@estiloblue84]

You die or lose the hand, foot you struck him with. He even laments on if his foot was worth it

[@ayiza8511]

It’s Aerion Aryes 2 Rhegal. and let’s be honest let’s add Bealor to the madness too.. and George said Dearon the young dragon may be mad. And Rheagar might have something.. honestly so could Ageon the unlikely too at the end of his life

[@jj947]

Prince Aerion the Madlad

[@Ashbrash1998]

I think the issue of "madness" is that people slap on the title needlessly for people that it shouldn't really apply to. Being cruel or murderous doesn't make you "mad" its just make you bloodthirsty. Like Tywin Lannister for example. The whole coin flip metaphor is just a metaphor that people apply too much power to, like Vary's whole speech aboutt "Power resides where men believes it resides". Were there a couple of loony Targs? Yeah, and there's even more ones who are sane. Even the terrible ones.

[@Methus3lah]

So FAegon is a Brightflame?

[@Siptom369]

George Martin definetly has many cadet branch houses in his story so the targaryens having many themselves would make sense

[@King_Steffon_II]

I F-WORD love King Maegor the Great Best Targaryen monarch of all time and my favorite Targaryen in the ASOIAF lore 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@seabrain1212]

The only family that I can think of with with Targaryen-level inbreeding would be basically any Egyptian pharaonic dynasty including the Ptolemies. It historically doesn't work long-term . . .

[@sophiawilson8696]

Few key Items here Brightflame or Brightfire! I like Brightfire better. I always wonder what happen to that baby of Brightfire's son.?.

[@raylast3873]

Did anyone ever notice how similar Grejoy names are to Targaryen names?

[@thegto8535]

no, you are the first ever

[@gentlesavage2068]

Do you think faegon could still be a descendent of aerions son and a blackfyre?

[@user-id7nk2yz9q]

He is name aegon, ‏‪There is no character in George R.R. Martin's story named faegon

[@know846]

I don't think you can add Rhanyra I mean she didn't have any corniation and she is just not counted as a queen because her son ageon 3 inherited from his uncle ageon 2

[@lordofthehouseofstormcrows8615]

This guy is a busted spring. The dragon is flying but there's no one riding kinda crazy. I mean dammit George, this guy was straight cruel and stupid. Im glad he is said to have screamed while dying. He deserved to get all of his just deserts.

[@julioulloa5403]

Baelor? Good direction? Dude. The dumaas walked barefoot to dorn

[@QuinnTheGM]

Good for the realm, not good for him.

[@julioulloa5403]

@@QuinnTheGM the only good thing i can think of is marring daeron to mariah

[@ToucanBinks]

👍

[@Roderyck82]

Has anyone ever explored the possibilities that either "Aegon VI." or Danaerys ("Lemongate") or even both could be descendants of Aerion Brightflame/Maegor Targaryen?

[@cliffordrose4335]

Honestly never thought 🤔 of it. Looking at the aSoI&F wiki site it seems to be that the 40 year old Prince 🤴 Maegor Targaryen could be the father of Ser Gerold Dayne though based on the illustration provided. That seems like a very plausible scenario

[@Him_Him_]

Could Griff be mageor

[@QuinnTheGM]

Griff is Jon Connington, and he’s definitely not young griff. Maegor would be in his late 60s

[@user-op7ib4ye6v]

The Garden has been sold out, bulldozed over and turned into a shopping mall, long ago. The enormous waiting time in between two last books and the Winds is the result of that. Martin is not a gardener anymore. There is no garden. Martin has stopped gardening - stopped listening to the garden and tried to force it into a shape that the Garden resisted for quite some time. The whole of DwD is someone traipsing drunk through a shut-down shopping mall - looking for a garden but finding only fake plastic tress and plastic dolls, all with price tags on them.

[@natemccollum3731]

Targ madness is mainly attributed to their rush to anger and cruelty. You seriously miss several Mad Targaryens- The whole coin flip thing comes from Cersei in the books (I think) when she reflects on her incest and Joffrey’s “madness.” So I think of Joffrey as the sort of bar for madness. Viserys is also thought of as mad at certain parts. Aerys 1 was obsessed with prophecy and doesn’t even rule while king. Aegon 5 totally loses his mind in a quest for dragons and maybe sacrificed his sons to hatch eggs. It also comes from their strange obsessions- Rhaegar kidnapping/courting Lyanna when he’s married to Dornish princess is only the actions of a madman There’s also several Targaryens we don’t give much detail to so far. And a lot of them become mad from learning something or loss- Rhaenyra when her son dies and Rhaegar when he decides the dragon needs three heads. I could also make the case for Visenya, Vaella and Saera… and prob more I’m not thinking of. Even Daeron (Maekar’s heir) could be a drunkard to curb his madness (that’s a stretch but come on to limit it to two Targs is ridiculous)

[@Getwright-]

Nah, I dont think Egg was mad, he literally thought he had found the way to hatch dragons and that those dragons would help him help the swall folk better. I think something went bad by accident (too mich fuel for some fire trying to get it up to a certain temperature) and that caused the tragedy. I dont think he was trying to sacrifice anyone. And he certainly did rule by temper or violence

[@Njeezynjabs]

The coin flip thing comes from Ser Barristan Selmy, he told Danny that he was told by Jaehaerys II

[@nunyabiznes33]

​@@Getwright-yeah. Egg was just desperate coz the nobilty pushed him in a corner and his children escaping the matches that would have got him support just made him more enemies. Truly tragic.

[@HD_Hates]

Griff is the descendant of Maegor Targaryen - who was the son of Aerion Targaryen .

[@donaldhanning1359]

I don't think you NEED to "make a case" for Baleor being mad. He was DEFINITELY insane

[@QuinnTheGM]

I’ve seen a Baelor stan or two in my time

[@donaldhanning1359]

@@QuinnTheGM oh you don't need to tell me. At one point my Best Friend was pro Baleor. And I'm SURE there are a lot of "normal" religious people who would see Baleor as an ok dude, but he was CLEARLY insane...Before the snakes...

[@nightman1790]

You can count on a hand the number of Targaryens who were truly mad in over 300 years, there is Aerys, his son Viserys, Rhaegel who was the brother of King Maekar, Baelor and of course Aerion.

[@mysteryjunkie9808]

There been Mad Targs and Foolish Targs but Rhaegar was the only Mad Fool Targ

[@GabrielRodrigues-hk1nx]

Not Rhaegar, Rhaegel the brother of Maekar. As for Rhaegar his actions are pretty much shrouded in mystery so we don’t really know the details of what really happened back then.

[@badyoutuber1986]

Meera is Asharas first born an heir to grey water watch she wasn't I love with Ned but with jojin clear as day

[@raph3699]

That’s why I’m not expecting Jon to resurrect

[@raylast3873]

Ok but what’s actually stopping Faegon from being a Brightflame, rather than a Blackfire? We don’t know who he is. The only real evidence is the Golden Company, who are Blackfire Loyalists. But would they even know for sure?

[@raylast3873]

3:29 ser Duncan, perhaps not the smartest guy in the Kingdom.

[@marcfrancisteodoro7720]

Maybe young griff came from the line of Brightflames rather than the Blackfyres.

[@blackeyedlily]

There are theories about this that refer to Young Griff as a Brightflame. I think the best one is found in an early episode by Radio Westeros that focuses on the plot and plans of Illyrio and Varys. They look at how Young Griff could be a combination of both lines, with Illyrio descending from the female Blackfyre line and his wife Serra, with the very Valyrian looking description, being a descendent of Aerion. Illyrio did find her in Lys, which is where Aerion was banished to for a time. And Martin did say in an interview that Aerion may have left some bastards in Lys.

[@marcelinodolan7859]

aerion will be resurrected as a dragon and defeat euron and the wight walkers

[@QuinnTheGM]

Big if true

[@jeffwhite5007]

Balor the blessed was definitely mad.

[@schizoidahole]

Lol, I can’t see how locking your sisters in a tower can be seen as madness in a “good direction”.

[@davidlewis5312]

in this thought, how much do you think anything we believe or view as possible way back in the unknowing days of 2013 is relevant in 2024/26/27 -> whenever this story gets a conclusion... if at all. There is a thing called overthinking and too much of a rug pull is not a payoff

[@ghoultree]

wtf happened at 1:39

[@jacksparrow9227]

Baelor is definitely mad the bad way since he trapped his sisters in a tower for years

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

He didn't want to get h*rny

[@Gray_ninja]

And we keep dwelling under misconception that Blackfyres are still a thing...

[@coughcough3323]

Varys is a Brightflame

[@Seven_Leaf]

I don’t mind him taking his time, but it’s clear he’s not even working on it much anymore.

[@justdirt]

The last bit about theories becoming essentially canon in the fan community is important. Aegon being a Blackfyre ultimately has less credibility than him being a true Targaryen. But him being a Blackfyre would mean fans got it right, and it's fun to use small clues to figure stuff out. As someone who has been in and around dozens of communities, many of which theorize a lot, it's very easy for a community to to buy into a theory. And when new information or a new theory is proposed to instead double down. Aegon being a Blackfyre is the ultimate example of this. If we examine the theory, it just isn't that credible. Cloth Dragon meaning mummer's Dragon when the more likely explanation is a flag with a dragon on it. Dany being the Slayer of lies, but literally everyone around her lies all the time. Cercei lies, Stannis lies, Varys lies, Tywin lies, Tyrion lies, Jorah lied, even Barriston lied. I get it, I bought into this theory when I first heard it. But when you hear and examine each small part on its own, a lot of the theory becomes less plausible. And this is ignoring that for this theory to be true, Varys would have had to lie to Kevan for no reason and assume that Varys couldn't have switched the babies at the red keep. Varys, the dude who snuck Tyrion out of the Red Keep. This doesn't mean Aegon isn't a Blackfyre, btw. All of the small hints and clues could be genuine foreshadowing. Or, the entire Blackfyre and Brightflame sub plots could be a massive red herring. Isn't it exactly like George to introduce not 1, but 2 branch families of the Targaryens and have Catelyn be terrified of a bastard taking Robb's crown right before Aegon is introduced. I understand that the books came out over a decade apart, but in the timeline, the Red Wedding was only around 6 or 7 months before Aegon landed in Westeros.

[@vortex_1336]

I think you are wrong about tye Targaeryans. Even the better Targaeryans are weird at best. They all have strange quirks that can go either way.

[@vonpanda493]

Dany is a Brightflame brainwashed into thinking she’s a Targ. The entire Targ line was wiped out when Robert took the throne.

[@SirHeathcliff.]

This comment is all types of nonsense haha

[@vonpanda493]

@@SirHeathcliff. Could be - but I’m willing to bet Aegon is a red herring and Dany is the true false-Targ. Her backstory is already coming apart.

[@SirHeathcliff.]

@vonpanda493 Dany is the only confirmed Targaryen. Viserys was already established before her birth and her birth was well known. Jon would be a red herring before she is.

[@illCMAC]

How can you say the Blackfyre's have a better claim than the Brightflames? Aerion was a natural born 2nd son of a Targaryen king, whereas Daemon Blackfyre was a bastard who was legitimized by a mad king on his deathbed

[@jacksparrow9227]

You mean Maykar Targaryen

[@onyedikachukwumiracle]

Aemond is the maddest Targaryen ever, he destroyed an entire noble house, fed a relative to his dragon and burnt thousands of innocent children, women and men alive

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

His brother King Aegon II fed their sister to his dragon Sunfyre . Aemond rode Vhagar

[@onyedikachukwumiracle]

@@nicksmithnutmilk They must have a tendency for feeding their relatives to dragons

[@nicksmithnutmilk]

@@onyedikachukwumiracle it " only " happened once . And trust me , she deserved what she got

[@dagnirglaurunga1620]

Lol cruelty is a form of madness.

[@postpunk6947]

Quinn, please, make your video's 30 minutes long! I'm beggin' you!

[@sirunfunnyiv7600]

It’d be nice, but considering he’s a law student, I think he should value his mental health first.

[@QuinnTheGM]

I'd love to and they'll likely be longer when I'm not actively in law school lol

[@ReporterRed]

@@QuinnTheGM wow you're in law school? how is it? thinking about going but idk

[@quinnconnelly7245]

It's a lot of work, but if it's an area you're passionate about I'd absolutely recommend going for it! @@ReporterRed

[@monkeyboy275bobo8]

Prügel!