So let me get this straight - Alicent was “evil” and “crazy” and “overreacting” for wanting an eye for an eye (a belief she doesn’t normally hold unlike Daemon) in a moment of fear and desperation after her son was permanently maimed and her husband’s response was to not give any punishment at all to Luke, sending a message to everyone that Alicent’s children don’t matter even to the King and anyone can harm them without recourse. Viserys even threatened to further maim and disable “anyone”, meaning Aegon and Aemond, by cutting out their tongues to protect Rhaenyra’s obvious lies. Viserys proved he will never protect Alicent’s kids and Rhaenyra confirmed Alicent’s fear that she will kill her children by not even trying to apologize or show any remorse or diplomacy at all (but Alicent is the enabling boy mom, and also an abusive bitch when she does punish her son for being a perv… okay) instead blaming Aemond and demand he be “sharply questioned” (aka probably tortured) for exposing her lie. Of course Alicent would want to make a show of strength back after such a clear threat to herself and her children.
But a grown man ordering the murder and decapitation of an innocent toddler is totally justified. Like they’re celebrating the murder of a toddler, I know not all Team Black people are doing that but enough to be deeply disturbing. And this is the same grown man who cut the hands off of poor people for stealing while he has never known what it’s like to not have food or clothes. Hammurabi’s Code is totally good with Team Black except it’s barbaric and evil when it’s over Aemond being disabled and disfigured for life by his childhood bullies. Even if it was gonna be revenge, Aemond should’ve been killed then (even though he didn’t mean for that to happen, he’s more responsible than a baby). That’s what Rhaenyra wanted. Daemon is a psychopathic abuser who can’t help but undermine Rhaenyra’s power and the lengths people will go to justify his actions astounds me.
Don’t try defending this
TB and their selective feminism.
…And guilty of conspiracy to commit murder … and a sexual predator …and incompetent …and married to a serial rapist, pedophile, murderer (thrice over by now) …and sheltering a terrorist.
it's always both sides are bad :( when one of them is a rapist incompetent usurper and the other is... a woman
Btw, this is how conservatives keep getting to claim that trans people are a new thing no one has ever heard, because our history and existences have continually been erased or obscured systematically through out history.
The most famous example was 92 years when the Nazis raided the library of the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, the medical practice where the term transsexual was first coined and the first gender affirming surgery was performed in in 1931.
What did the Nazis do after raiding the library on May 6th, 1933? You may be familiar with these images
It is happening again.
Reblog this if you support sex-averse and sex-repulsed aces, including:
Aces who never want to have sex
Aces who had sex in the past but don't desire it anymore
Aces with sexual trauma who feel like their trauma ties into their asexuality
Aces with sexual trauma who don't feel like their trauma caused their asexuality
Aces who don't want to talk to you about sex
Aces who don't want to hear about sex
Yes even aces who do not want to engage with any sexual content and don't want it in their own personal spaces
Yes even aces who express the desire to have more spaces for queer adults where their boundaries are met (on top of the queer spaces that exist, we do not want to sanitize your existing spaces ffs)
If you cannot be normal about these people existing, if you believe they're a threat to our community and to how we're viewed by people who aren't aspec and the rest of the LGBTQ+ community, you are not an asexual ally. Yes, even if you're aspec yourself. Especially if you're aspec yourself.
Because it's been pride month for 4 days and I'm already seeing people trying to throw us under the bus or pretend we don't exist because that makes the ace community more palatable to exclusionists and people who swallowed too much "aces are puritans" propaganda.
Team Green as Pigeons just because…
I might be having a brainfart here, but should Luke have been protected in the first place?
Parlamentarians, bearing some sort of white flag are protected but they tend to come in two flavours
1. to negotiate an immediate end to hostilities (usually involving the surrender of either party)
2. to negotiate for humanitarian measures (e.g. To evacuate the wounded or recover the dead)
But Luke‘s mission wasn‘t that. He left with the clear intention to return with an army for his mother to use. Either as additional bargaining weight or in war. He served the exact same strategic purpose as the ravens the Lannister host sent to Harrenhal durig the Battle by the Lakeshore, all of which were shot down by the Riverlanders without it being treated as anything particularly despicable.
Luke was and should have been protected by Guestright and the status of Storms End as neutral territory. But when he left, Aemond should have been well within his rights to engage him as an enemy combattant, because realistically that‘s what he was.
I am not saying Aemond should‘ve killed the little guy, but he would have been well within his rights to take him prisoner.
I might be completely wrong about this, but this thought just occured to me.
HotD Episode 10 reaction under the cut.
(These aren’t my initial ones since I forgot to do my initial comments, but yeah. I’ve also added the “boundless watches HotD” tag. I will be using that for season 2 block that and “boundless watches” if you don’t want my future opinions or to be spoiled!)
Rhaenyra you did nothing to earn it.
You are not perfect and your dad did diddly squat to prepare you.
Rhaenys… baby… you did start this war. What about all those people you killed?
Daemon did not look like he liked being called Prince
And Jace being a bad brother, knocking Luke down and being forceful. Brother of the year. Even Aegon didn’t push Aemond down. Actually the only time we saw Aegon and Aemond actively fight was when Aegon was trying to leave King’s Landing.
Really do think they are going to play up hot headed Jace the coming season.
I actually wouldn’t be surprised if they had him man handle Baela in season 2 in his anger and frustration, mimicking his grandfather and Daemon. Like I don’t mean he’ll be as physical as Viserys or Daemon, I just mean he would act roughly.
And man… Rhaenyra refusing feminine help while delivering her baby… causing the death of her daughter. Carrying on the cycle her father started. Quite literally ripping the baby from her body and then mourning the child because she would not accept help. Her maids (or whatever they are meant to signify) were begging to help.
Also, people complaining about the Greens making a “show” of Jaehaerys’ death as though the Blacks did not do the same for baby Visenya’s. Gathering all who were there to the funeral and then having Rhaenyra crowned at her own child’s funeral. Like??? Not the time
Also, the Black Kingsguard twin bowing and doing his vow looking up at Daemon rather than at Rhaenyra’s feet.
Rhaenys, you chose a side as soon as you fled. Bend the freaking knee
Is Rhaenyra supposed to be queen of the Rhoynar yet? Isn’t that Dorne?
Lady, why isn’t your heir your cupbearer?? Or at least your husband’s betrothed? The supposed next queen?
Lady, House Baratheon has wanted someone of their blood on the throne for ages and there is no Baratheon blood in your boys, Rhaenyra. Stop pretending they do because that is what actively put Luke in danger later.
RHAENYRA YOU JUST HAD A TRAUMATIC MISCARRIAGE!!!!! WHY ARE YOU ON FREAKING DRAGONBACK?!?!?!? You were in so much pain with Joffrey, and could barely walk?!?!?!?
All of Rhaenyra’s kids are given good options and positions if they had accepted Aegon’s terms.
What would the Green kids have gotten had Rhaenyra been made queen? What positions? What holdings?
Rhaenyra… sweetie… why do you think Otto owes you any loyalty? You made him lose his job when you lied to your father, who knew full well you lied.
And that stupid page was pointless.
Why not have Alicent write a letter??? Or go herself????
Also??? Why didn’t Rhaenyra offer any terms in return for the Greens to contemplate?
Rhaenys, why are you still there? Like you are doing nothing
Why is Rhaenyra shocked that Daemon doesn’t know? Daemon was only informally the heir? Viserys wouldn’t have shared the dream with Daemon because he was actively trying for a son.
And the stupid abuse plot that will no doubt be used to make it so Rhaenyra does not have to be held accountable for her actions. “Oh, she’s being abused so she can’t publically condemn Daemon’s actions”
It actually would have made more sense if Alicent had written a letter saying Viserys had shared his dreams with Alicent and said that Aegon must carry on his dream. That would have made more sense for why Rhaenyra was being hesitant because she might think that Viserys shared Aegon’s dream with Alicent as well as the SoIaF, and with Daemon not knowing, would have given Rhaenyra pause on staking her claim to the throne. Then, her going to war after Luke, would have made it more of her active choice against what she believes her father would have wanted. It would have been a good dilemma or her end.
Corlys… you have been passed out, how did you know Viserys died but not that your brother died?
Corlys, you should now be thinking Daemon is the reason your daughter is dead, your son was murdered, as was your brother. Like???
And Corlys? Even if you wanted to stay neutral, Daemon sure as heck would not allow you to.
Jace, Luke, and Joffrey were given the chance of being heir to both Driftmark and Dragonstone. They wouldn’t be left with nothing, nor would they seemingly be placed in any danger. I would argue Aegon the Younger and Viserys would be the one with some danger as they would have been at the Red Keep. “Aegon” offered that. They would have lived, your grandchildren would have been fine.
Yeah. Where is Daemon?
They swore oaths when it was either you or Daemon. Your father should have had them all rewear to you after his son was born and survived.
Love that the only people not allowed to have revenge is House Velaryon, the racially Black house.
AND AGAIN, RHAENYS ALREADY PARTICIPATED IN AN ACT OF AGGRESSION!
I love how they are only focusing on House Hightower, as though the entire Reach is not really freaking important too.
Why does Baela not go with Luke? She has actual Baratheon blood? Why does Baela not go at all?
Jace is like “we have dragons” but only Jace and Luke are sent? What about Baela?!? She can apparently ride and fight on dragonback next season!
Rhaenyra? Why are you having them swear to the Seven? Those oaths mean nothing since they don’t seem to hold to that Faith! And besides! Jace is going North! Where they hold to the Old Gods anyway!
Also, why the heck does Rhaenys not go????????? She’s more closely related to the Baratheons even if Luke was related to them!
“He’ll be honored to host the Prince of the realm” when have you ever spent any time playing up the Baratheon connection? Borros’ daughters could have served as companions to Baela and Rhaena! Borros’ heir would have been a girl seemingly and you could have offered to foster her as a female heir yourself Rhaenyra.
I feel like it would have made more sense for Daemon to have taken Rhaena to see if she could claim a dragon rather than him stupidly singing for a reason we are just not given in the show.
Luke, why would you not leave as soon as you saw Vhagar?????
Like, you KNOW Aemond has a beef with you and the only reason there was no retaliation is because someone else was there to stick up for you
Also… you just had a letter. You could have had it passed on and then left!
Also… the fact that Rhaenyra and Rhaenys are seemingly unaware that Borros can’t read is astounding.
“I will not fight you.” If I were Aemond, I would have said “why, because you do not have three to help you fight me?”
Luke hasn’t even flown in battle and I assume he hasn’t flown in a storm either. Like? Why not request time to stay and talk things out? Hear more of a possible offer? Hold him hostage for the king you now apparently serve? That would have been the smart thing to do
Also, Luke drew his sword, so does that not mean he’s no longer bound to be protected as a messenger?
While Arrax did so without Luke’s command, once more, it is the Blacks that incite the first physical act of violence. Rhaena or Baela punching Aemond first. Jace punching Aemond first when he didn’t like what Aemond was saying. Rhaenys escaping on dragonback instead of just fleeing and killing multiple people in the process. Arrax breathing fire on Vhagar.
And love (*sarcastic*) how the Greens are made to feel bad when they retaliate to aggression they did not necessarily start (although Aemond is fully at fault for being the one to set out after Luke and Arrax)
Great final shot of Rhaenyra? But I honestly don’t feel like it was a strong end to the season.
Bonus for next season:
I hate the whole “eye for an eye; a son for a son” thing because there was never an eye for an eye.
"I thought I wanted it. But the burden is a heavy one. It's too heavy. If you wish me to bear it then defend me. And my children."
I wonder what burden she feels she's holding at this moment. We know that she isn't speaking of the burden of ruling and managing the realm for the last several years while her father was sick, because while she was on Dragonstone, those duties fell to the Hand and the Queen. As far as the show tells us, Rhaenyra has no specific duties she's fulfilling as heir, nor has she been doing anything in particular to prepare to rule. We're not shown that she's doing anything with her time beyond anything beyond managing Dragonstone with Daemon and growing her family. So what exactly in her life at this moment is she seeing as this massive burden that she bears because she's heir to the throne?
I think the burden she's speaking of here is actually the pressure she's feeling as she's finally being faced with the idea that her father won't always be around to help her avoid the consequences of her actions. So even though it's obvious that he's on the edge of death, in immense pain, barely hanging on, and despite the fact that she hasn't visited him at this point in literal years despite knowing about his ailing health and she's done nothing to support him in ruling in his last years, she still feels entitled enough to demand that he do another massive favor for her. At this point, Rhaenyra has been enabled by her father for so many years that she doesn't know how to solve a problem without him. So she plays the heir card on Viserys to get him to defend her one more time: if you want me to be queen, and you don't want me to be held accountable and face consequences, help me get away with it one more time.
Rhaenyra is upset not because of any real burden she has as heir but because she feels like the walls are closing in and she's under attack. I would feel some sympathy for her if it weren't for the fact that she wouldn't be in this situation if she'd made better choices. If literally anyone else in the realm had obvious bastards they were using to usurp a seat of power, there would be huge consequences. Rhaenyra knows this and is doing it anyway because she thinks her position as heir to the throne gives her the power to be able to do it and get away with it. Her birthright as a Targaryen says she deserves absolute power because she's better than other people, so she can do no wrong and nobody can say otherwise to her. She believes she's clever enough to pass the deception, and otherwise her father can punish anyone who speaks up... until Vaemond goes to court, and her father is not there to blankly support her no matter what. Now, she's faced with people who intend to uphold the law of the land and she's upset that she might actually be confronted with her problems head on and not have someone to shield her this time.
If he commited a war crime than there must have been a war. You kind of need one to have the other. Otherwise it would have been a „crime against peace“, but at a cursory analysis of the facts that does not seem to fit the bill either, and is very rarely used.
You are contradicting yourself.
Otto being there to prevent war from spreading does not negate war having broken out. It merely means that the Greens are willing to avoid further bloodshed. I will admit however that me calling Rhaenys‘ massacre of Non combattants (which according to our standards should have been protected from the hostilities) the first act of war, was somewhat debatable. It could just as well be regarded as an act of Terrorism.
In any case the Greens were justified acting as if at war, because the blacks did the same:
Her first act was to declare Ser Otto Hightower and the Dowager Queen Alicent as traitors and rebels. (G.R.R.Martin, Fire and Blood, Dublin 2018 this edition 2020 p. 408) (Highlights mine)
That is as formerly a declaration of war as we ever got. And it did not come from the Greens.
As with regards to what Alicent and Otto thought on the matter:
„Queen Alicent went pale when she heard what he had done crying „mother protect us all.“ Nor was Ser Otto pleased „You only lost one eye,“ he is reported to have said „how could you be so blind?““ (G.R.R.Martin, Fire and Blood, Dublin 2018 this edition 2020 p. 422) the word warcrime does not appear on the page once what does appear however is the term kinslayer, and that seems to be what Alicent is so horrified about, as no crime is so accursed in the eyes of both gods and men. Otto meanwhile seems to be of the Fouché-mindset „This is worse than a crime, it is a mistake.“ (Yes, I know the quote is sometimes attributed to Talleyrand or others)
And later we have this line from Alicent with regards to Lucerys‘ death:
„Bastard blood, shed at war“ (G.R.R.Martin, Fire and Blood, Dublin 2018 this edition 2020 p.483) (Highlights mine)
So in what capacity was he there then? Into which category does he fit? Was he trying to surrender? Was he trying to arrange an exchange of prisoners? and how was Aemond supposed to know that from what was spoken?
Calling an envoy, a soldier and a threat, is quite literally the dumbest thing you can say. They are basically postmen with diplomatic immunity. It really sums up the extent of intelligence I have come to expect from team green fans. Lucerys was innocent and he will keep being it, murdering him was a war crime + king slaying being a taboo.
You can take your stupid posts somewhere else. Him saying "I will not fight you" isn't a joke, he is representative of borros's enemy and his only Job is to take a letter and bring back an answer, if he joins in fighting he starts a war.....like aemond did.
You've gotta love Jews more than you hate Nazis.
You've gotta love trans folks more than you hate TERFs.
You've gotta love your unhoused neighbors more than you hate the billionaires.
You've gotta love immigrants more than you hate ICE.
You've gotta love queer kids more than you hate christian fundamentalists.
You've gotta love fat people more than you hate the diet industry.
You've gotta love disabled people more than you hate the insurance companies.
You've gotta love your fellow humans more than you hate the worst that humanity has to offer. You don't have to like every person you're fighting for, and you sure as hell don't have to give up your righteous anger, but hate is ultimately corrosive.
You've gotta love.