There were several ways in which Cersei Lannister could have been killed, fans believe, but getting squished under rocks was not high on the list of possible causes of death. The most recent episode of Game of Thrones has inspired fans to react with both anger and disbelief at the shocking turns their favourite show has taken, and many of them have expressed their feelings on social media. Hot topics include Cersei Lannister’s sudden death, despite being billed as the final season’s main villain. Cersei died in episode five, in the arms of her brother (and lover) Jaime, as they were buried under the rubble of King’s Landing. Fans also took umbrage at Daenerys Targaryen’s sudden transformation into the ‘Mad Queen’. People on Twitter had a good laugh at the expense of all the parents who named their daughters after Daenerys, and now find themselves with a child named after a villain. Check out some reactions here: A big shout out to Lena Headey who made $1,000,000 an episode this season for standing at a window drinking a glass of wine. An icon. pic.twitter.com/n44MAQsK0b — James Potter (@dontforgetjames) May 13, 2019 The elephant comment alone was worth her entire $6 million for the whole season. — Amy (@turpinator1986) May 13, 2019 She wasn't just drinking wine. She was emoting AND drinking wine. — Sandra Von DeBöugie (@VonDeBougie) May 13, 2019 Don't forget Kit Harrington, who was paid $500,000 an episode to be an extra that says "You're my queen" and "I don't want it". — Jordan [Axle] (@JordanHawker) May 13, 2019 Best ways to kill Cersie#gameofthrones 1. Jamie kills her 2. The Night king kills her 3. Arya kills her 4. Drogon burns her 15. Bran wargs into Cersie and commits suicide 497. She dies of pneumonia 1545. Gets trampled by rocks. 😐#cerseilannister pic.twitter.com/Z3vhiWxSGU — a_failed_comedian (@someduudee) May 13, 2019 I really feel for all these parents who named their kids Daenerys or Khaleesi. I had only seen the first three seasons of Breaking Bad when I named my oldest son Successful Meth Dealer. — Wendy Molyneux (@WendyMolyneux) May 14, 2019 The face of all the parents that named their kid Daenerys, Dany, or Khaleesi #GameofThrones pic.twitter.com/3MOTy0ZFIJ — Jesse Johnson (@jestertrog) May 13, 2019 "Huh." - parents who named their daughters Daenerys — Sean Thomason (@TheThomason) May 13, 2019 All those parents who named their daughters Daenerys and Khalessi after this episode:#gameofthrones pic.twitter.com/bEuhBhuNOf — SHELTRON V.3 (@LordSheltron) May 13, 2019 New York Magazine actually spoke to the men and women who’ve named their children after Daenerys. “I don’t have any regrets,” one parent said. “I still love her name, I have very fond memories because of that name, because of how attached I have been to this series.” “[Episode five] doesn’t change how I feel about Dany at all,” said another. “I definitely think she was justified. I think the show is rushing her character arc, but what can you do.” Monday’s episode is the worst-reviewed episode of Game of Thrones’ entire run, notching a 48% score on review aggregator, Rotten Tomatoes. The final season is the worst-rated season, with a 75% score, as compared to the previous seasons’ mid-90s scores. Game of Thrones will return for its series finale on Monday, May 20. Follow @htshowbiz for more ott:10:ht-tv_listing-desktop<doc-sep>Last year, 560 female babies were named Khaleesi, making it the 549th most popular name for girls in the US. Moms who named their baby daughter Khaleesi are shrugging off the character's dark turn in Episode 5 of the final season of Game of Thrones, saying it doesn't affect how they feel about the name. I'm just gonna warn you now, this whole post hinges on spoilers for the episode, so here's your chance to click away. In Season 8 Episode 5, which aired Sunday night, Daenerys Targaryen, aka Khaleesi, decided to burn thousands of innocent civilians who were trying to surrender. The move, to put it mildly, went against her character thus far in the show. Her character, in fact, has been so popular that hundreds of babies have been named after her since the show began airing in 2011. Last year, 560 female babies were named Khaleesi, making it the 549th most popular name for girls in the US. There were also 20 baby girls named Khalessi, 15 named Khaleesia, 10 named Khalesi, five named Khaleesie, and five named Khalessy. People also name their daughters after her using her actual name, like the 163 female babies named Daenerys. There were also eight baby girls named Daenarys and seven named Danerys. The most popular Game of Thrones–related name is Arya, which jumped from #942 in 2010 to #119 in 2018. The more traditional spelling of the name, Aria, is currently the country's 19th-most-popular name. So, when Dany went from a noble warrior to a genocidal "Mad Queen," many people wondered what mothers of baby Khaleesis thought about her character arc. BuzzFeed News talked to a few moms who named their daughters Khaleesi, and all seemed pretty unbothered by the character's murderous rampage. Channy is mom to an 11-month-old Khaleesi. She said the episode was "intense" but she wasn't upset with the storyline. "She's going for what she wants," Channy said. Channy Neither was Nikki Sotto, mom to Khaleesi Lila. She said the episode didn't change her opinion of the name at all, adding she and her husband picked it because they like the meaning: "queen." Sotto did say that she was "yelling at the TV the whole time" she watched the episode. "What girl hasn’t overreacted when they see their whole world crumbling around them?" she said. "I feel for her. I’m just bummed Jon and her have to be related. I wanted them to live happily ever after." Nikki Sotto Another mom of a Khaleesi, Shay, told BuzzFeed News that she hasn't watched the episode yet because she is waiting for her husband to come back from deployment to watch it with him. She said she named her daughter after the character because she admired her. "The name is unique and I also wanted her to be like Khaleesi," she said, "strong woman and rock her world and everyone obeying her." Other beings named Khaleesi, aka humans on behalf of their pets, also posted on social media defending their namesake. "In case you wondered, No...Humommy does not regret naming me khaleesi cause I'm still a Queen," "wrote" one Khaleesi kitty on Instagram. And others embraced the "Mad Queen" title.<doc-sep>There’s one episode left in the series, leaving room for the possibility of redemption for the character. And in the end, the parents of today’s Khaleesis may not be particularly concerned about their daughters’ legacies: Children have a tendency to grow into their identities in unexpected ways, regardless of who they’re named after. And fictional names take on their own lives once they’ve entered mainstream consciousness, separate from what their creators originally intended. Just ask the Miranda or the Jessica in your life.<doc-sep>
Warning: Full spoilers below for Game of Thrones Season 8, episode 5, "The Bells." What do you do if you've named your baby after a genocidal maniac? That's the question facing thousands of parents in America this morning after last night's Game of Thrones took a very dark turn in the story arc of one of the show's chief characters. In the world of George R.R. Martin's fantasy series, Daenerys Targaryen is an exiled princess who yearns to reclaim a usurped throne. On the way there she liberates slaves, punishes their captors and gives birth (in a manner of speaking) to three dragons. These fantasy heroics inspired legions of real-world admirers, who turned her into a symbol of female empowerment. Then, in last night's episode, she wantonly slaughtered thousands of innocents in a fit of rage, becoming the very sort of tyrant she was previously dedicated to overthrowing. That could spell trouble for the thousands of American parents who have named their babies after the character. Data from the Social Security Administration show that since the HBO version of Game of Thrones first aired in 2011, at least 3,500 American girls have been named either Daenerys or Khaleesi (one of the character's royal titles). Included in this tally are a number of common misspellings ("Kaleesi" and "Danerys," for instance). But since the database doesn't include names that appear fewer than five times in a given year, the actual number of children named after the character is almost certainly higher. Khaleesi alone was the 549th most popular name for girls in 2018, according to the Social Security Administration, ranking above such classics as Priscilla (575th), Anne (599th) and Rosie (619th). Now many of those parents may be having second thoughts, underscoring the dangers of embracing fictional characters whose full story arcs have yet to be written. At one point in the recent episode, Daenerys incinerates a peasant woman and her young daughter, perhaps a nod from the showrunners to the parents feeling betrayed after propping the character up as a symbol of girl power. Last month, the mother of a 1-year-old Khaleesi told the New York Times that in a decade or so, the name would be a familiar one. People would recognize that it means "strength," she predicted, "a woman who knows her power, knows what she wants." This year, the oldest American Khaleesis are turning 8, perhaps old enough to watch the show with their own parents and wonder why the woman they're named after just torched an entire city. There's one episode left in the series, leaving room for the possibility of redemption for the character. And in the end, the parents of today's Khaleesis may not be particularly concerned about their daughters' legacies: Children have a tendency to grow into their identities in unexpected ways, regardless of who they're named after. And fictional names take on their own lives once they've entered mainstream consciousness, separate from what their creators originally intended. Just ask the Miranda or the Jessica in your life. 2019 © The Washington Post This article was originally published by The Washington Post.