Warning: This text comprises spoilers for Home of the Dragon episode 4.
The fictional historical past on the heart of Home of the Dragon, as advised in George R.R. Martin’s Fireplace & Blood, is usually convoluted and messy. It contracts itself, depends on rumors, biased voices, and generally unsavory characters with agendas to inform (however who often is the solely eyewitness to some occasions). And whereas we’re nonetheless a methods off from seeing simply how the present plans to inform “the objective truth” about what occurred within the Targaryen civil warfare to return, Home of the Dragon is making use of that lens to a side of the story that places the double-standards of Westeros’ patriarchal society on full show.
Episode 4 picks up the place we left off, with Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock) being given the prospect to decide on which lord of Westeros she’s going to marry. By the tip of the episode, Viserys (Paddy Considine) makes that call for her—and lands on Laenor Velaryon (Theo Nate), which grasp of legal guidelines Lyonel Robust (Gavin Spokes) recommended in episode 3—after experiences attain Viserys’ ears that Rhaenyra was noticed in a pleasure home on the Avenue of Silk along with her uncle Daemon (Matt Smith).
It didn’t matter what might or might not have occurred (and Rhaenyra denied that something had occurred), however by Westerosi requirements, Rhaenyra was compromised and wanted to marry somebody quick earlier than rumors of what might have occurred unfold to the opposite lords, even when any reported trysts didn’t end in a being pregnant.
When verbally tearing her down, Viserys as soon as once more references the prophecy he advised her a number of years (and episodes) prior, displaying her the phrases written on his catspaw dagger. He additionally alludes that his decree that she marry Laenor is a way more lenient sentence than the earlier king, who kind of disowned one in all his daughters caught in an identical scandal, would’ve handed out.
“I have handed to you the burden of this knowledge,” he tells her. “It is larger than the throne, the king. It is larger than you and your desires. Jaehaerys would have disinherited you.”
Viserys’ angle leans into the sort of hypocrisy that Rhaenrya identified earlier within the episode as she scoffs at Daemon’s description of marriage as “only a political arrangement” and that she may “do as you like” as soon as wed. Whilst Rhaenyra argued along with her father, she known as out the unfairness of the state of affairs and that if she had been born a person, she may father a dozen bastards with out consequence. As a result of she’s a girl, even a fraction of delight means she’s ruined—and Viserys is utilizing the chance to treatment the political headache he precipitated when he selected Alicent (Emily Carey) over Laena Velaryon.
Whispers of a scandal—with a number of completely different accounts
What’s undisputed about what occurred in each HOTD and Fireplace & Blood is that following victory on the Stepstones, Daemon and Rhaenyra had been shut. Finally, Daemon left. (In Fireplace & Blood, there’s extra combating on the Stepstones, however in HOTD, Daemon is advised to return dwelling to his spouse within the Vale.)
Primarily, three completely different tales emerged in Fireplace & Blood. The primary one, from Grand Maester Runciter, solely notes that in some unspecified time in the future, Viserys and Daemon obtained into an argument. Runciter didn’t point out what they fought over, solely that Daemon was exiled out of King’s Touchdown, which one may definitely argue was finished to both make Viserys look good or defend the royal household. The opposite two conflicting tales in Fireplace & Blood, advised by characters who’ve but to look in HOTD, contain various levels of scandal, salacious element, and doubtless a superb measure of misogyny.
Septon Eustace (whose writing was typically deemed to be biased in opposition to Rhaenyra) purported that Daemon took Rhaenyra’s virginity and that the 2 had been found by a member of the Kingsguard. Rhaenyra, who noticed herself in love with Daemon, wished to marry him, however Viserys refused on account of Daemon already being married to Rhea Royce, the lady that Daemon not-so-fondly calls the “Bronze Bitch.” Viserys then swore Daemon to secrecy.
The opposite story comes from Mushroom the court docket idiot who typically went unnoticed within the room (and whose writing was extra sympathetic towards Rhaenyra however can also be typically lewder and may generally learn like self-insert fanfic). He claims that Daemon disguised Rhaenyra as a web page boy to take her to brothels, educated her within the artwork of seduction, and taught her how one can please a person; Mushroom alleges he was generally a part of these classes. Nevertheless, Rhaenyra didn’t sleep with Daemon. Her objective was to seduce Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel), who turned her down, and phrase finally obtained to Viserys, who had the story confirmed by Daemon. Daemon then supplied to wed Rhaenyra—“Who else would take her now?” Daemon reportedly stated—which led to Daemon’s exile.
So who was proper?
Typically, a number of variations of the identical story have one which’s clearly proper and others which can be nonsense. Different occasions, every model has a nugget of fact contained inside. On this case, in the case of speaking of Daemon’s exit from court docket and virtues, the latter is true.
As we noticed play out in episode 4, Daemon seduced Rhaenyra and Rhaenyra seduced Criston Cole. When Viserys came upon about it, he argued with Daemon, and he kicked his brother out of King’s Touchdown. After Rhaenyra agrees to wed Laenor, she is supplied moon tea, which girls can drink to both forestall or finish pregnancies, by the grand maester on Viserys’ orders.
The issues that HOTD can discover, supply extra element and nuance than a number of salacious and doubtlessly libelous accounts may supply, and never even these tales obtained all the pieces proper.
In Fireplace & Blood, Criston Cole turned Rhaenyra down in Mushroom’s model of occasions as a result of as a member of the Kingsguard, he had sworn a vow of celibacy and by no means to take a spouse or have youngsters. However in Home of the Dragon, he provides in, though he seems to be far more hesitant about it (to not point out the unstated place of energy Rhaenyra holds over him) till the white cloak symbolizing his vows to the realm is eliminated.
The Daemon of all of it
The opposite lingering query, and one which may not have such a simple reply, is the Daemon issue. No matter how occasions performed out—and Daemon additionally factors out Westeros’ hypocrisy—Daemon presents to marry Rhaenyra himself. “I’ll take her as she is and wed her in the tradition of our house,” he assures Viserys. Daemon appears to not be bothered by the entire Targaryen incest factor, neither is he bothered by taking a second spouse; like with Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno), Aegon the Conqueror set a precedent for polygamy.
However Viserys isn’t shopping for it. It isn’t instantly clear if Daemon’s emotions for Rhaenyra are honest, however even when they’re, Viserys sees proper by Daemon’s scheming towards an excellent loftier objective.
“It’s not my daughter you lust for, is it?” Viserys says. “It’s my throne. Go back to the Vale, Daemon, to your lawful wife. Strive to restore whatever scrap of honor remains in you. Or don’t, it matters not to me. As long as you are gone from my sight for good.”
A hungover Daemon might have been kicked to the curb, however Rhaenyra obtained the ultimate phrase. Positive, she might have agreed to marry Laenor, a personality who appears respectable by HOTD requirements (a really low bar) however might be not the person she needed to marry. However she used her leverage to get Viserys to take away Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), one of the vital influential males in Westeros, from a place of energy the place he may persuade Viserys to position Rhaenyra’s half-brother Aegon on the throne as an alternative of her. For Rhaenyra, it’s the sort of victory that Martin excels at: a bittersweet one.
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