If at this point in the literary or filmic narrative we know very well that there are no truly original stories and that they drink from each other, it should not surprise us if we discover curious coincidences. Especially if such successful television series as Game of Thrones (David Benioff and DB Weiss, 2011-2019) and Dark (Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, 2017-2020) are involved. Both coincide in certain very relevant elements of their plots, and we are not referring to Bran Stark’s time travel (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) and the Three-Eyed Raven (Max Von Sydow) in a vision, and its circular consequences for Hodor (Kristian Nairn), during the unforgettable “The Door” (5×06).
Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow fall in love in Game of Thrones as an aunt and nephew without knowing it, like Martha Nielsen and Jonas Kahnwald in Dark
Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) met in the episode “The Queen’s Justice” (7×03) and got involved in “The Dragon and the Wolf” (7×07). But in “The Winds of Winter” (6×10), Bran learns in a vision that his supposed stepbrother is actually his cousin, the only child of Lyanna Stark (Aisling Franciosi) with Rhaegar Targaryen (Wilf Scolding). And, in “Eastwatch” (7×05), Gilly (Hannah Murray) verifies with Samwell Tarly (John Bradley) the true position of her friend, legitimate heir to the throne of Westeros. Thus, Jon, named as Aegon Targaryen, is a nephew of Daenerys. But this is unknown until “Winterfell” (8×01).
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Both Jonas and Jon resist their uncomfortable feelings being “the death of duty”, as Aemon Targaryen had warned, and murder their beloved
In Dark, the ones who fall in love are Jonas Kahnwald (Louis Hofmann) and Martha Nielsen (Lisa Vicari), during the summer of 2018, but they don’t kiss and make love in the series until “Truths” (1×05). And then, in that same episode, Jonas learns that his father, Michael (Sebastian Rudolph), is Mikkel Nielsen (Daan Lennard Liebrenz) from the first man’s suicide letter, which his adult self (Andreas Pietschmann) leaves in a package. So that Martha, like Daenerys for Jon in Game of Thrones, is her aunt; and like the latter, try to reject it for the obvious incest. And both Jonas and Jon resist their uncomfortable feelings being “the death of duty”, as Aemon Targaryen (Peter Vaughan) had warned, and they murder their beloved. But Dark goes further.
