Too Much TV
Too Much TV is a weekly podcast where two former college roommates, Josh and Jeff, unpack the standout shows you should be watching.
From buzzy cultural phenomena to quiet streaming masterpieces, they break down the biggest episodes, argue over what’s working (and what isn’t), and highlight the storytelling, performances, and moments that stick with you. Expect spirited debate, quick recaps, unexpected recommendations, and occasional deep dives into craft—perfect for casual viewers and devoted TV obsessives alike. Tune in to discover your next obsession and get a smarter take on the shows everyone’s talking about.
Too Much TV
House of the Dragon S3. E3: Rhaenyra Triumphant
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No big battles this week — just pure political chess, and honestly? It might be the most intense episode of the season so far. Josh and Jeff break down Rhaenyra's impossible decisions, Ormund's unexpected submission, the bread crisis Rhaenyra may have cause, and that tense conversation with the High Septon and Corlys Velaryon.
This episode does something quietly brilliant — it makes you feel the weight of sitting on that throne. Every choice has a cost. Every scene has a layer. And Rhaenyra is carrying all of it while we watch her either hold it together or slowly come apart. We're still not sure which.
Welcome everybody to Too Much TV. Today we're talking about House of the Dragon season three, episode three. And Jeff, I mean, quite a bit of a contrast between the first two episodes and this one, because this one had no violence at all, yet still quite intriguing. To me, it felt like it was all diplomatic. It all had this like regal aspect, and it also kind of dealt with like the more mundane aspects of ruling, which I found very interesting. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02I feel like we got in the first two episodes a lot of action and sort of the the process in that ascension to the throne, Reneira. And then this one felt like, all right, after all of that has cooled off, after all the excitement has gone away, here's what you actually deal with when you're queen.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, dude. Do you even want to be queen? I don't. After watching that. No. Just like just go live on Dragonstone, get your pension, fuck your uncle, and ride your dragons. Live in the dream. Live in the dream. Um well, let's get started. Speaking of speaking of her uncle and husband, uh Damon, that scene. Let's just start right from the beginning, then, because Ormond, by the way, Ormond is quickly becoming like one of my favorites. He's like a sneaky, confident, cocky little fuck. You know what I mean? Yeah he's just very smooth with it. He walked up there, no problem. He just went straight up to Damon. And I I saw when that that shot of Damon, right? It has the one dragon. But then, like it happened in the a couple episodes ago, where it zooms out and then it shows you that there's the other two. And uh uh Hugh Hammer is riding Vermithor, which is the second largest dragon. So and there's no army, just three dragons.
SPEAKER_02And anyway, it was it was really good. It's really intimidating when they zoom back and you see the three, and you think about how easily that giant force, the army on the other side, that would be intimidating in a normal scenario, you know, for combat back then. And the fact that there are three dragons standing there that could wipe them out in a matter of seconds, it just goes to show the power of the dragons in this there is historical precedent with this too, in uh the lore of Game of Thrones when Aegon the Conqueror first shows up.
SPEAKER_00There is a massive host that shows up to like kill him. And he's like, Okay. And he shows up with his sister wives, and the three of them on their dragons burn every single man in the field. I think it's called I think the battle's called Field of Fire or something. It's not even a battle, bro, it's just a roast. Doesn't sound like it. So, I mean, it's the same thing here. Like the army was intimidating. And I dude, I know I bring up the armor every time, but again, I just every time I love it. It looks so good. Anyway, uh but I mean, Damon has all the power there, right? Completely with three dragons, there's nothing he can do. And he completely he he you know acquiesces and submits to Damon, and it it makes sense. Well, I guess not really if we think about the end of the episode.
SPEAKER_02Exactly. It's it's sort of a fake uh submission there. Um, but yeah, it I think um what you see obviously Damon has been put into this position of power by Rhaenyra, and it's interesting to me at the times throughout the series that we've watched where he he kind of listens to her versus when he doesn't, this obviously was her wish here to have a peaceful surrender. He believed that they should have taken them all out, right? He says it to her later in the episode, which is of course, that's of course it's Damon's approach. Let's burn them all.
SPEAKER_00But dude, okay, let's let's go back to this again. What would you have done? You're in that position. You're Rhaenyra. What do you do? Do you wipe out that army? You kill how many men do you think was in that army? 5,000, 10,000 men? Do you kill them?
SPEAKER_02No, I don't. I agree with her decision. I agree with her decision because at the end of the day, it reminds me of the line, I believe it's from Game of Thrones, where uh somebody says like you can't rule over a pile of ashes or something like that. There's some line that's I'm paraphrasing, of course, but do you know what I mean? When you get to the point of wiping out masses of people repeatedly, it kind of feels like what are you ruling over at the end of the day? And who are your subject?
SPEAKER_00Okay. I see what you're saying, but are they a mass of people or are they a threat? And I think that's how Damon sees them. I I think that the the middle ground is somewhere between Reneira and Damon. Damon's a little too gung-ho. The problem is I think Damon sees what it takes to rule like effectively and to keep power. And I think he's the type he will keep power like by any means necessary, and that includes wiping out a whole army. He would not he would not he would just do it in a heartbeat because that's what happens, or that's what you would have to do. I mean, we talked about this before, too, like with the historical aspects. I there are historical precedents where you know kings and queens are kind and they lose. The ones who are ruthless tend to win. The greatest ones of all time are the ones who are kind and win, which is rare. So I I see I I see both choices though, man. I really do.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I think Damon is pretty keenly aware of threats and power. I think he senses weakness really quickly. So I feel like throughout when Damon has sensed weakness in Viserys, or when he's sensed weakness in Rhenira, you can actually visibly see it. Yeah. And I think he's he he has a pretty visceral reaction to it. I think it's to in order to maintain power, swift, clean decisions like that make everything a lot simpler. In his head at least. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, but that Yeah, no, I mean, I think you're completely right. I think we kind of get a sense of that towards the end of the episode when Rhaenyra and Damon are st are talking, and he says, You've come so far, but you don't even you don't quite know who you are. I was a little worried, I was a little curious about what he meant there. Does he mean that she doesn't understand what it means to be a Targaryen? Or she hasn't figured out herself as in Rheneera. What did you think?
SPEAKER_02Because they quickly transition into speaking in High Valerian. I feel like the first thing you said about being a Targaryen is probably more applicable to that scene in terms of the way that because he says, I consider us gods, right? That's his line from in that same dialogue that you're talking about. So I feel like the overarching theme of what it means to be a Targaryen is probably more what he's getting at there. Sure. In terms of you have to think of us on this different level. Like we're above normal men. Yeah. Um and you haven't thought of it that way yet.
SPEAKER_00Well, so I mean, the fact that they have dragons is that sort of connection to godliness, I guess. I mean, this is a good sort of jump into the the conversation Renera has in the episode with the High Septum, where the high also very bold from the High Septum. Balls of steel, dude. I and sometimes I wonder, like, these religious people, like they're so cloaked in their faith that they have they can say what they think, and if they die, that's God's will. And I I wonder, I wonder if that makes them super honest. But holy shit. I thought he was maybe being a little sexist, but I I the problem is I'm viewing that everywhere. And I wonder if if he was a new king, like a young king, would would he not speak the same way?
SPEAKER_02Right. Well, it goes back to what we always talk about with all these characters, is they're still human. Even if the guy this guy has incredibly strong religious beliefs, he's still a man at the end of the day. And so there might be some pres prejudice coming through, whatever way it it's presenting, but sexism is certainly a possibility against her.
SPEAKER_00He was almost he was condescending. Yeah, I agree. I agree. And what he said about the dragons was so right. They don't create, they only destroy. Yeah. But they're fucking awesome, though, man. Like they are awesome. I don't, I don't really care. They're amazing.
SPEAKER_02I don't think Ranira cares either, dude. I don't think a lot of the Targaryens care. But yeah.
SPEAKER_00Let's get to Rhaenira's like her ruling now, because I'll I don't know if you noticed this. We talked last week about how the imagery is so good and how what the camera is showing is is an analogy to the show. Did you notice when Rhenira, anytime Rhenira was really stressed and the camera was on her, did you notice that the edge of the screen was blurry?
SPEAKER_02I have it in my notes here, dude, because I only notice it on the second time watching through, but it reminds me of when you see somebody who's got like a concussion or trauma. Yeah, you know, and the ringing of the ears. It's the combination of the ringing of the ears with that sort of tunnel vision focus on the camera, and they did it to perfection in this episode.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and it's very, it's it's it's barely noticeable. It's very subtle, it's very quiet. And I wonder, I think this this goes in two directions. I mean, I think it's Rhenira being just overwhelmed. I I mean, again, dude, we we I mean, she lost her son. This is mentioned a little bit by what's her name? The white worm. The white worm, yep. Her competition. That's a that's a terrible name. Sorry, dude. That's a euphemism for a penis, but that's okay. Um okay, well, fine. The white worm talks to her and says, you know, where is your grief? And she's like, it's buried deep. It's my rage that hasn't like been able to come out yet. Um but anyway, yeah, going back to to the the outside of of the frame being a little blurry, I think it's Reneira being overwhelmed. But I also maybe wonder if it's a little bit of the beginning of the the tunnel closing for her, you know, because this whole episode, dude, she I don't think she made a right choice like at all. Like, I mean, some choices, sure, but like a lot of the choices, like this is not you try try to do the middle of both choices and ended up doing worse. I mean, we'll get to these choices later, but I I think that that's the metaphor that they're kind of going for is that it's her time is, you know, this is this is not going well, and she is really stressed.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I think she's exhausted. I think it's very uh uh point that you bring up the scene where she's talking to the white worm because that's actually the scene that I really noticed the camera shift. Because when you watch, when you get point of view from looking at the white worm, it's completely clear.
SPEAKER_00And then they transition quickly back to the cuts from her, like Rhaenyra, then to the outside. And it's such a contrast between those cuts that it's so blatantly obvious that that sort of the edges are are very, very crisp. Yeah. Um well let's let's go to her like at the beginning of the episode when she's talking to everybody, and I think you you you and I both noticed this. Whenever she's really stressed about something, there's that that ding, the noise. Did you notice that? Absolutely, absolutely.
SPEAKER_02It reminded me of uh the ding when a clock hits like midnight. If you notice that, it's that ominous chime. And it seemed to occur in the points of conversation where Reneira either had an issue with something that someone said or realized that they might have ulterior motives to what she was first believing the conversation to circle her. Does that you know what I'm trying to say there?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Well, the first problem that she had was that they took all the money, which there was like, hey, we only have like two weeks worth of coin.
SPEAKER_02Like, how do you deal with that? It's an immediate crisis and it creates so many problems, such a rippling effect, because so much of what they deal with for the rest of the episode, so much of what she deals with through the rest of the episode, Rhenira, she usually would be able to solve a lot of these problems with wealth. She even says at one point, put a bounty up. And Damon responds, We don't have a bounty. Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00With what, Rhaenira?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, exactly. So not only are you faced with all these problems, but you don't even have the typical means that royalty does to solve it.
SPEAKER_00And there's also a bit of uh famine going on, a bit of a food crisis, too. This is uh this is so interesting because I mean, I've talked to you about this about being a history nerd. And I think we've talked about this before because I made you listen to me about it. Uh the the French Revolution kind of starts like this, where there is massive like grain shortages, and the cost of bread was like a third of a man's salary for a day. So, like a piece of bread, that would be like a $45 for a loaf of bread today. I mean, like you can't even you can't even fathom that. And also the French were were kind of collapse. What's it mean when you when you collapse on your debt? Oh my god, I can't think of the word. Like an implosion? Or are you just saying like the financial term? Yeah, the financial term. Oh, I'm dumb. Bankruptcy? Yeah, bankruptcy, but they their their debts, they couldn't pay their debts and the interest on their debt. And because they helped us in the American Revolution, and they were uh defaulting on their loans. There you go. There it is. I'm a I'm a smart man. Um and that's what caused like the whole French Revolution. And I mean, I'm I'm just I'm very much simplifying it. But Renira is dealing with the same problems. And how do you do that as queen? How do you solve food and money? You can't raise taxes, and then because the people then can't buy food. And then she does suggest, what about the kings would? And then it's like what do you pick? You have to you have to sacrifice something.
SPEAKER_02Yep. Yeah, that's I think the and that's a great way to kind of talk about the entire overarching theme of this episode was what is she what does she sacrifice? You can't find a middle ground. You need, and this is all goes back to her conversation with Alison that we see. You're gonna have to make choices that a former you would never have believed that you would make because it's the position and the responsibility that you're that you're holding.
SPEAKER_00I think that's the problem with power, is that sometimes you have to do a bad thing, like right? For the greater have to. Yeah. But then that's a very dangerous precedent to kind of walk on. It's really if you're always thinking you're doing the greater good. Like, I mean, that's how the Holocaust happened. When does it go too far? Exactly. Exactly. All of these things. Yeah, uh I mean, it is really interesting questions to ask. And I mean, you and I are not gonna have the answers, but it is sort of fun to discuss because I was gonna ask you, what would you do as Reneera with this? Yeah. Like there's no food and money. What would you do?
SPEAKER_02Well, let's talk about one of her potential solutions here, at least a temporary one, she's gonna take from the wealthy, right? That's one of her ideas. Oh, yeah, let's go into that. Love it. Because that's one of the best scenes overall in the episode is that she gathers this group of incredibly wealthy people from from and brings them to a banquet, right? That's what she it's a banquet that she holds. Yeah. And serves them. Rats.
SPEAKER_00Another double like analogy that they are rats for sticking around when Aegon was king and they're hoarding everything, so they're vultures and rats.
SPEAKER_02Right.
SPEAKER_00So it was so good.
SPEAKER_02It's a it was, I would say, from the terrible choice for her, but good. I was gonna say of the choices she had to make throughout the episode, this approach might have been, I guess, because she doesn't have a lot going right. I mean, she's made a ton of really questionable decisions. This might have been one of the better approaches only because it actually did accomplish at least temporarily what she wants. The problem is the long-term implications.
SPEAKER_00But Damon said that, oh, the people will be fed for a week or two. Mm-hmm. So that buys you two weeks.
SPEAKER_02What do you like? And now you've lost the favor of incredibly powerful, in their own right, powerful, wealthy people who now are going to have a ton of influence on the rhetoric of your food. Good.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And then they go to they go to uh all of their houses and takes from the rich and gives to the poor. Dude, she's the mom donnie of Westeros. Well, that's my terrible joke of the day. I wanted to Kiki said that halfway through the episode. She's like, Oh my god, mom donnie. I was like, that's really funny.
SPEAKER_02Well, I was I was gonna ask you if you thought that if she had simply told them beforehand, hey, you can either give up everything you can spare, give up half- or I or I will take it, then you're giving them a choice. And that to me is a very simple distinction from what she did, but it can have a huge lasting impact.
SPEAKER_00If you give them the illusion it gives them the illusion that they still have some power. Giving them a choice. You know, this is a weird comparison, but like when I used to teach, half the time when if a kid was in trouble or or I needed they needed they should have told me something, I gave them the option that they didn't have to tell me, and that nine times out of ten worked. I know I've told you this before, but it's true. It's a great boot to give them the illusion of choice, then they won't feel like humiliated. Because they were humiliated, served rats at dinner. Yeah. I mean, not quite red weddings like or purple wedding crazy shit, but still that was that was nice. That was good. It was a good call. I like that that that noble at the end who raised his glass and he was like, Well done. Like that was a good, good play. Well played. Mike, you know, your grace.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah. Well, okay, so um from here, I don't know if you want to go to the the direct implications of that scene, which is that she is able to give out food and sure. I mean, I don't know if you sort of noticed this watching. It's throughout the whole episode, but it was really apparent in that scene to me. She looks sickly. Rhenira looks sickly and exhausted. I mean, she looks almost skeleton in her eyes. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00But I think she I I I guess she's slightly she has a little PTSD. Yeah. She I mean multiple dead sons fighting for a crown, having to kill her childhood friend's dad. I actually think that's maybe what did it. Because is that the first person she's killed? Like personally?
SPEAKER_02Oh, by hand? Uh it's probably. I can't think right off the top of my head of another one. So yeah, I mean, she's just murdered somebody for the first time. And that's now has to. Your first one's tough. And it happened to be your best friend's dad or former best friend's dad. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And who now she has to speak to multiple times in this episode. Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Well, let's talk about that. Do you want to talk about her speaking to Alicent too? Because that I mean, uh Alicent plays a really interesting role in the process of Rhaenyra becoming queen here as she's discussing with her what to do with her son. She's talking to her about how to rule. It's a weird contrast of like Alicent was a opposition, an oppositional character, and still is, yet we see in the conversations that she's almost still relying on her as an advisor in a way, or at least asking her friends, her shoulder to lean on.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Like, hey, you've been through this. How'd you handle it?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And I mean, I don't know how Alison's even talking to her.
SPEAKER_02I don't either. It's surprising to me.
SPEAKER_00But they traded sons like maybe it feels like it even scales. How many people have died in between the two of them? So Allison has lost her father. She's lost her grandson, right? The the little boy. Yeah. And okay, fine. Father, grandson, and Ranira.
SPEAKER_02And two and Akon. Aegon you know, is the trade for two.
SPEAKER_00So yeah, I mean, but he's still on the chunk of the show. True. True. Like she's like, I'll give up these two for Helena. And dude, what a great, what a great trade. Like those two others. Helena's worth all of them. Oh yeah. Give me Westro's Luna Love Good any day over those two guys. I do, I like I told you, I'm rewatching season one. And uh there's a scene where Aegon is just jerking off outside a window, out of a window. And you're like, bro, well, by the way, the same window that Tomant jumps out of in season six when he commits suicide. Yeah. Good call. That window seen a lot. Uh sure. Um, but uh Renewas, so Rhaenyra's lost two sons. I mean, she didn't lose her dad to any like any of the violence, but he's gone. So there's quite a few people that are dying around her. So they're kind of like tit for tat, but at the same time, I mean, no friendship can get through this. No. None at all. Allison cuts her too. Right. In the first season, you know, now you see me for who now they see you for who you are. Yeah, I I don't know. And I I I think that Allison's playing a bigger game. I I think she's playing the long run. And I'm really to jump to the end of the episode when we find out that what was it, Darren Targaryen hers. I wonder if she sent that letter from that you know, the letter from two episodes ago that that uh that oh my god, what's his name? Ormond. You're right about Pokemon names, bro. Bro, Ormond looks at, and I wonder if that's a part of the ploy. Like, I'm giving this up, they're gonna do this, you give a fake one and keep fighting, looking, look for Aegon, look for Amund. We're gonna continue this sort of battle. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um I I I love I love what you're saying here because I I was gonna ask you one of the questions in my notes for you is in that ending scene when Alison is gonna walk in and she's gonna see Darren, right? And this is this is her child who she hasn't seen in years. Did she say five years she saw him once? It's been a long time. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. But what's interesting to me is if you watch closely when Alison is walking into the room, the look of concern or um there's a there's a tension in her face that seems to be present before she even looks upon her son, which feels like it would have lined up very well with what you're saying, in that she's actually already aware of what's going on. Exactly. So where she would normally have been initially maybe affectionate or at least glad to see him, there's almost none of that even present in the beginning. It's not like a transition to, oh, this is not my son.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's like she already kind of was tipped off a little bit and felt like and dude, that's interesting because like at the at in this time period when you send a letter, I mean, you don't know if it's gonna make it, first of all, and then are they gonna do it? So like imagine if you want you and I, okay, imagine if we're recording this podcast and I send you a text a week ago, and I'm like, hey, bro, be on at this time at 9 p.m. to record, and then I don't know if you got it, because it takes another week for you to send it back. Like it's just one of those like crazy concepts that we can't even think about. But you're I think you're completely right. The look on her face is a dead giveaway, and it is it is all of her scheming coming to fruition, and this is like the make or break because if he is there, her son, I mean, the likelihood of him dying, I think at this point's 50-50. Or what is Renier gonna do? Send him to the wall, take the black. So, yeah, I she really does not want to see her son in a very odd, peculiar way. So, oh I uh yeah, we're right. I I I'm gonna just go off call it. We're right.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I guess we're gonna see. I guess we're gonna see. But um, all right, so we covered a lot of the important moments. I think one other one that we should probably touch on really quickly is the Corless interaction because that was a pretty pivotal let's let's do the whole Corless stuff. Yeah, okay.
SPEAKER_00So the nighting scene. But go go for it.
SPEAKER_02Right. So the start of the the interaction between the two of them is that Corless comes to her, they're having this nice meal with the sons, Adam and Alan, and she's kind of praising them for the Adam and Alan. Yeah, I know. Great names. Um, she's praising them for their actions, sort of, you know, giving them credit for what they've done so far. Corless comes back with uh a relatively simple request. He wants them legitimized, right? Doesn't seem for the other things that she's dealing with throughout the episode, not that big of a deal, seemingly at first. Yes. But but it seems that she has other ideas because she's concerned about her own image. Is that what you would you interpret it there?
SPEAKER_00So Kiki had a very interesting thought about this. Uh yeah, no, she yes, she agrees with you. I had a different idea because I thought that if Corlus legitimizes Adam and Alan and makes Alan his heir, Rhaenyra's old husband, Lenor, is still alive. He could come home and you know try to reclaim his right, and then there is a succession crisis within the Valyrians. But I think that was probably me thinking a little too deeply about it. I think you and and Kiki are more right than me, because I I agree with you, because I think that she is looking at this as like exactly what she said. Like the rumors of my, you know, the heritage of my children. And you know, she is guilty.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, she is. But Newsflash, ma'am, Reneira, they already everybody already was worried about it. They were already already knew everything that you're concerned about with this whole implication of defending bastards. Everyone already had like that's well established at this point. I'm sorry, but it's not anything new. So to me, I didn't agree with her approach here because in my head, Rhenira already has this looming cloud, anyway, that is just gonna be with her forever. I'm sorry. Pretty much everybody walking around there.
SPEAKER_00These are her choices. You know, she is living with her irresponsibility. I think we talked about this at the beginning of the first episode we did, where you know, she's listening to Viserys that she tried to do both. She tried to do her responsibility and find love and and like have her own sort of thing. And now this is all of this is biting her in the ass. She she tried, and I think this is perfectly encapsulates Rainier's character. She tries to do both things and then inevitably fails at both. And this is the same thing with with Corliss. She doesn't want to legitimize them because she thinks it will bring more stigma upon the parentage of of Luceri, Jace, and uh Luke, right? But if she doesn't legitimize them, she spits in the eyes of her arguably her greatest ally, besides Damon in Corless. And so she goes in the middle and she doesn't succeed with anything. And then Corless, I mean, does she agree at the dinner? I don't quite recall. Or does she kind of like move on the subject?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, there's not, I don't believe there's a a definite conclusion. So he comes to her later in the conversation and and says it was my understanding that we had agreed, which gives you the feeling that they may have she may have sort of given some kind of lukewarm agreement.
SPEAKER_00Well, before we get to that scene with Corless, which reminds me of his brother with the you can keep he can keep his tongue scene. Let's do the knighting real quick. Because I think the knighting scene is then what caused Corless to come and say, Hey, I thought we had a deal here. So the three of them show up. There's Ulf, Ulf. Name yourself Dam. And also, dude, I think they're setting something up here. I'm not going to spoil it for you, but Damon is an asshole to them. Like he doesn't, he's pretty, you know, condescending. He's a bit of an he's an asshole. To Ulf. I mean, specifically Ulf. Well, Ulf is also a dumbass. Like, I mean that doesn't mean, but and but then, you know, Damon is one of those types of people. He has no patience. He just has no patience for that bullshit. Absolutely not. So I mean, he night what does Ulf say? I oh well, uh Ulf Targaryen. And then but then Reneira immediately Oh, absolutely not. It's one of the funniest moments of the whole thing in a not very funny episode. No, but again, it's just kind of like obviously he can't be a legitimate Targaryen. Like, obvious, I think that's very obvious. But there was a better way for Rhaenera to say that, you know?
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Like there could you know what they she could have done? She could have like found like an old dead name from old Valeria. She could have found an old dead one. Who gives a fuck about them anymore? They're all gone. And he could then start his own house. Like, who cares? No, that's a great approach. Way better option. And then and then he goes, Oh, f the white. I mean, okay, kind of cool with the hair color. I like that. Um, and Hugh Hugh Hammer, I think that's badass. I don't know why he reminds me of Thor every time. Yeah, well, I mean, you just said it. The hair, the hammer, I mean. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. Um go ahead, what were you gonna say?
SPEAKER_02No, I I was gonna say, because I really like, I actually love your idea of finding an old name like that. And truthfully, dude, I think if this was one of the only if this was one of the only things that she was dealing with, she probably actually would have taken approach an approach like that. Seeing Rainier's character development throughout the show, I actually think she might have come up with something close to that, or at least made more of an effort to. I think what we're supposed to see in that scene is that she doesn't have the patience or the time to think about stuff like this. So she's incredibly dismissive and has zero finesse in the way that she handles it, right?
SPEAKER_00You're so right about finesse, man.
SPEAKER_02Gone out so thin, and she just has zero patience for it.
SPEAKER_00Well, overwhelmed and and grieving and the rage and everything. She just the problem with this though, again, is like, does this prove her critics right that she isn't gonna be a good ruler? I mean, I don't know. I don't know. I think it's a great question. Yeah. But I I I just don't know. They're setting something up with with uh Ulf the White and Hugh Hammer, by the way.
SPEAKER_02Um yeah, it does feel that way. I I had a note from a previous episode from the the last one, or whenever, yeah, when he slaps, when Damon slaps Ulf, I actually had a note to ask you about. I felt like Damon is pushing Ulf to rebel. Uh, I'm worried about it at least. That's a concern of mine. I have zero spoilers, I make it a point to never look up anything, but I am worried about that.
SPEAKER_00I am not gonna say a word.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, right. So, okay, then I I'll I'll spare you, but let's complete the scene because then the final knighting is uh is is Adam. Adam of Hull. And that drops like a hammer on the scene because it's it's conclusion a conclusion to what we were we felt like might happen anyway. We weren't sure which direction she was gonna go. And obviously that's gonna lead us into our final interaction with Corless and Rhenira, but man, I I I I don't know. I don't know if I agree with that one, man.
SPEAKER_00I get what she's trying to do, but the problem is is her attempting to or her not knighting him is just proving her guilt even more. Like and and her the fact that she did father bastards.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. It it feels like I think you're right. I think it feels like, okay, I'm so um painfully aware of the implications of my own children and all these things that are swirling around, the rumors that are swirling around me, that I'm going to push it as far away as possible. And in the end, you end up looking more guilty.
SPEAKER_00And in the yeah, in the end of pushing that away to try to hide your guilt, your guilt is way worse. Dude, it's it's it's bad. And I mean, let's get to the arguably the climax of the episode. Corless yelling at her. Or she refuses him again. She's like, let me wait till this all dies down. And he's like, This is very simple. This is not a hard thing to do. Just do it. Whatever bullshit you're trying to do isn't working and it's not going to work. So dude, and then he does the same thing and parallels his brother in the throne room, calling them bastards. I don't know if you saw that and behind her or him, though, all the servants. Oh, yeah. Not she even looks at him. Yeah. And I mean, dude, she fucked up big time. Like, big time. Because I think this is now the fact that Corless did it, is those they're not going to be rumors anymore. No. It's going to be fact.
SPEAKER_02And and hurting that relationship with, like you said, one of her biggest allies so far.
SPEAKER_00And one of her smartest commanders, everybody, everything.
SPEAKER_02He is a key player in this game, and she has now infuriated him. And it just feels like of all the times where you could have I mean, she's already dealing with very few trusted allies. To spurn Corless like this is just this was really one of those head scratchers to me.
SPEAKER_00His support is way more important than this vague idea of these rumors. Because now I mean now, dude, now she's in the shed.
SPEAKER_02It's crumbling. I mean, it's already feels like it's crumbling. If it's you know, it's a house of cards and we're losing ground here, quick.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, dude. I mean, I think at the end of the day, man, she's not a very good queen. I mean, I know she's dealing with all this shit, and I that's fine. She if there hadn't been a succession crisis and if she had taken the throne normally and she was the only heir, she would have been fine. But all of these problems, I mean, half of them are her decisions. I mean, half are then Viserys' decisions, too. I mean, what does Damon say? He was a good man, but I don't think he said he was a weak king. I think he said something like he couldn't make the ch the hard choices or something.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, well, in separate scenes, I mean he literally did say you're weak to Viserys directly face to face. So yeah, I mean he that was clearly an issue for Damon's.
SPEAKER_00It's true. I think I think that Viserys is a good man, but a weak king. And I think Rhenira is a good woman. But at the end of the day, she is not making the choice that she has to do to keep power. She's trying to make everybody happy, and I think inevitably no one's gonna be happy.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah. Well, let's get to the very, very end. Um, because she's talking to uh the drag Dragon Keeper, right? Dragon Keeper who's come back and informed her of uh remind me of the name of the town. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Yes, yes. So uh she's now got another issue to deal with at the very end here. And if you notice, I feel like her approach is closer to what Damon would have probably suggested initially, at least in her initial response is I'm gonna burn them all, right?
SPEAKER_00It's like well, I I found it hilarious that they then burn the high tower stuff in the yard with her face.
SPEAKER_02I think it was supposed to be directly representative of it. Right? I mean, it's all the imagery that we've always talked about with the scene and how beautifully they they create those scenes, but you have the the just the blank shot of her face with the flames like rising up in front of it. And it's it's I was glorious. They they nailed it again with the imagery.
SPEAKER_00They're just they're they're high stepping on us at this point. It's like this episode went by so quickly because so much happened, but there was nothing like I don't think any of these scenes are gonna go in a like best of House of Dragon compilation in a couple years, but it it adds to what will happen so much more. It adds a lot of weight. So I thought it was a good episode. I don't think it's gonna go down as one of the best, but it was like one of those necessary episodes that I think really helped a lot of character development, a lot of rifts between some people, a lot more tension. And I think the seeds of this episode will will, you know, bear fruit much later. And I I think that's a I think it's awesome.
SPEAKER_02I agree, I agree. If I I I agree with you that I don't think this will be a legendary episode going forward, but I would say in terms of the way that it emotionally made like it impacted the viewer, the audience, I felt like this one created some of the most tension, uh, some of that uneasy, just just that the violins. Yeah, the that the music. Oh, just one more time, I got a clap for the music because that those the violins playing those those tense high notes and and just making you feel queasy and and uncertain throughout the whole thing, that line of tension through some of those scenes, oh my gosh, that was it was incredible. So, for all that the episode didn't necessarily accomplish in terms of action, the way that it impacted you watching it emotionally was to me one of the most significant.
SPEAKER_00I I do, I completely agree. And I'm very excited for the next episode. Um, but I think this is uh well, I think we talked about everything. Yeah, yeah. Man. All right. Well, if uh you're still here, thank you very much. And uh this has been Too Much TV. Bye bye.