Hey there and welcome to my review of HBO’s House of the Dragon Episode 4 – King of
the Narrow Sea.
So another solid episode with lots of court intrigue, scheming and plans backfiring.
Much of which was very interesting, however I will say there were some things I wasn’t
crazy about, moreso then other episodes, so this is probably my least favourite of the
season so far.
But overall it was still enjoyable.
Before getting into the 5 moments of the night, Honorable mentions go to the brief appearance
of Ser Harwin Strong as the guard who stopped Rhaenyra on her night out.
As well as the duel between Willem Blackwood and Jerrel Bracken, which immediately made
me think of Bloody Ben Blackwood from the books, a child warrior who became a great
hero during the Dance of the Dragons.
As this was far too early for him to make an appearance, I figured this boy was Ben’s
father Samwell Blackwood, who similarly has a duel like this in the books but it ended
differently, with the Bracken opponent victorious and both surviving.
But this character turned out to be a new person named Willem, who might be the brother
of Sam or perhaps a replacement for him.
But either way as a big fan of House Blackwood I loved seeing the boy win the duel.
Another honorable mention goes to the many name drops and historical references throughout
the episode, like mentioning Aenar the exile, Baelon the brave and others.
Now moving on to what I felt was the fifth best moment of the episode, and that was the
mention of the White Worm and reveal of Mysaria, now the cunning spymaster described in the
books.
I loved this scene as this is what I was expecting her to be like from the beginning.
Though I also though she would have a better relationship with Daemon and was surprised
to see they weren’t working together.
As I thought sending a note to the red keep was all part of Daemon’s plan to wed Rhaenyra,
but from the rogue prince’s interaction with the white worm, it seems it wasn’t.
I still think Mysaria would have been a more compelling character if she was sly and cunning
from the beginning.
Like Varys in GoT, who had to struggle and suffer all his life to gain the skill necessary
for his position.
Mysaria it seems mastered her skills in the last few years since she was presented so
weak early on, but then again maybe that was all a scheme of hers as well to seek protection
and open new avenues of opportunity with the patronage of a Targaryen.
Now for the fourth best moment of the Episode, I choose the Moon Tea presented to Rhaenyra.
I found this fascinating for a number of reasons.
In Fire and Blood, Viserys really comes off as a man in severe denial, steadfastly refusing
to see the obvious lies being told, especially later on with Rhaenyra’s personal life as
it basically becomes impossible not to notice a problem.
So it was really satisfying to see that Viserys does understand what’s happening around
him, but simply will deny it publicly for the sake of the realm’s stability.
It was also curious that we didn’t see whether she drank it or not.
I’ll also use this opportunity to say it was fascinating how things turned out between
Rheanyra Daemon and Criston Cole.
In the books there is alot of speculation and different versions of what went on that
night, and it will be interesting to see how Criston Cole and Rhaenyra handle the situation
now that she’s betrothed to Laenor.
Moving on to the third best moment of the night, I chose the dismissal of Otto Hightower.
This was a long time coming and it was great to see the scheming hand of the king finally
removed from the position.
However, I will admit I also felt a little sorry for him, as of all the things Otto has
done to deserve being fired, this, I felt was not one of them.
To me, in this particular instance, he did exactly the right thing.
Exactly what a hand should do, and that was keep tabs on what was happening at court and
amongst the royal family.
To me this was Otto absolutely doing the right thing for his king, and telling him a hard
truth that had to be known.
But as always it seems Viserys would rather live in blissful ignorance then hear a harsh
reality.
That being said, there is no doubt Otto would have and was exploiting the situation as best
he could for his house and grandson, but that doesn’t change the fact that in this case
I think he was doing the right thing.
I also think the show has done a good job humanizing Otto and making his perspective
more understandable, and I look forward to seeing him return to court politics in the
future.
I also think they’ve done a good job setting up the possible successor to Otto, which of
course has to be loyal Loynel Strong, especially since he was the one who advised that Rhaenyra
marry Laenor.
For the number two spot I chose Queen Alicent’s conversation with Rhaenyra about her ill advised
night out in the city.
Both these actresses, I think, are doing an incredible job with these roles, and this
was a great scene for many reasons.
What I enjoyed most was seeing Rhaenyra navigate her way through that conversation, mixing
just the right amount of truth with her lies.
This is a skill she will have to master in the future but already has a talent for, as
the queen was convinced enough to speak on her behalf to the king.
Again Alicent is coming off as a sympathetic character as she tries desperately to keep
the peace between their family.
And it was interesting to see her own moral standards at play, as Alicent clearly has
a rules she expects Rhaenyra to follow, no matter her personal feelings, for the good
of the realm, in the same way she accepted her own lot in life, despite her personal
feelings, for the sake of her House.
Most of this scene was tense and dramatic, but I also found it really funny to see how
quickly Rhaenyra started feigning affection and love for Alicent when she got caught.
Now finally, for the best moment I went with Viserys speaking to Rhaenyra at the end of
the episode.
Every actor on this show seems to be killing it, but Paddy Considine whose playing King
Viserys is really a standout I gotta say.
It seems like I can really feel his anguish and tortured soul.
And while of course I wish he could be more proactive, decisive and bold, it’s clear
that he’s trying his best, with even his more selfish decisions like marry Alicent
instead of Laena, understandable because he was grieving and manipulated by Otto Hightower
who sent his daughter to him.
Though Viserys will never be Jaehaerys the conciliator or Aegon the conqueror, he seems
to be holding the realm together to the best of his abilities.
And in fairness he is presiding over years of peace, continuing the golden age begun
by his grandfather.
I always enjoy watching Viserys talk honestly and forcefully to Rhaenyra but also with respect,
which he showed by agreeing to her demand of dismissing Otto Hightower.
I’m also intrigued by the continued focus on the dagger, and the discovery of the prophecy
hidden on the blade.
So those were my top 5 moments and I have to say it was a good solid episode overall.
However there were, for me, a few more negatives with this one then past episodes.
Some were more minor like my grave disappointment we didn’t get to see Daemon as king in the
stepstones.
It makes sense why they cut that out, but in the books he reigns in the Stepstones for
years, and continues to fight with the triarchy.
But again, given the time jumps I understand why they want to keep everything moving forward
without that aside.
For me the biggest problems I had were with Rhaenyra’s attitude and behaviour in the
first half of the episode.
I was really disappointed that during the suitor scene when nobles were presenting themselves
for the princess, that they didn’t take the opportunity to make her appear wise.
charming and cunning in how she dealt with the nobility.
I thought that by this point she must have at least some training in diplomacy and learned
some understanding of what it means to rule and why keeping nobles placated is crucial
for her ascent to power.
But it appears she is entirely clueless in how to be a monarch.
Her objections to the matches were perfectly fine, but those were things any wise ruler
or heir would have said in private.
To me she just came off as incompetent, and while I was entirely in favor of her reign
in the books, scenes like this really make me question whether she should be queen at
all.
But if I’m being honest, the biggest reason I really disliked her part in this scene,
was because she insulted a Blackwood and laughed along with a Bracken bully.
The blackwoods are one of my favorite houses in Westerosi history, and knowing all they’ll
do and the suffering they’ll endure, specifically for Rhaenrya, it made me furious.
You do not disrespect a Blackwood.
As the Bracken bully quickly found out.
Unfortunately there was more I didn’t care for in this episode, as I’m actually getting
tired of hearing Rhaenyra, Alicent and Daemon complain about their lives.
I mean their petty everyday problems are so unbelievably insignificant when compared to
the horrors faced by 99.9% of the rest of the population.
This is true for any show about rich people, but for some reason in this episode the rich
people problem vibes stood out to me, and I was actually reminded of that video those
celebrities made during the lockdown about how hard it was to be cooped up in their mansions.
Now, for the best kill of the Episode, I went, of course, with the blackwood boy killing
the bracken bully.
Loved every moment of it, long live House Blackwood!
Now for the best line of the night I went with Viserys reading Aegon’s prophecy on
the dagger
“From my blood come the prince that was promised, and his will be the song of ice
and fire.”
So those are my thoughts for the House of the Dragon Episode 4, King of the Narrow Sea.
Overall, even in spite of the negatives, I gave this episode a 7 out of ten, as for the
most part I felt it was still a good continuation to the story.
But what did you guys think?
Do you have your own criticisms or are you loving everything?
Let me know in the comments below and like I always mention be sure to check out the
links to some of my other recent videos, like the spoiler free Prelude to the House of the
Dragon video, the spoiler filled Dance of the Dragons video as well as many others,
including a beginners guide to ASOIAF, that goes over the entire history of Westeros and
the known world, including the major events of the books in 20 minutes.
So that’s it for now thank you guys for watching and I’ll see you in the next one.