House of the Dragon Episode 3 Review (SPOILERS)

[@heddadybvadskog-nebb5603]

Dude Alicent saying "it is not so bad. The days are long, but Aegon came quickly and without fuss" after Visery's mkaes that comment about how Rhaenyra should make him a grandsire soon? Probably one of the most insensitive things you can say to a girl who watched her mother suffer pretty much her whole life trying to get pregnant, having miscarriages and eventually dying in childbirth. Rhaenyra not wanting to stress with producing an heir after watching her mother dedicate her life to it only to fail in the eyes of many including her own, probably one of the most understandable things ever.

[@itskashkashi]

Yeah, Alicent saying that was so insensitive (especially as her once best friend).

[@BleakVision]

No, Rhaenyra is unreasonable and idle. She should marry as she's not doing anything worthwhile anyway.

[@philosophynerdlady]

Maybe Alicent is trying to reassure Rhaenyra that not all pregnancies are horrific. Alicent may be saying this because she knows how Rhaenyra feels about pregnancy and wants to ease her fears. It seems like plenty of people are willing to see the worst in Alicent and best in Rhaenyra - much like the unnecessary Sansa/Dany split in the GOT community. I just think it's wise to be a bit more open-minded about it. Both Alicent and Rhaenyra are flawed and both have positive aspects. They are both victims and agents in their own lives - much like all of us. 😊

[@jessjess23brooks89]

@@philosophynerdlady Well put. I know how the story unfolds and I went into the show fully expecting to hate Alicent. But I really enjoy her and feel pretty bad for her, especially this episode. They are handling the writing so well.

[@byronnotbryon8605]

@@BleakVision poo

[@kiera_rdh6697]

People are only upset about the big time jumps because they forget we are watching an extended prologue to the story the show runners actually want to tell, which is the dance of the dragons civil war. If they started right at the beginning of the war, no one would understand (and therefore care) about all of the relationships and history. I’m glad they’re doing the timeline the way they are and in hindsight it’ll feel more appropriate.

[@samy29987]

Yes, we all know _why_ the time jumps happen, that doesn't mean they can't feel out of place and weird to a lot of people. 2 years is a hell of a time jump. Both things can be true.

[@garbageFreeFall]

@@samy29987 it's more like 3 years

[@rev0568]

@@samy29987 Honestly I've liked it rather than having a bunch of empty fluff in between events.

[@charlese2714]

To be fair the casual GOT viewer is not going to be familiar with the story. They are not forgetting they just don't know. People are confused and trying to keep up. As a book reader I am aware why they are doing this and for the most part think they are doing well. I certainly agree many people will feel differently by the end of season 1.

[@SnailHatan]

@@rev0568 It’s one thing to have fluff. It’s another to show tbe beginning of a war and the conception of a firstborn son to the King. Instead we skipped over thos every important events by three years.

[@Ivbo]

Otto - *”We’ve received a raven from the war in the Step Stones. It’s from Prince Daemon, your grace.”* Viserys - *“Well…what does it say?”* Otto - *“I think it best you read it, your grace.”* **Viserys unrolls the letter.** Letter - *”I don’t need your fucking help, bitch.”*

[@manvirshergill1739]

I really liked the pace of this episode a lot. the dialogue scenes were really strong and well written. Rhaenrya walking into the camp with the boar was Badass. Daemon Targaryen is the man 🔥🔥🔥 also I like what they are doing with Alicent Hightower, I love how complex her character is... you can tell she still has conflicted feelings about what she is doing, I also like how she is trying to keep peace between Viserys and Rhaenrya... she's not all bad, all in all another good episode.

[@memecity9849]

I think viserys was really good in this episode. You can relate to a king who's just trying to do the right things but the world is weighing down on him

[@HARMstudio6]

Guy just needs a hug

[@made-line7627]

@@HARMstudio6 He needs so many hugs

[@THEAdmiralXizor]

He needs to make nice with the Velaryons, though. Having a purebred Valyrian DRAGONRIDER+no inbreeding+a fleet would be huge for the house. Hell, make Leonor take Rhaenyra's name! There's definitely a precedent for that...

[@KabbalahSherry]

@@THEAdmiralXizor - Facts 🙄💯 This man had options but instead, he chose to go behind his daughter's back to bang her best friend not even 6mo after he gave the order to have his wife torn open. Nah, I don't get any of these "Viserys needs a hug" people, I really don't. Every time Viserys is faced w/a problem he makes the wrong decisions because he's weak & can't think for himself. Literally the ONLY thing he's shown to have courage about is in naming his daughter as his heir, but even then... it's too late for any of that to work, now that he's made so many irreparable mistakes that will cost her her birthrite anyway. The Man is a hapless fool, period. And it's already cost the Westerosi people their lives out in the Stepstones... but he's gonna be rolling in his grave, when he sees what happens to the realm after he's dead, and his new child bride & her triflin family take back every single vow they ever made to him. 🤦🏻‍♀️🥴 lmao

[@pearlosibu]

He sighed a good bit this episode 😂

[@hannahspitch9454]

The hunt scene really stuck with me. When Viserys wasn't able to kill the stag in one blow, it immediately took me back to how Theon couldn't get Rodrik's head off in a single strike. It was a perfect parallel. Men who don't have a handle on things and just can't win

[@9525joe]

Viserys seems like a reasonable king why is he portrayed or seen as weak ?

[@justmcmanus]

@@9525joe nice guy, bad king. He just can't make the hard decisions.

[@robbieh.1384]

@@justmcmanus more than that, he refuses to make any decision which could possibly anger ANYONE. Corlys told him (I believe in the Pilot?) that you can either sail into a storm or sail around it, but never wait for it. That is a perfect encapsulation of Viserys’ weakness as King, he is so indecisive that problems become unavoidable and his options are little to none..such as with the crabfeeder. Whether he wanted to acknowledge it or not, the Crown was at war and he sat around for 3 years looking weak until his (unhealthy) hand was pushed into what he could have done in the first place and never angered Corlys.

[@aidanhearn4210]

@@9525joe Because in a Militaristic Society of Warriors and Politicking, the Reasonable Man is the idiot in the room. He's trying to please everyone and thus pleases no one and worse, he's good enough at his job so no one can justify replacing him for someone more competent. Alicent says it best in Ep 9, Viserys would've been happy as a Country Lord left alone with his histories and Models. That kind of man doesn't make a good king for Westeros

[@tonnentonie2767]

Right now the German free TV premiere is airing, and they cut the violence so weirdly... The deer is killed in one blow which changes the meaning of the scene lmao.

[@mattyice9535]

Lyonel Strong is consistently giving pragmatic advice that Viserys just continues to not hear. "Maybe we shouldn't be so rash un-naming Daemon heir." Names Rhaenyra heir and banishes Daemon. "You should wed Laena Velaryon, just for official reasons. Wait for having an heir and get Corlys' support." Weds Alicent Hightower, the daughter of a 2nd son of a powerful house, but hardly a really important compared to a family like the Velaryons, Starks, or Lannisters. "You should betrothe Rhaenyra to Laenor Velaryon, it will get the same result as the advice you didn't heed of mine and you'll bring Laenor himself, a Dragon Rider, into your direct service when he becomes King-Consort." Waffles about and says Rhaenyra will have a choice....but seeing as the next episode appears to have another time jump and he's literally rotting away (if you noticed, he has 2 less fingers on one of his hands), I'd bet he's gonna try and force an issue again. Just listen to Lyonel like once maybe. Why even have him on the council as a main advisor. He's literally Master of Laws. If anyone would understand how to navigate Westeros' stupid inheritance and succession laws and culture, it's him.

[@hoopsmcgee8272]

Fewer

[@Ambuscade94]

She does marry laenor though

[@TheEnecca]

He has to be up to something. Nobody is this nice and reasonable in westeros.

[@IgnorantWeed]

Great man

[@poenpotzu2865]

@@TheEnecca maybe he's like Pycelle all he wishes is to remain in the garden

[@thereisnocarolinHR]

My favorite part was the dichotomy of viserys killing the stag that was tied down for him and rhaenyra who killed a boar to survive but then didn’t attempted to kill the white stag she encountered. She is decisive and willing to fight when threatened. He makes everything worse for himself and the ones around him with his indecisiveness

[@eriktatos]

I respect the fact that Daemon got hit with a goddamn arrow eventually, cuz I was bout to rage quit if homeboy dodged 6900 arrows

[@stephenobisanya]

😂😂😂

[@BlushGush]

Esp cuz Rickon couldn’t dodge Ramsey’s arrows and that’s one persons arrows and daemon got plot armor from 100 arrows

[@anthonyoer4778]

The armor is terrible, especially not wearing helmets of any function. Also arrows at that distance would be ineffective unless hitting leather or flesh...but it's fantasy...

[@cubablue602]

You've been watching too many movies lol. Trying to hit a fast moving target from a 100 yards on a windy beach? The only unrealistic part was that they managed to hit him at all. Ever seen an archery competition with moving targets? They're only effective in big groups, firing into static crowds (or at a massive dragon on the ground lol)

[@SnailHatan]

Nah, only 6897 arrows

[@fjnemo]

The BIG reason Daemon went to fight in the Stepstones was to prove his worth and how capable he is. If he failed to defeat the Crab-feeder and Viserys sends help to finish the job, it defeats the whole purpose. He couldn't let big bro come save him

[@ousmanjallow7866]

Yep

[@bwpitlik1290]

I like how Laenor is being portrayed as a very capable military commander/warrior and they’re not making the gay guy just somebody who likes frolicking on his dragon.

[@itskashkashi]

But I hope he does also enjoy frolicking on his dragon lol he sure enjoyed burning mofos this episode lol

[@PsychoMike21000]

You know they did the same with Loras on GOT.

[@KabbalahSherry]

Facts 😏 Renly & Loras were both capable w/swords, although Renly was afraid of blood & hadn't been in battle yet. But still... I appreciate that George has never been afraid to go against those stereotypes. There's certainly nothing wrong w/fem gay men, but not all gay men are fem, and it's important to show that as well.

[@penbunk]

yep, but the way he yelled all those "Dracarys!!" to Seasmoke sounded a bit "frolicky" to me 🤭

[@FMD70757]

Thanks for the spoiler.

[@JamieBarrington]

Viserys bursting out in laughter at Otto's suggestion to marry his teen daughter to her 2 year old brother was HILARIOUS! I watched it on a loop for about 10 minutes straight and even at minute 10, I was still cracking up. 🤣💀 My dude speaking for us all. lol. I absolutely adore Paddy Considine. He makes Viserys so human and it's so enjoyable. And Daemon... I wished they would've shown more of the war on the Stepstones, but what we got was incredible! Loved seeing Seasmoke. Gorgeous dragon! And it was so much fun seeing our long boi, the Blood Wyrm, Ceraxes and Daemon. It was def kind of funny watching that poor guy get tramped on. I laughed. I'm going to hell.

[@RangerHouston]

Really feeling the pressure on Visarys closing in. Paddy is such a wonderful actor, the way he is able to speak volumes with just his eyes is absolutely amazing.

[@JamieBarrington]

He really is so phenomenal. Viserys was a weak king, but Paddy makes him truly feel so human. He's one of my new favorite actors and I knew he'd probably do well after watching Peaky Blinders, but this completely elevated his talent.

[@SnailHatan]

Never knew him as an actor except for one small role and now I understand why so many people were excited when he got cast

[@thisguy8106]

His dream is subtle for the reason that HE caused the Dance. Had he not married Alicent, it wouldn't have. So the dream is showing him his biggest mistake.. but like usual.. they misinterpreted it... big time.

[@just42day]

In all fairness to Alicent, she truly started as an ally and friend to Rhaenyra until her father started to plant seeds of malice and power. It’s human nature too; she felt conflicted and eventually succumbed to it, in favour of taking the throne.

[@kiera_rdh6697]

Notice that Matt Smith didn’t say a SINGLE WORD in this episode. Showing that Daemon isn’t just a shit talking rich boy, but a force to be reckoned with. He killed crabfeeder without a single word. Smith’s wordless acting was truly something to behold. Earned his place as second on the bill despite not having a single line. (EDIT: I forgot he did say “where are you” on dragon back in the opening, but his whole arc and tirade of getting the letter, angry reaction and beating the messenger, the white flag fake out, killing the crabfeeder, that was all silent)

[@KatieLHall-fy1hw]

For real? It’s about a one line episode for him? Watching later tonight

[@S1ipperyJim]

The crab feeder didn't say a single word in 3 episodes. So he's 3× as badass?

[@samy29987]

He ended a war that lasted 2 years because of pride and pettiness alone by himself. That was probably the strangest decision he could have taken. I don't see how that makes him ''a force to be reckoned with'', that makes him rather stupid, the fact he succeeded is because of plot armor, the real GOT had him dead easily for such a rash and unreasonable decision.

[@Zizou19989]

@@samy29987 well he did have the help of an army and some dragons :)

[@matthewinterlantejr.9297]

Fun asoiaf fact. No dragon has ever accepted a second rider before the death of the first. Although dragons can have multiple riders throughout their lives, no rider has ever has ever claimed a second dragon.

[@SnailHatan]

At least, if the legends are correct

[@mattlindberg2843]

I feel like there’s a fact check needed on this post…

[@matthewinterlantejr.9297]

@@mattlindberg2843 world of ice and fire

[@BlazingSteel]

This gives serious implications to Laena and Aemond's relationship with Vhaegar..

[@mydreaminorbit9297]

I like that even though the dragons are the ultimate weapon. They're still methods and strategies to put up a fight. The crab feeder using the network of narrow caves to maneuver men and supplies around was pretty smart.

[@KabbalahSherry]

Facts it worked for 20yrs in Afghanistan 😬🤣

[@garbageFreeFall]

@@KabbalahSherry Vietnam, Dorne, etc.

[@Gribbics]

Yeag the mans smart, sends whome army to a slaughter.

[@rev0568]

I do like that this sort of defeats the image of, undefeatable and untouching monster of war. Especially because they especially set up not to injure Ceraxes, but to kill Daemon when Ceraxes is on the ground.

[@SnailHatan]

Except it would only work if the dragons never just spammed fire in the caves and burnt through all the oxygen. Or if the Velaryons never stuffed a bunch of wood in there to create tons of smoke and choke out the crabby patties

[@ReignofIndepence]

Matt and Paddy are incredibly fun to watch. Everyone is.doing a great job

[@JamieBarrington]

They are my favorites, along with Rhys as Otto. And Milly too. Such an incredible cast, every single one of them.

[@michaelh9649]

“He’s getting more than humbled here-he’s getting fired.” Lol you guys are gold. Seriously, you both have such a talent for doing these podcasts.

[@TD-lh9ph]

Unfortunate the last one got taken down, hopefully you didn’t have to cut too much

[@gus9663]

It was the same length

[@TD-lh9ph]

@@gus9663 weird I wonder how they got around it then, cuz when I clicked the original through my notifications it said it contained content from “INSERT COMPANY” and has been taken down by copyright request. Or something along those lines

[@cubablue602]

The White Hart scene was brilliant. Its got nothing to do with killing it or letting it go. It's a portant that GRRM has introduced from Celtic mythos. Here it appears only to the rightful heir, traditionally a messenger from another world, a 'quest giver' if you like. Remember that's what Robert Baratheon was hunting in GOT, thinking it was actually something you could track down and kill. Complete misunderstanding and you see the result of that. Viserys took a similar approach (or at least he doesn't seem to understand it either) and we will see what becomes of him. Here Rhaenyra suddenly realises there's far more to the White Hart than a hunting trophy. That was so beautifully done and filmed.

[@Ashbrash1998]

I actually felt bad for Viserys this episode. You really sympathized with him being a part of a dynasty of dragonriders and dreamers, yet he has no dragon to ride and his dreams don't come true. Like he's looking SO hard for a sign but he's flailing in the dark just like the rest of the mortals

[@BlushGush]

Yes I feel this comment

[@tim6454]

He was the last rider of the black dread. So he is a dragon rider he just never took another mount

[@Ashbrash1998]

@@tim6454 True, but what does it say that first dragon you took died? Being a dragonrider is the biggest flex for a Targaryen and he can't do that.

[@tim6454]

@@Ashbrash1998 it died of old age tho

[@rawbones4117]

As Ygritte wisely said "it's all in where you're standing". Daemon is getting so much support (from some fans) despite his obvious flaws because of his direct contrast to King Viserys. Daemon wouldn't put up with the obvious squabbling and plotting of the other lords. He'd put them in their place and call them out. Doing that isn't in Viserys nature, so the lords go unchecked. It's like how after Tommen allowed the High Sparrow to rise up and manipulate everybody you had people pining for the days of Joffrey, who absolutely wouldn't have allowed such shenanigans to go unchecked.

[@TheTribster]

Great to be back and listening to you guys again! I always looked forward to the GOTcasts you did. Thanks for being a great listen!

[@Commander_Ray]

They did justice to a king's hunt unlike season 1 of GOT

[@JamieBarrington]

Yes they did. Bobby B, where you at?

[@Daneki]

They have a budget unlike season 1 of GOT

[@dipankarjoshi3828]

Daemon targaryen easily steals the episode 🔥 never seen such loud reactions since got ended. Daemon was trending at every social media site

[@kiera_rdh6697]

And he didn’t even say a single word after the first scene! Smith gave an amazing almost silent performance and still captivated everyone as Daemon.

[@JamieBarrington]

Matt as Daemon is enigmatic!

[@warlick752]

I think viserys biggest problems are number 1 a lack if understanding of the people around him. He tends to simplify them and then not ask why they do the things they do. He thinks daemon is just an ass and doesn't ask does he have a reason to dislike lord Hightower. He thinks rhaenyra is just a rebellious teen, but doesn't ask why or even if she's justified in her anger. His second problem is an aversion to conflict, but more specifically emotional conflict. In tense conversations and arguments he very rarely tries to deascalate things and is primarily defensive or accusatory. Even at the end of the betrothal conversation with rhaenrya after they've settled matters he's still incredibly tense after things calmed down.

[@stephaniebrett3708]

Love doing all this again

[@heddadybvadskog-nebb5603]

subtle things I loved this episode: Rhaenyra declining the wine as she entered the name day feast, the contrast between her clothes this episode and Alicent's, the similar shots of Daemon and Rhaenyra covered in blood, Laenor's accent: I don't know if that's just his regular accent in real life, but it seemed different from his parents and sister and almost seemed a bit confused like it is the result of moving, the Lannister spear taking the stag down- a great call back to Roberts death. Loved the whole episode but these are some of my subtle favourites- and seasmoke is stunning wow

[@michaelbaron3103]

Milly has been so good I am almost already said she’ll be replaced soon. I’m sure the other actress will be great as well just bittersweet knowing her run as this character may be so short

[@that.canadian.vaper.guyTCVG]

I LOVE Caraxes design. Almost everyone and their moms were making fun of my boy, but try hitting him with arrows, Spears or even a scorpion bolt when he's in the air? He is long and almost slinky-esque, but that will make Caraxes that much more dangerous in air. If he fights another Dragon on the ground, his flimsy body will hinder him. But once he gets in the air, he just slithers and swims in the air and it looks so damn cool. I get why they call him the Blood Worm now, he just slithers and swims while he's flying, making him so much harder to hit. In the air, a Dragon is a fucking Dragon. No matter what it looks like lol

[@chroniclemclain8524]

I’m just happy to be back with NerdSoup talking about Thrones again

[@chazfromtheburg]

Daemon running the gauntlet without being killed or at least seriously injured was so unrealistic. And I loved every second of it.

[@boots4snootin571]

loved the whole episode til the last battle. felt like generic unrealistic fake fantasy red shirt no consequences. in old GOT you couldnt just hide in caves. there would be a siege, flood them out, burn them out, starve them, collapse them? you have weapons of mass destruction use them. rhaenyra storyline was great. loved the beats with young dornish kingsguard. and viserys doubling down on telling rhaenyra he's choosing her was such a good story moment. the plot is now in a concrete direction. it's a payoff, what happens now, you know

[@rev0568]

They probably already tried? It's probably not just a series of caves with dead ends, or there'd be no issues. They would literally be able to wait them out. But the caves themselves are probably long, and overly difficult to predict where they would come out. You could storm in, but they have limited men, and putting themselves in a series of caves they are unfamiliar with is asking for an ambush. Also, how EXACTLY are they supposed to flood out or starve out people in a CAVE system? And what is your grand solution for collapsing them, when they are not mine shafts, but natural formations in the earth? Ceraxes can't topple a fuckin mountain, neither can Seasmoke or Maelys. Also, no consequences? Ignoring Daemon getting shot 4 times this episode, and showing how to best handle a dragon (Attack the rider, not the dragon), we get a look at Daemon as a warrior and how he forges a better rep. There's a lot more that will and has occurred as a result of this battle, but its certainly not a no consequences fight.

[@UNKANNYENTERTAINMENT]

Took years to beat the crab feeders...but only a few hours to defeat the knights king's army. This show is already better than the last few seasons of GOT.

[@sayhellotomylitleful]

I guess Crabfeeder kinda forgot about the dragons and the Valyrian forces but they certainly haven’t forgot about him

[@niyah7139]

It's showing us how stubborn Rhaenyra is. Even though she's Brave and smart she's allowing her younger brother to come in and become the heir she's giving it to him. She doesn't have any allies at all. She should always be in the people's line of sight. 👏👏 she had the opportunity to get women on her side and she failed

[@joetacke2000]

I've seen some complaints that Paddy seems out of place, which surprises me. I found him riveting from the moment he showed up on screen, and this episode solidified that. I love his mannerisms when Hightower suggests marrying Rhaenrya to Aegon

[@SnailHatan]

I think those people don’t know the difference between acting and the character. Paddy doesn’t feel out of place at all, Viserys does.

[@irvfleckman9812]

I think the stag scene symbolizes how powerless Viserys feels. Everything about the hunt is done by someone else. Even when it came down to killing a captured animal, he needs someone to tell him twice where to put the spear.

[@rosswatson3993]

Daemon knew he needed to do what he did in order to really stake a claim to the Throne with action. Allowing the help to come would only further make him look weak. Second Sons "Power is Taken, not Given"

[@heatherupton6558]

The acting in this show is top notch. I’m really getting invested in these characters. Paddy Considine is awesome as Viserys!

[@sidneyrosey]

Since our dragon princess is a mixtape/"play more music servant" kinda kid, I'm adding a Beyonce song as a description to every part of Rhaenyra's character arc ~ So far I have the following: Friends Family Feud If I Were a Boy Irreplaceable Pray You Catch Me Break My Soul Next episode's preview is giving me subtle 'Cuff It Vibes' (feel free to add on fellow soupers!) 🍜

[@eugenia4928]

Me, myself and I - she’s gotta be her own best friend after Alicent pulled the stepmom stunt

[@KDR710]

I like how the Stag pretty much ended the dragon years later when Robert killed Rhaegar

[@noleftturnunstoned]

What?... it was Jamie.

[@olivera6743]

@@noleftturnunstoned what, no. Robert killed Rhaegar. Jamie killed Aeryes

[@noleftturnunstoned]

@@olivera6743 oops

[@billdebrowski2670]

They were not crab feeders”. Craghas Drahar was The Crabfeeder, an Admiral from Myr not Dorne. These were all soldiers/mercenaries serving the free cities - Triarchy , Myr, Lys, and Tyrosh. This war was not with Dorne.

[@mjisurdad]

he said like dorne did to the targs. he didn't say they were from dorne.

[@daroe2340]

What I thought was great about that final battle was that the crab feeder was convinced to send out the troops when they hit Daemon with arrows and Caraxes didn’t show up to protect him.

[@tonydeveyra4611]

Everything was executed well, acting and dialog was great but I couldn't help but be bothered by how the setup of the war didn't quite make sense. After all, the reason the stepstones matter is because really valuable ships and cargo travel through there. Given that, if the crabfeeder were to just hide in the caves on one of the islands for several years, he would lose control of shipping lanes-- you know the thing that actually matters--so daemon and Corlys would just ignore him, let him hide in the cave and reassert control over the ocean by burning his ships and patrolling the ocean with their fleet. Hiding in the cave is smart if you don't want to be killed by dragons, but it also means giving up the real goal of the conflict...

[@Tadaia]

Agree. Not to mention barricading any entrances with wood and smoking them out or to death with fire. They really never needed to even go on the island had they just dealt with the ships as you suggest.

[@tothnorbertstudio7993]

highly agree with you! the show seems great so far. acting, dialogue and politica are well done but the battle plans and scenes are so clichê and dumb once again...

[@blanchemayo9906]

But if you guys take note he was doing the run in a zig zag move which can make it hard for archers to aim. Remember in GoT when evil Ramsey killed Rickon stark it was easy cuz he was running straight. Yes some people are upset that the battle with the crab king was not shown but I like that they did not show it. Caraxes structure is described liked that in the book. That is why caraxes is also known as the blood wrym

[@LSChestersMom]

Love this review and love love love the addition of Nash :) Hope he stays on the team!

[@kittycattt93]

They said in the ep that the white stag was rare but had been caught by "rightful Kings" in the past hence the hunt trying to find it. The white stag showing itself to Rhaenerya and her not killing it symbolises that she is the rightful heir

[@keithdeal209]

I love that the show doesn’t shy away from keeping all of these characters gray. It shows like the book tells us that Viserys is in a way weak and not great at making decisions. It’s not so simple as that though. He basically had to win an election unlike any king prior to him. So there were lords of the realm who didn’t like or choose him from day one. With all that, it’s that the show added in the prophecy of the white walkers. Except the threat that gets passed on from king to heir over and over is very vague. Imagine the weight of being king and add on the extra weight of this looming threat from the north where most of these folks at court have never been. Not knowing what the actual threat is or will be, when it will come. Next week or a hundred years from now. And now we know why so many Targaryen kings went mad or made the insane choices they did. The burden of being king with added stress of what we know to be a literal zombie apocalypse are killing this man. Stress and depression unchecked do awful things to our bodies when we don’t come from a line of incest wreaking biological havoc on our bodies. And at first I had zero sympathy for him until we were informed of the prophecy and now we are being gifted this masterful acting on the part of Paddy. I can feel this man’s pain in his eyes and on his face. And that’s just one character. I’m so happy with the writing so far because I’ve listened to Fire & Blood many times and they are not just giving us the maesters version we all read. They could have mailed it in that way and just had the casual fan ooh and aah at the dragons till the story ended but they are put their own spin on it without straying from the source material. Oh wow. See what I did there. I mentioned the writing with crying about D&D or season 7 and 8. It is possible.

[@mattyreynolds4243]

Season 8 was shit though now you mention it

[@keithdeal209]

@@mattyreynolds4243 🤣🤣🤣

[@c1plas]

I loved this episode, I wanted to watch it again right after. They kind of Knight King’ed the crab king.

[@theprimo100]

Rhaenyra nearly got Bobby B'd there

[@fatalshore5068]

"Powdered Sugaaaaaaah"

[@13_faces]

Lol "Bobby B"

[@raquelvengroff4599]

Missed these! Than feels like old times

[@thisguy8106]

Daemon cut the half that didn't have Greyscale lol

[@jameswilkinson4616]

My boy Daemon put in that WORK

[@jaimevelez4861]

Man HBO loves messing with you all huh? You guys do great work.

[@tjanderson5892]

Agree that the stark didn’t come off as a stark on first loom imo. Knowing how genetics work in this world, seeing Lord Stark earlier on just wasn’t very convincing

[@SparkyBreaks]

Just rewatched the season, now im rewatching your reviews. This show is incredible. I cant wait for the revistwd before s2 comes out

[@BautistaGresch]

I'm so glad with this show so far. I like that it has its own essence that differences it from GoT. While the latter was a more "novel-like" show, this one feels much more like an actual TV show, in a good way. The first 4 seasons GoT had fantastic writing, but sometimes it felt a little to "structured"; there where a lot of things happening all at once and every character had so many plot points and things to do. I like that HOTD is much more linear in that sense, the characters are still pretty good but they also have more room to breathe. Viserys has been the absolute MVP of this first few episodes!

[@laramueller9658]

I loved that they showed how amazing of a warrior Daemon was by killing so many of the crab feeders, but even he isn’t completely untouchable. He still gets hit, and absolutely would have died if the army and dragon didn’t come at that moment. If he had done it all by himself, it would have been way less believable. But Daemon really is an incredible warrior.

[@TaeSunWoo]

Daemon didn’t care about the greyscale because Targaryen/Valyrian blood is immune to most diseases

[@NurseHarley299]

I wish the producers of the show had confidence in the show and the actors to begin with because the young actors are doing such an amazing job I really feel they probably could've delayed the time jump to the beginning of season 2 but probably feared viewers wouldn't stay engaged that long 😖

[@nostalgicbliss5547]

Even this little stepstones battle was to entertain the general audience and casual fans

[@DatBoiChris420]

Daemon had 1 line of dialouge and stole the whole episode!!

[@etrosen1]

Hey boys, Where the video for episode 4!! I need something to listen to in the car, this is your #1 priority

[@pantaloney]

Great review, guys! It really feels like the glory days of GOT are back. I enjoy the slow burn, the pace, the world building. Great acting, great production value. All of the strengths of classic GOT. And look at that, I commented without Nash begging me to! ;)

[@BoredLittleLady]

For all the stress Viserys is in, at least it seems like he and Alicent have a good marriage. And did you see Viserys is missing two fingers on his left hand? Also, I'm really looking forward to next week because I'm so curious about the rumor that's going to spread. What could it be?

[@Hollywoohorse]

Crabfeeders design was so cool I wish he'd have been around longer

[@TheLastSaint17]

This man said medium finger. I'm dead.

[@FormerlyknownasPonti]

Anyone else notice Viserys was missing two fingers on his left hand? Guess the maggots aren't working!

[@anthonydanyameabuah4542]

First time here on this channel and i must say the main narrator has one of most soothing deep voices on the planet. Great review btw

[@a_depressed.tigersfan]

(SPOILERS) in case you hadn’t seen the trailer. Milly Alcock is so good as Rhaenyra, I definitely think I will have to adjust when the story progresses to Emma D’Arcy as older Rhaenyra.

[@itskashkashi]

I dont want her to go :(

[@a_depressed.tigersfan]

@@itskashkashi yeah I agree, but I understand why they had to do it and Emma D’Arcy is a good choice, so I have faith she can do just as good a job as Milly

[@SnailHatan]

“The one thing I can’t handle…is violence against animals.” **scarfs down glizzy**

[@Bloxygames-c1g]

Can you have the purple girl on again?... she was a really great addition to your panel!

[@kevinw712]

yeah why did they have the ONLY Stark family member to be seen in this series to have snow white hair, given that's sort of a big trait for certain other folks lol

[@Revolution-tl5wo]

I had to FF through that scene with the poor stag. I'm with you on violence against animals. I was almost not even gonna watch HotD because of what we know happens to all the dragons. It's gonna be hard to see when those battles begin.

[@danexhoax2884]

Thanks for explaining why you think Daemon acts the way he does. Made a lot of sense 🙂

[@garbageFreeFall]

8:20 is that puddle with the stag's reflection shaped like Westeros?

[@selfportrait64]

wow! loving this series! thanks for all your insight and commentary!

[@7Nebulae7]

Anybody notice the painting behind Alicent when she's talking to Otto? 12.00 in this video. Pretty saucy.

[@christinearmington]

I think your take on this dynamic is best. Alicent doesn’t take an imperious, haughty tone to assert dominance. She misses her childhood friend.

[@55titles12]

Liked the ep but probably the weakest of the 3 so far imo, crabfeeder was built up for nothing really he gets killed off screen and a battle that's been going on for like what the full 3 years (?) is ended in like 10 mins cause they just straight up attacked them 😶 weird choice

[@tothnorbertstudio7993]

I feel the same and I'm suprised everyone is blindly loving this episode! It had its moments but the battle scenes are once again too hollywoody and cliché!

[@Xozy58537]

He was a good tactician but probably a terrible fighter. He's almost blind aswell it looks by the look of he's right eye. Would you rather have seen someone just get chopped in the half? Because that's all that probably happened. They won because they didn't see the second dragon coming an didn't expect daemon to rush so far, killing daemon would further push a nearly defeated army over the edge cause massive cracks which the crab feeder would further use. So he risked it for what he thought might be a easy w, but they rushed straight away an daemon was able to hold he's own for the most part. Sniping daemon could have won them the war. It was a risk that was taking an shown to be their downfall

[@goofin6360]

@@Xozy58537 You can't deny it was too cliche/hollywoody. Daemon should have died so much quicker. It was very unrealistic and not classic GOT style. Reminded me of S7/8 GOT

[@Xozy58537]

@@goofin6360 how was unrealistic? I want you to go an do some research about archery before you say something is too unrealistic. Also it's pretty hard to get realistic when your watching a fantasy show. I mean how realistic do you want it? Because there's fucken dragons in it.

[@doncourts]

This was a very very good episode the crab feeder was underwhelming however in face of dragons I guess anyone would be.

[@jon_ovo3653]

He was supposed to be…he was no one

[@christinearmington]

Nice to get some Nerd Soup again! 😋🤩🥳

[@alexiskillmobile]

Nice analysis and recap guys 👍

[@RazvanIonita]

Just a question: have they thought of attacking both with dragons and men at the same time ? After you control the entrance of the cave, the people inside are basically trapped .. right?

[@cale5035]

there was like seperate cave systems not just one cave so there were too many exits and entrances to trap them in

[@RazvanIonita]

@@cale5035 it may be, yet once you control the main entrance it is very difficult for them to resuply. We are talking about a small army, lots of people. If there are other big entrances you can control that too. If they are smaller ones, they are unsuited to be the main route to supply hundreds. thousands of people ..

[@rogermazuca4582]

I love your videos. Y'all's dynamic and back and forth quips remind me of those from The Sklar Brothers. In fact I thought ya were at first 😂

[@GoodFilms28]

This show is really good, even with the time jumps which everyone disliked in GOT S7 & 8 making it feel rushed.

[@DatBoiChris420]

That's because they never once said anything that happened in the time jump we were just supposed to assume, Where as HotD gives is lil nuggets here and there filling the gaps

[@KatieLHall-fy1hw]

But time jumps here work fine, as everyone is mostly in the same place and the story is already set and centers around Rheanerya

[@1TrueGem]

No no no.... Sherene actually caught the damn grayscale and it shows and they had to battle it to make it go dormant. So if it's like her grayscale, then he has to catch it and have grayscale. 😊 Thanks for the video. I enjoy you guys.

[@philosophynerdlady]

Could someone please explain how it is that Alicent is the one being disrespectful in the situation in the Godswood? Here's my argument: Rhaeynyra is acting like a bratty teeenager who keeps turning up the volume on the music while someone is trying to talk to her. Alicent wouldn't have had to "pull rank" if Rheanyra hadn't acted like a brat. Yes, Rhaenyra is hurting. Alicent is, too. Being in pain doesn't give a person an excuse to act the way Rhaenyra is acting - especially if she wants to remain the heir. As Martha Nussbaum says, we are all both victims and agents in our own lives. Rhaenyra needs to assert her agency and stop playing the victim card - and that's what she does when she kills the boar (with an assist from Christen Cole). Hopefully we will see more of that Rhaenyra and less of the spoiled victim. Counter arguments? (By the way, how awesome is it that we're back to having these discussions?! ❤) And if Vicerys can't handle this, he shouldn't be King. Thanks for the video!!! 😊

[@wizza78]

Love you guys. Everyone has there own GOT channel and you're mine. Cheers guys

[@kari8187]

It’s all just so damn entertaining , I’m very pleased and it feels nice.

[@LukeSpookem]

Excellent stuff as always

[@fredlegend1010]

The acting is fantastic across the board. But with the time jumps the pacing of the series so far reminds me of S7 of GOT where big events happen fairly quickly and somewhat abruptly. That’s not necessarily a bad thing but it’s one of those things where in hindsight leaves more to be desired. I get that it’s basically still in a prologue phase but i’m interested to see where and how it sort of stabilizes so I can decide how excited to be for the future of the series.

[@bloodbuzzin]

The old woman feeding GRRM would’ve been less jarring than the pug

[@iremainteague5653]

Why?

[@bloodbuzzin]

@@iremainteague5653 Never expected to see such a modern creature with my dragons and magic I suppose

[@iremainteague5653]

Pugs are not modern. They are a very ancient dog breed.

[@bloodbuzzin]

@@iremainteague5653 they simply ruined the vibe babe

[@iremainteague5653]

You just hate pugs. 🐶

[@WildCampingIreland]

I can't help wondering which moment of the dance or the death of the dragons they will use for episode 9 and 10 , like its Ned stark moment in the first series, or the red wedding, I know it's going to hurt for sure 😭😭

[@TomDanz]

25:17 this tangent cracked me up

[@avestalis117]

Is no one going to talk about how sea smoke looks a lot like Danny’s dragons?

[@LowDownDirtyDev]

When SeaSmoke came through, I immediately smiled and thought of Drogon lol

[@erika1918]

Yes they are the same breed and possibly are siblings!

[@KenjiMapes]

Nice breakdown & analysis that you opined on this episode. Now, not to fluff you up & stroke you any more that you already have been or are, but I don’t know if you are aware of or understand your voice over or talking abilities. Someone must have mentioned even in passing that you have good “public voices” & in real life it’s likely you’ve received complements on your voices. Now obviously as KZbinrs that focus on doing popular TV show & movie analyses using animations, clips,etc to delineate your takes, it’s all built on or at least underpinned by not only your own personalities & traits like charisma & wit, but also by your voices. So you have to be aware of your voice talents; some maybe more so than others & occasionally to a grossly grandiose & inflated sense of value & worth. With that being said, looking at the macro view there are thousands of people out there that make a living using their voice such as news reporters, radio DJs, talk shows, & to an ever increasing extent, KZbin vloggers, et al. The levels of ability & talent obviously run the whole ratings scale from the categorically awful to painfully mediocre to acceptable to good to legendary. For what ever reason, many legends in this particular industry crashed & burned during the MeToo wave. Anyway, you wonder how some of the mediocre rise to a warranted spot of fame & fortune. Amazingly it seems the Peter Principle holds wherein some people of marginal caliber rise to a summit that is not deserved based on talent regardless of the proverbial “dues” etc. The problem here is criteria as rating voice centric work is subjective & can have different or shifting forms of judging it or evaluating it. For voice centric type work, do you base it on popularity or viewership which can be unrelated to the person’s actual talent. The metric with which we judge is tricky. I think it has to include things like not only being able to do the job well: that is being flawless, well timed, etc which are basic things but also you have to check boxes which are wholly subjective like uniqueness, charisma, etc Let’s look at Brian Stelter.😂 He obviously had to have interviewing skills & good delivery skills on TV but he was painfully & awkwardly mediocre at best when it comes to his voice & capturing the viewers attention. That’s what I’m getting at. It’s a strange thing. You must have some power & gravitas besides exuding confidence yet a sense of humility while also making people comfortable. I’m no communications expert or voice over expert but I find the media & communications field fascinating as we see voice work be the focus of many jobs & careers in diverse fields. Many make lucrative careers off of their voice. Let’s look at some who’s the polar opposite of the former CNN’s corespondent Lil’ Bri-Bri. How about the legendary & sadly recently departed baseball & Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. Obviously Vin Scully was passionate about his work, knowledgeable about the game & by all the commonly accepted criteria of rating broadcasters was exceptional at doing his job of broadcasting the play-by-play of games but he just had a special voice, impeccable timing, incredible gravitas & a charisma that oozed over the airwaves. It’s hard to judge let alone agree on criteria with which to judge as there are so many qualities, traits & metrics to go by outside of the pure stats such as viewership, ratings, etc which again, may have nothing to do with the quality of the voice over. A crude but facile tool that is strangely accurate, at least in my opinion is you just know what’s crap as soon as you hear it & know what’s great almost instantly. Anyway, got a little wordy & sidetracked there. I’m probably going to blow up Beau’s & Aaron’s already overinflated egos & heads up a bit but they both have that je ne sais quois in their voice over work. Beau has a unique voice that strong yet smooth & inspires comfort. Aaron has a lighter voice with a pleasant quirkiness & charisma. It’s difficult to delineate but they are intrinsically good voices. Together, they are like a proverbial Yin & Yang, if you will. Their styles & personalities obviously click & complement each other well, but the voices together just work in a nice symphonic unison, if you will. They are simply Pleasing to listen to beyond the wit, laughs, etc Anyway, I could go on but I’ll leave it at that. This topic is fascinating & fun to examine as you try to understand how to analyze the principles of good voice over work & figure out how to judge it. Obviously Beau & Aaron are talented, intelligent & witty which helps them as they talk about shows & movies but when judging the work based mainly on their voice qualities, if you will, you can conclude at least in my opinion that they could do voice work or voice over work in other areas. Sometimes voices just have pleasant intrinsic qualities that are hard to delineate or describe let alone find a metric of judgement. Again, it’s just that Je Ne Sais Quois. E.G. the legendary James Earl Jones. Would Darth Vader be Vader without that voice? Would Vin Scully be the legendary voice of the Dodgers without that unique timbre, intonation, & pitch that Scully was just blessed with? Now I not sure if Beau & Aaron would be good as baseball broadcasters or in Geico commercials, for example, but believe if they continue what they’re doing they’ll improve & would be successful in arenas of similar vein or perhaps in other voice over areas where their particular traits & abilities would shine. I think, they’d just have to try something & see how it would go. Commercials isn’t a bad idea as I think not all voice work is easily transferable; i.e. just because a person excels in one particular voice niche doesn’t mean they can transfer over to another one or that they have universal applicability. Anyway, cheers. Hope I made some sense. I’m up way too late & am already sleep deprived & cranky, & now I feel the pangs of hangriness creeping in. Everyone, be safe out there, it’s an upside down & crazy world - don’t get complacent or take things for granted. Be grateful & remember to cherish your close friends & family. Be kind, & don’t be greedy or evil. CHARLIE MIKE…OUT

[@18pablo88]

I liked the difference in fire power, caraxes literally cremated people on the run, where as younger sea smoke sets them ablaze.