Clinical psychologist breaks down fan reaction to Dany’s heel turn

Daenerys Targaryen took fans by surprise this past Sunday when she unexpectedly went full Mad Queen and lit up King’s Landing like a candle. Many fans are upset over Dany’s heel turn and are having a hard time grasping why she took it. Why all the strong reactions? Speaking with CNET, San Diego-based clinical psychologist Janina Scarlet gave her take on it.

(Side note: Scarlet practices psychology with a twist. She uses characters in television, movies, and comics as references to help her patients cope. It’s called Superhero Therapy and it makes Scarlet the coolest therapist ever.)

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Anyway, Scarlet explained the reaction to Dany’s meltdown in terms of the “parasocial relationship” fans have with the character. A parasocial relationship is a relationship we have with fictional characters and celebrities. People often see themselves in these characters, so when that character makes a frightening decision, it can really rattle them up.

"Parasocial relationships can help fans to feel less alone in their mental health struggles, can inspire hope, and create a dialogue about trauma and recovery. Seeing a person who came from an abusive childhood, experienced violence, assault and tragedy can inspire many other trauma survivors, especially women, to better understand and process their traumatic experiences as well."

Based on what Scarlet has said, it would make sense as to why so many are affected by Dany’s decision to set fire to all the innocent civilians of King’s Landing. It was a decision that she made on a whim, and for many fans, it felt uncharacteristic of the woman they’ve been watching and looking up for the past seven seasons.

"For many fans, especially women, who might identify with Daenerys in terms of being a survivor, this sudden change can be both confusing and emotionally distressing. Such story arc can appear to take away from agency that many trauma survivors may develop through parasocial relationships."

So what does Scarlet think can be done about such character arcs or storylines depicting gruesome violence? She hopes that in the future those involved in television writing will pay more mind to the types of situations they create and think about the emotional impact it can have on viewers.

Given the note on which “The Bells” ended for Dany, one can only wonder and worry what the series finale has in store for us. I suppose we shall prepare for the worst, just in case.

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