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@thinking-about-hotd-a-lot
Ashara Dayne is such a creature. Like, I think Westeros could've been saved if she married everyone. Let her have like a hundred husbands and a hundred wives. You know what, fuck it. Overthrow Rhaegar, let Elia be queen and Ashara can be her queen. The rebellion would NEVER happen if she did. Bisexuality and polyamory would've saved the Seven Kingdoms is all I'm saying. Wokeness would've prevailed. Total Dornish victory.
Lyanna Stark at the Tower of Joy:
It's fucking insane the reaction to the Mad King play and what it does with Lyanna and Elia. I know the Rhaegar hate circlejerk is like really popular but the play actually manages to make Elia, a character who literally has no truly defining features, into a really engaging and interesting and active character. Making Lyanna someone who goes hard on the prophecy to cope with her family's death is something I've suspected. It makes these characters so much more fun to think about than if they were just perfect little saints who are powerless victims (not withstanding the very problematic age-gap with Rhaegar and Lyanna that is all too common with ASOIAF).
Also, Elia plotting to keep House Martell on top is suddenly viewed as a bad thing? You mean the thing every single noble house in Westeros does? What makes Elia more evil than anyone for doing what everyone else does? And why does it make Tywin "justified" in having her and her children killed? Murder and rape is still bad everyone.
I'm just tired. Female characters finally have agency and depth and intrigue and the response is "but they aren't pure and noble anymore :c". The misogyny in this fandom is incredible.
Because it isn't about 'perfect victimhood' to completely change the character in order to whitewash Rhaegar's idiot actions.
Because it isn't about agency, depth, and intrigue to make the brown wife sexually promiscuous, completely okay with her husband openly having an affair, humiliating her publicly, and be blase about him taking a sister wife.
That isn't being politically astute, it is political suicide.
Rhaella Targaryen getting turned in an abusive bitch that hurts her son and wishes for a daughter to burn the world isn't feminist.
Lyanna Stark morphing into a greenseer that wants to be a walking womb for Rhaegar isn't progressive.
Having the women have their own arcs with their own interests and not centered on explaining away the actions of the men that hurt them.
Seven hells, apparently the play has Elia and Lyanna play at being pen pals during the rebellion where one is being held hostage with her children by a mad king and the other is locked up in a tower pregnant knowing half her family is dead and a war is raging.
That isn't giving these characters agency, it is assassinating them.
How is it character assassination if we knew literally nothing about these characters before? Like, we had essentially no characterization with Elia or Rhaella, and only a bit with Lyanna. This feels consistent with the characterization for Lyanna tbh. You can dislike the characterization but it's not character assassination if we knew nothing about the characters in the first place.
Also, literally nothing you said about Elia being okay with this is remotely true. This is a bad case of internet telephone that has run rampant because outrage gets clicks and there isn't the full context. What happened was that Elia was made at Rhaegar for crowning Lyanna, because it's a matter of propriety more than upset at having an affair. She isn't "totally onboard" with Rhaegar and Lyanna. She's locked up by Aerys and had no idea about Rhaegar's plan to run away with Lyanna, so she's pissed. But she's trying to get Rhaegar to come back and win the war because she and their children are in danger from Aerys. So she mentions him taking a second wife as a desperate attempt to salvage a bad situation and to get Rhaegar motivated to get his bum ass back to King's Landing.
Finally, I said the fandom is misogynistic, not that the play is feminist or progressive. You're putting words in my mouth. And, lest you start accusing me of another thing I didn't say, I'm not saying you are a misogynist for disliking these plot points. I don't think this really absolves Rhaegar completely to be honest. He did not communicate with Elia while she was trying to plot the scheme he was working on, he still ran away with a teenager, and his indecisiveness is the cause for most of this mess in the first place.
Also, I do understand the criticism of writing all the Dornish women as a bunch of hypersexual freaks. It's not really great that that's something supported even in the books because it is very specifically racialized. I don't think that the fact the Dornish are predominantly bi and poly is an inherently bad thing, I think the problem is the sexualization of a non-white culture, and George is an old man and might be writing with one hand when writing the Dornish. I like having a place where we can have a bunch of openly queer characters exist without being forced to hide. George just GRRMs it up with his weirdness.
That said, nothing I've heard says Elia is sexually promiscuous. She's married to a guy that she doesn't even love and Ashara is basically her wife. She's hardly going around sleeping with everyone she meets.
It's fucking insane the reaction to the Mad King play and what it does with Lyanna and Elia. I know the Rhaegar hate circlejerk is like really popular but the play actually manages to make Elia, a character who literally has no truly defining features, into a really engaging and interesting and active character. Making Lyanna someone who goes hard on the prophecy to cope with her family's death is something I've suspected. It makes these characters so much more fun to think about than if they were just perfect little saints who are powerless victims (not withstanding the very problematic age-gap with Rhaegar and Lyanna that is all too common with ASOIAF).
Also, Elia plotting to keep House Martell on top is suddenly viewed as a bad thing? You mean the thing every single noble house in Westeros does? What makes Elia more evil than anyone for doing what everyone else does? And why does it make Tywin "justified" in having her and her children killed? Murder and rape is still bad everyone.
I'm just tired. Female characters finally have agency and depth and intrigue and the response is "but they aren't pure and noble anymore :c". The misogyny in this fandom is incredible.
Don’t tag hotd under fire and blood pls. The books are completely separate from the show as the writers have unfortunately proved.
I like to talk about them in relation to the book often. I'm afraid that I'm not going to stop because someone doesn't like the show. It's your problem if you are upset by that.
I find it so incredibly funny that literally both of Otto's children have the hots for Criston Cole. Like, the guy majorly sucks and yet the homos at the High Tower can't get enough of him. Doomed yaoi so good it could almost be yuri.
So thank you House of the Dragon, for getting me to care about a yaoi ship.
Soyjakking Ormund vs. Looksmaxxing Daeron
I am a tireless defender of House of the Dragon. And this episode had some incredible moments, some of my favorite in the series. And also some very big "why are we doing this?" moments:
The Butcher's Ball was fucking excellent. It's exactly as I wanted it to be. And almost exactly 1 to 1. Criston goes out exactly the way he deserves, and by our lovely Black Aly too! Go girl!! This may be my favorite scene of the show now.
Aemond and Alys are wonderful. I adore them. They are literally hetgem until Alys ofc gives Aemond the estrogen potion and she realizes that she's a woman. I love the Rhaena lore. You know Alys and Rhaena were lezzing it up in Harrenhal like come on. These freaks are delightful to watch.
I fucking adore Gwayne this episode. First off, Gwayneston confirmed??? After last episode I can't say I'm surprised that Gwayne is gay. In fact, his gayness is literally what saves Ormund. What a man. Secondly, I really like Gwayne and Daeron's talk. Poor Daeron, he knows what Ormund is and hates who he is with him, and he and Gwayne have such a strong bond. But Gwayne is so tired... also, I saw Daeron 1v3ing those guys in the training yard. Fuck yeah.
Rhaenyra being cut on the throne was really great. And her kind of reaching the end of her line and getting a lot crueler towards Alicent and Helaena is nice to see. More Rhaenyra the Cruel please. Also, Alicent going to kill her stupid chud son for her wife... she's such a good mom, I hope I can be her when I grow up. Also it's SO NICE SHE FINALLY RECOGNIZES HELAENA'S PROPHETIC ABILITIES. AND NOW RHAENYRA KNOWS. THIS IS GONNA BE GREAT.
Alright, that's the good stuff, which is the majority of this episode, ofc. But I need to complain about some stuff.
Baela and Alyn's kiss... I mean, yeah, makes sense. They get together in the book. But that was extremely rushed and only in their second scene??? It definitely came a little out of nowhere and I felt they could've done a way better job of that. Like, at this point Baela had more chemistry with Addam than Alyn and they had ONE SCENE TOGETHER.
I am starting to get a little tired of Rhaenyra arguing whether or not to burn Tumbleton. I guess the Rivermen army is still on the march but... it does feel like they are stalling for time and it's getting slightly frustrating. And, as much as I think people overly hate on the show for this, I do think they could make Rhaenyra more of a morally grey protagonist. Surely by now she'd be more morally ambiguous.
The ending scene is... they really don't know what to do with Corlys, huh. Again, I understand the sequence of events, but it's getting a little silly. Not sure what this adds to the story other than raise the stakes? Which... don't really need to be raised at this point? It's hard to articulate but this really felt so random and I am continually disappointed in what they are doing with Corlys. It's just frustrating as hell.
Otherwise, great episode. I fear for the future, but still enjoyed a good 80% of it.
♪ We are Criston Cooooooooole, we light the wayyyyyyyy, we fight for the Sevennnnn, we honor his naaaaaaaaaaaaame ♪
Cognitive behavioral therapy prince arriving at Harrenhal to see his uncle isn't there: "Think positively. He's probably ran away from me for a reason. Maybe he's training with his men. Maybe he just needs some time to focus. " Daemon Targaryen: "I am da prince of da city."
I think this episode might be my favorite of the season. It is not the wham of episode 2, but it is still really good. Hell, the divergences from Fire and Blood were really, really good ones too. I think the divergences in general have been for the better but especially this episode.
We were not in Tumbleton for long this week but I really enjoyed Ormund talking about Meria Martell to Daeron. Also, CYVASSE CYVASSE THEY FINALLY SHOWED US CYVASSE.
Meanwhile, I really enjoy the murder of the Gold Cloaks. I think it's working really well and making Ormund a big threat while giving more for Rhaenyra to combat. I don't even mind Luthor dying earlier. It sucks to see him go but only because I enjoyed his character a lot... still, ACAB applies to Gold Cloaks too.
Now we see Alicent in a maid outfit and... of course, people were freaking out about it, but well, duh? Of course it makes sense. And her scenes with Mysaria are really really good too. Not sure about Mysaria keeping Helaena's pregnancy a secret from Rhaenyra... honestly, we need more Realm's Misery scenes, I really need it my yuri heart yearns for it.
Aemond returns! I'm so happy to see him again. I kinda wish they committed to his visions/dreams like they did with Daemon and ignore the audience backlash because I loved that but this was good too. Seeing him so vulnerable and down is so interesting, and I enjoy the dynamic he has with Alys.
Aegon's storyline continues to be peak. Tyland returning here was unexpected but I'm also glad because I was worried about him! Glad he's safe. Larys ripping into how terrible a person Aegon is was really good too. It shows how Larys is not taking this very well either and also gets Aegon to start actually maybe reflecting on his actions? Also, when that guy found his crown I thought "oh he's about to get stabbed" and then one second later he got stabbed. Love when that happens.
Finally, I must speak of Criston and Gwayne... perhaps the highlight of the episode. Really enjoyed their guerilla warfare with the Rivermen, and just how bleak it gets. Their horses die, they must continue on foot, men begin deserting, some of them just die while on the march in the cold rain, and finally, finding that they cannot cross to Stoney Sept and the Rivermen beat them to it...
Criston is really just spiraling fully into nihilism. Also... I am not a Gwaynston shipper, I don't see the appeal... but I have to admit, Gwayne asking him to join him in Oldtown made me go "... yaoi?" Though I have to wonder what Gwayne meant by that because Criston is a Kingsguard knight and that isn't how it works. Whatever the case, thematically it works and I mean by this point Criston is barely even a Kingsguard knight, like which king is he even in service to at this point? He's fully on his own.
And with Gwayne departing, I'm sad to see their adventures together come to an end, but Gwayne gets to go to Tumbleton and be with Daeron and Ormund! I can't wait for that, I love Gwayne so much.
Over all, very very good episode and so excited for more.
The only fear I have is with Helaena... spoilers for future episodes and Fire and Blood.
I have finished Volume 10 for Otherside Picnic, and given it just released I'll hide what I say beneath:
That crow at the end saying "the hunter is coming to hunt the Nue"... I don't like that. Leave the Nue alone!
Also, Sorawo getting horny for Toriko after getting away from the bear, telling her she's super cute and kissing her... god, I love them your honor. I fucking love them.
Really fucking good volume, love the development of their relationship. The underground people were really fucking scary, I don't do well with that sort of thing. I'm so excited to see what comes next. Like I said before, I could read this forever and never get bored.
Okay, I love Ormund:
I thought I knew what we were getting into: a self-interested pragmatic schemer who uses unconventional means to combat his enemies. And sure, he is that... but oh man oh man I didn't expect that. What a little freak. I adore him.
He is a delight to see onscreen. And making him into an Andal supremacist and a Valyrian hater is a pretty risky move but I think it works well. Honestly, I'm glad we have someone who still resents the Targaryens even after all this time. I think that there still would be resentments, and with how ingrained the Faith is to Oldtown, I think people would probably second-guess the Doctrine of Exceptionalism... and some would become a fucking eugenicist lunatic. Seriously, what a fucking speech he gives Daeron.
The fucked thing is that he's not necessarily even wrong about the dragons being created with dark spells! And Valyrian dragonlords were among the most evil people in existence. But he kinda got a little delulu about it. Genuinely, me and my gf lost our shit when he talked about how the Targaryens were savage and had low IQ... what the fuck? Also his crash out was really funny. Normal guy. Absolutely normal guy.
AND DAERON, MY BOY! FINALLY!!!! I think it is still a little awkward how they finally introduced him but I'm just happy we have him now.
All the Tumbleton stuff is fantastic, I love Rhaenyra trying to figure out what the fuck Ormund's deal is. But I think that the lowered episode count is starting to have negative effects on the story. Some storylines aren't quite the same quality as others, and it feels like we are speedrunning through shit. I... don't really think that I like Alyn being named Acting Hand. I get what Corlys was trying to do but in-universe this does seem a bit out there and I'm not sure Rhaenyra would be so ready to accept it.
Aegon's plot continues to be peak. Genuinely sad to see him try to get Sunfyre to wake up. I'm actually feeling bad for him and he's kind of just the worst chud ever. But, it's really nice, I do anticipate this is leading to a comeback... and he says Sunfyre is breathing and alive... hmmm... let's keep an eye on that. And note, we see Meleys's corpse and she is very obviously decaying and we can see her ribs... but not Sunfyre... hmmm... watch this space.
Daemon remembers his daughters exist! That was a really fucking sad scene... I'm not sure what they are going to do with Rhaena, she's kind of condemned to just be in the background for a while. But Daemon lying to protect Rhaena... hrrrrrrrgggg god that's going to have consequences down the line.
Meanwhile, Criston Cole and Gwayne continue their no-good-very-bad day in the Riverlands... again, I think the limited episode count is starting to affect the pacing because they arrive at Harrenhal, find Aemond isn't there, and then immediately get ready to leave... it feels very abrupt and like we can't take time to explore more things while there. Of course, I am not a screenwriter, I'm not writing this, and atm I don't have any suggestions for how to specifically improve it. But I do think there is considerable room for improvement.
I still enjoy the show overall, there's more good than bad, but this episode did have a lot of choices that I am not sure were for the better. Specifically regarding the Velaryons and Cole/Gwayne. But, we keep on going on. Anyways, Ormund Hightower I love you you little freakazoid, I need to throw you into a volcano to see if you can swim.
Imagine if Khal Drogo was an Umamusume. Big buff warrior horse girl. Then I'd actually care about Drogo. Someone please get on this.
This wasn't as action-packed, plot heavy, or twisty episode, but I have to say, this was damn fucking fun to watch. I once told a friend before the season aired that I would not mind watching Emma D'Arcy act Rhaenyra navigating politics forever, and it seems House of the Dragon somehow heard that and made an entire episode just for me.
This felt like the closest thing to seeing Cersei's AFFC chapters adapted to screen, or Dany's ADWD chapters. I never felt like even GOT managed to capture this deep examination of what ruling is like and the challenges it faces. Some might call this episode boring, but I think it was entertaining start to finish. After the last two were climaxes meant to close season 2, now the real season 3 has begun, and we are settling into a new status quo. And in doing that, we also get to see the toll this is taking on Rhaenyra.
She's not sleeping. She's stressed out. Her problems are unending. Not just this, but on the heels of losing her firstborn son and being betrayed by her council, she is becoming more vengeful and paranoid, and also descending steadily into a kind of religious mania. What I do love here is that this shift isn't too abrupt and it's not fully complete. We still see her being reluctant and having difficulty committing to a path... but she's starting to let loose a bit. Her frustrations are mounting and she can only handle so much. That practiced mask she wears of a prudent queen is slipping.
Some additional notes:
Feeding all those nobles the rats. Honestly? Based based based based based-
Lmao Daemon. I really loved him last episode and was prepared for that to be the last time I'd actually like him and waddya know, I was right. Literally his first thought after Rhaenyra takes the throne is "hey lets conquer the world." Normal guy. Also lmao at him being excited to go back to the Vale. He's such a dick.
I really like the conversation with the High Septon. What he says about dragons is pretty similar to a direct quote GRRM once stated, concerning that they "destroy but do not create." I also love Rhaenyra being so excited about "oh yeah the gods have chosen me, it was divinely ordained" and then getting rebuffed by the literal High Septon. I need more Rhaenyra thinking she's the Lisan al Gaib, it's so much fun... I may have a type about women who think they are the messiah and start doing morally ambiguous things.
The Daeron stuff I will need time to sort out. It's the weakest storyline so far and this episode didn't really do any favors. It is in the spirit of the books, where fake identity stuff is actually pretty common as a plot beat, but it works less well onscreen. However, there is a way they can turn it around for me, but, book spoilers and potential future HOTD spoilers:
More thoughts on last episode, now that I've had a week to reflect; - Still hate the Alicent rape scene. Probably my least favorite scene in the entire show. Just a little frustrating since this show has mostly avoided gratuitous sexual violence. - After some thinking, the reason Otto's death didn't hit as hard is because of the truncated season 2. If this was the finale for season 2, then I think I'd be a lot more okay with what happened. Perhaps on a full rewatch I'll be more okay with it. Still, sad he's gone, he was one of my favorite characters and Rhys Ifans is an incredible actor. - Daemon absolutely calling Mysaria out on Rhaenyra/Alicent lmao. "If they had a bond, would that upset you?" Clocked her. - Despite complaints that there is "no Green faction anymore", I actually really like that. If we view the Greens as conservatives or even fascists (it isn't an exact 1 to 1 but I think it's not a completely unfair framing for them), then seeing them break apart like this makes complete sense. There aren't really many places for fascism to go other than eating itself alive. In that sense, it is thematically fitting that the Greens are turning on each other. Additionally, it fits with the themes of how such a conservative system like patriarchy is just very self-destructive. Otto's horrifically misogynistic treatment of Alicent led to her being ill-equipped to be a parent, which had negative consequences as Aegon and Aemond ended up Like That. The Greens are a really, really broken family due to the weight of expectations, and all it took to shatter them was just the right amount of pressure in the right cracks.
Now, Daemon and Aemond.
Really, the Daemon/Aemond parallels are so strong and unsubtle in the best way. I've already talked a lot about this and others have as well, but I really enjoy what has been revealed about them. Daemon expects resistance taking Harrenhal but other than punching a guy he doesn't harm anyone and sits down to have dinner with the Strongs. Meanwhile, Aemond comes with fire and blood and murders everyone in his path, including the Strongs who are not even opposing him. We also have Simon telling Aemond there could be some other way for him to gain satisfaction, in contrast to Orwyle offering up Jasper Wylde to provide Daemon his own satisfaction in place of Aegon.
Here is what I'm getting at here, though. Though Aemond and Daemon appear to be similarly violent people, their violence and their use of it is incredibly different. Daemon doesn't always choose violence, really. He barks a lot more than he bites. When he does use violence, it seems more deliberate and intentional. He is harsh, he is unafraid to kill and threaten, but it's for a purpose. For Aemond, however... he truly does revel in violence to a degree Daemon doesn't. He is quick to utilize it, and the way he utilizes it is as a means to express domination and power over others.
Daemon does as well, but I think here Aemond is trying to emulate Daemon but doesn't quite understand Daemon as much as he thinks he does. Also note, Daemon was known to participate in the sport of tourneys. Aemond? Explicitly says he doesn't care about tourneys. When he's training, he is deliberately training to kill people in war. I could talk forever about Aemond and why he is the way he is, but I find it interesting how he and Daemon differ, because despite Daemon's reputation as unpredictable, I actually think once you understand him he is pretty easy to read. Aemond on the other hand I have a far weaker handle on him and thus he comes across as more unpredictable. We shall see what we learn about him in the coming episodes, though.
Now, cutting this off at the end for book spoilers, and future HOTD spoilers:
