'Game of Thrones': 6 characters in crisis in Season 2

The HBO series 'Game of Thrones' – based on the "Ice and Fire" series (still in progress) by George R.R. Martin – has captivated viewers and critics alike with its dense plot about various families feuding over the crown of the fictional country of Westeros. Season 2 of 'Game of Thrones' will premiere Sunday, April 1. In the new season, six characters will find themselves in particular peril as the struggle for the throne comes to a head. 

1. Daenerys Targaryen

Paul Schiraldi/HBO/AP
Can Daenerys stand against other claimants to the the throne of Westeros?

Daenerys, the last confirmed member of the ancient Targaryen Dynasty, was left in a perilous position when her husband, Khal Drogo, a warlord of the Dothraki people, died. However, after entering Drogo's funeral pyre, Daenerys came out unharmed with three newly hatched dragons, a feat that was viewed as miraculous. She is now the leader of the Dothraki horde formerly ruled over by her husband and is determined to take the throne of Westeros. But there are several others who also have a claim to the throne, and they may decide the best way to take power is by trying to kill the young female usurper.

1 of 6

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.