S5, E9: The Monster and the Mannis

Stannis Baratheon has long been one of the most fascinating and divisive characters in A Song of Ice and Fire. His stern, relentless…

Stannis Baratheon has long been one of the most fascinating and divisive characters in A Song of Ice and Fire. His stern, relentless justice may have been off-putting to some, but a substantial group viewed the middle child of the Baratheon family as the most worthy candidate for the Iron Throne. Disciples of “The Mannis” cited not only the strength of Stannis’ claim and his reputation as a brilliant military tactician, but also noted that Stannis was the only contender for the crown who paid heed to the calls for help from the Night’s Watch.

Of course lingering over this purported paragon of justice are the shadows of rather insidious acts. Stannis took active part in the assassination of his brother Renley via Melisandre. He also has a track record of letting his Red Priestess burn people alive in sacrifice to R’hllor (The God of Light). He allowed her to set light to his brother-in-law, Axell Florent, for failing to cast down his old gods. He ignited king-beyond-the-wall, Mance Rayder for refusing to bend the knee. He was also prepared to sacrifice his bastard nephew to Melisandre’s Red God before Davos liberated Gendry..

While the sinister nature of kin-slaying and sacrificial conflagration is hard to ignore, these acts could almost all be rationalized as falling under the umbrella of Stannis’ commitment to “justice.” Renly technically was a usurper as his older brother owned the claim by laws of succession. Florent and Mance Rayder both defied the orders of a king (at least from the perspective of Stannis). The attempt to sacrifice Gendry is harder to justify using this rationale, but I guess one could argue a “no harm, no foul” in that case.

These nuances of Stannis’ morality finally began to flourish on screen over the first eight episodes of season five. He burned Mance Rayder for refusing to bend the knee but then lended his ships to Jon Snow to use in his mission to rescue the wildlings at Hardhome. He demonstrated respect for Jon Snow’s leadership even after the newly minted Lord Commander refused his offer to legitimize him as Jon Stark. He *gasp* showed affection for his daughter Shireen, recounting how he refused to send her to Valyria after she contracted greyscale. By the time he marched off to Winterfell to depose the deplorable Boltons, Stannis seemed every bit the hero…

–And then he burned Shireen. While Shireen’s greyscale-afflicted visage remains unscorched in Martin’s novels, her demise was heavily foreshadowed over the past few episodes. The fact that Stannis condoned her sacrificial incineration was as inconsistent with his character as it was heartbreaking. There was nothing “just” about burning Shireen, it was an act done solely for personal gain. Sure Stannis spit out some half-baked justification about how it was his “destiny,” but ultimately his decision was motivated by a desire for power independent of justice. This is significant because the perception has always been that Stannis felt the Iron Throne was his “by right” — in other words his claim was based on Westerosi laws of succession, predicated on the illegitimacy of Cersei’s children. Resorting to divine providence seems to be a betrayal of Stannis’ trademark justice — the very quality that helped Stannis build such a large following among book readers and show watchers alike.

While redemption in the sight of gods and viewers is possible on Game of Thrones — Jamie Lannister opened the series pushing a young boy out a window, assaulted Ned in the streets of Kings Landing, and strangled his cousin only to end up as one of the more likable characters on the show — Stannis’s heel turn is likely to be permanent. The list of atrocities committed on Game of Thrones is nearly as voluminous as Martin’s novels, but lighting one’s own daughter on fire raised the bar for awfulness. Even if redemption were theoretically possible, Stannis doesn’t seem likely to last long enough to find out — if he wins his battle with the Boltons, Brienne is lurking outside Winterfell with a vendetta and Valyrian steel. Regardless, whenever Stannis meets his end, it will be met with satisfaction from viewers. Melisandre’s flames didn’t just engulf Shireen — they devoured the Mannis as well.

Originally published at raleighco.com on June 10, 2015.