The Mourning Knight

I can see why Doran would back a Targaryen restoration over independence. IF everything went according to plan…… The houses would be joined so Dorne could easily enjoy preferential treatment. With independence comes the likelihood that each new generation will bring a monarch who tries to reconquer Dorne. Most lords are trying to “marry-up”, so wedding your daughter to the king is like the ultimate betrothal. If the ruin of Tywin Lannister is really Doran’s main objective, it’s also a good option, since the Lannister’s are dug so deep into the Baratheon claim. It would be hard to move against Tywin without moving against the crown. And despite Aerys, the Martells and Targaryens ostensibly had a good relationship. At least they had the makings for one. In light of the most recent conflict, if Doran helped put the Targaryens back on the Iron Throne, there is little you could imagine Viserys could look back at and harbour resentment. All this aside, I don’t mean to insist a Targaryen restoration is the absolute best course of action, but I think it has the potential to be a great move for Doran’s house, and it is more than coherent. But if there isn’t something that that has yet to be revealed, Doran Martell is doing a lousy job of carrying it out. All he’s done is secretly agree to a marriage, and for the last 15 years been a negligent future father in law. It’s hard for me to draw a line between this and his claim that he has been working at Tywin’s demise. That’s like owning an empty lot of land for 15 years and telling people that you’ve been building a house. I just have so many questions. Why wasn’t he protecting his investment in the Targaryens? Did he have any say or input in Danny’s betrothal to Drogo? That was a waste of a marriage in my opinion. Why wasn’t Doran trying to repair relations with the Reach? The Tyrell’s were the only one of the great houses not totally complicit and utterly invested in the betrayal of house Targaryen. They would have been an excellent ally (crucial even) in a rebellion. Why send Quentyn on such a “secret” mission, only to openly declare for Daenerys… when Daenerys is not doing anything to suggest she plans on visiting Westeros any time soon? Like, the jig is up at this point; house Martell is now in open rebellion. Was Doran really banking on the secrecy of Dany’s court? Crazy…

I’m going to go easy on this one, but I can’t help but think of Doran Martell’s plot against Tywin Lannister. Unless I’m missing something, the most proactive steps he took were in positioning Viserys and Daenerys for a reclamation of the the throne. And then, he did very little to water that tree (the Targaryen children we’re not hidden or safe) or harvest it’s fruit; Was Doran a proponent of the Dany/Drogo wedding? Not advantageous for Dorne. Reinstalling the Targaryens is fine and good. I just think Doran could have taken a better route. Or done more to secure the Targaryen return.