IT'S SAD AEMOND HEAD CANNON TIME!

if my hypothetical child was permanently injured and the culprit got off with a slap on the hand, I would rage like wildfire and not calm down until this bastard begged for mercy

Alicenta is a better person than me

alicent regretted her actions after she charged at luke, she apologized to viserys after he ignored her pleas to show some concern after aemond lost an eye, and she rejected larys’ offer to take an eye from luke….honestly she’s a saint because that couldn’t be me.

THIS

ТHIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT WHOLE DAMN MONTH

how the hell i'm supposed to be tb if those bitches loose so bad against show!tg?

In fact, I find the situation in the show at the moment and its potential development very funny. The screenwriters once again forgot that the antagonist defines the protagonist. I suppose they won't change the ending, and Helaena has already voiced her prophecy, which means what do we get? The green team doesn't exist in fact, all members of this family hate each other, Rhaenyra, apparently, will get the capital almost without a fight, the blacks have more dragons and more allies. And she's going to lose anyway? To Aegon? To this Aegon, who has only Larys on his side? It's pretty...pathetic.

This show is cursed, I swear

Once I started, I can't stop. Can someone explain to me how exactly Addam managed to ride Seasmoke?

I mean, in canon (I mean the book, it's the only source I'll accept, the show is just a hotd-edition adaptation of "My Immortal"), Addam and Alyn are unconfirmed bastards of Laenor, and Addam being able to ride a dragon supports that theory. Of course, Martin wouldn't be Martin if he didn't also give us Nettles with her dubious origins, leaving us wondering if she really does have a drop of Targaryen blood in her veins, or if she's just a girl who managed to ride a dragon through friendship magic and sheeps bribery.

But the show is actively convincing me that you absolutely need to have at least Ariana Grande as a great-grandmother (or Aeriana Targaryen, I'm not sure, all I remember after Rhaenyra found Steffon Darklyn's fanmade family tree is my hysterical howl) to even look at a dragon, and even then the dragon can have a fetish for handsome black men (I understand you, Seasmoke, Addam is fucking gorgeus), and the dragon chooses its own rider (hello to those who were foaming at the mouth while yelling that Aemond stole Vhagar, I see you and you're annoying me).

Corlys hasn't had Targaryen blood for at least the last 130 years. We've known every Targaryen since the Conquerors, and almost everyone since Daenys and Gaemon. If Lord Velaryon ever married a Lady Targaryen, it was at least 200 years ago.

Was this hint of dragonrider blood enough for Seasmoke? Then why look for dragon seeds with nearest Targaryen parent in family tree, just rake out the entire population of Flea Bottom, every third person will have about the same amount of dragon blood in their veins.

If the purity and quantity of Targaryen blood is not important at all, why this prophecy "from my blood the promised prince will be born"? Why fight so fiercely for the dynasty, when any peasant whose great-great-great-great-grandmother was once graced with the attention of some Maegon Targaryen can mount the Cannibal and go deal with the Night King, especially since their help is not needed, Arya Stark can handle it herself.

What is Rhaenyra fighting so hard for when the show has made it clear that she doesn't want power because power is a dirty toy for despicable men, and she is the Gods-chosen Dragon Queen who is above worldly pleasures and blood doesn't matter if you're pretty, morally simple enough for ten-year-olds to empathize with, and can pose for trailers?

Now I'm starting to sound like a purist, disgusting. But unfortunately, that's how ASOIAF works, so I need answers. Please.

Ps. Still not native speaker and dgaf about mistakes, english can suck my imaginary dick

Something something the concept of granting meaning and importance to an object/phenomenon/person by giving them a name

It is especially relevant in the world like the one ASOIAF is set in, where the name serves as an extremely important defining factor for many characters (mostly a family name but also their given one). And boy, did HotD writers lean into this - in their own way.

I am not the first one to point out that Jaehaera's name hasn't been mentioned in the show at all - not once. But guess who got to have one?

Sure, everyone absolutely needs to remember a girl who was raped by the prince (who is now the king) and who, except for that fact - which serves the purpose of vilifying said prince (and, in some way, by association, the entire TG) - had zero relevance to the plot. And so we have Dyana - because this absolutely unbiased show can't have anyone forget that the Greens' candidate for the throne has some deplorable proclivities. She even got some extra screen time in season 2: once again, absolutely unnecessary except for reminding the audience of her existence - and of Aegon's sins.

But who cares about the only remaining child of the king; the girl who came within a hair's breadth from death and then lost her twin brother; the one true joy left to her mother? Why would she even need a name?

Jaehaera's fate in the show is uncertain (the writers didn't do away with her at the very least) - but for now she is not even a tool of the story but merely a dead weight that just had to be there for Blood and Cheese to have someone to choose from. And then she was simply conveniently (nearly) forgotten becoming just "Helaena's daughter" - no name, no face, no emotional attachment from the audience. I just wonder if the writers' unwilingness to actually involve Jaehaera in the story (or just let the viewers properly see her) comes from them being equally unwilling to make the audience remember her brother whose death and its consequences they are so eager to sweep under the rug in order to minimize the PR damage done to the Blacks.

P.S. Speaking about the importance of names - they need to be not only revealed but also remembered. Jaehaerys didn't end up nameless - but how many times was he actually called by his name in the show? Right off the bat I can remember only one such case: Aegon asking Helaena where he was in episode 1. And while I believe this was not the only time (I am terribly sorry but right now I can't make myself rewatch any part of season 2, not even for science - so feel free to point out the rest), I have a distinct feeling that he still was far more often referred to as "boy", "child", "son", "heir to the throne" and whatnot. Once again: no name, no memory - which IMO is exactly what the writers were going for.

EWAN MITCHELL House of the Dragon 2.03 "The Burning Mill"

My perhaps controversial take on the HOTD characters, the GOT characters the writers are trying to mold them into, and the GOT characters they actually most resemble in the books (in my opinion - feel free to disagree).

Disclaimer: these are entirely disconnected series with unique characters, so it's impossible to do what the writers of HOTD seemed to be trying to do in season 1 i.e. mold the characters from Fire and Blood to fit the characters of GOT to try to recreate the success of the early seasons. Given this, I tried to choose one single character analogue from GOT that each HOTD/FB character is most like, but oftentimes the reality is that if any single character from Fire and Blood resembles a Game of Thrones character it is likely that they are a combination of more than one. All of this said, here is who I think the writers are trying to fit certain HOTD characters into vs the character they are actually most like (according to Fire and Blood):

Rhaenyra Targaryen: obviously the show wants her to be the new and improved Daenerys, a protagonist everyone can root for who wants to revolutionize the existing order. In reality, Rhaenyra is most like Cersei: a woman who seeks to use her three bastards to usurp thrones and gain even more power than she already has, all while committing incest with a family member and using her power to punish and silence her enemies. She uses the existing system to raise herself up and keep others below her. She does reach her goal of ultimate power but ultimately she is unable to hold it. In pursuit of holding onto power or gaining more of it, she watches as her children die early deaths. The smallfolk despise her for her methods of ruling. Eventually, she will cause her own downfall and die before her time.

Alicent Hightower: the show wants her to be Cersei, a mean-spirited, jealous woman protecting her problematic children and using her status as queen to put others in their place (they even used Cersei scenes as audition material for the role). In reality, I see Alicent as most like Catelyn - a flawed woman, mother to a king, seeking to further the rights of her son in the hopes of protecting her family from those who would harm them, guided by her own sense of justice, honor, and understanding of the laws of the land (and of course, hyper aware of the bastards in the room). All she wants is her and her children's safety, and she is willing to go to war for it. In the end, however, she watches as every last child is taken from her before she herself dies alone.

Viserys I Targaryen: the show wants us to see him as the ultimate father who loves his child unconditionally and always supports her, and that his view of right and wrong should be what guides the world. In reality, he is most like Robert Baratheon: a weak king unsuitable for rule whose mistakes and complacency lead to civil war after his death. His preoccupation with past events and people, and his role in a former love's demise, leads him to neglect his current wife and their children and make decisions that create long-term issues for his family and the realm.

Criston Cole: as soon as Criston turns away from Rhaenyra, the show wants you to view him as a Meryn Trant type of Kingsguard - a man unconcerned with honor and violently anti-women, more than willing to carry out terrible acts commanded of him. In reality, Criston is like more like Jaime: he seeks to make a name for himself as a knight, guided by his own sense of honor and justice, though he is judged by others as lacking such principles. His devotion to his position on the Kingsguard and his love for the royal family motivates him. Occasionally his self-confidence and delight in goading his enemies can make him appear callous and proud. Although he is not officially the royal children's "father," he has guided and protected them and their mother from early on in the absence of their official father.

Daemon Targaryen: the show wants you to both love and hate Daemon. It seems he should fill many roles that Jaime did - a sword fighter whose swagger and danger mix together, whose dishonorable acts follow him through the world. He acts primarily out of love or his pursuit of it, whether for his brother or his lover and her children. The viewer is supposed to see that deep down he is a good guy, no matter how many characters say that he's not. In reality, I see Daemon as a more capable Viserys III: a man adamant in his family's racial superiority, who believes he and his loved ones should have access to unchecked power because they're better than everyone else. A man who enjoys exercising his power over others and demanding obedience out of fear of his wrath. A man who uses his younger family member to further his own interests without much thought to her own wishes or agency and willing to hurt her if she doesn't act the way he wants her to.

Otto Hightower: the show wants you to view Otto as a new Littlefinger, someone sly about his intentions who uses spies, information, and unsavory methods to take advantage of the ruling family and further his own interests and increase his own power. I see him instead as more similar to Tywin: a Hand of the King seeking to put his family close to the throne in pursuit of legacy and advancing his family's station, a man who arranged for his daughter to marry the king so his blood would sit the Iron Throne and bring his family power for generations, a man acutely aware of the political world and how the game is played and willing to get his hands dirty to play it.

The Strong boys: the show wants you to root for Rhaenyra's perfect, good natured and pure intentioned sons as if they were the Stark boys (mixed with Jon Snow). Raised in a good family, these boys know right from wrong and love each other. Yet some people unfairly think less of them for their birth. In reality, the Strong boys are closest to Joffrey, Tommen, and Myrcella. Bastards set to inherit positions they have no claim to, they are coddled by their mother and protected from any consequences to their actions. When one attacks another child, their mother demands that the other child's family is punished for their actions (and doesn't even reprimand the child for his role in the conflict). The result is the child has no remorse for the harm done, and the other child's family festers resentment against the child. Some people uncover the truth of their birth and object to their place in the line of succession, and these people are killed for speaking the truth. Eventually, a war is fought to keep them and their mother away from the throne, resulting in all of them being killed.

Aegon II Targaryen: the show wants you to see him as Joffrey 2.0. A man interested in viewing sadistic acts for his own pleasure, who abuses women for his own enjoyment, and who is unfit to rule. In reality I see Aegon as closest to Robb: a first born son reluctant to rule as king once his father dies but who rises to the occasion to try to keep his remaining family safe. A king willing to fight his battles alongside his men, no matter the risk it might pose to him. A king who tries his best to rule but makes mistakes along the way that cost him dearly. In the end, he watches as he loses everything, and he dies young.

The way TB stans talk about Syrax and Rhaenyra is worthy of a page on the TV tropes. Because it borders on animal abuse, but somehow she's considered the Mother of Dragons 0.5???

The way Rhaenyra treated Syrax suppressed her predatory instincts and led to a sad but expected fate. A dragon that refuses to hunt on its own, only flies in good weather, wears a cute collar, and completely incapable of living on its own? That's a dead dragon. It's expired like a store-bought blueberry, that start molding the second you put it in the fridge.

It's like those ungodly fat cats on TikTok who roll around their apartment from bowl to litter box while their owners film them giggling and the comments are full of "OH LAWD HE COMIN". Yeah, the silly cat eats 24/7 and happy about it, but his joints and heart are about to give out, and his existence is limited by the floor, because only a bodybuilder can lift him onto the couch.

It's like that Reddit post with the girl who talked about how snakes are actually loving and sociable, because her dead pet snuggled up to her all the time, until someone responded that the snake wasn't showing affection, but was simply trying to keep warm, and died early because op froze her pet to death. Snakes are just not the type of animals that you can carry around in your pocket like monkey noodles, no matter how much you want to.

So Syrax's death was predictable. If it were not for her missing survival instincts, because of which she went down to the rioting crowd, attracted by the smell of blood, she would have died later, because the fugitive queen would not have been able to buy her favorite goat meat, and Syrax lacked the hunting instinct. Or this mighty dragoness would have died from the teeth of the half-dead Sunfire upon arrival at Dragonstone, because her fighting instincts had also atrophied.

Dragons are a reflection of their riders. And Syrax was not a warrior, no matter how much you wanted the opposite.

Viserys and Rhaenyra doomed everyone to War during The Driftmark Incident, and so many viewers completely missed the point of what happened and blame Alicent for being “crazy”. Alicent’s children’s safety is already in a dangerous position once it’s time for Rhaenyra to claim the throne to almost certain backlash, the only way to avoid War is for them all to have strong bonds of trust. Alicent’s son, one of the possible threats to Rhaenyra’s claim, had just been mutilated and disabled by Rhaenyra’s son. This was the chance for Rhaenyra to show that she is willing to be a family with her half-siblings even though she has never made any effort towards that before. She’s so arrogant she doesn’t even seem to understand that she should do that. Instead, Rhaenyra’s response was to not even apologize for her son’s behavior and not propose any possible consequence (obviously not cutting Luke’s eye out, but literally any consequence for example having to do grunt work for the Maesters and/or lose access to weapons until he can be responsible with them). Rhaenyra made it abundantly clear she doesn’t care at all about Alicent’s children and has zero remorse about them being harmed. Of course Alicent isn’t going to lay her children’s lives at Rhaenyra’s mercy by letting her take the throne after that.

And Viserys is even more to blame. His behavior in this scene is utterly abhorrent. Does he even make one single attempt to comfort or console his severely injured child? Nope. None. Viserys himself said he doesn’t think of Aemond (or Aegon or Helaena) as his children and that couldn’t be more clear than it is here. Instead of comforting or consoling Aemond, Viserys blames and interrogates the still bleeding and in pain child (starting by telling him to look at him, I know that’s a thing adults say when they want to have a serious conversation with children but… really? In this particular situation that’s what you go with?) for the sake of Rhaenyra. The full grown adult who is not injured as of now. All he cares about is Rhaenyra. And as if that’s not apathetic enough, he then threatens that “ANYONE” (meaning including Aegon, Aemond, or Helaena) who points out the obvious fact that Rhaenyra’s bastards are bastards will have their tongue cut out. He threatens his own mutilated, freshly disabled child with further, even more disabling mutilation all for the sake of protecting Rhaenyra’s lies and misdeeds (even though he could just admit they’re bastards and legitimize them but that’s another issue). And Rhaenyra thanks him for this direct threat to Alicent’s children, they’re both just beaming in their agreement that they can do whatever they want to Alicent’s children because they’re not really Targaryens, not really their children or siblings.

Alicent didn’t just “go crazy” because she’s an evil, vengeful character. She’s consistently one of the least vengeful and most level-headed, practical characters in the show overall. Alicent lost her composure in complete desperation in this moment because her children’s safety was just compromised. The King and his heir made it clear in front of everyone that Alicent’s children mean nothing. If one of Rhaenyra’s illegitimate crotch goblins had their eye cut out, no doubt Viserys would be enraged and demanding at least some kind of punishment. We know that because even over an “insult” (aka the truth literally everyone knows) towards them, he threatens grievous bodily harm. But Alicent’s children can be harmed without any punishment, not even a slap on the wrist, they’re not worth anything and no one will defend them. Alicent needed a show of force to say someone will defend these children and Rhaenyra cannot just do whatever she wants to them and smirk “Thank you, father” like a spoiled brat who tattled on someone and got them in trouble (tbh I’d cut her more than Alicent did for that line alone, it is so infuriating). Alicent isn’t a fighter but she tried every other option and found she’s the only one who will fight for her children.

Who deserved to be the main character (spoiler - NOT Rhaenyra)

Every post I make is the result of a conversation with someone I managed to catch and tie to a chair so they couldn't run away while I endlessly whine about how much I hate this show (whining is my love language, by the way).

I'm slightly drunk this time, so if English decides to fight me hand to hand and wins, good for him, I didn't put up much of a fight.

I've been grieving for over two years now for Laena Velaryon. That woman was an absolute savage in the books, and I would be so happy to see her on screen the way Martin intended. If only the writers understood feminism at all, instead of demeaning every woman in favor of Ryan Condall's supreme alpha self-insert, right?

This incredible woman took over Vhagar itself at the age of 12, fearing no one or nothing. She was more interested in flying than boys, and was an excellent rider. She was wild, fierce, and proud. She despised her first suitor, allowing her father to postpone the wedding time and time again. She found a suitor after her own heart, the rogue prince Daemon Targaryen himself. She loved her husband, and was loved in return. She went on an adventure to another continent, and saw the world in all its glory. She gave birth to twin girls, whom she loved as deeply and fiercely. She secured a future for her daughters through smart political decisions, betrothing them to the heir next to the current heir to the Iron Throne and the future king and heir to the throne of Driftmark. She also loved a girl named Rhaenyra, and was loved in return. She was surrounded by those she loved - children, lovers, a brother, and parents. She wasn't neglected, abandoned, or alone - no, Laena Velaryon didn't let anyone dictate what she did or treat her as secondary or insignificant. And in her last moments, she was a true dragon blood, wanting to die next to Vhagar, not on a birthing bed.

This is someone who wouldn't need to be given something to do so that viewers wouldn't forget who the main character is. This is someone who wouldn't run around locations like a chicken with a cut-off head, stupidly trying to do something, but ultimately doing nothing important. This is someone who would be able to entertain me so that I would stop getting on my friends' nerves with stories about how much I wish that three-day diarrhea would overtake everyone responsible for the stupidities in the House of Dragons scenario.