House Of The Dragon 2x1 - A Son for a Son | Reaction!

[@penguin50279]

fun fact you can see Cheese (the rat catcher) in the castle throughout the episode.

[@stevemarshall3508]

Throughout??? I saw him once, when Cristin Cole an Alicent was entering the council room

[@KrivitskyM]

@@stevemarshall3508 So did I, but then I was informed that he appears in the scene where Aegon hears the petitions in the throne room. Look for the wide shots.

[@RedFive03]

Crazy thing is the guy who was on guard duty wasn't at his post because he was busy railing the Dowager Queen.

[@alastairwallace6153]

Oh crap - I totally missed that point - being shocked, oh dear the king is going to go mental on everyone responsible.. those two dudes are going horribly, no way they make it out.

[@victorc8855]

@@alastairwallace6153 Helaena probably won't tell, she probably doesnt care with her being the way she is

[@Guezii]

@@WerewolfRiver cry about it lil bro daemon > ur fodder green team

[@DeeBee334]

I think some context on the societal culture of Westeros also helps to understand why Lucerys’s death was considered such a shocking outcome. Messengers are protected by law - along the same lines as guest rite. The Red Wedding executions in GoT were considered controversial by Westerosi standards and could bring a house great dishonour - so much so that Tywin Lannister made sure that the responsibility was taken by another house despite being the one responsible. He wasn’t about to advertise to the public at large that he was responsible for violating guest rite. This was why Borros was so insistent that the Prince’s not fight in his hall and emphasized that Lucerys be escorted safely to his dragon. What happens in the skies isn’t really Borros’s problem or domain but should Lucerys be injured or killed under Borros’s roof while acting as a messenger, that would absolutely be considered his problem. Despite Borros’s spiteful words towards Rhaenyra, he only ran his mouth so strongly because his house had all but been guaranteed the protection of Vhagar with the marriage proposal. However, if Lucerys was hurt under his roof, he’d have Rhaenyra and Syrax to answer to purely on business and he couldn’t risk that. Also I don’t think Rhaenyra was too arrogant to assume that Borros would declare for her. Not only did Borros’s father, Boremond, declare for her, they also share kin through Rhaenys (Borros and Rhaenys are cousins). While we don’t know much of Borros and Rhaenys’s relationship, Boremond greatly supported Rhaenys and was dedicated to her throughout his life. All of this and along with Lucerys being Rhaenys’s lawful grandson, Rhaenyra was 100% confident her son would be welcomed warmly. 😢

[@reki76]

Rhaenyra's son dragon was her dragon's offspring, we saw 2 mothers mourning their babies 😢

[@Drpavel564]

Which is ironic because the dragon mourning stuff happened to vhagar and dreamfyre

[@rexibhazoboa7097]

i think Syrax just felt Rheanyras pain. We all know that the bond between dragon and rider is strong. We havent seen much if any maternal bond between dragons on the show. And if a rider wishes, they can set their dragons on their own offsprings. So it makes much more sense for Syrax to be feeling the pain of its closest bond rather than some egg it popped out many years ago.

[@Drpavel564]

@@rexibhazoboa7097 What does that have to do with HBO giving the moments that happened to the greens, to Syrax

[@renalareveuse2155]

​​​​​@@Drpavel564 So, you're trying to say, that in the books Lucerys and Arrax didn't get killed by Aemond and Vhagar, or what?! And that Syrax isn't the mother of Arrax in the books?? ^^ I don't really get what point you're trying to make here. If a dragon on the "Greens'" side can mourn the death of her relative, why can't a mother dragon on the side of the "Blacks'" mourn the death of her baby? Why shouldn't they show this...even if it isn't specifically mentioned in the books?? Things do get switched around/ (slightly) changed sometimes, when books are made into movies...that's quite normal. And in this case it's even more understandable, since "Fire and Blood" is INTENTIONALLY written from different perspectives of people who support/ are influenced by either one side or the other, so that at the end of the day, nobody knows for certain what really happened/ how it really happened. So, just stop crying about it. And btw that's something, which can be said for all the book readers, who just repeat what one of the people, who G.R.R. Martin PURPOSEFULLY painted as unreliable (because NOT impartial), stated in "Fire and Blood", as if it were undisputed facts. These people just seem to really not understand how history and written "reports" from those time periods work(s). Remember Martin took his inspiration for the civil war between the "Greens" and the "Blacks" from the "Wars of the Roses" in 15th century England, which was also fought between two branches of the same noble (royal) family: The Plantagenets. And historians can still to this date not say how exactly some of the events during this war really played out, because all written documents from that time have been written by members/ followers of one side, or the other and as a result of this there exist many conflicting "reports" and hundreds of years later often it can't be determined which of these writers (if any) tell the truth of what happened. And i think that's the whole point Martin wanted to show by writing that book in this specific way: That you can't just trust what somebody has written down about past conflicts, because they might be (and often are) strongly influenced by one of the opposing factions.

[@Drpavel564]

@@renalareveuse2155 Im not reading any of that as soon as I saw what you wrote in that first sentence

[@liamdamon]

I noticed that when Otto wants to subtly assert dominance, when speaking to certain characters, he reminds them of their familial connections. He calls Alicent "daughter" when he corrects her and then refers to himself as "grandsire" when he's speaking to Aemond.

[@archmaester6594]

He also mentions Alicent's mother to manipulate her

[@Seabasstard22]

15:37 Lucery’s dragon was Syrax’s child. So both mothers were crying on the beach that morning.

[@Darth_Nycta_13]

Bound by blood and grief.

[@jackson857]

The dog is type of terrier that were used for rat catching. It was part of their cover to walk through the castle.

[@Touchofgrey44]

I swear they don’t pay attention, Kyle usually is paying attention and using common sense. This girl seems totally lost.

[@itsthatgirl98_]

Has anyone noticed that the version of the House Stark theme in the establishing shot of Winterfell is called 'Goodbye Brother,' and the raven seen during this moment is carrying the message of Lucerys' death? This is literally the moment when Jacaerys has to say goodbye to his brother.

[@ircjesselee]

The dog was part of their rat catchers costumes. After they were in the private chambers, they didn't need to pretend as hard.

[@bellicx5819]

Boy gets throat slit & head sawed off** “Aw that was sad”

[@sosayweall2509]

Lol I was baffled that people were more upset that a dog was kicked than a baby was beheaded

[@amurderofbananas7449]

Because they failed to develop Jaeherys as a character or flesh out his relationship with Aegon. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@jlp1013]

@@amurderofbananas7449 If you need character development to fully mourn a brutally murdered child then the failure is all your own.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

People were more upset about the Strong boys being called what they are. Bastards.

[@itsthatgirl98_]

And once again Criston Cole has failed miserably at his job as a royal guard, instead of guarding the doors to Helaena's and her children's room, he is in bed with Alicent while Helaena's son is being killed. Someone has to fire him!

[@itsthatgirl98_]

In Helaena's first scene before Aegon enters the room looking for Jaehaerys, Helaena whispers "They only want the boy" and after saying that she is afraid of rats, she looks directly at Jaehaerys' crib, she did predict death of him in a prophetic dream.

[@d1sp0s1t10n]

They asked Daemon what do they do if they cant find Aemond. He gave one of his looks and then it cuts. He told them to get a son for a son, Aemond or the heir to the throne - Aegon's son.

[@GingerMT-o4m]

The fact that Christian Cole was responsible for guarding the queens door and the children and that the queen mother talked him into coming to her bedchamber for some fun instead puts them both at the top of the list for being responsible for this happening

[@hedinsee6830]

That makes no sense. Cole was obviously not the one on night's watch (Kingsguard need to sleep too, so the watches do change) and in any case he is Alicent's shield by default, so he would have been guarding her (or the king himself), not Helaena.

[@andrewhelmer6853]

The dog was used occasionally on Cheese’ normal routine . With them going up to areas he shouldn’t be in, it became a liability . I took it as him kicking it in frustration , not necessarily to get rid of it but it did scamper away

[@michaelanderson5301]

You can see as the dog runs away its tail is wagging. I bet the handler was shaking a bag of treats

[@HistoricHelper]

I like the point yall made about bringing a gun to a party and if it goes off that’s on you, I think it applies to Daemon as much as Aemond, both of these deaths weren’t fully intentional but were directly enabled by those two

[@methuselahh_]

also this episode introduces a few characters worth remembering: alyn of hull we see, and his brother addam is mentioned. also, the blacksmith aegon II talks to is hugh hammer. take note of his white hair, it isn't due to age ;)

[@antoniocarrenoarnedo9364]

idk what you meant to do, but that sir, is a spoiler

[@thomasluke-wp8or]

"Is he really that naive?" Why wouldnt he be? Viserys never properly prepared him for rule even though he was second in line to the throne. Its why he brought jahaerys to the council meeting, he was trying to be the father and political mentor he never had

[@Skye_Writer]

Otto and Alicent didn't bother to instruct him either, even all those years that Rhaenyra was away and Alicent and Otto were ruling instead of Viserys

[@acdragonrider]

2:33: That was the bronze fury, VERMITHOR. My favorite dragon of the show. I’m honestly glad the dragons were sparingly used. We’re going to start seeing dragons die now. The part of fire and blood is devoted to nonstop war. 😢😢😢

[@sosayweall2509]

The winterfell theme literally had me welling up

[@ak14459]

Also, in case no one told you, Alyrie Florent was alicent’s mother who died shortly before the events of s1.

[@chumanimtwebana6321]

The point of the dog is to catch the rats. They sneaked into the castle as the ratchers, that's why nobody cared they were there.

[@Touchofgrey44]

I swear they don’t pay attention or use common sense, this girl especially.

[@manvirshergill1739]

As cool as it is seeing Dragons and Dragon battles it's not what makes this show or G.O.T great, it's the good character work and excellent dialogue and the gripping political intrigue that goes into it, that's what makes this franchise fascinating to watch. Can't wait for episode 2.

[@kylethompson3008]

I agree but it's bout that time

[@etc8217]

actually for this show it is what makes the show because the dragon battle episodes are the best fights in asoif history and if done right will be some of the best ever done in television.

[@AstroAvenger]

"Gets a bigger check for the budget" uh about that, HBO cut the season to 8 episodes, showrunner mention in an interview that it wasn't up to him and G.R.R.M said the show needed at least 4 full seasons with 10 episodes to do the story justice. I'm getting GoT Season 7-8 flashbacks.

[@dgrmn12345]

7:04 true. Cregan Stark acts older than his age because he has grown a lot since his ascension to House Stark and Warden of the North. Apart from being born in an already harsh land, he also had to wrestle power from his Uncle and his cousins who tried to usurp his throne when he was only 16. But the harshest of all was the death of his wife when he was 20 after giving birth the their son. Barely a year has passed before the civil war began.

[@OpeningsOpenings]

The dog helps find rats Since they were going under the cover of being rat catchers - they needed the dog for pretenses You missed the line where Alicent lit a candle for Lucerys Heleana has visions that are likely not literal She may have just seen rats and then the death of her son in her visions (that would have been symbolic of these “rat hunters” killing her son)

[@michaelanderson5301]

Nice move comparing Ser Foot Fetish to Worm Tongue. I completely agree.

[@jtser8322]

Both Daemon and Aemond talked about establishing a toe hold at Harrenhal and the painting on the wall Cheese was staring at I believe was Aegon the Conqueror burning it. That's also where Larys Strong burned his dad and brother.

[@muhammadhabibieamiro3639]

What a crazy first episode

[@sosayweall2509]

People also overlook how everyone at the table is looking down on tyland...someo e whose families fleet of ships and arms are hyper important to have as allies

[@lesliecooley6862]

The weird vibe between Corlys and Alyn could be because Alyn is rumored to be his illegitimate son.

[@mizzy5193]

Or Laenors along with his brother Addam… Corlys is more likely tho

[@sosayweall2509]

The actor that plays Allen is the lead on raised by wolves btw

[@rexibhazoboa7097]

@@mizzy5193 Which would mean Laenor was fertile. So what was the reason that prevented Rheanyra and Laenor from having kids?

[@mizzy5193]

@@rexibhazoboa7097 uh the guy was gay

[@superkoopatrooper4879]

there is no rumors, the book is finished. ya'll just spoiling the show

[@aaronunsfe]

It's less then 1000yrs after aegon conquest. The current year is 129AC only a few weeks after viserys death.

[@methuselahh_]

so the dragon you were referring to in the beginning is vermithor, the bronze fury. he was the dragon of the king before viserys, jaehaerys the conciliator, vermithor is not the biggest dragon (the biggest at this point is vhagar, as she was one of the 3 from aegons conquest) but vermithor is one of the biggest besides her.

[@acdragonrider]

And one of the most battle tested.

[@svl_93]

Yeah, Vermithor is actually the second biggest, along with Silverwing

[@methuselahh_]

@@svl_93 yes silverwing and vermithor are great, a wonderful couple. i for one am excited at the prospect of seeing the wild dragons. grey ghost was my favorite, but the cannibal will be insane to see, i think he’s the real second biggest dragon

[@kellifranklin4432]

Emma D'Arcy absolutely killed in this episode. Rhaenyra only said 4 words and stole the whole episode. Criston still bitter about Rhaenyra is petty af. It was so great hearing the Stark music again. I hope we get more of Cregan Stark. Solid opening episode!

[@parklinkin6624]

Without giving any spoilers, do keep an eye on these two characters from this episode. - Alyn, who was in the scene with Corlys - Hugh, the smith requesting Aegon for advance money to build scorpions Just keep a close eye on them. You will know.

[@acdragonrider]

Those of us who know: I understood that reference.”

[@zenmonk5403]

It's a ratter dog. They are used even today.

[@Gwenhwyfar7]

That's exactly what I say about Game of Thrones. "It was great until it wasn't". 😅

[@andylikesstuffchannel]

R Martin has always got close to the History of European kings and Queens hidden in his stories

[@LDSMK]

3:50 HOD Opening: The tapestry of Targaryen history. Ancient valyrians practicing magic Daenys dream of the fall The fall of Valyria Aegon and his sisters flying over Westeros Harren the black Conquest of Harrenhal and the Field of Fire The North, The Riverlands and The Eyrie bending the knee without a fight House Targaryen established as the Rulers of Westeros The construction of the Red Keep The death of Maegor the Cruel King Jahaerys the Conciliator and Queen Alysanne Old King Jahaerys at the Great Council of Harrenhal (Viserys I nomination to the Iron Throne) The court of Viserys I split between Alicent and Rhaenyra Aegon II vs Rhaenyra I Lucerys death.

[@baz711]

King Jack White(hair) is going to be pissed when he finds his heir is missing his cranium. Enjoyed the 1st episode of season 2 and both your reactions to it. It's good to see you again Grizzled & Hera

[@liamdamon]

As an outro for HotD instead of goodbye, you could use "farewell" or "fair thee well". Or the more recent "until next time".

[@FrshChees91]

They don't need to sneak, they're the ratcacthers. They're supposed to be there. Except once they get to the royal quarters.

[@thomasluke-wp8or]

I love your complains that it was too brutal because it was WAY worse in the book. I think they changed it to make the blacks still seem like the good guys which defeats the point that both sides arent good. In the book the assassins are hired to kill one of the kids specifically, they make haelaena choose and she picks her youngest but then they kill the oldest anyway after threatening to rape the daughter if she doesnt choose faster. Haelaena could never even look at her youngest son again knowing shed named him to die. It would be horrific but i wish the show version was more like the book

[@GingerMT-o4m]

Have you ever thought that perhaps the change that particular scene from what the fox said to this because this was graphic enough to horrify people it would have been almost too graphic for HBO to put that scene in the same way as the books it had nothing to do with trying to make the blacks look better. It had to do with being tasteful or a little more palatine for TV?

[@RullXov]

When walking to the throne, It wasn't so much his age as it was his sickness and injuries. However, he was the best and most believable character in season one. He owned every scene he was in.

[@noirnoir4276]

In the books the blood and cheese scene is WAY worse. helaena doesn't have twins but a young daughter and two younger sons. Mind you all three kids are awake and fully aware as blood and cheese hold on to them. I think cheese tells helaena that if she doesn't choose blood will R word her daughter ( 🤮). Helen choose's the youngest son cause she believes he wouldn't understand. But cheese tell the little boy "you hear that, your mama wants you dead". Cheese drops the youngest son. As blood decapitates the oldest son in one swing. I'm sure some edge lords will say other wise. But I'm glad HBO did't go that far.

[@sosayweall2509]

Correct me if I'm wrong..when alicent is in the Sept saying prayers by candle did she say the name of the marathon daughter that aeymond married?

[@bjrnbrynemo9059]

31:55 Aemond would be more difficult to kill though.

[@carrytheflag3498]

Was anyone else wearing headphones while they killed the kiddo? Some of the WORST sounds ever. Wow...

[@keanancupido]

Meeee😭😭😭

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

It’s crazy when you realize the Acolyte had a budget slightly under HOT D and the difference in quality is night and day.

[@zzseabearzz3859]

the difference in quality between this and a certain 180 million dollar dumpster fire is STARK. pun intended.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

Be careful, fake ass Kyle Katarn here might get triggered you’re talking shit in Disney. They pay his bills after all

[@ace360]

The Dance of The Dragons Begin's 🔥🐲🤘

[@thomasluke-wp8or]

"Smaller dragons can be effective against bigger dragons if your tactics are sound" the problem here is that aegon is right. There is no way to do any real damage to vhagar without using most of their dragons at once which is still a huge risk. In dragons size really is king unless you get lucky

[@jagdrastarwars4827]

Love you both. Your together reaction is perfect.

[@sosayweall2509]

You do realize one of the asassins was one of the ki gsguard daemon had hand picked?

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

Not the Kingsguard. The Gold cloaks of the city watch

[@sosayweall2509]

@@proudsaiyanprince2651 Lol that's what I meant wrong cape color loo

[@billstephens396]

As a writer, I will make sure all my main character names will not be similar.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

The naming conventions reflect history. Most of Englands kings are named Edward, Richard and Henry.

[@braddollahite]

HOTD is back baby!!!!! But now sh!t is gonna hit the fan. Daemon messed up I think but also the mission did kinda work, it was a son for a son but damn. Rhaenyra is gonna be pissed

[@itsthatgirl98_]

8:13 If Rhaenys had killed them, she would have been left with the reputation of Kinslayer and that is not good for Westeros.

[@RullXov]

Maybe that big guy killed the rat-catcher and took the kid with him for a bigger reward.

[@justinehercthehuman]

I had the same reaction with the ratcatchers just going in. I was so confused why the guards did not give a fck about them. Of course they were pretending to be workers in the castle LOL. But the dog tho? Hahaha confused me still.

[@layniebear1237]

so hi i just found your freaking Game of thrones channel? fantasy channel!? so hyped!!! more reactions!!!

[@joramsim]

My favorite family drama show on tv

[@sosayweall2509]

Alot of people overlook to that aegons wife chose to sscrofoce her son cause she foresaw the end of the targerians

[@LauraGS564]

Vhagar can;t come and burn the blockade, because like Alicent said Vhagar is needed at Kl to help if Rhaenyra attacks. she can't be at two places at once

[@Drpavel564]

>for a power move He literally just said he wants to get the kid some experience. Good lord he can’t even tease and play with his kid lmaoo

[@vanessaaves3271]

He was never included in the council room talks when he was younger, and he doesn’t want to repeat his father’s shortcomings. It’s misguided and inappropriate based on the age, but I love the fact that they showed Aegon’s other side in this episode. Because he’s pretty awful, but they showed a depth in this episode.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

The well is poisoned with a lot of these people but they NEVER criticize Rheneyra’s dumb choices

[@Drpavel564]

@@proudsaiyanprince2651 Lets be honest, the show has done nothing to let people know about Rhaenyras incompetence. Theyll put it all on daemon(doesnt matter because people think hes badass) and then they'll praise rhaenyra for being perfect. Everyone on Team Green gets shit on because Condall wants people like the Burlington Bar to clap like seals.

[@markusfrancis7525]

Daemon told em ta kill that boy

[@undeenwrites]

I've tried to watch GOT & HotD, but the amount of blood & gore gives me hella nightmares 😬. BUT, I am always up to date because I can catch the important bits when I watch along with you guys. Thanks Kyle & Hera ❤

[@iustinmatei5655]

22:42 "Zaldrizes buzdari iksos dao"

[@GingerMT-o4m]

Actually, in the book, it was worse in the book there were three children, two boys, and a girl she chose her younger child because the oldest boy was the air and at that point they cut off the little boys or the older ones head and made sure to tell the little boy that his mother wanted him dead, and then one of them raped the daughter who has what seven so I find this one much less brutal

[@gailf1617]

They didn't rape little Jaehaera in the book, though they threatened to do so.

[@JPak-wu9dv]

Anyone else get the vibe that Aegon is not really good at this

[@lynnraven6101]

Of course he’s not, no one ever prepared him for this role lol. He was never the heir. Aegon’s young and inexperienced, though he’s definitely leagues better than the likes of Joffrey.

[@JPak-wu9dv]

He isn't as cruel as Joffrey, He's definitely dumber than him too.. I do get a sense that even if groomed properly.. he still wouldn't be a great king..

[@lynnraven6101]

@@JPak-wu9dv It’s hard to say. I don’t think Aegon is dumber than Joffrey, but he is very impulsive and quick-tempered. He’s way more courageous than him, but looking at the hypothetical is tough because so much of who Aegon is now goes back to the way he was raised. I imagine he’d be an entirely different person so, I couldn’t give you a definitive answer on that 🤷‍♀️

[@kylethompson3008]

He's definitely not cut out for the job but he was never suppose to be. He's 6th in line after Queen Rhaenyra and her children. She was raised for it and trained while he was off graping children. His ineptitude was the comic relief of this episode though. The actor is doing a good job

[@etc8217]

@@JPak-wu9dv aegon is not dumber than joffery lol the reason he defeated rhaenyra was his smarts.

[@ThatDangerousWolf]

It’s so much worse in the book, guys lol

[@luisgarcia-nj9vj]

Are you grizzeld or kyle , gotta choose one

[@andylikesstuffchannel]

Even if you don't like Doctor Who watch Matt smith as the Doctor 👍💯 11th Hour

[@yeshuasaves7882]

Harrah yaaa there’s that beautiful girl can’t wait to see your reaction

[@aaronunsfe]

Apparently the book was worse.

[@laboom60]

Is that Kyles wife?

[@rohanshende4338]

Luke wasn't innocent. He took Aemond's eye and SMIRKED about it. Deserved end for him.

[@proudsaiyanprince2651]

Seriously. The King AND the audience were angrier about 2 bastards being called what they are over a child almost being murdered.