House-of-the-dragon-episode-4

2022 - 9 - 12

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House of the Dragon Episode 4 Review: King of the Narrow Sea (Den of Geek)

Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) and Daemon (Matt Smith) on House of the Dragon Photo: Ollie Upton | HBO. This House of the Dragon review ...

ET on HBO and HBO Max in the U.S. But House of the Dragon has a schedule to stick to. Rhaenyra’s consecutive moments of sexual awakening serve as the climax of the episode as much as Daemon and Corlys’s war in the Stepstones did last week. At the same time though, continually jumping forward in time means that some moments have to be brought to the forefront more quickly rather than being allowed to simmer in the background for episodes at a time. There’s a lot to enjoy in “King of the Narrow Sea” even outside of the exchange of carnal knowledge, but let’s get to that first. And that refinement arrives in episode 4 “King of the Narrow Sea.” A crucial message is imparted on Rhaenyra in the only way it could have been. Truth be told, she still is something of a child, having spent most of her life locked away in the Red Keep, gossipping with Alicent and reading stories about mythical maidens and martyrs. Surprisingly, however, the proclaimed “King of the Narrow Sea” removes his crown, hands it to his brother, and acknowledges him as the one true king. The realm is secure, his wife is dutiful, and most importantly: his brother is back. The issue, however, is that Game of Thrones’ prurient moments were frequently sloppy and unsensual in execution at best and downright exploitative at worst. Not only does the act, you know, feel good, but procreation is kind of a big deal in a political landscape dominated by inherited dynasties.

House of the Dragon, episode 4 recap: Sex is always political (Vox)

Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) has just returned from a woefully unsuccessful “tour” arranged by her father in which she listens to and rejects an increasingly absurd ...

Whether she realizes it or not, she’ll soon have an even bigger target on her back as heir — and the offense she’s just learned to play, using sex as a pathway to real power, is about to get much more serious. Viserys orders her to marry Laenor Velaryon, who we learned last episode is both an ideal political match, as the son of the Sea Snake Corlys, and a really hot dragon-rider. The former sex worker, now Daemon’s on-again, off-again lover, has gained the nickname of “the white worm” because of her tendency to dress in white and burrow her way into possession of secrets. When she snarks that he’s using her as a prize to assuage his political headaches, he snaps, “You are my political headache!” The revelation that Viserys isn’t as easily manipulated as he’s appeared to be loses its heft, however, given that in this case, Otto is telling the truth: The princess has been dallying with her uncle and has risked tarnishing her reputation. The king, when he’s not using her for sex and childbearing, openly undermines Alicent — a casual slight that becomes much greater when you’re essentially a sexual prisoner who has to behave as though you aren’t. Rhaenyra, self-interested above all else, has a difficult time seeing outside of herself to recognize the way other people are compromised by the political and sexual games they have to play. From the opening moments, where our poor shrimp of a lad has to ask Rhaenyra for her hand despite being far too young for marriage and having never laid eyes on her before, we see sex as a game of politics over desire. Ser Criston (Fabien Frankel) clearly sees her as the annoying brat he has to babysit, and he’s at first extremely reluctant to take what she’s offering. She’s far too young to fully understand how Daemon has manipulated her emotionally, to grasp that he’s spent years grooming her as a pawn for exactly this purpose. Rhaenyra, just as she has done from the start, dismisses their opinions, but Daemon has another lesson to teach her about the way the world works. Daemon has several purposes in introducing her to the dusty peasants of King’s Landing.

'House of the Dragon' Season 1 Episode 4 Recap: The Long Night (Vanity Fair)

Rhaenyra and Daemon enjoy a wild night and harsh morning in King's Landing in the latest episode of the 'Game of Thrones' prequel series.

It continues, as Daemon brings Rhaenyra to one final stop on his tour through King’s Landing: a pleasure house on the Street of Silk, “where people come to take what they want.” Surrounded by dozens of individuals in varying stages of undress (not to mention varying positions and permutations while undressed), Daemon and Rhaenyra take what they want: each other. Alas, even now, the heir of it all hangs heavy in the air, as Rhaenyra and Daemon wind up watching a street performance that crudely conveys the King’s perceived dilemma of who will succeed him on the Iron Throne, his public and private promises regarding Rhaenyra’s ascension notwithstanding. Together, passing drinks back and forth, they go out for a night on the town, free from “the burdens of [their] inheritance,” if only temporarily. For the first time since her father announced his betrothal to her best friend, Rhaenyra sees much of her own plight reflected in Alicent. As Rhaenyra bemoans the proposal process, Alicent points out that not everyone in Westeros has the luxury of choosing their own spouse. But the crown comes off in no time at all, as the prince who breaks promises bends the knee to his brother, King Viserys (Paddy Considine), in a very public display of affection, followed by a celebration held in Daemon’s honor.

'House Of The Dragon' Episode 4 Recap And Review: They Did A ... (Forbes)

Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) has returned victorious from the Stepstones where he's defeated the corsair prince they called the Crabfeeder. He's gotten ...

I figure things will just continue to get more shocking and terrible as we continue, and a bit of uncle-niece making out in a pleasure house is the least of our concerns. I also continue to have a tough time really connecting with any of the characters outside of Rhaenyra, though Viserys is sympathetic in his own way, as is Alicent, and Daemon is certainly fascinating. Hightower is finished as Hand, but his grandson is the only male heir, and his daughter is queen. Ultimately, the king tells her that her choice in the matter is now once again out of her hands. Perhaps this is a subtle way of taking all that back, having Rhaenyra read the blade’s inscription and, as a fluent speaker of Valirian, find no such double meaning. Viserys is aghast at the thought and reminds his brother that he’s already married. Her intentions become clear quickly enough, and the knight tells her “no”—he’s sworn a vow of chastity as a Kingsguard, for one thing, but surely he also knows what kind of consequences such an act could carry. Rhaenyra calls off the rest of the tour a full two months early and heads back to King’s Landing. Here’s the thing about getting all hot and bothered like this and then being left unsatisfied—and also being a beautiful princess. The two make their way out into the lively nighttime streets of King’s Landing and into a fever dream of paupers and whores, eyeless fortune tellers and yellow-cloaked guards, firebreathers and drunkards. The note shows a secret passage in her room that leads out to a staircase behind the walls that she never knew about. First, we must hop onto the back of a dragon—Syrax, perhaps—and go find Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock).

'House of the Dragon' episode 4: Who is the White Worm? (Mashable)

A blonde girl and a blonde man in regal dress stand in a garden. Credit: HBO. > Entertainment ...

The boy gives Mysaria a handful of money, and just like that we know who our White Worm is. "I learned that the skin trade could only take me so far in this life." Later we get our answer courtesy of a hungover Daemon, who wakes up in a bed belonging to his former girlfriend, Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno). "Apologies for the late hour, my lord," a soldier says to Hightower. We won't go over all the grisly details from that night, but the sequence of events is still important. Crucially, though, after Daemon abruptly disappears, we see a young boy watching as Rhaenyra leaves the brothel looking for him.

House of the Dragon's Daemon Can't Do It, and We Have Post ... (TVLine)

'House of the Dragon' Episode 4: Sex! Deceit! We discuss what happens between Daemon and Rhaenyra in "King of the Narrow Sea."

According to co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik, in a featurette that aired after the episode: “Ultimately, his impotence in the scene is a reflection of the fact that he knows, deep down, that what he’s doing isn’t right.” It was how unaware she was that the act was all about her uncle messing with his brother, the king, and the line of succession for the Iron Throne. * Was Rhaenyra taking notes during her trip to the pillow house? (Again, not something I expected having to state for the record.) But as someone who covered Game of Thrones throughout its run and who has read plenty of Martins’ work, I’ve made my peace with the fact that It was about how she clearly has an attraction to Daemon, and how he played the long game with that, for his own gain. [House of the Dragon](https://tvline.com/tag/house-of-the-dragon/) depicted the scene that readers of George R.R.