#hotd discussion

[dreamfyre-beautiful]

Matt smith is not hot enough for yall to be defending Daemon the way you do

[mejcinta]

Did anyone catch Daeron giving Bold Jon Roxton the stank eye when he asked if Aegon is dead?

Grimacing in the back, judging with papa.

[helaenasfavoritechicken]

Preach!!!

[daenysthedreamer101]

So Baela and Jace were betrothed for three seasons and never even kissed (did they even hug I don't remember) but we get Alyn smooching Baela after 5 minutes of screentime and maybe 10 lines of dialogue together??

Right... 😒😒

Also she had more chemistry with Addam in that one scene last ep than any with Alyn but whatever.. gotta stick to the source material guysss 🤪🤪

[meleys-the-red-queen]

“Well F&B was a history book written by really biased authors” STOP. EXCUSING. A SHITTY. ADAPTATION.

STOP. EXCUSING. SHITTY. WRITING.

STOP. EXCUSING. A SHITTY. STORY.

I’d be more inclined to believe that narrative if GRRM himself didn’t completely back off of this project. Ryan took this story from George, THE AUTHOR AND CREATOR, and ran in the opposite direction, thinking he knew better than the man who created everything they’re trying to work with. There’s a reason GRRM has nothing else to say about this show and why he’s not in the behind the scenes stuff at the end of the episodes anymore.

This show no longer has anything to do with Fire & Blood and that’s why it’s hot, flaming garbage.

[helaenamyqueen]

I found this on Reddit and it perfectly explains my problems with the show and the direction it has taken

[blackcat419]

Rhaena should have had the arc of overcoming the Targaryen exceptionalism propaganda she’s been fed her whole life that tells her the Targs are gods because they have dragons but her not having a dragon makes her lesser. She should learn to be a political leader from Jeyne Arryn. A female ruler who doesn’t have a dragon and who’s fough her male relatives for her seat of power! And when Morning finally hatches, she won’t be a weapon used to oppress the people, she’ll just be an animal, a friend. Someone could say ‘oh you’re finally a Targaryen’ and she’d respond, ‘I never needed a dragon to hold power’

Instead we get rich kid who doesn’t have a dragon is sad about not having a dragon and gets a dragon. That’s just Aemond’s story. Will Rhaena turn into a villain too now?

In contrast, Baela’s arc is about embracing power through her Targaryen side but once she loses her dragon, she loses her power. She marries her uncle (remind you of anyone?) to escape an arranged marriage but ends up in an unhappy marriage where her husband cheats on her often.

The twins are a story of the traditional Targaryen power dying and the new age of Westeros emerging from the dragon flames. They are contrast, morning and moon, the two sides of the Targaryen coin.

[nonbinarylesbianherb]

Some stuff about rhaenicent & queerbaiting.

I can definitely understand people’s hesitance and concern when it comes to rhaenicent and if it is queerbait, and I think both sides make incredibly valid points.

I do think it’s incredibly important to note that a relationship can be canon even without physical intimacy.

Let’s take hannigram for example: they never kiss on screen, but they are absolutely canon. Their feelings for each other and their relationship is confirmed not just by explicit messaging/quotes/themes within the show, but explicit confirmation by actors, scripts and directors too.

It is the same thing for rhaenicent, whether or not they will actually share a kiss, I personally believe it does not negate the fact that their romantic feelings for each other are still canon. That when laying out the facts:

We know their intense feelings for each other are real because of quotes shared between or about them within the show.

We know by quotes in the scripts that state explicit flirting.

We know by confirmation from actors who said that they purposefully added romantic intent and sub-tones.

We know that the main writers and directors have explicitly spoken about the romantic themes and underlying subtext between the two.

It would be preposterous to say that there is nothing between them and that it is only fanon projection.

BUT!!!

I also think this is incredibly dependent on specific fandoms and individual opinion. Canon is most typically described as everything that actually happens, that we actually see, hear or read within the specific universe. When it comes to things that have been said or shown outside of said universe, even if it is from the official author themselves, generally that is where it changes from person to person on what is considered canon.

I think, even with just the specific quotes and looks within the show, even if we ignore explicit confirmation by actors and directors, that Rhaenyra & Alicent are in love.

And yet I understand why other queer people out there feel unsure. That it’s not unreasonable to want more explicit confirmation actually within the show instead of just outside of it. That these people aren’t actually asking for Rhaenyra/Alicent to look at the camera and state ‘I love her romantically’ , but want more than just quotes with possible romantic implications - I do think though that being utterly ‘sure’ rhaenicent is queerbaiting is simply impossible because the show has not actually concluded yet.

So I think with both sides we should understand where the other is coming from, and not aim to be so firm in our stance that we refuse to acknowledge valid aspects even if we personally disagree.