Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister made his small-screen debut fifteen years ago this month, when Game of Thrones premiered on HBO back in 2011. Although he survived the events of the show's brutal "anyone can die" formula, Tyrion hasn't been seen since the divisive season 8 came to an end in 2019. There were many great TV characters before Dinklage's diminutive Lannister, and there have been many since. However, Tyrion is still easily among an elite group.
Tyrion made his actual debut in 1996, when George R.R. Martin's A Game of Thrones kickstarted the author's iconic (and still unfinished) A Song of Ice and Fire book series. While it's clear that the HBO adaptation is using the same character in the show, Dinklage's version has some notable differences when compared to his literary counterpart. So, it's pretty easy to discuss both versions of Tyrion as separate entities. With that in mind, let's dive into why the live-action Tyrion is such a compelling figure.
Tyrion Lannister somehow wins out against his emotional origin story
Game of Thrones is bursting at the seams with characters who come from privileged backgrounds and are born into wealthy families who have no real worries. Despite this, they wake up every day and choose cruelty, selfishness, and sometimes just evil for the sake of evil's sake. I'm looking at you, Joffrey (Jack Gleeson). So, when a character from this category becomes one of the story's biggest heroes, it's always something to be celebrated. Tyrion has every reason to be bitter and to fall into the cliché of taking things out on the world around him. The thing is, he never does.
Although he upholds a close friendship with his brother Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), Tyrion has no other living relatives who treat him well. Almost every interaction between Tyrion and his fellow Lannisters is some kind of mind game, declaration of hatred or disappointment, or else an exchange that makes Dinklage's character feel desperately alone. Despite all this, he never opts to make others' lives a misery if it can be helped. He tries to carve out an existence for himself that allows him to reap what little reward he can from being a Lannister while also seeking happiness and fulfillment in ways that distract him from his lineage.
Tyrion is blamed for the death of his mother, ridiculed for being a dwarf, passed over to inherit Casterly Rock, and underappreciated for almost every effort he makes for the good of King's Landing during his time as Hand of the King. All the pieces are there for what could be an airtight villain origin story, but one never comes together. He's one of the few Game of Thrones characters with a seemingly immovable moral compass, with one of the few divergences coming from when he murdered his own father. But, I think we can all agree that Tywin (Charles Dance) had it coming.
Tyrion's imperfections fill in the gaps of what seems like a perfect character design
Making Tyrion stay true to his strong morals throughout Game of Thrones sounds like it would be boring on paper. Somehow, the show managed to make this the best part of his arc. While I'm sure it was tempting to take him down an objectively villainous path at times, Game of Thrones was far better for keeping Dinklage's character on the right side of the tracks — even when it seemed like he wasn't. He has several low points where he succumbs to his drinking and takes his losses very hard. But that just makes him come across as a flawed, relatable person.
If he were constantly making the right choices that resulted in zero negative consequences, that would have been incredibly dull. Instead, Game of Thrones sees Tyrion, on several occasions, making awful decisions for what he thinks are the correct, tactical, moral, and emotional reasons. One of the biggest examples of this is freeing Jaime from being Daenerys' (Emilia Clarke) prisoner in season 8. While it makes perfect sense that Tyrion would want to spare the life of the only family member who had continually treated him with love and respect, it was the wrong move given Tyrion's supposed loyalty to his queen.
It's also a nod to Tyrion's ongoing commitment to his family, regardless of how he's been treated by them over the years. He even hopes for Cersei's (Lena Headey) safety, despite his sister being so vile to him throughout his life. Leaving Jaime to die just wasn't an option for Tyrion, even if it ultimately meant stepping aside as Daenerys' Hand, and his role as the only person who stood a chance at getting through to the new Queen of Westeros and her imminent reign of terror.
To put it another way, Tyrion's flaws stem from being just too moral for the Game of Thrones universe. There are other characters who also fit his description (RIP Sean Bean's Ned Stark), but Tyrion is arguably the best example of this type of hero. He doesn't just manage to remain a good man; he also knows that flashes of straying from who he is, and who feels he has to be, are necessary to survive the bloodthirsty landscape that is Game of Thrones.
Tyrion is one of the most unlikely TV survivors of all time (& that's good)
In shows like Game of Thrones, where the main characters are always at risk of being killed, it can often be hard to resist giving them at least one place where they're safe from harm. Tyrion never really has that in the show. If anything, his life starts to hang more and more in the balance as the show goes on. Even when he's in the Red Keep and serving as Joffrey's Hand in King's Landing, the boldness with which he approaches the job makes it seem like a miracle that he isn't beheaded for his conduct, no matter how understandable his frustrations are to the audience.
Regardless, Game of Thrones defies all the odds by keeping him around. While that may feel like cowardly writing, it's actually a great move, keeping Tyrion so central to the larger plot. It's who he is as a person that allows this to be so rewarding and logical, and why the fact that he's so ubiquitous throughout the story at large feels like such an obvious revelation. He's present at almost every key event, and the show would fall apart without him. Plus, his ongoing survival highlights his biggest strength — his ultra-sharp mind. He isn't just one of the best-written characters in Game of Thrones; it's tough to find heroes or villains in any show that are quite so immaculately formed.
Game of Thrones is streaming now on HBO Max.
Game of Thrones turns 15 this month, and we're celebrating all April long with more deep dives, restrospectives, quizzes to test your knowledge of Westeros and more!