Lady S.

Right, Borros had enough sense not to let Aemond shed blood under his roof for that very reason. (Which is funny since his more honorable father had little problem with the Blackwood lordling fighting during Rhaenyra's visit.) Accepting Aemond as a prospective son-in-law does not mean he's staunchly pro-Green, it means he's in it for himself and wants whatever arrangement is best for him. He was also far from the only witness to what preceded Luke's death inside his hall and some of those people probably do know how to read and write and may even have some sympathy for Rhaenyra. Otto was plotting with two of his co-councillors to usurp the throne long before Viserys's garbled final words, and this plotting would have included Rhaenyra's death. All while serving Viserys, his old friend and his king. Notice how he didn't even try to claim Viserys named Aegon heir in his little parley. He knew nobody there would believe it, but really did not care about the truth of those words himself. He told them the succession changed the moment of Aegon's birth, that Viserys was a fool not to see it, and that the oaths sworn to Rhaenyra meant nothing. All of which had some truth but does not encourage a person to think their word would be honored and all promises from Otto were in good faith. Hence also his wanting Daemon's sons at court in positions of "high honor". Does anyone actually buy that offer was made out of family generosity and not to keep the sons of the more dangerous parent as hostages? Did anyone else think Luke's dragon looked like a smaller version of Laenor's? It's hard enough to clearly make out the dragon's colors with their bad lighting, but if so, I think it's a nice touch. The "father" and son have no resemblance but their dragons do.

Yep, that's the implication. I suppose his maester does a lot of the administrative work with help from a steward and/or anyone else more educated than their head of house. Yeah, you can tell it's a different prop, but it's also in a different, much bigger room. They made Rhaenyra's bedchamber look like the Painted Table room from GoT-era, the idea being I guess that Stannis had it moved for some reason. Well, poor Luke got his wish in the worst way. He'll never have to Lord of the Tides or see everyone else dead because Grandpa Corlys outlived him after all. "All the symbols of legitimancy", Otto? Because the king's chosen heir is wearing her father's crown. And saying Stark, Tully, Baratheon is less impressive when you finish not with "are already sworn to us" but rather just saying they're all considering it.

Only the same value judgment Erryk himself made to his brother in the child-fighting pit. Look at my descriptions of Aemond's eye loss on his entry vs. Luke's. I did the same thing on the GoT guide listing Robert as the Usurper in all the Targ entries and Joffrey as a bastard in the Stark ones. This technique only really got sticky with listing the official Bolton lines in their entries, but still. I did have to break into the book wiki to look up which Cargyll twin was loyal to which monarch. Even the subtitles can't keep them straight when identifying them and it doesn't help that the names sound exactly the same to my ears. I'll give ol' Otto credit for somehow correctly and confidently identifying Erryk when sending him out in ep. 9. Way too cutesy in this case, GRRM.

Which is pretty par for the course with these Targaryens. So I can buy her sparing Alicent as a mother (and Helaena as the only innocent Targ there if we assume a precision strike was impossible), while not caring so much about random civilans, even if I don't see it as a noble gesture. She could also see a difference between collateral damage and intentional kinslaying. Fighting within the House of the Dragon in battle would be one thing, but this would be straight-up murder done face-to-face. Alicent herself is on record as frowning on sex-adjacent activities when she told Rhaenyra it was foolish to put herself in a compromising position with Daemon while believing Rhaenyra was still a virgin. Alicent chose to believe Rhaenyra's lies and half-truths for her own reasons but she dropped her hands as soon as she could in that scene like they were burning hot or sluttiness were contagious. I did notice that Helaena first clutched onto Aemond when Rhaenys/Meleys made their big entrance. Maybe even they could have been happy if Aemond had his wish about being the one chosen to marry her. If we go back to the Daemon comparison, he murdered his first, unrelated wife, but has been a loyal partner to Rhaenyra. (And as far as Laena, I think we have to take his and Rhaenyra's words on the beach with some salt, coming from two drama queens prone to sulking. He and Laena did look pretty happy flying their dragons together, just as Rhaenyra was smiling happily when inroducing Harwin to his last child.) This is the part of Rhaenys' actions I found most confusing but I don't believe she was seriously suggesting Alicent claim the throne in her own name, much less saying she'd support that. More like you can't even dream of a better world. Or can't you at least admit you're acting for yourself and not the realm? And there is one person who can sit the Iron Throne with no royal blood: the King's Hand. We saw Otto do it last ep, just as Ned and Tywin did in GoT. I remember being struck back then that though Cersei seized the throne after Tommen's suicide and her Sept massacre, it never occurred to her to just name herself Tommen's Hand in s5. She tells Uncle Kevan that obviously it wouldn't be fit for a woman to be Hand or some such. But one would think the rules for the Handship would be less strict than those for the Crown, especially when the King's mother is already sitting on his council. Now Alicent's doing the same thing, sitting in the king's seat in the council room while still deferring to Otto, up until she learned he and half the other councillors had been plotting behind her back. (And it's that that really offends her, I think, more than him plotting to usurp the throne from Rhaenyra. After he praised her determination and they ruled together for all those years where she may have thought she finally had his respect, he's still treating her like a child.) At the very least, if she wanted to be the prime influence over Aegon and to stop being Otto's pawn, she could just fire him or or try to convince Aegon to do so and choose a new Hand loyal to her. But she'd never do that much because she is so stuck in her gilded cage and one of Alicent's most consistent character traits is overestimating her influence over the men in her life.

Yes, that must be why she declared war at Rhaenyra's wedding then immediately after passive-aggressively congratulating Rhaenyra abandoned the high table to seek out her uncle Lord Hightower and let him know they were on the same page. Y'know, her uncle Lord Hightower who was hailing "Aegon the conqueror-babe" back in ep 3, and was even more gung-ho about it than Otto. I know I'm a broken record on this by now, but if the entire conflict was meant to be put down to Rhaenyra's adultery, then we wouldn't see Alicent's dramatic turn happen with young Alicent before any of those bastards were born. I'm sure she would have been happy for Aegon to come after Rhaenyra in the early days (and I think teen Rhaenyra might have been too if it meant she didn't have to pop out heirs of her own), but this is just revision of history to ignore the actual events of ep 5. Even if Harwin's sons were disinherited, Rhaenyra would still be legitimate, and even if she herself were disinherited her two sons by Daemon are still 100% legit and 100% innocent. Alicent never once suggested disinheriting only the putative Velaryons to put Aegon right behind Rhaenyra as a compromise and did not mention the boys' paternity when telling Aegon they were a danger to him and that he would be king in ep 6. The other proof that Alicent isn't motivated solely by a moral duty to keep bastards off the throne is that she ended her toast last week by telling Rhaenyra "you'll make a fine Queen". She didn't have to say that! Everyone else was toasting each other's health, not acknowledging anyone's claim to the throne. Otto had a "wtf" offended look after he heard that and again when she reached out to Rhaenyra at the end of the scene. Alicent at least recognizes that a whore and a bastard as heirs is in no way worse than a drunken serial rapist. (A drunken serial rapist who delights in human cockfights using children and lets at least one of his own bastards be raised for that pursuit! It is beyond me to think we are meant to root for this man to kill Rhaenyra and all of her sons.) Alicent/Rhaenyra's last reconcilation was always going to be temporary, though, no matter Viserys's last words, as seen by their sons' lack of interest in peace. Otto was never going to accept Rhaenyra and was plotting with half the small council to usurp the throne, even behind Alicent's back. Aemond would never accept Rhaenyra or any of her sons either, and would hardly be more forgiving if he lost his eye to a legitmate prince. And Daemon would never accept Otto's grandson as king even if he weren't married to Rhaenyra. I don't think even Otto believes or cares about Viserys's supposed last wish, but he'll run with it if it's what Alicent says. Alicent allowed herself to hear what she wanted to hear (what Otto trained her to want to hear) because no matter what she feels about Aegon, his ascension over Rhaenyra was what she'd settled on many years ago at Rhaenyra's first wedding, and she wasn't happy to give up what agency she'd held more or less ruling the realm for 6+ years and have all her misery be for naught. So she was ready to grab any straw to do what Otto wanted and believe she could still be in the right, still be loyal to Viserys. Yeah, I thought of Otto's quote from the pilot too when watching Aegon basking in those cheers and starting to enjoy his crown. Even in the pilot, I think the quote applied just as much, if not more, to Otto, than Daemon. Just as Daemon's quote about Otto being a landless second son applied just as much to himself, as we now see it applies to Aemond too. I think Alicent's pitch to Rhaenys had two glaring flaws which meant it was doomed to failure. 1. She tries to flatter Rhaenys by admitting she should have been Queen, then asks her to support a King who'd be much worse than his father. Alicent might be naive enough to think she can "gently" guide her son, but Rhaenys is too smart to believe that. 2. Alicent is in no position to offer Driftmark to Rhaenys and her granddaughters when the girls are both in Daemon/Rhaenyra's custody. (Baela was absent this ep so I assume she went back to Dragonstone after being betrothed to Jace, since Grandma wouldn't just abandon her in a hostile court.) But really I do think she was always going to side with her closest kin after giving her word publicly last week. When it comes down to it, she loved Viserys, despite him taking a crown which could have been hers, and loves Corlys, despite their private disagreements about pursuing that crown at all costs. Alicent doesn't understand that, and it wouldn't even occur to her to think that way given her own more screwed-up relationships with her husband and her rivals. (IMO Rhaenys looked to be seething last week when Vaemond was bad-mouthing Corlys at the start of the ep, even if she had privately had similar thoughts in the immediate grief over Laena's death.) Alicent saying Corlys abandoned her may have been a bid for sympathy and solidarity, but really it was just an insult to her pride, and from what we've seen of Corlys and Rhaenys together he does seem to respect her more than Viserys ever did Alicent. Updated for 1.09.

Yeah, Alicent comments that it's "an odd choice" for a Targ/Velaryon kid. And while non-Valyrian families do repeat names too (like the Starks with all their Brandons), I don't think any non-Valyrian name is just for one or two families. Rather that there would be common names across a region and across neighboring regions. For example, in GoT, Theon Greyjoy killed Ser Rodrik Cassel, but one of his dead elder brothers was also named Rodrik. Or how Ned renamed his nephew/adopted son Jon, which was almost certainly an homage to foster father Jon Arryn, the man who raised Ned as if he were his own son. ETA: I edited the title a bit because I couldn't resist after seeing the Kardashians joke multiple times. Hope that's ok, Your Modlinesses.

Oh, hardy har har. The official hbo guide only lists Aegon/Helaena's firstborn son and daughter, which I'm morbidly annoyed about since the Sophie's Choice "son for a son" switcheroo is what really makes Blood and Cheese so shocking and memorable. But now that GRRM's confirmed Daeron still exists, I guess Maelor not being listed isn't hard proof either.

Yeah, obviously they don't need her permission so much as her agreement, especially with Baela actually in her custody. Otherwise they could and should have betrothed the kids years ago. It's definitely not proof that Daemon doesn't think of himself as their father at all, if that's the thinking. A father does not need to have close relationships with his daughters to arrange their marriages. Rhaenys's word matters because she is the only one who could speak for Corlys to support or deny his choice in heir. If Corlys were actually dead, Rhaenyra would have lost one of her strongest allies and the only Velaryon adult left to pretend her sons are Velaryons. And she does still have influence as the king's cousin and the Queen Who Never Was. Whatever bitterness she may have felt about being passed over, it seems she and Viserys have always been good, probably because she knows he never wanted the throne. He had enough respect to call on her instead of hearing Rhaenyra after he interrupted her. She could well have advocated for her granddaughters' claims "to honor Laena's memory" while having enough sense to not name the boys bastards. Who knows what would have happened then? It's not that Daemon's a great father, just that I think absence of evidence is no proof that he doesn't care whether they live or die. There were posts last week suggesting Rhaenyra could just kill off the girls while married to their father, instead of the obvious and simple solution of these betrothals, which I find a huge leap and a very weird line of thinking. Viserys has never once interacted with Helaena and forgets his non-Rhaenyra kids exist, but that doesn't mean he'd be indifferent if Rhaenyra or Daemon just up and murdered Helaena for no reason. If we want a less softie dad example, Otto was even more indifferent than Daemon after the kidfight last week, and his grandson was the most injured party. (Sidenote: While Baela being fostered on Driftmark has a political utility of having eyes and ears in the Velaryon court, they could have had even two sets of eyes and ears. I'm sure Rhaenys would have gladly claimed both girls, but Daemon/Rhaenyra chose to keep one. Either out of affection or not wanting to give too much to Rhaenys, it shows that Rhaena has some value to them and is not seen as a complete non-Targ non-entity.) Yeah, I did wonder whether we were meant to think Otto poisoned his way into the job. But the scene ended with Viserys saying he had been a faithful servant in the past and the realm owed him a great debt, which is very polite for a guy you think murdered your father. So I guess Vizzy's point was just to remind Otto that he was a nobody before his rapid rise and his had quickly grown way too big for his britches, as we say. So if NotBabyBaelon was poisoned, I guess Viserys remained blind to that as with so much else. (Trying to translate pseudo-medieval lingo, I guess a "burst belly" could be appendicitis?) I do think we could have used some reaction from Viserys to Otto's return, but I think it can just be put down to familiarity and apathy. Alicent had already all but taken charge of the council in ep 6, and Viserys only stands up to her when she tried to get his grandson's eye cut out or have all 3 of Rhaenyra's eldest boys legally declared bastards, as she nearly did this ep. The post-time-jump Viserys was not the same man who fired Otto in ep 4, and I don't just mean physically. Feels like he was already very tuned out even before he was confined to sickbed and doped up most of the time.

Yeah, there's no way that's his real age. He started on the The Last Kingdom over 5 years ago and he definitely did not look like a teenager then either. Neither imdb nor wiki gives a birthdate for him. And I would trust those sites more than internet tabloids I've never heard of. I think it's more he holds them responsible for losing his eye, which Aegon had nothing to do with. To give Aemond some credit, it's possible he would have let the pig thing go if the boy giggling wasn't the very same one who mutilated him without any punishment or even an apology. Granted, he was already spoiling for a fight with the way he stood up as soon as Jace hit the table, intimidating Jace into making his toast polite. But I do think his anger toward his nephews is based on that first kidfight more than them formerly being Aegon's minions. (It is kind of hilarious though that Aemond's villian origin story can be traced back to a pig.) Forgot to mention that the godswood is officially Rhaenyra's place for telling misleading half-truths. In ep 4 she outright lied that Daemon never touched her and that she'd never fuck him, but now she's relying on technical truths which are very far from the full story. I do think it's possible Rhaenys believed Rhaenyra or wants to. Which doesn't mean she likes her since she and Daemon still married in unseemly haste, but it is plausible Laenor's death was a lucky chance for them with Qarl acting alone as killer or that Daemon arranged the murder without Rhaenyra's knowledge. He is the one with a known history of violence, including the suspected murder of his first wife. Rhaenys doesn't have the same reasons for wanting to believe Rhaenyra's sworn word as Alicent did in ep 4, but she could still want to believe her granddaughters' fates were not entrusted to a stepmother/aunt/cousin who murdered their uncle Laenor. As far as Daemon as a father, while I'm annoyed that the shot of him hugging both girls on the roof was cut, I do think his negligence is a bit overblown. It's Rhaena, the dragonless daughter who said he ignored her, while he was seen reading with Baela and smiling as she kissed him good night. In ep 7, he stands back post-fight yes, while Rhaenys is already comforting the girls and would not welcome his interference. The girls were the least injured in the kidfight and I think Daemon is more likely to be proud of them for throwing down and coming out the winning side than to be offended that they got hit too. When he rushes in against Criston, it's because Rhaenyra's life is under threat, but even so he's stopping a guy from possibly aiding the armed attacker, while trusting Rhaenyra to hold her own against Alicent. I don't think him failing to embrace two fairly uninjured daughters when they were in no danger means he doesn't care that they exist or whether they live or die. But really, I think the best evidence we have is the girls continued bond with ther cousins/stepbros and their happiness about marrying them. Yeah, they befriended each other at the funeral, but none of those kids were happy about their parents' wedding, and just think how Alicent/Rhaenyra's much longer bond went to shit after they became related by marriage. Add in that the girls must know as well as anyone that their boys do not share their Velaryon blood and yet Rhaena is happy to only rule Driftmark as Luke's consort and told him he'd be a good lord. I just don't think they'd be so lovey-dovey with no jealousy toward the boys if Daemon were totally ignoring them and favoring his nephews/stepsons over his own daughters. Unless they're just saints, which no one on this show is. And Baela's continued bond with Jace, to the point that she was ready to throw down at his side again (as someone else mentioned Rhaena was holding her back as the guards held back Jace and Luke) to me implies she's had more contact with the rest of her family than just raven mail. Dragonstone and Driftmark are very close to each other, and would be an even faster journey on dragonback. As for Alicent and Helaena, plainly she does feel some regret about marrying off her daughter as she rushed to hug her. But just as she can't really stop Aegon raping his way through all the help short of castrating him, I don't think she can really do much to undo the marriage now either. At the time of their betrothal, Aegon was a dick but not a rapist, so Ali probably assumed it would be no different than Otto marrying her off, or even perhaps better as they were closer in age. And while Cersei didn't want her daughter married off, she was also a shitty son enabler. If sibling marriage was legal for non-Targs, would she really have a problem marrying Myrcella to Joffrey? Tommen would obviously make the better husband, but he was never meant to be king and Cersei's worst fear was an outsider replacing her as Queen. So could she really risk Joffrey marrying that scheming hussy Margaery Tyrell if making his sister queen were ever an option? I feel like Alicent's entire character can be summed up by her quote in the pilot about how all she wanted after her mother's death was for someone to tell her they were sorry for what happened to her. Viserys never did return that sympathy she gave him, nor was anyone else sorry about what happened to her. So now she's hardened enough that she can't even say sorry that happened to you to her son's victims. I'm reminded of one of my fave Cersei quotes in Blackwater after she complains about Robert to Sansa, Sansa exclaims "but you were Robert's Queen!", and Cersei replies "As you will be Joffrey's. Enjoy!". Alicent's relationship with Viserys really interested me this ep, because she has plenty of reason to resent him, more than Rhaenyra, or even Otto at this point imo. And one could see that resentment last ep when he was still walking around a little better, but now it seems the pity and sympathy which was the basis for her bond with him has returned now that Viserys is at his most pitiful. Yes, she and Otto are absolutely taking advantage of his condition to work their will instead of his, but it seems she did care about his pain. She had the same oh shit reaction as Otto when he made his big throne room entrance, but as he was hobbling his way up to the throne she just looked concerned for him. Then as he's done she rushes to help him up, as if she could carry him down by herself. We see a shot of Rhaenyra noticing and reacting, which along with the music cues during the dinner and Olivia Cooke's performance, is enough to convince me that Rhaenyra's toast had some sincerity to it. Finally there's the way that before Viserys mistook Alicent for Rhaenyra he first mistook Rhaenyra for Alicent. Given that she is a distant third (if that) as his favorite women go, I think that mistake was due to habit more than affection, which I think indicates she is regularly tending him when not busy ruling in his name or cleaning up after her son. She doesn't have to do that, especially now that he's too out of it to know or care much what she does. Lastly, for all the comparisons of Helaena to Luna Lovegood, I'm surprised no one mentioned that Rhys Ifans played Luna's father in the movie. It was enough to make me doubt myself and double check imdb that was him. Anyways, when she makes her little toast, Otto smiles and compliments her while Alicent looks embarrassed. Maybe that means she's his favorite of the green Targs too, or maybe he just encouraged her because someone (had to be Daemon*) was laughing at her toast. Earlier, she was the only one on the green side happy to see Viserys enter the throne room, and later she smiled at Aemond's toast as if he really were complimenting the nice nephew she enjoyed dancing with. So, yeah, not on the same plane as everyone else and not interested in their petty game of thrones rivalries. *(I think Daemon's love for female kin probably depends on 3 questions 1. Can she ride a dragon? 2. Can I fuck her? 3. Is she related to Otto Hightower?)

(Sorry for the double post but I've found other leftovers from last week, and Idk how many pics I can fit in one post.)

This one really cracked me up. (Though tbf, Viserys has never claimed to love anyone equally, just that he loves them all "dearly".)

Yeah, he couldn't see who she was sitting on his blind side, even if he wasn't doped out of his head, and she was blind to his true meaning with zero context for any of his words. I also saw it pointed out in a vid how Viserys and Alicent have now switched places. She's not sitting on the Iron Throne, but she was sitting in the king's seat in the small council. All while Viserys is confined to the same bed where he used her as broodmare, which was her only real role until his health really started going to shit. I also see that someone else has noted that both grown-up Aemond and Helaena came from The Last Kingdom. Fitting since we're now at the point where Alicent is a grandma and Olivia Cooke is only a couple years older than the actors playing her kids, just as the actress who played Aelswith on TLK was the exact same age as the actress who played her daughter Aethelflaed. Other people have already brought up that prophecies don't have to be true or interpereted correctly to be thematically important. Just think of how Melisandre kept reinterpereting who the messiah was and originally staked everything on it being fucking Stannis of all people. As an enjoyer of tragedy and dramatic irony, I'm onboard with it now tbh. Just think if Rhaenyra hadn't felt the need to bring her kids back home right away, she could have been there to finish that conversation with her father. In honer of Rhaenyra/Daemon's son Aegon the Younger, I'd like to bring back this legendary tweet circa the reveal of Jon Snow's birth name (with Rhaegar's actor appearing to wear the exact same wig that Harry Lloyd used). While this baby Aegon is certainly officially named for the Conqueror, it's also a subtle dig at Alicent/Otto to reuse the name so soon. I can see Daemon having the idea and thinking it very funny. Like you think you have a conqueror-babe? Ours is actually a Targ on both sides born of a true Valyrian union, not born to some Hightower girl pious in a Faith which doesn't even really approve of incest. For all the talk about Rhaenyra's plain-featured heirs, her sons by Daemon are unquestionably pure Valyrian and both are named after kings. (Still it is less confusing than many real history books where there are only like 5 old-timey male names in any given era.)

That was honestly the most ridiculous part of his rant about bloodlines and the survival of his house when he never mentioned a wife and kids of his own. Then there's the more obvious fact that Baela and Rhaena very much do have Velaryon blood and so would their kids. So how exactly would their bloodline die out if they married Rhaenyra's bastards? And daughters would come before younger brothers and their lines, else Rhaenys wouldn't have had a claim to the throne and wouldn't be known as the Queen Who Never Was. I think Vaemond's lack of respect for Laena's line was already shown when he used her eulogy to call Laenor a cuckold. (Hence Daemon's giggling, because he's supposed to be the one with inappropriate reactions to relatives' deaths.) Obviously he's right about Luke's paternity, but I think his claim of not acting out ambition, only concern for his bloodline is clearly not true. Especially since Corlys was not dead yet, and there was no reason this couldn't wait until he actually was. This man was not only counting on his brother's death, he was hoping for it. Rhaenyra and Laena were second cousins. Their kids would be third cousins (triple third cousins I guess, since there are three sibling great-grandparents involved?) They're also first cousins once-removed through Daemon, the uncle who is now the boys' stepdad. Lotta, lotta incest going on in this family. Agreed, though I'm also unsure why lack of warmth toward Otto should be on par with lack of warmth with children. In any case, her goodbye scene with Otto in 1.05 actually was emotional on both sides. As much as I criticize Otto for starting this mess, I don't think he's Tywin in either Magnificient Bastard-ness or Cold-Hearted Father-ness. He uses his daughter selfishly but that doesn't mean he doesn't care about his kids at all. He's just a more typical Westerosi father than Viserys, one who would never think to prioritize his children's happiness above political concerns and one who would never just say "I love you" to them. I've never doubted that Ali loves her father, whether he deserves undying loyalty or not. The obvious reason she obeyed Otto when he sent him to woo Viserys is because children have a duty to obey their fathers, but emotionally I think she also wanted to make her father proud. Aside from politics and pragmatic concerns, I think Alicent wants Aegon to make her sacrifices worth something. Losing her friendship with Rhaenyra and being broodmare to a rotting old man can't all have been for nothing. She did her part for Otto so Aegon has to do his. I also wonder if part of her disconnection/resentment toward pre-rapist Aegon was because he is the living embodiment of why she can never be friends with Rhaenyra again. Rhaenyra was willing to be friends again in ep 4, so who knows how things would have turned out if Alicent had only daughters. I feel like like that's something Alicent could have wondered about a lot. Even in ep 3, Rhaenyra's brattiness is directed more toward Viserys than Alicent and seems to be based more on all the attention for Aegon rather than the marriage itself. Regardless, one can dislike family members and not feel much warmth toward them and still feel like you love them because you have to. At the dinner, Alicent was ready to make peace with Rhaenyra because she was fed up with Aegon (if ever there were a time to be willing to send your son to the Night's Watch, that would be it) and Aemond was also acting the fool, and because her hatred for Rhaenyra is all tied up with their former love. (Their childhood friendship may have been the purest relationship she had aside from her own mother, and the only real friend she's made since is Larys.) But really it was too late for any true peace, and this conflict is much bigger than the personal wishes of either woman. When she hears her husband's drugged-up ramblings she forgets about her feelings about Aegon and hears only what she wants to hear. But it's what she wants not because she's always wanted power but because Otto set her on this path. If Rhaenyra takes the throne, Alicent's sons and grandson(s) would be in jeopardy and she'd have to accept that her entire miserable marriage and all the disrespect she endured from Viserys was pointless. The idea that Rhaenyra not only gets to have more fun, but that her own life has no reward even after Viserys's death could be maddening. Just like there wasn't for Alicent herself. Plan T should only be used to prevent any bastards. I'm sure the gods would approve of its use for that, right? ;) Speaking of which, I haven't been through all 5 pages, but did everyone catch that this clearly wasn't Aegon's first victim? I don't just mean Alicent yelling at him that "he couldn't keep carrying on this way", but her complete lack of shock and how she had that veiled threat + payoff + tea routine down pat. She had to have ordered that Plan T before the girl even opened her mouth since the other servant was out of the room and returned as soon as the convo was all but done.

Besides the Laenor issue, I think her other point was that it really didn't matter so long as Otto and Alicent made the judgement. "They'll force you to your knees, and I must stand alone." Once Viserys made his surprise appearence she was pretty happy to accept the proposal. Aemond is really shaping up to be the green Daemon by making an inappropriate toast about his sibling's heir(s). Though Daemon did so about a dead baby in (what he thought) was a private party, not a family dinner. Funny how all the troublesome younger brothers have Aemon as part of their names, Daemon, Aemond and Vaemond. People actually named Aemon must just be different if Maester Aemon is anything to go by. I think this was the first ep without a sighting of any literal dragons. Even worse, it was the first since eps 1-2 without Larys. Which I guess makes sense as the Rhaenicent rapprochement couldn't happen except in his absence. Rhaenicent had to die so Larycent might be born, just as Larycent had to be apart for Rhaenicent to make up for just a few minutes. Updated for 1.08.

I'm not disputing her reasons for resentment, but there were multiple posts saying she was in the right to demand an eye for an eye even after she snapped, which does seem like a denial that she is less than wholly hinged, rational, and morally righteous. Because she never actually had pre-marital sex with him. (And I see no reason to infer offscreen fornication when Viserys was deep in mourning for the wife he actually loved.) The real moral hypocrisy is harboring two different murderers as allies, one a proud kinslayer. It's pretty fucked to think murder is less a sin than sex. Then there's the way she is now disrespecting and disobeying Viserys at every turn, no longer the meek and dutiful ladylike consort. One does not need to sleep around to not be "coloring inside the lines". Ali absolutely knew what her father's intentions were, though. Hence her being uncomfortable and biting her nails every time he sent her to woo Viserys. And more glaringly, trying to help Rhaenyra mourn her mother in prayer and get her used to the idea of a stepmother at the same time. She was naive, but not some clueless idiot. It's not just whether Rhaenyra would see them as political threats (which has little to do with honor or consideration and more with political reality) but whether she's fine with open kinslaying. Even Larys is not trumpeting his kinslaying because it's the worst crime there is, far above any adultery or fornication. The Night's Watch is a peaceful way to remove any rival lords/kings and disinherit any men. (Also the Citadel and the Faith, which are both headquartered in Oldtown, so maybe not the safest means of removal. Same goes for the Kingsguard at court, even if there were an opening in the seven there.) I don't really blame Alicent for not wanting her sons to be forced into exile or the Night's Watch, I'm just arguing the probabilities of Rhaenyra going straight for open kinslaying right away. Rhaenyra is not a great person, but having sex which does not directly hurt Alicent is a far cry from already planning to slay her half-brothers. Yes, she has been in the stronger position with the king's favor, and the proposol for Jace/Helaena was in her own self-interest. But she has to know that position will all change as soon as Viserys dies, yet she has done nothing to consolidate her own position against her half-brothers. Instead she respected Viserys's wishes for a happy family by allowing her sons to grow up friends with Aegon. All while Alicent was already doing all she could to get Rhaenyra's sons out of the way. She hasn't consolidated Aegon's position either, but that seems to be more down to a lack of cunning than a lack of will, as well as Visery's own will. Up until that confrontation in the Driftmark throne room where Ali pulled that knife on her, Rhaenyra was still defending her stepmother as not capable of murder. That attitude only changed in the wee hours of that night when battle lines were drawn and first blood was shed. The murder plot was a response to that and there's no sign Rhaenyra was ready for any murder plots before that. And not that that random servant deserved to die (and I do think he was definitely an innocent, Laenor's honor is more graded on a curve compared to Daemon's), but it is relevant that the victim was an unrelated stranger. And while people may suspect Rhaenyra's guilt, that's different than everyone openly knowing it. And I'd wager a lot of people might suspect Daemon arranged it without her knowledge, as he's a man and in particular a man known to be severely lacking in honor and already suspected of facilitating his second marriage by killing his first wife. (So, yeah, Daemon is absolutely a danger to all the greens, but the argument is whether Rhaenyra was equally dangerous on her own or married to Laenor. Alicent could not really have foreseen the death of "Laenor" or Rhaenyra marrying Daemon.)

Why the hell wouldn't trueborn heirs be a threat to Alicent's sons? Otto warns her of the danger to her children before any bastards are born, or Rhaenyra was even formally betrothed. Alicent tells Aegon the boys are a threat without mentioning their bastardy. Alicent declared war at Rhaenyra/Laenor's wedding before any sons were born. The issue is that Aegon's very existence makes him a rival to Rhaenyra as Queen, not just her kids years later. The only way he could survive her reign without going into exile would be joining one of the celibate orders where men swear away titles and family ties, a life he seems entirely unsuited for. And now Alicent has created a self-fulfilling prophecy where even those alternatives are impossible because Rhaenyra will know no such mercy is likely for herself. (I have to agree with @Dac22 that conflict is inevitable, I'm just responding to the assertions Team Green would be peaceful and obedient to the king's will if the bastard princes didn't exist, which ignores every sign to the contrary over the past 3 eps.) Evil Rhaenyra not finding a way to rape Laenor or otherwise steal his sperm for heirs. And obviouisly Otto and Alicent would never oppose her inheritance if she only obeyed the rules after they undermined Viserys for years. Good grief, seven hells, etc. Aemond was there at the top of the staricase, so I think he did tattle to Grandpa to get big bro out of the way. And I see no reason he would have behaved with the same boldness toward his actual bully when so far the most he's done to stand up to Aegon is defend the duty of marrying their (full) sister. Ah, so you admit that two under-10yo non-bastard girls had a right to be upset when one was told she was only fit to ride a pig? 😉 (But we have no evidence an eye for eye is the law of the land, especially not when both boys are heirs to the same king. If actions had consequences, Alicent would spend the rest of her husband's reign locked in her chambers after her own display.) It's also weird to acknowledge Jace and Luke's part in the pig joke (as Aegon's minions), and then say Aemond only dislikes them for being bastards born of sin. More like he dislikes them because they're Rhaenyra's sons and he's never gotten along with them. He was just using whatever he could to hurt and insult them, including their true paternity and their biofather's recent and very violent death. Neither of Alicent's sons really care that their half-nephews are bastards, which only supports my first point above. A couple more points about Alicent from rewatch: 1. When she steals the king's knife she actually knocks him down. Then McKingsguard Commander is delayed helping him while Ser Criston runs to back up the traitor threatening a princess with a stolen knife. (So I think he would have mutilated a child at her command, if the king and McKingsguard were not there to tell him no.) 2. Her words requesting retribution are mostly about Rhaenyra, rather than her injured son or the little kid who maimed him. At first she just says "I will have one of her son's eyes in return" as if she doesn't even care which boy. She only names Lucerys when Viserys overrules her and she turns to Criston. When she attacks Rhaenyra claiming she's only ever done her duty while Rhaenyra gets away with everything (as she points the king's stolen knife at the king's heiress), she says Rhaenyra now even feels entitled to her son's eye. Which is ludicrous as Rhaenyra did not take his eye and it's not like she was holding the eye hostage and could return it. All Rhaenyra was doing was trying to protect her own son's eyes, which Alicent felt entitled to. 3. When Alicent is regretful afterwards, she is fidgeting with her hands. A vestige of the more innocent teen Alicent whose anxiety was expressed by abusing her fingernails rather than taking her anger out on others. I think she only stops after Otto reassures her that ruthlessness is needed even if the way she went about it was stupid. I also agree with @proserpina65 that unhinged Alicent makes for a fun character, so that's why it's frustrating to see so much denial that she was acting unhinged. There are political components driving her to support the claim of the firstborn child she dutifully cares for but also dislikes and resents, but that doesn't mean she's not also driven by deeply personal animosity toward Rhaenyra. To insist it's all black and white moral vs. immoral is not only reductive, it makes the story sound more boring than it actually is. Oooo, with Viserys as the draconic ladyslayer in the pilot. Nice catch! (Though I don't think Laena herself ever really wanted to claim him.)

Going by how garbled all the reports of Dany's dragons are in the main books, and how Balerion himself disappeared from common knowledge for over a year in F&B, I suppose it's not impossible Seasmoke could go unknown far enough from Westeros. But it'd have to be way east like Qarth and he would have to travel there by very circuitous and dangerous routes. Much neater to have Laenor die as a sellsword offscreen and Rhaenyra somehow figure it out, most likely by Seasmoke's response.

These accusations are um...not new, for anyone the least familiar with Linda and Elio.

People keep saying this, but no one called Aemond a thief or used the word stolen to his face. That was only what they said when waking the boys. In the cave they just say it was their mother's dragon and Rhaena says she was hers to claim. A pedantic distinction, perhaps, but I think it matters when speaking of personal insults and how much they hurt Aemond with words. He could have stopped at "you should've claimed her" or tried to explain further in a sympathetic manner. Instead he told her she was only fit to ride a pig. That is in no way a response to the girls' words, it was him taking his anger for Aegon out on them for a prank they had nothing to do with and probably never even knew about. I don't think it's too much to say they had some reason to be confused and hurt in their grief or that he owed them some sympathy for that grief, not only because it was the very night of their mother's funeral but because they're his cousins as much as they are Jace and Luke's. The other major point worth considering is that they did not know it was Aemond they were going after until they found him. The girls saw Vhagar flying from a window but there's no way they could identify the rider. For all they knew it was a grown man and not even a Targ, hence getting back-up from boys they'd just met and Jace bringing a knife to protect them. Which is not to say Aemond deserved to be mutilated or that either boy should have brandished a weapon toward the others, but that no one went there with the intent of murder, maiming, or ambush. Or a 4-on-1 pile-on either since that only happened after Aemond beat each of them 1v1. If grabbing a rock and saying "you will die screaming" is a valid response to that and before that threatening to feed the grieving girls to their own recently dead mother's former dragon a valid response to being hit once, then I think the others' responses to his provacations should be viewed the same way. I don't think he actually meant to kill them either but that doesn't mean Jace and Luke weren't scared for themselves and the girls too. Oh, and finally, the other relevant point is that while Aemond had bonded with Vhagar, that doesn't mean he had every right to claim her that very night. If so, he wouldn't be sneaking around while every single one of those kids was meant to be in bed (under watch by the incompetant Kingsguard). I think a good deal of his hostility was defensiveness because he knew the manner in which he won the dragon was not strictly kosher. There's that moment earlier at the wake where Aemond looks like he wants to reach out to someone but he can't. Because Mommy wouldn't want him to. That's the glaring reason this can't be reduced to Rhaenyra's bastards fight with Aemond and it's her fault for being a slut. Those boys jumped into it only to defend the girls. (And if we're judging by Westorosi mores, is it not their duty as knights-in-training to defend all maidens, especially their kin?) The initial disagreement was between Aemond and the girls and he threw out a hurtful insult to them with almost no provocation. Girls who are not bastards and not rivals for Aegon's claim to the throne either. Is that not proof that Alicent has taught her sons Cersei's philosophy that "everyone who isn't us is an enemy"? (While Rhaenyra very unwisely allowed her sons to admire Aegon despite him being a future political threat to them.) If furhter proof is needed, let us not forget that Alicent made her war declaration via green dress at Rhaenyra/Laenor's wedding, before they failed to produce true Velaryon kids. Or that her lecture to Aegon last ep did not mention the boys' legitmancy, only that they and Rhaenyra were his rivals and that he would be King. So, no, she does not want him to follow Rhaenyra, and I see no reason she'd be content to have her kids passed over so long as Rhaenyra's sons were Laenor's blood. She and Otto are on exactly the same page now about wanting her sons to be the king's only heirs, period. Rhaenyra's adultery matters to her because it's a way to get her disinherited, which would have been her goal anyway. And of couse because she's deeply jealous of Rhaenyra and still obsessed with her long after their friendship died. Now the only way she can force Rhaenyra to still pay attention to her is by constantly antagonizing her. There were three following her ship, so Aemond's, Aegon's, and Helaena's. I am annoyed we didn't get a close-up of the latter two. Team Rhaenyra has Syrax and Caraxes. Seasmoke's status now unclear, and we don't know where Rhaenys and her dragon will come in. She doesn't like Daemon or Rhaenyra but her granddaughters are pretty firmly tied to their cause now. Also, open civil war hasn't actually started yet, even with the bloodshed in this ep. And Viserys is rotting away piece-by-piece, but somehow still ticking. So Rhaenyra's boys and Daemon's dragonrider daughter still have time for their dragons to grow big enough to ride.

It's not an either/or situation. The double standards Rhaenyra's chafing against are misogynistic. A male monarch could father as many bastards as wanted, and could legitimize one of them as heir in absence of any legitimate heirs. You keep comparing her to a queen consort or a princess meant only to wed a prince, never inherit. Rhaenyra is an heiress meant to be a Queen regnant. Her children's claim to the Iron Throne comes solely through her, not their father. (Granted, Laenor does have a claim through his own mother but no one recognizes that claim. Least of all Otto and Alicent.) Luke is not a Velaryon, but all of them are still Targs as much as Alicent's kids. Why is it treason if her sons still have the needed royal blood? Only because women are never allowed to have extramarital sex, regardless of bloodline. That's misogyny. As I understand it, there are two practical reasons bastards aren't born with inheritance rights: 1. children born of mistresses are thought to have less certain paternity than those born to a moral wife and 2. wives to noblemen and royalty are part of dynastic alliances where the maternal family expects future heirs out of the deal. The second part applies to Driftmark and would only apply to the Iron Throne if Laenor and Corlys cared about their bloodline. The first reason doesn't matter so much because it's the the boys' maternal line which gives them a claim to the throne, and that cannot be doubted. Words still have meanings and this is not a historical docudrama or even historical fiction. It's a fantasy story created by a modern (American) man and brought to screen by other modern people for a modern audience. Punishing children for the sins of their parents is still cruel, and saying a woman should lose all rights for sluttiness is still sexism. The standards of this society are important for understanding the characters, but that doesn't mean we have to agree with them. Moral relativism has to have its limits, and it's kind of absurd to say that a society that has sexism and classism baked into its laws with no concepts of marital rape or child abuse means those isms don't exist and that we shouldn't criticize Westerosi mores. And how does Viserys's weakness give Alicent the right to countermand his orders to the Kingsguard, steal his weapon, and threaten his daughter? That is a treason even higher than adultery. Pretty sure real queen consorts have been put under house arrest for less. If Alicent was truly concerned only with duty and morality, she would not be blaming only Rhaenyra when Laenor's part is obvious. (She mocks him but is not actually calling him out for his failures in conjugal duty.) If Alicent was truly concerned only with duty and morality, she would not be protecting a murderer in the Kingsguard. If Alicent was truly concerned only with duty and morality, she would not tell kinslayer Larys she would one day have further need of his services. If Alicent was truly concerned only with duty and morality, she would not be further weakening Viserys all she could for her own ends. (There's also her years ago acting grossed out by the Targs' "queer customs" and now betrothing her daughter to her eldest son. Which I just realized is a direct response to Rhaenyra offering for Helaena to be Jace's future Queen. "Oh, Viserys wouldn't it be better if she married someone closer in age, and isn't marrying closest kin the Targaryen way?") She's getting away with just as much, if not more, from the king. Hell, she re-appointed her father as Hand after Viserys pretty resolutely fired him!

Speaking of which, let's add this to Rhaenyra's sins: she sent her boys to bed before it was full dark.

I thought it was funny he tried to warn her about Larys leering and she just says it's a look of pride about being Lord of Harrenhal, which is a complete non sequiter that doesn't explain why he's staring at her in particular. (What does his sudden inheritance have to do with you, Your Grace?) Also, notice that it's Ser Criston, but just Larys, not Lord Larys or Lord Strong. That's what I mean about her being closer to Larys, for better or worse. Trying to decode Helaena's latest ramblings, the "green spool" and "black spool" obviously refer to Alicent's and Rhaenyra's favorite colors. "Dragons made of thread" could refer to the sigils on their banners. I'm thinking each side has different banners after Viserys's death just like Renly and Stannis in GoT. ("I suppose if we used the same banner, the battle would be terribly confusing.") Team Aegon(Alicent) could have either a green dragon instead of red or a dragon breathing green fire, like the Hightower's war beacon. It's not as clear as saying Aemond would have to close an eye last ep, though. Trapping the spider in a seashell could symbolize how she is now trapped in her role in the tragedy, another in the game of thrones, by Alicent making her Aegon's "future Queen".