The Iron Throne is the Defense Against the Dark Arts of Westeros
There's a strange similarity between the highest chair in Westeros and the most volatile position at Hogwarts.
Game of Thrones has many similarities with another popular fantasy franchise: Harry Potter. Bran Stark’s visions are a lot like Harry’s trips to the Pensieve, Jon and Harry both returned from the dead, father figures like Ned and Dumbledore both proved to be more flawed than their children-figures thought, and Ramsay Bolton and Voldemort were both melanin-deprived villains. But the two have an even more oddly specific parallel: An short-lived and ill-fated job position.
Though occupying the Iron Throne doesn’t have the exact timespan the Defense Against The Dark Arts position has — just a year — they both curse their inhabitants to short terms and brutal ends.
Cersei, who has just ascended, is the Severus Snape of the bunch. Her rise is shocking and it’s unexpected that she should profit from the death of someone she supposedly loved: Tommen. Snape had a similar rise after Dumbledore’s death. It remains to be seen whether, like Snape, Cersei has a good heart in the end — who are we kidding, there’s no way she does. But just like Snape, she will meet her end thanks, in part, to the person she loves.
Tommen, who had a short reign before her, was the Gilderoy Lockhart of the bunch. He isn’t overtly mean-spirited, but he also isn’t too bright and orchestrates his own downfall. Being a teenager, he’s easier to forgive than Lockhart, but they’re both the most harmless of the bunch.
Preceding Tommen is of course the vicious Joffrey, who is the Amycus Carrow of the group. The Deathly Hallows teacher who turned Defense Against The Dark Arts into just “Dark Arts” until Harry returned to Hogwarts and set things right. Joffrey turned the art of ruling the Kindgom into using everyone as his sadistic playthings — until the sassy Queen of Thorns put a stop to it.
Robert Baratheon is the Mad Eye Moody — the former warrior you think is a good guy, but he reveals his heyday is behind him and he’s being controlled by someone on the other side. Sure, being controlled by the Lannisters is not as elaborate as Barty Crouch Junior’s plan, but the principle — and untimely death — still stands.
There is no Remus Lupin, because he’s far too decent for even a remote parallel to a recent King or Queen of Westeros — unless, of course, Jon ascends to his rightful place on the Throne. Even so, one should be wary of a job position with such a brief life span.
