Game Of Thrones' Liam Cunningham Thinks Davos Is 'The Moral Compass' Of The Show

There is no denying that "Game of Thrones" features some of the most aggravating and sadistic villains in all of medieval fantasy TV. On top of that, even the characters the audience views as "the good guys" are sometimes pushed or even forced to make "bad guy" choices. There are very few characters that one can refer to as being irreproachably good-natured, and always acting according to that same good nature. But one of these is undoubtedly the Onion Knight, Sir Davos Seaworth, portrayed soulfully and memorably throughout the series by Liam Cunningham.

Davos is that one man you want on your side in any debate. Despite his humble upbringing and lack of formal education — made explicit in the way he does not know how to read before Shireen Baratheon teaches him — he is endowed with a silver tongue and the ability to change other character's perspectives through his sound and logical reasoning, which comes across as nothing less than sincere and candid. 

Although he is undeniably loyal, Davos is not a victim of blind loyalty. Even when he considered Stannis Baratheon to be the one true king of Westeros, he was never afraid to stand up to him, and frequently warned Stannis about his moral corruption by the Red Woman. After Stannis' death, Davos shifted his allegiance to Jon Snow because of the qualities of strong leadership qualities that he saw in him. Cunningham is of the opinion that, despite not having been undyingly loyal to one single leader throughout the whole show, Davos has the best-functioning moral compass out of probably anyone in the show.

In an interview with Vulture, Cunningham was asked about how Davos managed to navigate the unforgiving world of "Game of Thrones" while changing allegiances and still making it work to the point that he survived until the series' ending. In Cunningham's view, Davos' success in choosing and committing to the right party is due to the fact that he's a "straight shooter." 

"People refer to him as one of the moral compasses of the piece," says Cunningham. "And in this madly complicated world, he's a guy who occasionally steps in and goes, 'Hold on a minute, should we not be doing this?' I get the impression that he speaks up for the audience." He also compares the Onion Knight to other cerebral characters like Petyr Baelish and Varys. Although the former is unquestionably more selfish and evil than the latter, Davos is still more warm-hearted and forthright than the Master of Whispers. 

"As I say, it's the simplicity, decency, and loyalty of the man," Cunningham concludes. "You know, he's not a Littlefinger or a Varys. Wherever he goes he tends to find these decent people, like Jon Snow and Lyanna Mormont and Shireen and Missandei. He has these lovely little moments with Missandei which are full of humanity — nothing untoward! I love this kind of stuff, because I've done quite a few baddies in my time."

One needn't look further than multiple Reddit posts to realize that Cunningham's view of Davos aligns with fans'. As u/Republixcan points out, his Davos' moral compass even elevates other characters around him: "He's the little angel on Stannis' shoulder, and helps make Stannis one of the best characters in the series."