#Anti Rhaenyra Targaryen

[aryas-faces]

Is this a fucking joke?!

ALICENT has never sacrificed anything?!

Alicent has sacrificed EVERYTHING

She sacrificed her choices and happiness for Otto by marrying the King. She sacrificed her friendship with Rhaenyra. She sacrificed her bodily autonomy to give the king a male heir. She sacrificed her own safety for the safety of her children. She was prepared to die by dragonfire for Aegon, sacrificing her own life for his

But no. She has never sacrificed anything. Everything has been handed to her on a silver platter according to these writers

Meanwhile wtf has Rhaenyra sacrificed? A random knight so she could marry Daemon? A ton of innocent people for more dragons? Those aren’t personal sacrifices the way Alicent’s are. She’s sacrificing other people for herself

Not the same at all

And everything she has, she has been handed on a silver platter. Daddy named her heir, despite her treason in passing off bastards as heirs to Driftmark. She fucked off to Dragonstone and still was heir. She got the Riverlands because of Daemon, not anything she did. She got the dragons through evil means. Alicent offers her everything she wants

It it’s Alicent who has never sacrificed anything?

And now she’s being forced by the writers to sacrifice her son; the person she did all this to protect. Now she’s choosing Rhaenyra because this is redemption to the writers instead of the character assassination that it is

At least Olivia tries to save what she can by making Alicent have a panic attack

[spacerockfloater]

Aemond baby, get behind me.

[the-daily-dreamer]

Alicent’s relationships with her children can never be perfect and healthy because they’re objectively broken from their onset. And I’m so tired of seeing brain dead takes comparing the “superior” relationship Rhaenyra has with her kids to Alicent and her kids as some sort of gotcha.

Alicent’s exposure to motherhood isn’t on her terms in any conceivable way. Her children are the products of marital rape and coercion. They are conceived and born when she is a young teenage girl 15-18, well before she is ready to have them. They are born in quick succession with no opportunity for her to recover. And, they are from a man that not only does she not love but who neglects and belittles her.

All these factors severely damage Alicent’s ability to connect with her children in their infancy. And can you blame her given the circumstances?

She’s not ready to have them at all, so she doesn’t know how to properly mother them. And she likely resents them at least a bit in the early stages because they are the physical manifestation of not only her rape but the life she is trapped in. And that likely compounds with severe guilt because these are her babies, why doesn’t she feel the love and joy she’s supposed to?

And yet. She still loves and cares for them. She holds them as babies (despite being a baby herself) and dutifully cares for them even though she could simply dump them off with a nursemaid. She charges with a knife at Rhaenyra for them. She stands between them and a dragon from them. She betrays her closest companion of her childhood for them. She defies the king and their father for them.

I know that Alicent makes some crucial mistakes that ends up hurting her children. And I know that the scenes we see with Alicent and her kids often show her lack of connection to them. But despite the fact that her relationship to them can be nothing but fractured at the onset. There is so much passion and love and devotion she has for them.

These are not scenes of a woman who is a bad mother. These are scenes of a mother who adores her children and would do anything for them. But who can only love them roughly because she never had an opportunity to love them gently. Their very existence was never gentle for her and never fostered through love.

Alicent’s relationship with her kids may be broken. But it’s not her fault that it is. And no matter what there is love and it is her motivation. So stop acting like she is a bad mother when she’s fighting like hell to breed a relationship with them that is fostered in connection.

[ancalagontheblackdread]

Unfriendly reminder that the last time Jaehaerys was mentioned in this show was in the "previously on house of the dragon" segment of episode 4, which is supposed to recap the most important events of episodes 1-3. In that, it shows Daemon's vision of a young Rhaenyra in Harrenhall being like "see how this child's death makes me look bad and now I have to clean up after your mess".

BECAUSE SOMEHOW THE SHOWRUNNERS REALLY THOUGHT THAT THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF JAEHAERYS'S DEATH IS HOW BAD IT MADE RHAENYRA LOOK.

Not the pain that Helaena felt, having to sentence her son to death. Not the rage Aegon felt at being king and yet being powerless to stop the murder of his son. Not the fact that A SIX YEAR OLD BOY DIED!! Noooooo ofc the most important part of Blood and Cheese is how it impacts Rhaenyra and Daemon's character arcs.

Because the reality is Jaehaerys was innocent; a six year old boy who loved to read and play with his dragon Shrykos and has six fingers on one hand. A child who loved bedtime stories with his grandmother and wanted pony rides. He was named after the Conciliator, the king who lived the longest, and yet his own life was cut short.

And then Rhaenyra has the audacity to demand a son for a son. AND ALICENT DOESN'T BRING UP JAEHAERYS!!!! It's honestly disgusting how the showrunners dehumanize Jaehaerys at every turn, erasing all memory of him so their audience can cheer for Rhaenyra in peace.

RIP Jaehaerys. You deserved better :(

[amaltheas-garden]

"Helaena does not ride. She has no taste for it". That one line summarizes so many issues with the writing of Helaena (and even Alicent) this season. Women in this show who get in Rhaenyra's way are not allowed to want ANYTHING! Rhaenyra has been presented as the just, equal, rightful ruler so of course they can't risk her looking bad by maybe presenting us the perspective of another woman, a dragonrider who claimed the mount of a previous Targaryen queen, who tragically lost a son because of the war, who was a beloved queen by the smallfolk, whose council was listened to by her husband the king, and, most importantly, never suggested (in the book) that Aegon back down from his claim, only that he should pursue a peaceful resolution before going to war. Queen Helaena's death sparked the uprising of Kings Landing that would lead to Rhaenyra's own downfall and death. Helaena baby you deserved so so so much better than this. She deserved a proper coronation, she deserved to grieve her son, she deserved to ride her beloved Dreamfyre, and we should have seen her struggles and triumphs of being queen in a time of war. Aegon even declared that only his mother and wife be honored and recognized as the two legitimate queens during the dance 😭 This show did her so dirty and i will never forgive them 💚💙🩵💛

[kass-of-the-midlands]

They erased Helaena’s gentleness, her belovednesd and her life-ending despair to give to Rhaenyra, they aged down Alicent and made her betray everything she loved for Rhaenyra, they made Cole sleep with Rhaenyra when he never did in the books because he held to his vows, they erased Mysaria’s flaws to make her a side piece for Rhaenyra, they erased Baela’s wildness and tomboyishness to have her be subservient to Rhaenyra, they erased Nettles to make sure Daemon never had a serious committment with anyone but Rhaenyra, they had the Velaryons ignore that Rhaenyra had caused the deaths of two of their members to be subservient to Rhaenyra, they had Laenor just fuck off and abandon everything so Rhaenyra wouldn’t get her hands dirty, they erased the Silent Five so Rhaenyra wouldn’t get her hands dirty, they made Vaemond’s death completely different so Rhaenyra wouldn’t get her hands dirty, they erased Rhaenyra’s racism and calling for a child’s death so Rhaenyra wouldn’t get her hands dirty, they erased Rhaenyra’s own opulence because sTrong InDePeNdAnT wOmEn cAnNot bE gIrLy, they erased Rhaenyra’s own desire for the throne

And I’m expected to believe this show favours Team Green.

Interesting.

[sunfyrisms]

rhaenyra being so concerned about aegon, but helaena was ultimately her downfall. the smallfolk loved her. they mourned her. they rebelled for her. she was so deeply beloved by all who knew her, highborn and low, she was the one who indirectly caused her half-sister’s death with her own. she is remembered as queen, not rhaenyra. she is remembered fondly, not rhaenyra.

[sansacherie]

its always "alicent was jealous of rhaenyras freedom" and

never "rhaenyra also did not see alicents own lack of freedom as an injustice to alicent herself because the only freedom that mattered to rhaenyra was her own"

[radicalsansa]

The lead up to the Erryk/Arryk fight scene pissed me off so much.

We kept being shown Rhaenyra at her most vulnerable, in her night clothes, getting ready for bed, no one with her but her handmaid's. And then all this commotion happens and Ser Arryk moves to kill her... but nothing happens. She doesn't die. She doesn't see any of her family die either.

But do you know who did watch a member of her family die? Helaena. But instead of this cut up montage of Blood and Cheese creeping in through the castle and Helaena being alone and vulnerable saying goodnight to her children, we get comic relief. And that fucking dog

[scarareg]

Rhaenyra telling Alicent to "Make a sacrifice". A character who is easily in the TOP 10 most spoiled characters of all Westeros is telling that to a character who has done nothing but sacrifices her entire life

[spacerockfloater]

Cersei Lannister & Rhaenyra Targaryen:

Are forced to marry someone they don’t love, so they find solace in the arms of a family member and commit incest

Seduce members of the Royal Guard

Have their husbands murdered because they didn’t like them

Have three bastard kids

Commit atrocities to claim the Iron Throne

Betray their allies when they feel threatened

Rule with fire and blood

Live in constant paranoia so they murder innocent servants whom they believe will betray them, even if said betrayal would be a direct consequence of the way they treat their subjects

Are hated by the people

and lets us not forget the -

But no, please go ahead and tell me all about how Rhaenyra is this feminist icon who has the divine right to rule over hundreds of thousands of people because her daddy said so, therefore if I don’t support her I’m a misogynist.

[the-daily-dreamer]

I will never forgive HOTD for making me sit through TWO Rhaenyra births and TWO Rhaenyra weddings…

But never having us see Alicent’s wedding or births. Scenes that would have forced the fans to confront the true reality of how despicable her situation is. It would force viewers to see a child, devastated, as she walks down the aisle to her creepy old man of a husband. It would force viewers to watch a little girl have a child. Completely unprepared and alone, crying for her mother and finding no sympathy. She has no father to protect her. No mother to guide her and comfort her. No husband who cares about her.

It would force team black to stop seeing her as the evil seductress, for even a moment. And see her true vulnerability. See how she doesn’t, and never did, want this. See how these are not consequences of her actions, but instead the consequences of the men around her that she has to suffer for them. Because they don’t care about her. Viserys doesn’t care about her.

These are scenes that are meant to bring sympathy to her character. To give Alicent a reason to be righteously angry at the family and system that broke her down and stole her childhood. It gives Alicent a valid motive to fight aside from fear. And it takes away the chances for team black to deny her suffering at least a little bit.

Because as the current narrative sits, it’s easy to ignore Alicent’s experience and warp it into a much more pleasant story. They see Alicent “seducing” the king and then she is already married. And then she’s pregnant and the babies magically appear. No screaming or crying or bleeding involved. All is good. The teenager definitely didn’t suffer at all. And by doing this some people can’t sympathize as much or they are given allowances to intentionally not sympathize.

Instead. The current narrative allows for Alicent to be the seductress, the crazed woman, the jealous bitch, and the villain. But if we saw what she actually went through. Alone, scared, suffering, neglected, and holding it all in. We would be allowed to see her as she truly is. The victim. Finally crushing under the weight of it all and lashing out.

(And the narrative would be all the better for it because instead of feminist icon team vs crazy trad wife and co (as far as team black sees it), we would have woman fighting against patriarchal narrative for her own claim vs woman fighting against patriarchal narrative to destroy the people who hurt her)

[aryas-faces]

HotD + Sanitizing Rhaenyra Targaryen

In the show’s desperation to make Rhaenyra the hero, they have actually made Rhaenyra the worst character which is a travesty because book Rhaenyra is one of the best ASOIAF villains in my opinions

What went wrong with show Rhaenyra? Well for one thing, they are never going to make her the villain, it seems. Despite the end of season 1 making it seem like they were going that route. But looking back at season 1, we should have seen this coming

Rhaenyra didn’t kill Laenor, she let him escape. Rhaenyra didn’t feed Vaemond to Syrax, she had no say in his death. They don’t make it clear what she means by wanting Aemond to be “questioned sharply.” She’s innocent in all the above

And not only that, but they have set the story as a feminist crisis and not a succession crisis. This was the worst misstep they could have taken. Because not only Rhaenyra immediately sympathetic, but there is no chance they can go the book Rhaenyra route now because it would misogynistic. Imagine: A story about a woman’s power and throne being taken from her because she is a woman. A victim of the patriarchy. And then she becomes a tyrant and proves the sexist men right. That would be a terrible story

The book is not feminist story about a worthy woman being abused by the patriarchy. It’s about how power corrupts people. And Rhaenyra is the biggest villain in the story. If they went the book Rhaenyra route, she would be rewarding her council for Blood and Cheese. She would say “I will have my throne or my half brother’s head.” She would never offer to go Rook’s Rest, just tell Rhaenys to go. Book Rhaenyra and show Rhaenyra are two completely different people

And here is why I’m worried about season 3. There is no way to adapt the Rhaenyra Triumphant/Overthrown chapters without making her the villain. So either they are going to the book route and have people break out in anger the same they did with Daenerys, or somehow make it not her fault

Either way, they have written themselves into a corner

[amaltheas-garden]

So you're telling me the woman who crowned her only daughter with her own crown, who kissed her cheeks, knelt before her, and called her "my Queen" in front of all the smallfolk of Kings Landing, would go groveling back to the woman who traumatized her precious daughter and granddaughter and murdered her grandson, to beg for mercy and to promise to force Helaena to offer up her crown and position as queen? Because no other woman in this show is allowed to want to be queen, or be viewed as worthy of the position besides Rhaenyra. No "Queen Alicent, beloved of the smallfolk", no "Helaena had been loved, Rhaenyra was hated" no no no. Helaena being loved by the smallfolk and Aegon listening to her council for the war effort was biAsEd MaEsteR pRoPAgAnDa. According to HotD, Rhaenyra was the only woman who ever wanted to be queen/had a right to be queen/was worthy of being queen/was good at being queen.

[chemicalreal]

Not Jace pointing out something Team Black delusionally refuses to acknowledge, how Rhaenyra potentially doomed her first three kids by having 2 legitimate silver haired ones with none other than the Rogue Prince himself. Does she really think Daemon "I'd rather have my kids be eaten by a dragon than bow to a Targaryen half blood king" will just give his blessings to Jacaerys and let his kids be his cupbearers? Lmao Rhaenyra is just lucky they all died before her stupidity could cause a second succession crisis and make her an even more embarrassing historical character.

[bietrofastimoff23]

"Traitors and villains!"

His family was never completely safe. not when the king openly gave preference to his daughter, whom he allowed to go unpunished several times after treason to the crown. not when he ignored his son's injury in favor of trying to incriminate his wife and punish her because of the truth.

His family was never completely safe. even when his family was doing their duty properly because his father and sister considered themselves above the law.

His family was never completely safe. Aegon knew that when his sister ordered the swords to be raised, he would be the first whose head would fall. but he was not prepared for the fact that the first victim would be his son, killed in such an insidious and cruel way.

His family was never completely safe. why did the gods give Viserys all the time in the world that he could spend with his children when he didn't need it, while Aegon, who really loved his children, had to bury one of them before he even had time to grow up?

His family was never completely safe. and Aegon hates and despises his father and sister for this reality. hates them because they put his family in such a vulnerable position, because they turned his life into endless grief for his child.

His family was never completely safe. years earlier, Aegon did not want to be a challenge to his sister, but now he wish only one thing and that is to spill blood.