House of the Dragon - 2x4 - Episode 4 Reaction - The Red Dragon and the Gold

[@MACReact]

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[@BeeDenver]

The dragon’s blood is not acid but described as “boiling hot”

[@Randomyoutubecommenter]

I didn't see that as blood but as the dragons oil sack that got punctured 😂

[@rexibhazoboa7097]

@@Randomyoutubecommenter You think the dragons oil sack is in their chest?

[@Randomyoutubecommenter]

@@rexibhazoboa7097 idk, idk dragon anatomy, black blood would be strange though

[@thomasluke-wp8or]

​@Randomyoutubecommenter it's definitely the blood but I can understand the confusion

[@Randomyoutubecommenter]

@@thomasluke-wp8or in GOT it was red if I remember correctly

[@NoShiiitSherlock]

Rhaenys was sent by Queen Rhaenyra to protect the people of Rooks Rest in this Battle. Just because Vhagar shows up to fight it doesn't mean the Battle is over. If Rhaenys had fled back to Dragonstone, running away from the Battle and Abandoning the people of Rooks Rest, Rhaenyra's claim would be viewed as weak. Like Queen Rhaenyra runs away when things get tough. That's the simple answer for Rhaenys's suicide mission. Put even simpler, there were still people to protect. By the Queen 👑 Who *ALWAYS* Was 💔 ❤️

[@slimey_frog-1015]

yeah its a no win scenario: You either fight Vhagar or politically torpedo the queen, literally no good options. Ideally if the blacks had more mounted dragons the ideal would be to always travel in at least pairs, that way if you *do* encounter Vhagar you at least have a numbers advantage on her.

[@NoShiiitSherlock]

@@slimey_frog-1015 Agreed! SO SAD

[@puppetmaster8551]

@@slimey_frog-1015it’s not really a no win situation, even tho the chances are slim if rhaenys and meleys manage to take out Vhagar the war is pretty much over before it fully begins. She gave her life because of the slim chance that she had of ending the war before it truly began and saving so much bloodshed in war. She was highly experienced and got the better of Vhagar the first exchange so she took her chance again.

[@RoulicisThe]

Plus : she literally had the chance to end it all right there and then. Aegon is their puppet to legitimize the green's claim, and they're entirely carried by Vhagar. Both are here, Aegon is already down, if Vhagar falls, the war ends. No blockade of king's landing, no starving civilians, no dragon dance, thousands upon thousands of lives saved from gruesome deaths. Fate gave her a chance and she went for it.

[@slimey_frog-1015]

@@RoulicisThe Exactly, arguably there was no other single moment in the dance that was more important than right there, everything could have changed in that one battle. And it wasn't a horrifically bad matchup either, Meleys is younger, more physically fit and the fastest dragon on the planet. Vhagar's only advantage is size (which is a significant advantage, no doubt, but its not the be all end all) The better plan would have been to try and get above Vhagar to attack Aemond directly with fire, she's too slow to turn on a dime and defend from an attack from above or behind. Either that or try and attack her wings directly to tear a larger hole. Even if you don't kill her, grounding her functionally removes her from the war.

[@samuraiwarriorsunite]

Not surprised they went with director Alan Taylor for this episode. He can do small intimate moments and big sprawling battles equally well.

[@GustavoCardoso95]

Rook's rest has to be in the top 3 battles in in GOT + HOTD so far

[@Rash23215]

Which other battle scene has he done??

[@samuraiwarriorsunite]

Look over his catalog of work.

[@Varekai0723]

He's also directed multiple episodes of HBO shows where major characters get killed off. He's like their angel of death.

[@dimensionzone8048]

​@@Varekai0723word !? He's a boss

[@Jordashian93]

RIP Rhaenys Targaryen, you were a fighter to the end

[@MrFredstt]

You're right by Alicent belittling him it urges him to fly off to war to try and prove he's worthy. Aegon was looking for a mother in that instance not to be belittled and his already low self confidence shattered even more. There's a way to get him to understand he needs to listen sometimes while at the same time taking into account his emotional needs

[@dominiccastro6483]

Literally is Viserys hadn't scammed him and had actually shown him love, and trained him Aegon would've been a good king. If you think back to the scene where he's taking petitions from the small folk you can actually see he's trying to be a good king and actually cares.

[@HighlightRiel]

Aegon is the most misunderstood character in my opinion. He's a product of bad parenting and neglect. He is who he is due to parents not giving him trust and responsibilities. I really feel bad for him because he really is trying to be a good king so far, he's just not trained, and people around him puts him down every time.

[@Kidapollo92]

Rhaenys and her dragon 🐉 meleys will always be remembered. Rest in peace the queen who never was.

[@LewisCK]

I watched hundreds of reaction on this episode in particular, this is by far the best reaction ! you guys are the best !

[@EraseMemoriesHD]

"Princess Rhaenys made no attempt to flee. With a glad cry and a crack of her whip, she turned Meleys to her enemies." - Fire & Blood (Im fuckin cryin bros) RIP to the Red Queen, and The Queen Who SHOULDVE Been.

[@puppetmaster8551]

Man rhaenys definitely should’ve been the queen, she would’ve kicked ass as Queen and unlike Viserys she wouldn’t have gotten sick a died so the peace likely would’ve continued even longer than it did with viserys as ruler. The dance never even comes close to happening if she’s made queen instead of being passed over for viserys

[@EraseMemoriesHD]

@@puppetmaster8551 I loved Vizzy T but he wasn’t the perfect King. I would’ve enjoyed her on the throne as well.

[@stsamurai_]

Meleys could have taken Vhagar had she not been dealing with Aegon and sneak attacked by Aemond. She is only about 1/2-3/4 of Vhagar’s size, but she’s one of the quickest and fiercest dragons out there currently, and she’s also in the literal prime of her life. It’s said in the books that had it not been a two on one, Meleys DID have a proper chance at winning the fight.

[@dominiccastro6483]

Bro, Speed is irrelevant because a dragon combat is up close melee. Meleys didn't stand a chance and neither does Caraxes in a straight 1v1. The only reason Daemon is able to "defeat" Vhagar and Aemond is because he pulls a suicide attack to do it.

[@leisastalnaker3790]

Aegon wants love from his mother. Something he never got. Which is why he is as he is and Aemond too.

[@GustavoCardoso95]

Harrenhal is not "haunted" in the normal sense of the word. The magic of the old gods are taking back the castle, through those trees flows like a magic network with the souls of thousands of people from along history or something like that. It's the same magic that Brand and the three eyed raven use in GOT

[@Kidapollo92]

Both daemon and Aemond feel they would be better kings than their older brothers. Both are great commanders and fierce dragon riders. This may show their fates are tied together.

[@leonardolucasrs]

one of them might be wrong

[@Thedutchman12]

16:25 he has been looking like Daemon since he came back with the way he places his hand on his sword and how he has been acting 😂

[@DarthKay093]

You seem to forget Daemon helped raise him so ofc he would copy his stepfather

[@Thedutchman12]

@@DarthKay093 that too as well 😂

[@jtser8322]

Since the beginning, I've felt they were kindred spirits. Both second sons who feel they were better suited for the crown. Aemond rides Visenya Targaryen's dragon while Daemon wields her sword.

[@Koko-gp6vn]

​@@jtser8322I think they're talking about jace

[@goldenlockx]

Let’s remember Aegon never wanted to be king and hes never been prepared for it. Just forced to

[@troyexd]

Meleys intentionally turned upside down and locked claws with Vhagar. She does it to claw at Vhagar's chest.

[@carriesmith742]

17:16 I felt HORRIBLE at Madison's level of excitement, and the look on her face, of hearing Rhaenys was going to battle.

[@Skye_Writer]

She had people to protect; no way would she have left them to Vhagar without any protection standing between them.

[@mrsekopi92]

I love the bond between dragons and its rider. And the fact that Aegon was badly injured also same that is happening to Sunfyre.

[@asteven8]

Loved the reaction. I can't claim credit for this idea as I saw it elsewhere but the dragon attacks show us the different fighting styles + experience based on their rider. Sunfyre (Aegon) mostly used its fire with some bites, Vhagar (Aemond) used her fire + sneak attack + a crucial bite, and Meleys (Rhaenys) seldom used fire and went for more bodily attacks and bites. The younger generation of riders relies a lot on using dragonfire to attack other dragons which makes them equally vulnerable as they could get burned. Also, dragonfire can obscure their vision for a few precious seconds which in battle could mean life or death. We see in the fight how experienced Rhaenys and Meleys are in battle. Hell, their strategy managed to knock Vhagar to the ground. *Again sharing something I read elsewhere that made me notice all those details in the fight scene.

[@asteven8]

Re Aemond In that final scene, I read it as Aegon was still alive and Aemond was going to finish him off. His sword was drawn, pointing downward, like he was going to deliver a downward killing blow. When Cole called out to him, he subtly changed it like he was sheathing his sword and then squatted to pick up the knife. Begs the question of why he was advancing toward Aegon who was on the ground AND why was his sword drawn in the first place?

[@crystalk98]

I really think (perhaps incorrectly) that it was Vhagar who took Meleys to the ground. She knew Meleys had a busted leg and knew that if she could get her on the ground (and do even more damage to her in the process), it would be hard for her to take off (1v1 on the ground, Vhagar would win). She just let go of Meleys a second before hitting the ground herself to try land properly and Meleys being more agile, was only just able to avoid the ground. That's just my opinion anyway...

[@asteven8]

@@crystalk98 You know what, you may be right. I looked at the fight sequence again (damn those cut aways of Cole!) but I could see that. The only other explanation I can see is they were free falling/trying to get away from each other’s fire. For a spell it looked like Vhagar didn’t have ahold of Meleys legs. Hard to tell with all that damn fire! haha

[@crystalk98]

@asteven8 yeah honestly we need a super close-up slow mo clip (with no bloody Cole) to analyse 🧐🧐😂😂

[@asteven8]

@@crystalk98 Yess...I want NFL-level analysis and breakdown! 🤣

[@isaiahbaggett5014]

21:00 - "Dragon's are fire made flesh"; their blood is boiling hot and can melt iron. The men scream in agony as the boiling blood rains down on them and melts their armor and flesh

[@jtser8322]

After re-watching the dragon fight over a dozen times, I think Rheanys was trying to retreat after the first go at Vhagar. It looked like she was heading out to sea but Aemond anticipated it and caught her off-guard. I liked the strategy on the first attack of going inverted and trapping Vhagar's claw so she couldn't do what Melys did to Sunfyre. I don't think Aegon is dead.

[@sosayweall2509]

Her dragons leg was also broken..she knew that if rhanera ever stood a chance veghar need to be taken off the chess board or severely incapacitated

[@melissagreye8445]

She was looking to see if Vhagar was still there and prepared to injure her further.

[@jackgould5332]

They changed the battle up a little bit as in the books she's tagged teamed by both aegon and aemond but it was still a nice little change as GRRM has even said that the show will show us what actually happened because the book Is from the perspective of a meister so parts are meant to be exaggerated

[@jackgould5332]

Yeah aegon isn't dead

[@sarcasmxkate]

Alicent and Otto thought they could puppet Aegon as King. Her holy than thou attitude towards him is truly wild. They did nothing to prepare him for the throne, despite raising him with the intention of putting him on said throne. Maybe if they'd tried to actually teach him, him being such a shitty person/King, could have been avoided. I don't know, be his mother and grandfather instead of just ignoring him and allowing his horrific behavior. 🙄🤣

[@corsicanlulu]

exactly and i wish aegon would throw that back in their faces when they start to roast him. it would shut them up

[@isaacm2374]

I love your reactions. I hope this channel grows.

[@Jamies-gz7ix]

you guys caught up. sweet.

[@vijayanand6650]

12:26 that’s the kid who petitioned to marry Rheynera in season one and then gutted the asshole who insulted him

[@red_five1542]

We knew by the look in Amonds eye in episode 3 that was truly pissed at Aegon. I believe he was just about to slay him when Cole walked up.

[@Kidapollo92]

Damn oh girl gave daemon a sip of that lean. Meanwhile alicent sipping on that plan tea

[@soulsedits-rv6gl]

Vermithor vs Vhagar. we also have Vermithor who Daemon claimed in the cave while singing in S01. Vermithor is the second biggest dragon and has a battle mark on his face as well.

[@marcogutierrez4219]

No, in fact the last rider of vermitor is king jahaerys the ancestor of viserys, and daemon did not claim him.

[@JessYapping]

Feel like Rhaenys on top of wanting to finish the mission and help the people she thought of her grand babies. Like she probably thought if she could take out Vhagar her grand kids wouldn’t have to fight in this war against a dragon at least. Everyone should have listened to Daemon from jump!! The council was speaking facts they literally can’t do anything cause Rhaenyra wants to sit around doing nothing now he’s the only hope against Vhagar and I feel like they still have to jump her😂

[@coffeecakes1858]

The Blacks are slow as hell. Aemond is a kinslayer, has the biggest dragon, yet they only send one dragon? It should have been Meleys, Vermax and Moondancer. And yeah, Rhaenys was trying to end the war. But if pure strategy, she should have flown back as it was only over the bay, call Jace, Baela and Rhaenyra. They would have wiped out all of the Greens including Cole.

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

They didn't know aemond was going to he there it was a trap , Jace wnd belas dragons wouldn't help there too small and would get killed easily .

[@coffeecakes1858]

@@thatoneblackdude3333 And that is why they are slow as hell. There should always be two to three dragons in case Vhaegar shows up. Especially when it was a big wtf as to why Cole was there. No one thought, gee, could it be a trap? Lets send a few dragons just in case. Even if it wasn't a trap, it would have been light work to get rid of Cole and his forces.

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

@@coffeecakes1858 nobody expected vhagar to be their since they assumed aemond would stay in Kings landing to prevent rhenyrea from attacking which is what the greens were doing for the first 3 episodes, no amount of dragons is going to help against vhagar most of rhenyreas dragons are small the only ones who could lose a threat is daemon who's gone rogue no pun intended, and rhenys the only mistake rhenyrea mede was waiting too long to act trying to make peace maker with alicent who couldn't stop the war even if she wanted to which rhenyrea should know since she's only queen dowager not queen regent.

[@coffeecakes1858]

@@thatoneblackdude3333 Like I said IN CASE. KL is just a hop, skip and a jump away from Dragonstone and Rook's Rest is like across the damn street. They are all in the Crownlands. They are slow as hell. I am Team Black all day, everyday, but they slow. Daemon was the only one thinking. Wipe out Vhaegar and have all the Green's heads on spikes. And wrong, one of Rhae's dragons takes her out, so imagine a tag team against Vhaegar?

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

@@coffeecakes1858 daemon really was the only one talking sense nobody listens to him because he's extreme but he hasn't been proven wrong once .

[@christianwilliams5536]

Christian: Vhagar is too strong, I’m not even sure if Caraxes could win. Me: 🤫

[@thehillshaveaviators]

So Aegon isnot dead, but he and Sunfyre are grievously wounded. I think they intended to make it look ambiguous but im not a fan of that choice, since he just looks dead

[@AnnaB22]

I think the reason Aegon is so upset about not being listened to is because as Corlys once said "History doesn't remember blood, it remembers names." If he sits back and does nothing all everyone will speak about is how great Cole was in battle and how formidable Ameond was on Vhagar - just like they were saying at the council meeting before he left. He will be forgotten in history if he cannot make a notable contribution. I actually felt bad for him. He didn't want this, he never did. They never even trained him secretly to do the job correctly if they wanted him to have it. And now they belittle him for not knowing enough. He only started wanting to be King during the coronation because the people applauded and praised him, something he never got at home from his family. Alicent is a terrible mother. She didn't even comfort him when his son died and now when she actually speaks to him it is only to make him feel useless and worthless. I know people say that is because she got that from her father but that's not true because other people can go through those same experiences and choose to be much better as parents than their own parents were to them. Simply because they understand how bad it made them feel growing up in a household like that - they overcompensate for it. She is cruel because she wants to be nothing more.

[@r.gvandaele9652]

Daemon was right in the beginning when he said caraxes and meleys can put vhagar down because meleys herself almost did but damn vhagar is too big even tho she’s old and slow. Credits to rhaenys for atleast bringing vagar down. 😢 RIP to the Red Queen & The Queen who never was . Died like a real Targaryen. RESPECT to all the dragons! 🙏🏻 I CANT believe I had a panic attack over fake/CGI dragons dying lol… I am team black but i Kinda felt bad for aegon too because he never wanted to rule but he also wants to impress his family but has never been trained to be a king and the way alicent spoke to him is kinda painful to watch. And aemond wants to kill aegon too oh boy! Sunfyre loved aegon more than his family loves him 😭…. the look between meleys and rhaenys broke me as well at the end. 😢

[@johnwalkeristhatdude3018]

Daemon is laughing right now he told her they should take out Vhagar episode 1 now look at her lol

[@Dec4AllTimeAlways]

*DAEMON/AEMOND* I think the thing that needs to be dissected the most is the Daemon stuff. GrayArea (MJ) is one of the biggest Daemon fangirls on the Internet. She has a hot take that Daemon will end up being a greenseer…. kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3-pqYOoidymrrMsi=2HRW0zdvCs2xZJ-v Daemon ended up being Mickey Mouse in the Castle of Illusions on the Sega Genesis and Tom Hanks in The Money Pit (1986). He’s in his own Silent Hill / Nightmare on Elm Street subplot and then he still has to be Bob Vila / Tim “The Toolman” Taylor trying to renovate that haunted castle. I actually see Daemon and Aemond mirror images of each other. Their names are an anagram. Similar to Loki, all wanted the throne but were passed on because they had an older brother. Loki wasn’t technically Asgardian. Aemond is what Daemon used to be 30 years earlier. All have second son syndrome. I think Daemon ended up getting this haunted castle subplot because he wasn’t present when Battle at Rook’s Rest was happening. In the book, Daemon was already in Harrenhal before Blood & Cheese happened. It was Mysaria who recruited them. I think the writers are giving him this subplot as a reason why he isn’t at war. Give Matt something to do. There was no argument between Daemon and Rhaenyra during the aftermath of Blood and Cheese. The writers made them argue to give an excuse that Daemon went to Harrenhal and wasn’t present when Rhaenys was killed. But I do think the dreams/visions subplot actually gives Daemon better character development. Remember the very first episode of Loki called Glorious Purpose which was also the name of the finale? Loki was watching scenes from Thor: The Dark World and Avengers: Infinity War. Loki got 10 years of character development in that scene. That’s what Daemon is going through. He’s feeling guilty from the troubles he did. I believe Daemon is going to have a similar story arc as Tony Stark and Loki in MCU. He is going to sacrifice his life for the greater good. For the realm. He starts off very selfish and impatient. But he’s going to turn into a better human being at the end. That’s how you write great characters. We need to see some kind of change in them. As Sesskasays said, I don’t want this dream sequence to carry on too long. But I think it’s a great exploration for Daemon for the time being. When Matt Smith filmed that scene when he sees Milly Alcock’s Rhaenyra sowing Jaehaerys’ head, those were real tears from Matt. www.cinemablend.com/interviews/house-of-the-dragon-director-unpacks-matt-smith-reunion-milly-alcock-daemon-rhaenyra-harrenhal Milly Alcock’s appearance came as a surprise, as House of the Dragon didn’t announce that the original Rhaenyra actress would be part of the episode. When I spoke with director Geeta Vasant Patel about Episode 3, she broke down the scene: “It was a wonderful thing to have her there. I think narratively it was right on. I think the writing of that scene is brilliant in that there's only one person who can get underneath Daemon's skin, and that's Rhaenyra. And the fact that she just told him he was worthless means that he's got nothing with the adult Rhaenyra, but what he remembers [is] the person who loved him the most was the young Rhaenyra. When he walks into that dream, she turns to him, and she judges him, and is basically saying, 'You killed a young boy. How could you do that? Look at yourself.' She's the mirror for him, because otherwise he walks around and doesn't care what anyone thinks. But with Rhaenyra, she's the only person that gets to his heart. And so that's the first time that we see Daemon process his actions.” “When we shot that scene, something that Milly and Matt and I talked about was that this scene is the product of all the scenes before it, that if you took all the words out, she could just look at him and it would break him. And so we ran the scene many times, just finding our way to it. And at one moment, Milly looked at Matt, and his face just broke and he was in tears. Then I was in tears and many of the crew were in tears. It was such a beautiful moment of [that] this isn't Game of Thrones, this isn't House of the Dragon. This is just a man who made a mistake and just realized it.” Daemon Is A 'Broken Man' “There's two things. One is obviously the structure of Harrenhal. But the other thing is, every time Matt and I looked at that scene, it felt like it could have happened anytime, anywhere. A guy comes in, it's a spooky place, it's really scary. He turns around the corner, a guard sees him. He's like, 'Oh my god, it's Daemon!' and he starts running. And then Daemon enters the room, and it's like, 'Hi, I'm Daemon, I'm taking over here.' It just felt like we couldn't figure out 'why now.' I finally went back and thought about it. I thought, 'You know what, wait a minute. This isn't about a man entering Harrenhal. This is about a man who was rejected by the only woman that he's let into his life, and where he's at in that moment, and Harrenhal reflects that.'” “So then I went back through the scene, and I sat down with Ryan. I was like, 'Wait a minute. The dragon going into Harrenhal is like a man coming out of a fight with his wife, and he's drinking and he's reckless. He could kill himself, he could jump off a bridge, or he could kill somebody. We don't know, but this is the precipice of a place that he's never been to before. And that's where it intersects with Harrenhal.' So with visual effects, we created a movement for the dragon, we created a tone for that scene that was different than what we'd had before. Before a dragon was just flying through, and now we made this, what I call the drunken dragon, flying through this weather. Then when Daemon arrives into Harrenhal, I didn't want it to feel like Marvel. It's not a superhero. This is actually a broken man, so we changed those plans too.” “We came in and Daemon is going through Harrenhal, and the one reference I used was Silence of the Lambs. Someone who's in a place he doesn't know, and for the first time, we see a different side of Daemon. Someone who is perhaps vulnerable and doesn't know where to go. He's been thrown out of his house. What's scripted was that he walks up, and he sees the guard, and the guard runs, and he lets the guard run. Instead, he's so emotional. He's so full of pain, but he is Daemon, who speaks in violence. So, Matt and I... decided that it was better if Daemon beats the hell out of that guy, because that's what he would do. Even though the guy was gonna run away. That's Daemon, because he's having a really bad day and if you get in his way, we wish you luck. So we shot it both ways, and that's what made the cut in the end.” _ *Matt* *Smith’s* *thoughts* *on* *Daemon* Speaking about what is in store for his character this time round, the actor told us: “Look, he does some pretty ghastly stuff. There's no doubting that.” On his thoughts towards Daemon, he continued: “He's got his own set of morals, which somehow, even though to the rest of the world, they don't really make sense but to Daemon Targaryen they absolutely do. And I think there's something about that that I respect ultimately.” He added; “Look, I like him! I think you do, when you play someone. You grow quite fond of them.” "He's haunted by the present and his feelings about the past," says Smith. "I think it was a deliberate decision by the writers. They don't want to just churn out the same thing. It's like, what else can we do with Daemon?" Daemon is also surprisingly mourning the brother he never seemed to get along with when the king was alive. "Grieving is the catalyst. He's grieving the death of his brother, who he misses deeply," says Smith. "But he's unable to share or express that to anyone. So you're left with a quite volatile and confused Daemon Targaryen, which will hopefully be entertaining for viewers." A confused Daemon off his game is better than no Daemon, especially in the topsy-turvy "Thrones" universe. But you know that fans are going to be rooting for Old Daemon to bring his badness back again. "I'm sure he'll be back," says Smith. "But you're all just going to have to wait and see." _ I’m actually loving how much more hated and ruthless Aemond is becoming. I think every show needs a great villain and he’s that guy next to Criston Cole. This will make the result from the Battle Above the Gods Eye more impactful. Besides, doesn’t George R.R. Martin hate the Greens? Of course as a reader/viewer, he wants people to hate what he wrote and wants them to lose. I know all the talk from Episode 4 are the dragon fights but the most fascinating plot involves the most charismatic character in House of the Dragon and it’s all happening in Harrenhal. Does Daemon become a greenseer? Daemon happens to be Brynden Rivers’ great-grandfather who became the Three-Eyed Raven. Daemon -> Viserys II -> Aegon IV -> Brynden If Alys Rivers (the Melisandre of this era) happens to be over 400-years-old, how can she be a bastard child to Lyonel Strong? That wouldn’t be her father if she’s older than Aegon the Conqueror and Balerion. I actually hope Daemon impregnates Alys Rivers but when the Greens takes over Harrenhal and Aemond spares Alys’ life, she pretends the baby is his. Alys wanted Daemon first but ended up settling for a silver medal in One-Eyed Aemond and his small pecker called his One-Eyed Willy. Daemon and Aemond carry the show. The two crazy mfers that look like a father and son tandem. It’s young vs. old Sephiroth. Without Daemon and Aemond, the Dance of the Dragons is quite a bore. We all want the Daemon vs. Aemond showdown in the Battle Above the Gods Eye. That’s all we’re really waiting for. Daemon ends the war by sacrificing himself. Caraxes will go down a greater legend than Meleys.

[@Blinkptx]

Vhagar steps on people in full armor and doesn't notice. I step on a Lego and fall down. Also, Rhaenrya knew they were daring her to make a move, but she was at the point where she really didn't have a choice. She needed to start making moves.

[@MrFredstt]

I mean had she used her dragons to burn Cole's army earlier there would've never been a trap set in the first place

[@dominiccastro6483]

She was foolish and short sighted as usual.

[@jonathanblaze1648]

Great reaction!

[@convulsiongaming8723]

There is a total of 2 maybe 3 dragons that are big enough and experienced enough to beat vhagar. Meleys vermithor and caraxes. We seen that meleys definitely got the one up on vhagar but decided to fly away. If she had turned right back around and landed on vhagar b4 vhagar could get back in the air vhagar is dead. Vermithor is the second largest dragon behind vhagar.he is almost as big as vhagar. meleys behind him and caraxes behind her.

[@marcogutierrez4219]

Caraxes and Meleys can't 1v1 against Vaghar, that's why Daemon asks Raenys to face him together, maybe Vermithor could beat Vaghar 1v1 if he was controlled by a experienced rider.

[@GingerMT-o4m]

You also cannot discount the unridden dragons on Dragon stone. You still have Veramithor and Silverwing as well as see smoke cannibal, and sheep stealer they have size they have battle experience. They are just missing riders and bastard. Targaryen‘s in Velarion‘s are said to be able to ride a dragon if they can bond with a dragon

[@bellajoli1]

I think the way home was across the bay where she came from not towards the forest. So Rheanys was going to the direction of home before Vhagar got her 😢

[@TimberlakeTigerGirl]

The Battle of Rooks Rest was technically a victory for the Greens. But both sides took such heavy losses that it ultimately was a waste.

[@danzmachinz2269]

Rook's rest is so close to dragonstone... Should have sent all their dragons even just for backup. Rhaenyra backs up jace, jace backs up rhaenys... But then we wouldn't have this story..

[@Dec4AllTimeAlways]

*The* *Red* *Dragon* *and* *the* *Gold* Currently the highest rated HOT D episode on IMDb. Not only for this season, but for the entire series. Currently at a 9.7 as I type this, higher than The Lord of the Tides (S1E8) at 9.3. This makes up for last week’s episode which has the lowest IMDb score at 7.9, lower than The Princess and the Queen (S1E6) at 8.0. So it’s official, this is HOT D’s best episode ever so far among the 14. I’ll admit, this episode did start off a bit too slow. This is not on the level of close to nonstop action like The Watchers on the Wall and Battle of the Bastards were. But the last 15 minutes of this episode is easily the best action from the series only rivaled by Daemon fighting in the Stepstones from Ep. 3 from the first season. There’s a bit of deviation from how it was written in the book, but I was satisfied enough. It’s a better translation than how Blood & Cheese was shown in the S2 opener. Why is Daemon wasting time in Harrenhal? It’s a shitty, haunted castle with bad plumbing. Has not raised an army since pretty much everyone around him are either useless, clueless, or plain scared to fight. The visions were pretty cool and I did enjoy that Alys Rivers interaction as well as Matt Smith dressed up as Aemond. Great to see Milly Alcock again and Nanna Blondell (Laena) back. When Daemon chopped Rhaenyra’s head, I was like WTF? Then she’s still talking. Made sense to show Laena again because she was Vhagar’s previous rider. MVPs of this episode are Rhaenys and Meleys, but also credit to Aemond and Vhagar. Team Green did win this round. I like the scene when Aemond was speaking High Valyrian using words like sobriquet and lickspittles. Showing how much smarter he is than Aegon. Aemond attempting to kill Aegon does deviate from the source material. I actually didn’t mind it only because how Aegon mocked him in last week’s episode. And it shows how ruthless Aemond is turning out to be. Aemond might actually be the MVP of this war so far, or at least Vhagar. I’m loving Aemond as I want him to be the evil little shit he is in the book. The more evil, the more entertaining. In the book, Rhaenys does get ambushed by Aemond but she gets burned to the crisp. TV version gave her a more heroic death scene and she falls from the sky after Vhagar chomps on Meley’s neck. And it’s true, Vhagar and Meleys did love each other. Remember, they’re both she-dragons. Their former riders were Viserys and Daemon’s parents. When Viserys and Daemon were babies, Alyssa used to take them on joy rides while riding Meleys. While Vhagar used to be ridden by Daemon’s daddy (Baelon) and second wife (Laena). I hope we see flashback scenes of Baelon and Alyssa when Daemon was still a child. In HOT D’s 1x6, we saw Vhagar and Caraxes flying side by side above Pentos. That scene will only make the Battle Above the Gods Eye sadder. A W for the Queen of All Dragons over the Red Queen. Next up, chomping on another red dragon and former boy pal, the noodle neck nicknamed Bloodwyrm. RIP Rhaenys and Meleys I always thought Meleys was the best designed dragon in this series. She’s up there with Drogon. Love her color and her face. Caraxes looks too weird to me but I do love his unique roar thanks to his deviated septum. My favorite designed dragon will likely be Balerion if HBO ever comes around and gives us a series about Aegon the Conqueror. I love Balerion’s design as much as any Godzilla design. Not a big fan of Vhagar’s design. Is this my favorite episode of House of the Dragon so far? Maybe. I need to rewatch it. I still have Driftmark as my personal favorite but I will say this episode is the best of the series. We wanted dragons fighting, we got it. This is really the beginning of the Dance where there are no accidental occurrences. Full intention is to kill the opposition. Rhaenys and Meleys had to be the first major casualties in this war. The Battle at Rook’s Rest is when the Dance of the Dragons really started. Grade: A I think my personal favorite will be the Season 2 finale. If you’re Team Green, this should be your favorite episode because Vhagar did kill Meleys with Rhaenys being courageous and strapping herself to her dragon. Team Green did win this battle. But S2 Ep. 8 is The Fall of King’s Landing. That should be Team Black’s favorite. Someone’s head is going to roll and I expect viewers will be cheering loudly. Likely standout episodes from this series + Battle at Rook’s Rest (S2E4) ✅ + The Fall of King’s Landing (S2E8) + Battle Above the Gods Eye (S4?) + Death of the most important character (S4?) Season 2 Character Rankings 1. Daemon 2. Aemond 3. Rhaenys (went out like a legend) 4. Rhaenyra 5. Jace (gave his mom some attitude) 6. Aegon (went back down) 7. Otto 8. Alicent 9. Corlys 10. Baela (hasn’t stood out yet) Season 2 Episode Rankings 1. E4 The Red Dragon and the Gold 2. E2 Rhaenyra the Cruel 3. E1 A Son for a Son 4. E3 The Burning Mill The character talking to Daemon in that meeting after another one of his visions happens to be Willem Blackwood. Remember the little kid in Episode 4 from the first season? That’s him all grown up. Willem Blackwood in Season 1 kzbin.info/www/bejne/epe7d3aketyCmLMsi=38BJWv467kB9qH41 We finally got an episode this season where nobody was sneaking around in a castle undetected. Are the smallfolk really that blind they can’t recognize Rhaenyra dressed as a septa in broad daylight and when nothing is obscuring her face? Season 1 started off a little more consistent while Season 2 now officially has the best episode and perhaps with more to come. I do fully expect for S2 to be superior to S1. More action. The first season was only a prologue to the Dance. The Heirs of the Throne > A Son for a Son The Rogue Prince < Rhaenyra the Cruel Second of His Name > The Burning Mill King of the Narrow Sea < TRDATG The Acolyte: D Ep. 1: C- Ep. 2: C- Ep. 3: D+ Ep. 4: D Ep. 5: B- Ep. 6: D The Boys S4: C+ Ep. 1: C+ Ep. 2: A- Ep. 3: B Ep. 4: A- Ep. 5: C- Ep. 6: D+ House of the Dragon S2: B+ Ep. 1: B Ep. 2: A- Ep. 3: C+ Ep. 4: A Ranking GOT & HOT D Episodes 1. GOT 4x9 The Watcher on the Wall 2. GOT 6x9 Battle of the Bastards 3. GOT 6x10 The Winds of Winter 4. GOT 5x8 Hardhome 5. HOT D 2x4 The Red Dragon and the Gold 6. GOT 8x3 The Long Night 7. GOT 7x4 The Spoils of War 8. GOT 6x5 The Door 9. GOT 2x9 Blackwater 10. HOT D 1x7 Driftmark I’m aware The Long Night was NOT well received. I didn’t like the ending to it either with Arya’s fan service moment and it being way too dark. But credit for the effort. It was still an intense episode with certain characters dying (Jorah, Theon, Beric, and Lyanna). Whatever HOT D’s 2x8 episode and the Battle Above the Gods Eye episode will be called, they both have a really good chance making my top 10. Daemon vs. Aemond / Caraxes vs. Vhagar is really what most fans are waiting for. Ranking GOT & HOT D Seasons 1. GOT S4 2. GOT S6 3. GOT S3 4. HOT D S2? (likely above S1) 5. HOT D S1 6. GOT S1 7. GOT S2 8. GOT S5 (this gets underrated a bit) 9. GOT S7 10. GOT S8 While Game of Thrones S1 and S2 were great, it didn’t get going until Blackwater near the end of S2. But budgets didn’t get bigger until S4. I thought S4 was the first year we got more action. GOT S1 episode budget: $6M HOT D S1 episode budget: $20M At it’s peak, Game of Thrones was the more exciting and arguably the better series. House of the Dragon is more Succession meets The Crown. But the first two seasons of HOT D seems to be more exciting than GOT’s first two seasons because we do get dragons right away, the bigger budgets, and the production crew being much smarter and wiser. I was almost giving up on House of the Dragon after last week’s episode, The Burning Mill, failed to impress on top of the controversial changes with Blood & Cheese that George R.R. Martin wasn’t happy about. Ready to put Andor above it. The problem with HOT D is it’s based from a book. Any slight deviation can piss off readers. Andor doesn’t rely on books as a source. It’s free to do anything. HOT D has higher preset expectations. August 4, 2024 can’t come soon enough. The Fall of King’s Landing is going to have so much cheering in the Burlington Bar since I’m aware a majority are Team Black. When I saw The Red Dragon and the Gold was written by showrunner, Ryan Condal, I knew this episode was in good hands. I hope Ryan wrote the S2 finale as he did write the S1 finale but also the S2 opener which some people felt was a bit lukewarm. The aftermath from Blood & Cheese was great though. Do people think House of the Dragon can lasts four seasons as GRRM claim it could? I originally thought Battle at Rook’s Rest would happen as the S2 finale but we got it as soon as Episode 4 or midway of S2. I think once the most important leads die in this series, it should end the series. Will people care to watch The Hour of the Wolf? Viewers may stop caring once this particular female character gets burned and eaten by Sunfyre. The war pretty much ends with Daemon vs. Aemond. Making Aemond more evil and having him killing another one of his kins and trying to kill his brother will make the Battle Above the Gods Eye even more satisfying. Rest in paradise to the Queen Who Never Was and the Red Queen! You will always be true queens to us! After HOT D’s Ep 4, my favs of the 2020s 1. Loki (2021-2023) 2. House of the Dragon (2022-Present) 3. Andor (2022-Present) All three are better than The Mandalorian and The Boys. Let’s hope HOT D wins an Emmy for this episode or for 2x8.

[@bullymaguire3905]

I'm not reading all'at

[@GustavoCardoso95]

And I agree with that score. it was everything that we love about GOT

[@mauro5831]

Bro what is this 😂

[@IIIIAmSHODAN]

One of the few reactors to point out that Aegon was seeking validation from Alicent and she handled it horribly, as she always does. Because she's a terrible fucking mother. lol

[@justicemambo3486]

The only way HE COULD GET GER IS BY SNEAKING A QUEEN ❤ FIUGHT BRAVE HER A THE RED QUEEN MELEYS ITS 2v1 my gurl held her own he is TO BIG TO BE SNEAKING SOMEBODYYY

[@red_five1542]

26:18 Vhagar is large, but she is extremely old and tired. Remember, at the end of season one, we saw Daemon singing to Vermithor under Dragonstone. Vermithor is the same size as Vhagar, and he is the dragon on the poster behind Rhaenarys.

[@EdAnsbro]

Reminder that Daemon is lining up some of those wild/unclaimed dragons on Dragonstone. The one he was singing to in the season finale last season, Vermithor, is gigantic. Not AS big as Vhagar, but huge and younger, faster. Not saying they go toe to toe, or they don’t, but they have options.

[@GustavoCardoso95]

I think if Meleys was able to scrap with Vhagar both Caraxes and Vermithor stand a fair chance.

[@josceola8979]

@@GustavoCardoso95 Just imagine if Rhaenys had decided to listen to Daemon and they left to take the fight to Aemond. After seeing how inexperienced Aemond was up close combat against Rhaenys they would've killed him and Vagar imo.

[@rexibhazoboa7097]

@@josceola8979 "Inexperienced" what did you watch? Aemond/Vhagar managed to ambush Meleys. That is no small feet.

[@MrFredstt]

@@rexibhazoboa7097 Yeah out of anyone Aemond and Vhagar have the most experience in dragon battles. This is now 2 for 2 for Aemond

[@xmassan20906]

Good news ladies, Criston Cole survived,

[@myrtle05]

😂

[@K.MTamim]

Agon and sunfyre deserved better 😢

[@tariqfiasili3025]

Sunfyre for sure deserved better. Aegon, however… 🤐😵‍💫🥱 sorry to that man.

[@AriSellassie]

Aegon no he deserves all that and worse but sunfyre was innocent

[@dwnkaomwn3953]

Sunfyre, yes. Aegon, no.

[@leonardohenrique5172]

It sucks to be betrayed by your own brother 💔

[@anthonywilliams5475]

I think alic3nt knows she made a mistake that's why she was so harsh to aegon

[@leonardohenrique5172]

Felt like she was taking out her anger on him, even though she was the one that put him in that place

[@DouglasMC810]

Ser Willem Blackwood in this episode is the boy from season 1 that vied for Princess Rhaenyra's hand in marriage then killed the Bracken boy for dissing him

[@stevopr1]

Not gonna lie, Aemond is badass🔥 him & Vhagar are carrying the show.

[@FuLLL04]

Aegon this season are carrying the show and im team black

[@stevopr1]

@@FuLLL04 fax him too

[@serotu]

Targaryens are immune to fire...

[@gordona2820]

I knew exactly who everyone was in GoT but is anyone like me that I have difficulty with HoD names & which side they're all on?

[@susanleach9106]

Hi Guys love your reaction. And wasn’t this episode the best.

[@Cobinja]

I refuse to believe Rhaenys is dead. They didn't show her body! No body -> not dead!

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

Her dragon exploded shed dead bro

[@darthken815]

Music recommendation: Bon Jovi's "Wanted Dead or Alive" in honor of Rhaenys and Meleys. Rest in peace, ladies.

[@rohanshende4338]

"All hail Rhaenyra... the wh*** of dragonstone" 🤣🤣

[@justicemambo3486]

She can’t fly back it would be like abounding those people and wearing her claim to the THRONE she LEFTE INCE SHE WANSNT GONNA DO UT AGAIN ❤

[@dakata160]

Vhagar,called the Queen of All Dragons,I look forward to meeting you Vermithor, called the Bronze Fury...in battle

[@GustavoCardoso95]

I'm so hyped to see Vermithor being claimed. I wonder if we'll get a little lore backstory about how Jaeherys used to sing for him and that's how the new rider will connect to it

[@dakata160]

@@GustavoCardoso95 I think we'll see very soon, and I'm looking forward to it, but I think Rhaenyra is going to bond with him.

[@izaihpaponette4366]

Why's everyone in these reactions calling Vhagar a 'him'?

[@falmusic7582]

Why u guys update so late😭its almost Monday and 5 episode, i want yall REACTION upload in the same day the episode added to hbo, pleaseeeeee

[@smokeem15]

They have a family and outside lives so this isn't the most important thing for them.

[@Артурт-й8ф]

не зря караксеса зовут кровавый змей

[@janaihamilton1895]

19:40 21:12

[@johnscott7210]

Aegon isn't dead....but he will never walk again....and Sunfyre will never fly again.....

[@jonsand3102]

first of all, there is no way Daemon is going to let a bastard strong kid become heir to the throne instead of his pure Targaryen kids, Rhaenys just finding out Corlys been cheating on her kind of ruin her relationship, when she saw Aemond take out his brother she saw how evil he is. She said F**k it and decided to do what she could and go out a dragon rider's death like her daughter wanted. It's too bad Rhaenyra is not more like Rhaenys.

[@Rash23215]

Lol stop projecting ur incel mindset on daemon....

[@jonsand3102]

@@Rash23215 I can make up my own story up on a make believe story

[@bunny9886]

Not you saying this when Daemon threatened the white cloaks to support Jace's line of succession in s1...

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

Why do you people keep saying this dawmon doesn't want his son's on the throne his daughter is set to be queen of westaros and he literally defended jaces claim in episode 10 of the last season.

[@Aleexplayy]

reaction trailer captain america brave new world

[@dominiccastro6483]

You know what I just thought of. Why the heck isn't Jon Snows hair white? Viserys had kids with Alicent who doesn't have white hair and all their children have silver hair which indicates that the male Targaryen's have the dominant gene for hair color. Jon is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen, therefore he should have the white hair.

[@andeven1]

It's all a matter of probability. The recessive genotypes can still be expressed but in low chance of probability. So, Jon having black hair makes him even more special. And let's not forget the followed years of interbreeding might've made the targaryen genes more distilled and weak. I hope after Jon Snow comes back to life in the book there are some physical changes, like his hair turning white would be cool. It'd be both a sign of his life taken out of him, and the sign of his ancestry.

[@thatoneblackdude3333]

​@@andeven1genes in asoiaf simply do not work the way it does in the real world, jon is special are you forgetting jace , luke and Joffrey? There have been many dark haired Targaryens one even founded house baratheon.

[@braw3534]

Y'all are overating Vhagar Yes in Vhagar prime over 100 years before this time Vhagar was a menace and sister to Balerion the dread and Meraxes, but now Vhagar is old asf therefore way slower then she used to be and not as agile. As you can see this episode Meleys put the beating on Vhagar the first round Vhagar only wins by surprise attack like everytime so far. That being said, Daemon and Caraxes are savage savage just wait, Vermithor is also one of the top couple biggest dragons alive we'll see him again during this war, and theres another day called The Cannibal its always been a riderless dragon, its somewhere around as old as Vhagar and Balerion and them and a big ass dragon also. Not major spoilers just saying there is still some heavy hitter Dragons left. I believe Vhagar and Meleys actually have some type of past involving each other in the books as well long before all of this

[@1FM1397]

Gwayne is hilarious 😂😭

[@thelordofgifts5343]

Mexican