I never noticed Aegon playing with his fingers but as soon as you said it I thought about how Alicent used to tear her fingers up in the early episodes of season 1!
Blood and Cheese knew the phrase "a son for a son". They wouldn't have phrased it like that if that wasn't exactly what Daemon told them after they asked "what if we can't find Aemond".
Sofie, you are by far the most perceptive, fair and compassionate reactor, thank you ❤ I love watching your reactions, because you see the little details that can matter so much; like here, noting how Alicent, in complete privacy, not only lights a candle for Luke, but for Lucerys Velaryon. His bastardy has become irrelevant now in death; he was a child, her former best friend's child. Thank you for your nuance, it's much appreciated ❤
This incident is known as "Blood and Cheese" (the nicknames of the assasin and the ratcatcher. beleive it or not, it was WAY worse in the book, at least according to the (possibly unreliable) story that went down in history. In the book, Cheese knew that the Helaena would take her children (including two-year old Maelor, not seen in the show) to see Alicent every night before bed, so him and Blood got into Alicent's chambers using a secret passage (bypassing the guards). They tied Alicent up and gagged her (she wasn't with Criston Cole) and strangled her bed maid in front of her. Then they waited for Helaena and ambushed her as she entered. They made her choose which of her boys they were going to kill, and threatened to rape her daughter if she refused. In the end she chose Maelor, probably thinking that so younga a child wouldn't understand what was happening. Blood then spoke to Maelor, saying, "look little man, your momma wants you dead", then killed Jaherys, cutting his head off with one swipe of his sword. Can't go into the political/emotional/psychological consequences without spoilers, but... every bit as bad as you can imagine.
Syrax screaming when Rhaenyra found Luc's remains was not only her feeling Rhaenyra's pain but an expression of her own pain as she was the mother of Luc's dragon Arrax. Two mothers mourning together. After Blood and Cheese, rat catchers in the Red Keep were replaced with cats. That's why Arya had so many cats to catch when training with Syrio Forel.
@@SciFiCatGuy Damn bro, so aggressive. I guess you're not used to be corrected, which would explain why you're such a dumbass. Its fine, its no the end of the world. Its 100% a headcanon for a lot of people, which is why its being spread like this. If you prefer "theory", thats also true. Its a theory that a lot of people use as a headcanon, and dumb idiots like you spread it and try to trick the casual audience to believe its true. Go and give me one single quote from the books stating that Arrax is Syrax's offspring. C'mon, c'mon.
@@SciFiCatGuy Damn bro, so aggressive. I guess you're not used to be corrected, which would explain why you're so dumb. Its fine, its no the end of the world. Its 100% a headcanon for a lot of people, which is why its being spread like this. If you prefer "theory", thats also true. Its a theory that a lot of people use as a headcanon, and dummies like you spread it and try to trick the casual audience to believe its true. Go, do your research and give me one single quote from the books stating that Arrax is Syrax's offspring, you total buffoon.
27:11 He is bringing the dog because that is what he would do on a normal workday. With the dog he looks just like any other day and nobody gets suspicious.
Wouldn’t that mean dragons can’t go through stormsend sense it was also build by bran the builder sense the red witch demon baby had to be born inside the walls of stormsend
The books have many plot lines going that make it incompatible to end like the show did. I mean many plot lines aren’t at all similar to how the series did them and in many times there are plot lines the show just didn’t include for example young Aegon who somehow wasn’t killed by the mountain in kings landing.
I loved your reaction to Aegon. You reacted the way I believe the writers intended. Tom Glynn-Carney really brought this character to life in one episode. We clearly know he is a sadistic, sociopathic rapist... yet there is something in him that wants to help others too. Maybe it is to feed his own legend!?! Yet, he has some endearing moments with his son, too. They added a layer of complexity that didn't exist in season 1. He was the standout star of the first episode. We literally sympathize with him after the brutality of what happened to his son at the end. I just want more of him on the screen.
As sensitive and insightful as always , thank you. A nice touch I think you’d like : the way Helena pointed mimicked the way Michelangelo depicted prophets and sybils pointing in the Sistine Chapel.
On second watch, I noticed how Helaena pointing out Jaehaerys seemed like a reflex, like how “she's telling true” perfectly describes her dragom dreams. It's not been explicitly said yet, but maybe she isn't able to lie
You are the only reactor that I have seen so far that recognized that Cregan sounded like Robb. Others were saying Jon, but as soon as you said it.. i was like oh shit that sounded like Robb not Jon
Possibly even before. The Dornishmen who downed Rhaenys and Meraxes were decendents of the Rhoynar who fought Valeria for hundreds of years. Chances are that the technology of scorpions came from them.
@@MrHws5mp It's a common theme to all high Fantasy worlds. GRRM, Tolkien, Parker, Sapkowski, Hobb, jordan... Technological progress is extremely slow. These worlds seem stuck in the medieval era forever. In the real-world, Motte-and-bailey castles were build during a period of about 300 years... Then they were obsolete. In westeros, they've been building those for 6000 years... And it's true for everything else (weapons, armors, ships). HoTD is set almost 200 years before GoT, and we don''t seen any difference in architecture, shipbuilding, tools, etc.
@@cyrilmeynier5688 At least some of those worlds, like Sapkowski, aren't that old, and could be explained by how universal magic is, and the fact that its a service the sorcerers offer to kings and peasants alike. And even then, there's some kind of noticeable progress like Nilfgaard's agriculture techniques. ASOIAF is absurd even among those worlds. GRRM is super bad with numbers of all kind (armies, populations, cities, years).
@@perseusveil9376yea asoiaf really doesn't make sense a lot of times when it comes to history like , how all these dynasties existing for thousands of years, warring eachother all the time with no true periods of peace, being in perpetual mid evil europe for thousands of years with no progress of any kind , and of course my favorite how house baratheon has fucked pretty much every other house but somehow always look the same and always having the same hair color no matter what.
Sofie once again proving how much of an amazing reactor she is 👏 so many reactors I've seen so far have put the entire blame on Blood & Cheese and don't pick up on Daemon's silence and facial expression (along with the scene cutting away) in his conversation with them. There was a very small chance those guys could've taken Aemond and Daemon knows this. And about what you were saying at the end, yeah I think Criston Cole was supposed to be guarding Helaena and the heirs but was otherwise... occupied 🙃 anyways wonderful reaction like always 🙌
@@vanessalore9942what was the point of that editing then? Daemon isn't an idiot. Surely he knows they wouldn't be able to kill Aemond and would either be locked away or killed if they did find him. If Daemon really had no involvement, then that's kinda dumb writing tbh.
@@cherryfreckleI think it's gonna have to go down as I e of the few small hiccups in the writing so far. If 98% of people don't get it then maybe it was a little too ambiguous.
@@GJBedrin possibly but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Although I haven't seen Matt Smith denying it, if he has it's also very possible he could be lying. The editing making it ambiguous gives it an opportunity for Daemon's involvement to still be treated as a dramatic reveal next episode. Would also explain why Rhaenyra is that mad at him.
@@cherryfreckle they could kill aemond if they found him. He wouldn't be prepared, could be sleeping, could not have his sword at reach... It was more likely to them kill him than the otherwise
"why bring a dog with you" Because he is a rat-catcher. The dog helps him find rats. People in the red keep are used to see him going around with the dog, so he wants to keep things as usual as possible to avoid looking suspect.
Im sorry but Daemon blaming those three makes a lot of sense. He's not blaming everyone, but the three who could have done something about it. No matter what the consequences are, from Daemon's pov, they were close to Aegon and did nothing. Rhaenys had the whole Greens before her eyes, and did nothing. Mysaria literally let Aegon go after having him for hours. And Erryk had Aegon in his grasp, and did nothing. While i agree Erryk couldn't have done anything there, but from that pov, he literally stood by and watched.
I agree except with the kingsguard. The only way he could strike down a royal family member without technically losing his honor is if Queen Rhaenyra ordered it or if he was preventing her assassination. Since she wasn't around the best he could do is go find and serve the true queen
why would any of these people do rhaenyra and daemon's dirty work? One is a kingsguard who was safeguarding aegon for years, the other hasnt seen Daemon in years and the last time she saw him he put her life in danger, and rhaenys makes less sense but the taboo of kinslaying is strong in westeros
Eversince GOT, you pick up on the smallest details and you have empathy and tries to understand different characters - even the “villains” of the story.
One really funny detail: both times we see Alicent and Criston doing the deed, they're in Rhaenyra's old bedroom (which Alicent has apparently moved into now that she is no longer the Queen). So... make of *that* what you will.
It's kinda a small thing but I LOVE that they found someone with the same accent as Robb Stark to voice this Stark. It immediately clued me in to who I was listening to. And on a vaguely related note, I found Mysaria's accent far more bearable this episode lol
It's really hard for a show or movie to make me cry, but hearing the Stark theme got me immediately emotional too! By the time I got to the scene with Jace and Rhaenyra I was actually weeping, what an incredibly emotional episode (both in a sad way and in a funny way omg the greens were hilarious this episode). I've read the books no lie about a hundred times, I pretty much have them memorized, and unlike a lot of book readers I'm VERY happy with how they did the ending here. Phia's facial acting blew me away, that woman knows how to play traumatic shock. Even better/worse is her being clairvoyant, you can hear her muttering to herself in the earlier scene "they only want the boy" while actively sewing a funerary shroud! Absolutely brilliant.
True but not cool. Lol not like he didn’t make proper amends or attempt to. And shouldn’t have had to make that deal his MOM made anyway. But yes technically lol
@@GlennShook well, his mom was just the messenger. He agreed to it. And he didn’t really make amends, he made what’s-his-name make amends. (I feel horrible for having a brain freeze on his name!) lol. Poor Rob. A victim of love.
There is a magic that prevents the dead from crossing the wall. It is assumed that what they say in HOT is that even the dragons were afraid, not that they couldn't. In addition, I have seen it explained that when touching the king of the night Bran breaks all the magic that prevented the dead from passing... There are no guards around the castle because some were with the king, and the commander of the royal guard that must protect the royal family (king, queen and heirs) was with Allicent. It's all so well done...
I'm so happy to watch your reaction to this. When I first watched the episode, I wasn't sure how I felt about it... but watching again with you, I feel like I was able to feel the emotions alongside you. Thank you
The current Lord of Riverrun is Lord Grover Tully. Lord Grover's son is named Elmo, and Elmo's sons are Oscar and Kermit. These are Lord George R.R. Martin's tribute to Ser Jim Henson and his Muppets.
The story Cregan Stark told Jace never happened in asoiaf: the timeline is simply messed up. But it's true that queen Alysanne visited the Wall and that her Dragon, Silververwing, could not pass it. I think Hotd is drawing a line here, telling the viewers it is its own show and not really a prequel of GoT. About the ending of this episode, it was toned down. A lot.
Yes, you are right, Sofie: the sound of the blade or saw was horrifying... And yet there are people complaining that the scene was not explicit enough...😱
Typical book purist.. They cant be satisfied with anything. They gonna complaint and write one long paragraphs so people knew they're book reader and higher than other people that doesn't read the book
This universe is so gangster, man! They were like "you know, the last episode was pretty bleak and brutal with a young child getting eaten alive by a dragon, so for this episode let's mix it up and have an even younger child get decapitated".
I'm literally as far into this as you identifying ICE! and you are definitely top tier! And it's so nice to be back with you! You are intelligent and compassionate. Can't wait to see what you think of this season as whole! Keep up the epic work 🤩
Hi! So good to see you again! The musical theme we hear in the beginning is ‘Goodbye, brother’, a variation on the Stark theme which plays at the end of season 5, when Jon… you know. ‘For the Watch’. So I think that even if it is unconscious for many of us, it hits hard in the feels because it is very much associated with a heart-wrenching moment.
Dear Sofie, I've been watching your got and hot d reactions over the course of the last year or so and have been waiting to catch up in order to leave a comment. I LOVE the way you do reaction videos, you're very perceptive and pay great attention to all the little details and lore easter eggs. It's a pleasure watching your vids and reliving the episodes one more time! I'm really happy you remained at it and am looking forward to one more amazing season of this amazing series! 🔥🐉
and some fans say that Ser Crispin is not an incel that he just doesn’t hate Rhaenyra because she refused his proposal of going to Essos to sell oranges but more so because she “corrupted” him and “made” him soiled his white cloak like dude if you really care about your white cloak and honor you wouldn’t be eating Alicent’s happy meal every night and probably mornings. I swear his hypocrisy is on another level
I think from this episode, it's become really clear that Aegon above anything else desires the approval of others. He's always lived in Rhaenyra's shadow, never felt like his father Viserys wanted him to be king, always felt like his mother Alicent was disappointed in him for not putting in enough effort to be king, and in this episode, feeling like his grandfather Otto is constantly undermining him. Clearly, Aegon is now focused on pleasing the common folk of Westeros/King's Landing, which explains his complete reversal in emotion and attitude during his coronation ceremony last season. He wants to be known and remembered as "magnanimous", and he's making that happen by being a "nice king". However, he's more than happy to burn down the small folk of Riverrun who he claims to have affection for should they not swear allegiance to him.
34:43 I think you got the names mixed up cause I think you called them both Daemon, but the eye-patch guy is Aemond. But I totally understand, it took me the whole S1 to remember who is calles Rhaenyra, who Rhaenys and who Rhaena, got those mixed up all the time 😂
Good reaction. Remember, the Queen had 5 kids total. Three with lord Strong and two with her uncle. Also, the dog was part of the cover, as they are and have been used IRL by exterminators.
The man asked, what if we can't find Aemond and Daemon smirked! He obviously answered if you can't find the former King's son kill the present King's son! 👍👍😉😉👱♀👱♀👗👗👠👠❤❤
Dan and David had no more books to adapt so they made Dany go Over the wall with her dragons. In theory it shouldn't have been possible because the wall prevents magic from crossing over. This means her dragons are still alive (let me be delulu okay 😭)
Putting a woman (Cersei) on the throne and no backlash or anything of the kind happened was all showrunners writing! and they didnt care about the dance of the dragons at all.
what did aemond tell team green about vhagar and lucerys? the truth, that he lost control one of the biggest dragons in westeros, would be too humiliating. who would believe it was an accident, with no excuse to defend it, nor apology or amends that could possibly satisfy rhaenyra? no, i suspect aemond would decide to simply shrug and own it, with an extra helping of swagger on top. what else would that character do?
in the book "Blood and Cheese." Alicent and all three kids were in bedroom with Helena made to choose which one will die to 3 awake kids. Helena chose her youngest son to die and they killed the oldest instead. In books Helena could never look her youngest son eyes again.
18:00 Yes, and remember his coronation, before that he said he had no desire, was unfit and so on. But, when he got the crown and all the smallfolk/people cheered for him, even tho they were brought up there almost against their will, he felt exactly that. Love, not just power really, but people cheering specifically for him. He is almost trying to give it back. Same with his son, Viserys never tought him how to be king and was almost an absent father, so he almost overcorrect with Jaehaerys. Idk how it plays out, only couple particular bits from histories and lore and some episode in GoT, but watch it be that Aegon would be loved by the people, the people with hate Rhaenyra for "a son for a son" thing, and when she takes over they won't give her any love or loyalty. And, honestly, given what Rhaenyra said about the people and their opinion in s1, she won't care about what they think.
4:54 Magic creatures cannot cross the wall. The fact that Daenerys' dragons crossed pissed off real fans of the series. It was just lazy writing from D&D and it won't happen that way in the winds of winter.
Funny no one mentions WHY Torrhen Stark? Who started sending more men to the wall? Even tho many Starks have before that..Torrhen made it tradition. Who bent the knee to Aegon, who knew a storm was coming out of the north someday. Maybe he shared that with Torrhen 😮
Allicent and Cole were doing dirty since last season. In ep 9 she said something like, the love you have for me.... I think they been secretly doing it for a while
Alicent got angry with Rhaenyra because she soiled her image in a public brothel while Alicent and Viserys were organizing tours to find her a husband, tours that she wasted even tho it was a completely unique opportunity for a westerosi woman. Then, in Alicent's POV, Rhaenyra swore on her mother's grave and lied to her, and again in Alicent's pov that cost her father his job. Later she's angry because she had three bastard which is fine, but then she passed them as heirs to the throne which is not, its considered high treason. Alicent is a widow, already did her duty to Viserys giving him four legitimate children, isn't having any bastards with Cole etc I know the show intented it to be hypocrisy because they hate the greens guts and are constantly making up evil shit about them but merely by ASOIAF knowledge, even by IRL medieval standars, the situations aren't the same.
The female sister of King Jaehaerys I, Alyssane the kind Queen, tried to cross the Wall with her Dragon and it was impossible, she also thought that the 101st was giving the throne to Viserys by conquest, it was a hard blow to their relationship. ..Licencia gratuita lo de GOT
I cannot understand why Ser Criston Cole hates Rhaenyra so much. Well, yes, she refused to escape with him, but this does not seem a sufficient reason for such bitter hatred, which even extended to Rhaenyra's innocent children. A question for psychologists...
He’s just nuts and evil like almost all the greens. Why else kill an old lord on small council, why get it on with Alicent when he’s now commander of kings guard
@@GlennShook An old lord who in his stupidity publicly accused the queen of murdering the king... Do you remember what happened to another not very wise lord who publicly called the princess a hoe? Foolish lords who publicly accuse members of the royal family end badly.
bc she rejected him. that's literally it. men kill women over being rejected all the time. incels go on killing sprees bc of it. he's a white knight or a "nice guy" (the opposite of nice)
He’s a rage bait. To entice reaction and fury from audience. He is not even a character anymore. Just feel bad for Fabien - probably did not know from the beginning that he’s character is just reduced to this.
36:15 Imagine people saying they were underwhelmed. I know that in the book it is even worse, and adds more for what's to come, but like, cmon, and showrunner even said that for legal reasons they couldn't do 1 to 1 (which is fair, because it would traumatize child actors for life if they did it as written in the book)
Back during the time of Aegon the Conqueror, the Dornish had scorpion weapons. They shot the dragon Meraxas from the sky. Meraxas being one of the original three, that was ridden by Queen Rhaenys. I tend to think that the new King Aegon may feel fairly comfortable with the common folk, as he spent so much time in his city among them, even if it was when he was behaving so badly. But I do agree with you that he is wanting to be liked by his subjects. And Mysaria, the White Worm, was fleeing on that ship because her home was burned down, courtesy of Larys. With your emotional response to the Stark music, I hope you would consider reading the book series if you haven’t already. The Stark family becomes even more beloved when you read the books in my opinion.
The judgment to Rhaenyra was due to her being a “virgin” and for marriage she’d need to be pure. Alicent’s husband died so at this point she’s just doing whatever. Although on Cristons side he swore an oath, broke it, and is now petty
I mean Joffery had a bunch of children bastards killed, we saw em drown one, and they stabbed an infant.... guess the sound was just a screaming women tho.
10:48 Rewatch episode 8 of s1 you see why he now is committed to the role in that episode when he sees how the crowd reacts to his crowning as king. Has to do with him always being ignored and dismissed by Viserys who tbh was a shit father to his children with Alicent lol.
I like how Aegon is now presented. He is, at least now, not some Joffrey no. 2, but we will see how he will react on his son death. Maybe it will shift him to much more dark position. Only part I did not like was whole Cole-Alicent relationship. Its weird... Otherwise, episode was great and I am happy to see again your reactions :) Book !SPOILER! Whole last part is even worse in books, where Queen have 3 kids (daughter and two sons) and must pick one of her son, or they will kill them all. She picked her younger son, because thought he will not understand, but they killed her older son and left, while her younger son was fully aware she choosed him and never forgave her.
In the books the Blood and Cheese part at the end was WAY more brutal and disturbing. If you want a non spoiler book comparison of that scene you should watch this vid. (Vid is in the responses to this one cus yt is censoring me hard)
I never noticed Aegon playing with his fingers but as soon as you said it I thought about how Alicent used to tear her fingers up in the early episodes of season 1!
Blood and Cheese knew the phrase "a son for a son". They wouldn't have phrased it like that if that wasn't exactly what Daemon told them after they asked "what if we can't find Aemond".
Sofie, you are by far the most perceptive, fair and compassionate reactor, thank you ❤
I love watching your reactions, because you see the little details that can matter so much; like here, noting how Alicent, in complete privacy, not only lights a candle for Luke, but for Lucerys Velaryon. His bastardy has become irrelevant now in death; he was a child, her former best friend's child.
Thank you for your nuance, it's much appreciated ❤
This incident is known as "Blood and Cheese" (the nicknames of the assasin and the ratcatcher. beleive it or not, it was WAY worse in the book, at least according to the (possibly unreliable) story that went down in history. In the book, Cheese knew that the Helaena would take her children (including two-year old Maelor, not seen in the show) to see Alicent every night before bed, so him and Blood got into Alicent's chambers using a secret passage (bypassing the guards). They tied Alicent up and gagged her (she wasn't with Criston Cole) and strangled her bed maid in front of her. Then they waited for Helaena and ambushed her as she entered. They made her choose which of her boys they were going to kill, and threatened to rape her daughter if she refused. In the end she chose Maelor, probably thinking that so younga a child wouldn't understand what was happening. Blood then spoke to Maelor, saying, "look little man, your momma wants you dead", then killed Jaherys, cutting his head off with one swipe of his sword.
Can't go into the political/emotional/psychological consequences without spoilers, but... every bit as bad as you can imagine.
Now you can imagine how mad Aegon will get from hearing his innocent son has been killed. Now both sides have a personal stake in this conflict.
Syrax screaming when Rhaenyra found Luc's remains was not only her feeling Rhaenyra's pain but an expression of her own pain as she was the mother of Luc's dragon Arrax. Two mothers mourning together.
After Blood and Cheese, rat catchers in the Red Keep were replaced with cats. That's why Arya had so many cats to catch when training with Syrio Forel.
We don't really know if Syrax is Arrax mother, its just headcanon.
@@perseusveil9376 but it's not "headcannon." Do your research.
@@perseusveil9376 a simple Google search is all it would have taken for you to see you are wrong, yet you chose to spit shit without checking.
@@SciFiCatGuy Damn bro, so aggressive. I guess you're not used to be corrected, which would explain why you're such a dumbass. Its fine, its no the end of the world. Its 100% a headcanon for a lot of people, which is why its being spread like this.
If you prefer "theory", thats also true. Its a theory that a lot of people use as a headcanon, and dumb idiots like you spread it and try to trick the casual audience to believe its true. Go and give me one single quote from the books stating that Arrax is Syrax's offspring. C'mon, c'mon.
@@SciFiCatGuy Damn bro, so aggressive. I guess you're not used to be corrected, which would explain why you're so dumb. Its fine, its no the end of the world. Its 100% a headcanon for a lot of people, which is why its being spread like this.
If you prefer "theory", thats also true. Its a theory that a lot of people use as a headcanon, and dummies like you spread it and try to trick the casual audience to believe its true. Go, do your research and give me one single quote from the books stating that Arrax is Syrax's offspring, you total buffoon.
the whole episode Rhaenera only spoke a sentence
"i want Aemond Targaryen"
She first wanted her uncle, now she wants her half-brother
27:11 He is bringing the dog because that is what he would do on a normal workday. With the dog he looks just like any other day and nobody gets suspicious.
Yup. People forgot dog are rat catchers. It would less suspicious bringing the dog along
Daenerys’dragons flying over the wall was an invent of D&D so I think that George is planning another ending and putting clues in HoTD.
Maybe in the books. They're not going to redo the last seasons of GoT. Lol
Daenerys' dragons did not cross the wall, they came along the sea
On the other hand, they were not born in the 7 kingdoms either
Wouldn’t that mean dragons can’t go through stormsend sense it was also build by bran the builder sense the red witch demon baby had to be born inside the walls of stormsend
The books have many plot lines going that make it incompatible to end like the show did. I mean many plot lines aren’t at all similar to how the series did them and in many times there are plot lines the show just didn’t include for example young Aegon who somehow wasn’t killed by the mountain in kings landing.
@@cristianbejarano2000 True Never thought of that
Everyone- Master of Whisperers
Daemon- Merchant of Gossip.
Lol.
Sofie got the Stark theme in two notes!
the hallway Helaena walk holding her daughter from her room to Alicent room is the same path Rhaenyra walk with Joffrey after giving birth.
I loved your reaction to Aegon. You reacted the way I believe the writers intended. Tom Glynn-Carney really brought this character to life in one episode. We clearly know he is a sadistic, sociopathic rapist... yet there is something in him that wants to help others too. Maybe it is to feed his own legend!?! Yet, he has some endearing moments with his son, too. They added a layer of complexity that didn't exist in season 1. He was the standout star of the first episode. We literally sympathize with him after the brutality of what happened to his son at the end. I just want more of him on the screen.
As sensitive and insightful as always , thank you. A nice touch I think you’d like : the way Helena pointed mimicked the way Michelangelo depicted prophets and sybils pointing in the Sistine Chapel.
On second watch, I noticed how Helaena pointing out Jaehaerys seemed like a reflex, like how “she's telling true” perfectly describes her dragom dreams.
It's not been explicitly said yet, but maybe she isn't able to lie
You are the only reactor that I have seen so far that recognized that Cregan sounded like Robb. Others were saying Jon, but as soon as you said it.. i was like oh shit that sounded like Robb not Jon
As a mom whose lost a child, this episode killed me.
Scorpions have existed since the time of the conquer
Possibly even before. The Dornishmen who downed Rhaenys and Meraxes were decendents of the Rhoynar who fought Valeria for hundreds of years. Chances are that the technology of scorpions came from them.
@@MrHws5mp It's a common theme to all high Fantasy worlds. GRRM, Tolkien, Parker, Sapkowski, Hobb, jordan...
Technological progress is extremely slow. These worlds seem stuck in the medieval era forever.
In the real-world, Motte-and-bailey castles were build during a period of about 300 years... Then they were obsolete.
In westeros, they've been building those for 6000 years... And it's true for everything else (weapons, armors, ships).
HoTD is set almost 200 years before GoT, and we don''t seen any difference in architecture, shipbuilding, tools, etc.
@@cyrilmeynier5688 At least some of those worlds, like Sapkowski, aren't that old, and could be explained by how universal magic is, and the fact that its a service the sorcerers offer to kings and peasants alike. And even then, there's some kind of noticeable progress like Nilfgaard's agriculture techniques.
ASOIAF is absurd even among those worlds. GRRM is super bad with numbers of all kind (armies, populations, cities, years).
Admittedly Qyburn said he "modified" a scorpion.
@@perseusveil9376yea asoiaf really doesn't make sense a lot of times when it comes to history like , how all these dynasties existing for thousands of years, warring eachother all the time with no true periods of peace, being in perpetual mid evil europe for thousands of years with no progress of any kind , and of course my favorite how house baratheon has fucked pretty much every other house but somehow always look the same and always having the same hair color no matter what.
Tom (Aegon ) improvised all his one liners
Guy is killing it
That "other child" of Rheanerya's is her son Joffrey.😊
Sofie once again proving how much of an amazing reactor she is 👏 so many reactors I've seen so far have put the entire blame on Blood & Cheese and don't pick up on Daemon's silence and facial expression (along with the scene cutting away) in his conversation with them. There was a very small chance those guys could've taken Aemond and Daemon knows this.
And about what you were saying at the end, yeah I think Criston Cole was supposed to be guarding Helaena and the heirs but was otherwise... occupied 🙃 anyways wonderful reaction like always 🙌
Isn’t it funny that Matt Smith denied it
@@vanessalore9942what was the point of that editing then? Daemon isn't an idiot. Surely he knows they wouldn't be able to kill Aemond and would either be locked away or killed if they did find him. If Daemon really had no involvement, then that's kinda dumb writing tbh.
@@cherryfreckleI think it's gonna have to go down as I e of the few small hiccups in the writing so far. If 98% of people don't get it then maybe it was a little too ambiguous.
@@GJBedrin possibly but I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Although I haven't seen Matt Smith denying it, if he has it's also very possible he could be lying. The editing making it ambiguous gives it an opportunity for Daemon's involvement to still be treated as a dramatic reveal next episode. Would also explain why Rhaenyra is that mad at him.
@@cherryfreckle they could kill aemond if they found him. He wouldn't be prepared, could be sleeping, could not have his sword at reach... It was more likely to them kill him than the otherwise
Aegon stole the episode! Amazing character and amazing performance 🙌🏼
"why bring a dog with you"
Because he is a rat-catcher. The dog helps him find rats. People in the red keep are used to see him going around with the dog, so he wants to keep things as usual as possible to avoid looking suspect.
"A son for son" was Damons answer. The title of the episode.
Im sorry but Daemon blaming those three makes a lot of sense. He's not blaming everyone, but the three who could have done something about it. No matter what the consequences are, from Daemon's pov, they were close to Aegon and did nothing.
Rhaenys had the whole Greens before her eyes, and did nothing. Mysaria literally let Aegon go after having him for hours. And Erryk had Aegon in his grasp, and did nothing. While i agree Erryk couldn't have done anything there, but from that pov, he literally stood by and watched.
I agree except with the kingsguard. The only way he could strike down a royal family member without technically losing his honor is if Queen Rhaenyra ordered it or if he was preventing her assassination. Since she wasn't around the best he could do is go find and serve the true queen
How many times was Daemon close to Aegon...?
@@robertmarginean164 Not once after Aegon and the Hightowers committed treason. He could have taken out Otto but Queen Rhaenyra let him live
why would any of these people do rhaenyra and daemon's dirty work? One is a kingsguard who was safeguarding aegon for years, the other hasnt seen Daemon in years and the last time she saw him he put her life in danger, and rhaenys makes less sense but the taboo of kinslaying is strong in westeros
You are the only reactor I’ve watched that notice the “what if we can’t find him” question that cheese asked
Eversince GOT, you pick up on the smallest details and you have empathy and tries to understand different characters - even the “villains” of the story.
One really funny detail: both times we see Alicent and Criston doing the deed, they're in Rhaenyra's old bedroom (which Alicent has apparently moved into now that she is no longer the Queen). So... make of *that* what you will.
Rhaenys : It's not my war to begin.
Also Rhaenys : kills hundreds of smallfolk, just to smike at Aegon.
It's kinda a small thing but I LOVE that they found someone with the same accent as Robb Stark to voice this Stark. It immediately clued me in to who I was listening to. And on a vaguely related note, I found Mysaria's accent far more bearable this episode lol
It's really hard for a show or movie to make me cry, but hearing the Stark theme got me immediately emotional too! By the time I got to the scene with Jace and Rhaenyra I was actually weeping, what an incredibly emotional episode (both in a sad way and in a funny way omg the greens were hilarious this episode). I've read the books no lie about a hundred times, I pretty much have them memorized, and unlike a lot of book readers I'm VERY happy with how they did the ending here. Phia's facial acting blew me away, that woman knows how to play traumatic shock. Even better/worse is her being clairvoyant, you can hear her muttering to herself in the earlier scene "they only want the boy" while actively sewing a funerary shroud! Absolutely brilliant.
Yes, Daemon reprimands everyone when he himself knows how to get to the royal chambers, we saw it many chapters ago
“Except Rob” omg 😱BURN!
True but not cool. Lol not like he didn’t make proper amends or attempt to. And shouldn’t have had to make that deal his MOM made anyway. But yes technically lol
@@GlennShook well, his mom was just the messenger. He agreed to it. And he didn’t really make amends, he made what’s-his-name make amends. (I feel horrible for having a brain freeze on his name!) lol. Poor Rob. A victim of love.
There is a magic that prevents the dead from crossing the wall. It is assumed that what they say in HOT is that even the dragons were afraid, not that they couldn't. In addition, I have seen it explained that when touching the king of the night Bran breaks all the magic that prevented the dead from passing... There are no guards around the castle because some were with the king, and the commander of the royal guard that must protect the royal family (king, queen and heirs) was with Allicent. It's all so well done...
I'm so happy to watch your reaction to this. When I first watched the episode, I wasn't sure how I felt about it... but watching again with you, I feel like I was able to feel the emotions alongside you. Thank you
The current Lord of Riverrun is Lord Grover Tully. Lord Grover's son is named Elmo, and Elmo's sons are Oscar and Kermit.
These are Lord George R.R. Martin's tribute to Ser Jim Henson and his Muppets.
"You know nothing, Ser Criston Coooooole" --- Queen Alicent
37:46 The guards were with king and Cole left his post for Alicent
And half of kings guard sided with rhaenyra
Loved your reaction!!! You really pay attention to the little details in the story. Great job!!! ❤️❤️👍🏾
The story Cregan Stark told Jace never happened in asoiaf: the timeline is simply messed up. But it's true that queen Alysanne visited the Wall and that her Dragon, Silververwing, could not pass it. I think Hotd is drawing a line here, telling the viewers it is its own show and not really a prequel of GoT.
About the ending of this episode, it was toned down. A lot.
Yes, you are right, Sofie: the sound of the blade or saw was horrifying... And yet there are people complaining that the scene was not explicit enough...😱
Typical book purist.. They cant be satisfied with anything. They gonna complaint and write one long paragraphs so people knew they're book reader and higher than other people that doesn't read the book
Yes I cried when winterfell music started playing lol it was epic ❤ my boyfriend was like are you okay 😂
It's great to see that I wasn't the only one who started to cry at that moment☺
This universe is so gangster, man!
They were like "you know, the last episode was pretty bleak and brutal with a young child getting eaten alive by a dragon, so for this episode let's mix it up and have an even younger child get decapitated".
But first they have to show the audience how adorable the child was!
I'm literally as far into this as you identifying ICE! and you are definitely top tier! And it's so nice to be back with you! You are intelligent and compassionate. Can't wait to see what you think of this season as whole!
Keep up the epic work 🤩
Soo happy to be back and glad you still have the BEST reactions on this series.👍🏼👍🏼
Hi! So good to see you again! The musical theme we hear in the beginning is ‘Goodbye, brother’, a variation on the Stark theme which plays at the end of season 5, when Jon… you know. ‘For the Watch’. So I think that even if it is unconscious for many of us, it hits hard in the feels because it is very much associated with a heart-wrenching moment.
I believe the only reason why Dani's dragons crossed was because the showrunners didn't have the final plan or they just didn't care about the lore.
Great reaction Sofie. Glad you're back doing House of the Dragon reactions.
Dear Sofie,
I've been watching your got and hot d reactions over the course of the last year or so and have been waiting to catch up in order to leave a comment.
I LOVE the way you do reaction videos, you're very perceptive and pay great attention to all the little details and lore easter eggs. It's a pleasure watching your vids and reliving the episodes one more time!
I'm really happy you remained at it and am looking forward to one more amazing season of this amazing series!
🔥🐉
Wow, thank you!☺️
and some fans say that Ser Crispin is not an incel that he just doesn’t hate Rhaenyra because she refused his proposal of going to Essos to sell oranges but more so because she “corrupted” him and “made” him soiled his white cloak like dude if you really care about your white cloak and honor you wouldn’t be eating Alicent’s happy meal every night and probably mornings.
I swear his hypocrisy is on another level
Rhaenyra was truly a ho3
"Eating her happy meal" is my new phrase for that, thank you
OMG it's good to see you again
The whole run Helaena did to Alicents room gives me so much anxiety, there isn't a single person around.
I think from this episode, it's become really clear that Aegon above anything else desires the approval of others. He's always lived in Rhaenyra's shadow, never felt like his father Viserys wanted him to be king, always felt like his mother Alicent was disappointed in him for not putting in enough effort to be king, and in this episode, feeling like his grandfather Otto is constantly undermining him. Clearly, Aegon is now focused on pleasing the common folk of Westeros/King's Landing, which explains his complete reversal in emotion and attitude during his coronation ceremony last season. He wants to be known and remembered as "magnanimous", and he's making that happen by being a "nice king". However, he's more than happy to burn down the small folk of Riverrun who he claims to have affection for should they not swear allegiance to him.
34:43 I think you got the names mixed up cause I think you called them both Daemon, but the eye-patch guy is Aemond. But I totally understand, it took me the whole S1 to remember who is calles Rhaenyra, who Rhaenys and who Rhaena, got those mixed up all the time 😂
Good reaction. Remember, the Queen had 5 kids total. Three with lord Strong and two with her uncle.
Also, the dog was part of the cover, as they are and have been used IRL by exterminators.
I too enjoyed Aegon this episode!! he was very entertaining
"I want him too....for another reason..." GIRLLLL you understand!
The man asked, what if we can't find Aemond and Daemon smirked! He obviously answered if you can't find the former King's son kill the present King's son! 👍👍😉😉👱♀👱♀👗👗👠👠❤❤
Dan and David had no more books to adapt so they made Dany go Over the wall with her dragons. In theory it shouldn't have been possible because the wall prevents magic from crossing over. This means her dragons are still alive (let me be delulu okay 😭)
Daenerys dragons going north of the wall was showrunners writing. Its not in the books, at least not yet, so makes sense
Putting a woman (Cersei) on the throne and no backlash or anything of the kind happened was all showrunners writing! and they didnt care about the dance of the dragons at all.
what did aemond tell team green about vhagar and lucerys? the truth, that he lost control one of the biggest dragons in westeros, would be too humiliating. who would believe it was an accident, with no excuse to defend it, nor apology or amends that could possibly satisfy rhaenyra? no, i suspect aemond would decide to simply shrug and own it, with an extra helping of swagger on top. what else would that character do?
in the book "Blood and Cheese."
Alicent and all three kids were in bedroom with Helena made to choose which one will die to 3 awake kids. Helena chose her youngest son to die and they killed the oldest instead. In books Helena could never look her youngest son eyes again.
Scorpions were invented by the Rhoynar, and then Dorne. 1 of the 3 dragons from Aegon the conquer was killed by a shot thru the eye, in Dorne.
We now know that the King of the North did not kneel until Aegon, who had no interest in burning northerners, told him the prophecy
18:00 Yes, and remember his coronation, before that he said he had no desire, was unfit and so on. But, when he got the crown and all the smallfolk/people cheered for him, even tho they were brought up there almost against their will, he felt exactly that. Love, not just power really, but people cheering specifically for him. He is almost trying to give it back. Same with his son, Viserys never tought him how to be king and was almost an absent father, so he almost overcorrect with Jaehaerys. Idk how it plays out, only couple particular bits from histories and lore and some episode in GoT, but watch it be that Aegon would be loved by the people, the people with hate Rhaenyra for "a son for a son" thing, and when she takes over they won't give her any love or loyalty. And, honestly, given what Rhaenyra said about the people and their opinion in s1, she won't care about what they think.
After almost two years I say: Hi SoFie ✌
Dark wings, dark words...
Very little from the last four seasons of GoT should be considered canon.
4:54 Magic creatures cannot cross the wall. The fact that Daenerys' dragons crossed pissed off real fans of the series. It was just lazy writing from D&D and it won't happen that way in the winds of winter.
Joffrey used to look nervous when Tywin and Tyrion Lannister told him off lol but only them
I think once Bran stark cross the wall after being marked by the night king ... the spell of magic on the wall broke
Funny no one mentions WHY Torrhen Stark? Who started sending more men to the wall? Even tho many Starks have before that..Torrhen made it tradition. Who bent the knee to Aegon, who knew a storm was coming out of the north someday. Maybe he shared that with Torrhen 😮
Daenerys crossed the wall with her dragons because it wasn’t in the book and the show writers made it up to finish the story
Allicent and Cole were doing dirty since last season. In ep 9 she said something like, the love you have for me.... I think they been secretly doing it for a while
And now it's not a secret anymore... They didn't even lock the f**** door.
Alicent got angry with Rhaenyra because she soiled her image in a public brothel while Alicent and Viserys were organizing tours to find her a husband, tours that she wasted even tho it was a completely unique opportunity for a westerosi woman. Then, in Alicent's POV, Rhaenyra swore on her mother's grave and lied to her, and again in Alicent's pov that cost her father his job. Later she's angry because she had three bastard which is fine, but then she passed them as heirs to the throne which is not, its considered high treason. Alicent is a widow, already did her duty to Viserys giving him four legitimate children, isn't having any bastards with Cole etc I know the show intented it to be hypocrisy because they hate the greens guts and are constantly making up evil shit about them but merely by ASOIAF knowledge, even by IRL medieval standars, the situations aren't the same.
Helaena and her children are the real victims of this show😢
I'm so happy to be back with you ❤❤❤❤
The female sister of King Jaehaerys I, Alyssane the kind Queen, tried to cross the Wall with her Dragon and it was impossible, she also thought that the 101st was giving the throne to Viserys by conquest, it was a hard blow to their relationship. ..Licencia gratuita lo de GOT
I cannot understand why Ser Criston Cole hates Rhaenyra so much. Well, yes, she refused to escape with him, but this does not seem a sufficient reason for such bitter hatred, which even extended to Rhaenyra's innocent children. A question for psychologists...
He’s just nuts and evil like almost all the greens. Why else kill an old lord on small council, why get it on with Alicent when he’s now commander of kings guard
@@GlennShook An old lord who in his stupidity publicly accused the queen of murdering the king... Do you remember what happened to another not very wise lord who publicly called the princess a hoe? Foolish lords who publicly accuse members of the royal family end badly.
It's dumb and Alicent still looking out for Rhaenyra is just as dumb
bc she rejected him. that's literally it. men kill women over being rejected all the time. incels go on killing sprees bc of it. he's a white knight or a "nice guy" (the opposite of nice)
He’s a rage bait. To entice reaction and fury from audience. He is not even a character anymore. Just feel bad for Fabien - probably did not know from the beginning that he’s character is just reduced to this.
YOU ARE SO SMART ♥ the best hotd reactor
Alicent is such a hypocrite
4:43 - We wonder too, Sofie 😂😂🤷🏻♂
36:15 Imagine people saying they were underwhelmed. I know that in the book it is even worse, and adds more for what's to come, but like, cmon, and showrunner even said that for legal reasons they couldn't do 1 to 1 (which is fair, because it would traumatize child actors for life if they did it as written in the book)
Dorne people invented the scorpion during aegon conquest
Back during the time of Aegon the Conqueror, the Dornish had scorpion weapons. They shot the dragon Meraxas from the sky. Meraxas being one of the original three, that was ridden by Queen Rhaenys. I tend to think that the new King Aegon may feel fairly comfortable with the common folk, as he spent so much time in his city among them, even if it was when he was behaving so badly. But I do agree with you that he is wanting to be liked by his subjects. And Mysaria, the White Worm, was fleeing on that ship because her home was burned down, courtesy of Larys. With your emotional response to the Stark music, I hope you would consider reading the book series if you haven’t already. The Stark family becomes even more beloved when you read the books in my opinion.
4:44 because the last two seasons are hereby declared not cannon anymore lol (really dont know if thats true but it should be)
The judgment to Rhaenyra was due to her being a “virgin” and for marriage she’d need to be pure. Alicent’s husband died so at this point she’s just doing whatever. Although on Cristons side he swore an oath, broke it, and is now petty
Nothing can be darker than GOT .
Hotd : hold my dragon
We literally saw babies being butchered alive and saw their bodies in GOT S1 .. that is still darker
I mean Joffery had a bunch of children bastards killed, we saw em drown one, and they stabbed an infant.... guess the sound was just a screaming women tho.
These people make me wish the Night King would arrive early.
Dany's dragons never crossed the Wall, they went around it at EastWatch-by-the-Sea.
Lmao “to be honest I want him too… for another reason” 😹😹
But kinda same if he wasn’t way too young for me. What is it that’s so attractive about him?
Cole went down on the queen. Lucky guy
Is great to be back in westeros! Poor Rhaenyra and Helaena 😢😢😢😢
10:48 Rewatch episode 8 of s1 you see why he now is committed to the role in that episode when he sees how the crowd reacts to his crowning as king.
Has to do with him always being ignored and dismissed by Viserys who tbh was a shit father to his children with Alicent lol.
other's rob, some say jon snow 😂😂
The wall was imbued with magic remeber
Yes I see it 28:14 Steve from stranger things lol
Yesssss SoFie! Ser Criston Cole searching for duty and sacrifice beneath Queen Mother Alicent’s skirt of moral righteousness. 🙊
Miss you sofie.
"Being a mum is the worst thing in this universe" - well, being a dog isn't too good either ;)
I like how Aegon is now presented. He is, at least now, not some Joffrey no. 2, but we will see how he will react on his son death. Maybe it will shift him to much more dark position.
Only part I did not like was whole Cole-Alicent relationship. Its weird...
Otherwise, episode was great and I am happy to see again your reactions :)
Book !SPOILER!
Whole last part is even worse in books, where Queen have 3 kids (daughter and two sons) and must pick one of her son, or they will kill them all. She picked her younger son, because thought he will not understand, but they killed her older son and left, while her younger son was fully aware she choosed him and never forgave her.
In the books the Blood and Cheese part at the end was WAY more brutal and disturbing.
If you want a non spoiler book comparison of that scene you should watch this vid. (Vid is in the responses to this one cus yt is censoring me hard)
This vid: ua-cam.com/video/ihQRKcs_xTQ/v-deo.htmlsi=m08xrlzZK89XMZia