First appearing in A Clash of Kings, the second entry in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, Davos Seaworth quickly became a fan favorite. The onion smuggler-turned-knight-turned-Hand of the King acts as one of the series' point-of-view characters, providing insights into Stannis Baratheon's campaign for the Iron Throne. Thus far, Davos has appeared as a point-of-view character in three books in the series, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Dance with Dragons.
Davos arguably plays an even larger role in A Song of Ice and Fire's TV adaptation, Game of Thrones. Played by Irish actor Liam Cunningham, the Flea Bottom-born hero first appears in Season 2, Episode 1, "The North Remembers."
At first, Davos' TV storyline closely follows his plot from the books. However, as the series progressed, it drifted further and further away from Martin's source material, eventually surpassing the published works of A Song of Ice and Fire, and Davos' arc changes with it. For example, at the end of Season 4, rather than heading to White Harbor like he does in his chapters in A Dance with Dragons, Davos joins his king at the Wall, where he remains throughout most of season 5.
One quick change to Davos' story from the earlier seasons of the show sets up a heartbreaking journey for him down the road. Though no version of Davos' story is entirely happy, his time on Game of Thrones becomes even sadder thanks to these slight tweaks.
Davos bonds with Shireen Baratheon
When Stannis names Davos as his hand, the Onion Knight realizes he needs to learn to read. In the books, he turns to Maester Pylos. However, as Pylos only appears briefly in the Game of Thrones season 2 premiere, his role as Davos' tutor is given to Shireen Baratheon, Stannis' young daughter.
Davos and Shireen quickly become friends in the show. Fresh from the loss of his own son, Matthos, during the Battle of Blackwater Bay, Davos adopts a paternal role towards Shireen, looking after her as if she were his own daughter. To make things even more tragic, in the show, Matthos is Davos' only son, meaning after Blackwater, he has no surviving children, so his pseudo adoption of Shireen hits even closer to home.
However, Shireen's story ends in tragedy. Although it's yet to happen in Martin's books, towards the end of season 5, Stannis sacrifices Shireen by burning her alive at the stake. The poor girl's death is one of the hardest scenes to watch in all of Game of Thrones.
Mercifully for him, Davos is not present to watch his young friend die. However, he discovers the truth behind what happened to Shireen in season 6, and it breaks his heart. Davos lost his only son back in season 2, and now, he's lost the closest thing he's ever had to a daughter.
Since Shireen's death hasn't happened yet in A Song of Ice and Fire, readers have no idea how Davos will react. While he's almost certainly going to be horrified at the murder of an innocent little girl, her death may not feel as personal to book Davos, since he never spent as much time with her as he does on the show. As such, this moment will likely feel more like a personal tragedy for Davos in the show than it will in the books.
Davos the Overeager Father
Davos' close relationship with Shireen showcases a key consistent character trait throughout Game of Thrones. Since the death of Matthos, show Davos always treats younger characters with kindness., demonstrating his paternal instinct.
In season 3, Davos risks his life to rescue Gendry (or Edric Storm, another of Robert's bastards, in the books), and the two share a friendly rapport when Gendry reappears in season 7. He is also taken by Lyanna Mormont, the formidable child leader of Bear Island. Because he is able to treat Lyanna with the same respect he'd show an adult Lord or Lady, he's able to sway her to his cause. Finally, although Jon Snow isn't a child by the time they meet, the young king quickly bonds with Davos, accepting his advice not only as a key advisor, but as a father-like figure.
Davos is rarely shown with his own children in the books, and, as such, he often worries about them from afar, fearing that he is a bad father. However, show Davos quickly loses the only biological child he has, so he extends his paternal instinct to whoever may need it. In condensing all of Davos' children into the character of Matthos, then killing him off, Game of Thrones, sets the poor Onion Knight up for a devastating tragedy, then causes Davos to undergo even more suffering when his closest friend, Shireen, is killed as well.
For more from the world of Westeros, make sure to watch A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms when it airs on HBO and HBO Max on January 18.