Here's what I would do if I wanted to write a plot where Daenerys destroys King's Landing and comes close to becoming like her father, without making her irredeemably evil

[SeanF]

There's nothing wrong with having Daenerys putting Kings Landing to the torch and massacring its inhabitants - if you've established by Season 8 that that is the sort of thing she would do.

But, you can't credibly pull that off with someone who until Episode 70 is a flawed heroine, with a cruel streak, but no crueler than the norm for the show's world.

[Tyrion1991]

9 hours ago, Panos Targaryen said:

From the early 7th season, things happen similarly. But more emphasis is placed on the fact that Daenerys comes to her homeland, expects a warm welcome, the common people to rise in support for their "true queen" etc., but all she feels is alienation and mistrust. Show that more, and from earlier on. Show how Westeros feels like a strange foreign land to her, how she's beginning to question what the point of her whole dream of coming here was, whether it was all worth it in the end. This adds to the pressure that eventually makes her snap. Make the audience see how that makes her crueller and more fanatical, despotic and self-righteous in her desire to rule these people and prove to them she deserves to be queen. There's still a moral slippery-slope arc for her.

Another change would be how the losses she suffers are portrayed: Missandei dies similarly to the show, but somehow right before the Battle of King's Landing, or during it. Grey Worm dies in the same battle, and Dany sees that. Then, have Rhaegal die not by some random idiocy because "she kind of forgot about Euron's fleet", but during the battle (also by a scorpion bolt, maybe in the first phase of the battle, when she burns the Iron Fleet). Basically make sure the audience sees the losses for Dany piling up, and in a small amount of time. It needs to be all at once to push her off the edge. She loses Rhaegal, Grey Worm and Missandei within minutes/hours.

Dany, enraged and mad with grief and loss, charges to the Red Keep with Drogon, and starts burning it to the ground to kill Cersei and everyone in it (she has destroyed all the scorpions at this point). Keep in mind she's not trying to burn KL, just the Red Keep.

And then, suddenly, explosions everywhere. Green flames pour out of every corner of KL. Buildings everywhere crumble and turn to ashes. Thousands of innocents die screaming. To her horror, she suddenly remembers what Barristan told her about her father putting wildfire caches everywhere on KL. She realizes that, blinded by her rage and need for vengeance, she finished what her father started. KL is utterly destroyed. Hell, maybe even worse than the show.

All the resentment, rage, desire for the Iron Throne made her almost become her father, something she's been consciously trying to avoid since the 5th season. This is the turning point, the wake-up call where she realizes that she went too far, that she has been taking a dark turn for a while. What happens from this point on would be up to the writers. It could begin a redemption arc for Daenerys, or she suddenly realizes that she should never be queen and has an ending similar to Jon, doesn't matter for my post.

TL,DR: Basically things happen similarly, but rather than Dany going crazy for no reason and killing civilians, she accidentally burns KL by trying to destroy only the Red Keep in a fit of rage, which ends up setting off the wildfire planted by her father, which serves as a wake-up call to her that she has lost sight of her original purpose and is becoming a tyrant.

 

If it was an accident then that would make Jon Snow appear overly judgemental. They needed to make it look as if Jon and Tyrion are 100 percent justified in killing her. You are being asked to sympathise with a man who murders a formerly beloved character. 

I think Dany should have only attacked the Red Keep in a fit of rage. Not the people in the city. She forgave Jorah. Dany does understand that people can change and that people can come to love you. I refuse to believe the character would forget this. Then, I think if the show insists on the breaking the wheel part she should have said she would abolish serfdom and give the land to the peasants. This would add some grey to the situation. Are the Starks just reactionary nobles guarding their vaunted status.

I mean it really says something that they demonise Dany for having the notion of changing the world. Then make light of a noble comparing the peasants to his dog.

[Isewein]

Damn that would have been so poetic! For her, who all her life tried to avoid becoming her father, to set off the wildfire caches and fulfill his last wishes. Now that could have believably driven her over the edge.

 

The writers missed so many great narrative opportunities. The Golden Company and Iron Bank switching to JAegon through Varys, the wildfire caches, the prospect of Jon and Dany marrying, Arya's faceless skills... All that would have perfectly fit into the plot they were trying to get across, but for some reason they just didn't bother.

[majgat]

On 5/21/2019 at 1:23 PM, Panos Targaryen said:

From the early 7th season, things happen similarly. But more emphasis is placed on the fact that Daenerys comes to her homeland, expects a warm welcome, the common people to rise in support for their "true queen" etc., but all she feels is alienation and mistrust. Show that more, and from earlier on. Show how Westeros feels like a strange foreign land to her, how she's beginning to question what the point of her whole dream of coming here was, whether it was all worth it in the end. This adds to the pressure that eventually makes her snap. Make the audience see how that makes her crueller and more fanatical, despotic and self-righteous in her desire to rule these people and prove to them she deserves to be queen. There's still a moral slippery-slope arc for her.

Another change would be how the losses she suffers are portrayed: Missandei dies similarly to the show, but somehow right before the Battle of King's Landing, or during it. Grey Worm dies in the same battle, and Dany sees that. Then, have Rhaegal die not by some random idiocy because "she kind of forgot about Euron's fleet", but during the battle (also by a scorpion bolt, maybe in the first phase of the battle, when she burns the Iron Fleet). Basically make sure the audience sees the losses for Dany piling up, and in a small amount of time. It needs to be all at once to push her off the edge. She loses Rhaegal, Grey Worm and Missandei within minutes/hours.

Dany, enraged and mad with grief and loss, charges to the Red Keep with Drogon, and starts burning it to the ground to kill Cersei and everyone in it (she has destroyed all the scorpions at this point). Keep in mind she's not trying to burn KL, just the Red Keep.

And then, suddenly, explosions everywhere. Green flames pour out of every corner of KL. Buildings everywhere crumble and turn to ashes. Thousands of innocents die screaming. To her horror, she suddenly remembers what Barristan told her about her father putting wildfire caches everywhere on KL. She realizes that, blinded by her rage and need for vengeance, she finished what her father started. KL is utterly destroyed. Hell, maybe even worse than the show.

All the resentment, rage, desire for the Iron Throne made her almost become her father, something she's been consciously trying to avoid since the 5th season. This is the turning point, the wake-up call where she realizes that she went too far, that she has been taking a dark turn for a while. What happens from this point on would be up to the writers. It could begin a redemption arc for Daenerys, or she suddenly realizes that she should never be queen and has an ending similar to Jon, doesn't matter for my post.

TL,DR: Basically things happen similarly, but rather than Dany going crazy for no reason and killing civilians, she accidentally burns KL by trying to destroy only the Red Keep in a fit of rage, which ends up setting off the wildfire planted by her father, which serves as a wake-up call to her that she has lost sight of her original purpose and is becoming a tyrant.

Nice. This is pretty much how I imagine GRRM will potray it in the books. Have them also switch the plot in the North. She's devastated and then focuses on the real enemy (Night king) and this wake up call pushes her to go all in to save humanity. 

Cersei should perish in season 7 latest when she goes absolutely mental and tries to blow up KL on purpose because all her children are dead, everyone is against me, so what's the point. In this moment Jaime comes and stop this wildfire plot AGAIN, by strangling her.

[majgat]

2 hours ago, Isewein said:

Damn that would have been so poetic! For her, who all her life tried to avoid becoming her father, to set off the wildfire caches and fulfill his last wishes. Now that could have believably driven her over the edge.

 

The writers missed so many great narrative opportunities. The Golden Company and Iron Bank switching to JAegon through Varys, the wildfire caches, the prospect of Jon and Dany marrying, Arya's faceless skills... All that would have perfectly fit into the plot they were trying to get across, but for some reason they just didn't bother.

They wanted to emphasize, that Bran's dick doesn't work, ACCORDING TO SANSA, HIS SISTER FROM ALABAMA.

[Vanadis]

I like the idea with the wildfire caches.

I would have had Varys kill Missandei by accident as he tried to poison Dany.

Before the battle, I would have Dany arrest Tyrion for treason. He would explain to her that Jamie was going to tell Cersei to surrender and ring the bells. Dany would say that if Tyrion failed, she would have him executed.

I would have the bells ring, but then the ballistae appears and shoots down Rhaegal, instead of having the dragon killed at sea. Cersei was using Tyrion's plan as a trap.

I would have Cersei have ballistae in the town squares surrounded by innocents, so that when Dany attackes them, innocents die. In addition, wildfires start going off, making it a hundred times worse.

I would have Arya on her way through King's Landing to find Cersei, but now she's caught in the inferno. She thinks it's all Dany's fault, and indeed some of it is.

At some point I would have a scene where Dany is shaken by what has transpired and by her own part in the murder of innocents. But we somehow see her transforming her opinion of what it is to be a conquering war lord and the sacrifices needed to be made. She holds a victory speech about how they were justified, and she is able to inspire love in her troops, if not from the people. No need to go full blown Nazi.

I would have Arya try to murder Dany, but fail.

I would have Jon walk up to Grey Worm and see Arya a captive. She is led away. Jon is shocked, but is told that a more traditional execution will soon proceed. 

Perhaps Jon could talk to Tyrion at this point in his cell, although it might be a little contrived. With Arya's life at stake, it might be more in character for Jon to go directly to Dany. However, Tyrion might arm Jon with some clever words, so I'd let them talk.

Not quite sure how the conversation between Jon and Dany should go at this point...
But I would make sure that she is suspicious of him since he didn't seem to love her in the episode before.
First he tries to get her to spare Arya's life. But how can she spare someone who intended to kill her? Her rationalizing the need for killing all the innocents, her plan to do it again to other Westerosi lords who stand against her, Tyrion's words fresh in mind, but most of all the direct threat to Arya's life makes Jon decide to kill her. 
I'm not sure why Dany would let him close without removing his weapons first though... Perhaps something Tyrion says allows Jon to play the heartbroken lover who is only there to beg forgiveness in such a way that she believes him. Perhaps he is able to pickpocket a knife Dany could have in her belt. I don't know, perhaps a sword piece has broken off of the iron throne.

[Vanadis]

How to kill Dany without letting Jon carry a weapon: Perhaps Jon could simply push Dany into the swords on the Iron Throne. Drogon flies in, melts the throne to free her body which is bleeding but unburnt, picks her up and flies away.

[Areisius]

Yours is pretty good and I like the fact that you use the wild fire as the reason innocent people die. What I thought would happen is Dany would defeat Cersei, execute Tyrion, actually start her rule and tell Sansa to bend the knee or die which then creates a divide between Dany and Jon.