HBO's House of the Dragon has several prominent characters who both mirror and contrast those from the parent show it is a prequel to, Game of Thrones.
open/close all folders
In General
- It's interesting the way Cersei Lannister's characteristics get split between Alicent and Rhaenyra. Alicent gets most of the miserable parts of being Cersei, while Rhaenyra gets the fiery ones. Cersei and Rhaenyra are the ones who voice sentiments along the lines of, "If I were a man I wouldn't have to put up with this bullshit," whereas Alicent tries to work within the framework. Rhaenyra gets Cersei's inborn spitfire and impetuousness, while Alicent is a Shrinking Violet who takes a long time to Grow a Spine. Rhaenyra gets the incest and the three children fathered outside her marriage (though split into two separate relationships in Rhaenyra's case) which are both symbols of sexual freedom and refusal to be controlled or bend to the will of society. The sad parts of being Cersei that Rhaenyra gets is losing her mother to her brother's birth as well as having to deal with the loss of a child. Meanwhile, it's Cersei and Alicent who are both the daughters of controlling and ambitious fathers who treat them as political pawns from a young age and maneuver them into unhappy marriages with kings, and likewise, it's Alicent who slowly gains Cersei's vindictiveness and paranoia as a result of the drudgery of that life.
Rhaenyra Targaryen
- To her descendant Daenerys Targaryen:
- She and Daemon parallel another duo of Targaryen heirs from early Game of Thrones down the family line, Daenerys and her brother Viserys.
- Both Rhaenyra and Daenerys have ambitions to rule the Seven Kingdoms one day, the former starting from her position as heir to the crown going up against the Heir Club for Men within the court at King's Landing and the latter against the successors to Robert Baratheon (who ousted her family and usurped the throne) starting from scratch far away in Essos. Where Daenerys would grow up exiled without a court and be on the receiving end of much abuse from her brother, Rhaenyra grew up in the royal court and received affection from her family, uncle included. Daenerys was forcibly married to Khal Drogo in order for her brother to gain an army of Dothraki riders while King Viserys wishes for Rhaenyra to get married in the realm's best interests while not objecting to the idea that she could Marry for Love. Both women became Dragon Riders, Rhaenyra by family tradition in her youth, and well-equipped with a dragon saddle, while Daenerys learned on her own in adulthood when the dragons she revived and hatched grew big enough (and she only ever flew them bareback). Speaking of which, Syrax is female while all three of Daenerys' dragons (and most importantly the one she rides all the time, Drogon) are male.
- In terms of personality, both of them are daring and can be ruthless in doing what they believe to be right, and both express their willingness to disrupt the current order of power.
- For a good while, Daenerys came off as a Messianic Archetype especially in Essos, while Rhaenyra simply wants to succeed her father in order to maintain a strong realm for the day the prophecy of the Song of Ice and Fire (the Long Night) will come true upon Westeros.
- As a young noblewoman who struggles against the social constraints on her in a feudal society due to her gender, and who often clashes with the rules, she has shades of Arya Stark. The placeholder dialogue Milly Alcock used in auditions for young Rhaenyra was lifted straight from Arya lines in the original TV series. Noticeably, Rhaenyra's position and general personality are likely what Arya would have become had she been able to remain merely a lady of Winterfell yet still pursue her more outgoing pursuits.
- She also has elements of Stannis Baratheon: both are bluntly honest regardless of the consequences, and both are the lawful heir to the throne who is continually frustrated that their rivals simply choose to ignore this. Both of them also have their main base on Dragonstone island, the ancestral Targaryen castle traditionally held by the heir to the throne. Both Rhaenyra and Stannis get upended by a younger brother (although in the case of Rhaenyra, Aegon didn't want to take the crown, he was forced by the Hightower side of his family to do so).
Daemon Targaryen
- To Prince Viserys Targaryen (the brother of Daenerys). Where Viserys would be an abusive ass through and through to his sister (and lusts after her) and a Dirty Coward, Daemon loves his niece (in affectionate then incestuous ways, and backs down from killing her even when she's his obstacle as heir to the throne early on), has likable and even honorable traits to him, and knows how to fight. Viserys would have to beg (and pimp out his sister) for an army of Dothraki that won't even obey him in the end, Daemon has a loyal army of Gold Cloaks who would turn against the Hand of the King in a heartbeat if he orders them to do so and ends up leading the Armies of the Blacks. And where dragons would be extinct and Viserys would have none to ride, Daemon has one and is overall quite the expert on the beasts and Targaryen legacy in general.
- He's also this to Jaime Lannister. He's likewise a loyal and action-oriented brother to a more sociable brother as part of a Red Oni, Blue Oni pairing, while still being a Troll to his enemies, with a soft spot for his incestuous would-be-queen love interest. Where they diverge is that Daemon's the younger brother to Jaime's older brother, and a politically ambitious warrior Combat Pragmatist compared to Jaime's earlier portrayal as a politically apathetic Let's Fight Like Gentlemen portrayal. Jaime also has his father expressing Parental Favoritism to such an extent that he's willing to blackmail him and break a centuries-old custom to get him back as an (unwilling) heir… while Daemon ends up disinherited in spite of his loyalty. This is best expressed with a similar flippant scene in both men's biographies where they each sat on the Iron Throne in a Slouch of Villainy—Jaime didn't actually want the throne and was simply experiencing his transition to Broken Ace in a disrespectful way… while Daemon genuinely enjoys being the heir of Viserys and the respect and honor it implies his brother views him with. And both are in an incestuous relationship — Jaime with his sister Cersei (and they never married), and Daemon with his niece Rhaenyra (he eventually took her as spouse).
King Viserys Targaryen
- With King Robert Baratheon, the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms over a century and a half later. Outside of having the same job, being once way more formidable before becoming kings (Robert was a warrior and Viserys used to ride the dragon Balerion the Dread himself) and being the last uncontested kings before events spiral into a Succession Crisis, war and chaos in Westeros, the two couldn't be any different. Unlike Robert, Viserys didn't start an uprising that ended in kingslaying and instead succeeded his grandfather. Viserys also loves his first wife whereas Robert doesn't care and spends time whoring and impregnating mistresses. Viserys actively attends his Small Council meetings and takes his duties seriously, while Robert openly disdained the duties of a king and only attended three Small Council meetings. Viserys is lean where Robert is fat from spending time feasting and drinking. And Viserys survives The Grand Hunt without a scratch while Robert dies from wounds sustained in one.
- A dash of Eddard "Ned" Stark too. Both want to do right by the realm they serve in their top position (Viserys as a king, Ned as a Hand of the King), but are ultimately powerless to stop the events that spiral towards a war that will engulf the whole realm and their children. Both have a Valyrian steel sword (Blackfyre for Viserys, Ice for Ned) and a distant younger brother (Daemon for Viserys, Benjen for Nednote ). Neither of them survives the first season (Viserys dies from a leprosy-like illness, Ned is executed by beheading). Viserys became king after a peaceful event to choose a successor to Jaehaerys I (who was a textbook example of The Good King) while Ned was one of the leaders of a violent rebellion that put an end to the Reign of Terror of the Mad King Aerys II.
Alicent Hightower
- She started out as a young and somewhat naive but socially very adept girl, not unlike Sansa Stark, capable of emotionally reading and manipulating people at the royal court in a way her tomboyish counterpart could not (Rhaenyra/Arya).
- Olivia Cooke was asked to read some of Cersei Lannister's lines in her audition. It's interesting the way Cersei's characteristics get split between Alicent and Rhaenyra. Alicent gets most of the miserable parts of being Cersei, while Rhaenyra gets the fiery ones. Cersei and Alicent are both the daughters of controlling and ambitious fathers who treat them as political pawns from a young age and maneuver them into unhappy marriages to kings. Inversely, Alicent is a Shrinking Violet who takes a long time to Grow a Spine, while Rhaenyra gets all of Cersei's spitfire and inborn impetuousness. Rhaenyra gets the incest and the three children fathered outside her marriage, both symbols of sexual freedom and refusal to be controlled or bend to the will of society. But Alicent gets many of the ways life weights upon Cersei, the paranoia and the vindictiveness. The Aemond-looses-an-eye scene and the Joffrey-bitten-by-a-direwolf scene overtly parallel each other. Cersei and Rhaenyra are the ones who overtly say things along the lines of "if I were a man I wouldn't have to put up with half this shit," yet Rhaenyra—as a Targaryen and Viserys's heir—does get some privileges typically reserved for men. Lacking that, it's Cersei and Alicent who have to play within their roles as women and do things like using sexuality to maneuver the men around them. It's dropped from the show, but in the books Cersei has sex with several men at court in order to gain their allegiance. Alicent does it far subtlety, but much of her power does come from allying herself with powerful men in sexually charged—if not explicitly sexual—ways.
- Adult Alicent is a somewhat more ruthless version of Margaery Tyrell (Margaery actually was a Hightower, on her mother's side, though this went unmentioned in Game of Thrones). Like Margaery (or her grandmother Olenna) she's a skilled social manipulator, more focused on Pragmatic Villainy through diplomacy, and isn't a "villain" but a political actor in a world of Grey-and-Gray Morality.
Otto Hightower
- He's similar to Tywin Lannister at first glance, though there are key differences:
- Like Tywin, Otto is a member of one of the wealthiest, most powerful families in Westeros and serves capably and intermittently as Hand for multiple kings, while also using his position to advance the position of both himself and his family.
- He also equates what's good for him with what's good for others, though Otto takes it even further, equating what's good for him with what's good for the whole realm.
- They never remarry after losing their beloved wives, an event which embittered both men for life and made them become more cold, cynical and/or ruthless.
- Unlike Tywin, who served as Hand under monarchs who were either incapable, mad, or both, the king's Otto serves under are/were otherwise fully competent (or at least not mad and not too incompetent in the case of King Viserys). Also, whereas Tywin had the immense resources and power to give himself an advantage over the kings, the Targaryen kings Otto serves have enough of their own power (to include dragons) that he can't lord over them as Tywin could.
- They both rationalize their actions as The Needs of the Many to some degree, but for all his wisdom, Tywin only really cares for the safety and power for his own family (i.e. himself), while Otto (at least on the surface level) thinks about the realm and its people on the whole.
- They both manage to put their grandsons on the Iron Throne, but Otto is slightly younger when it happens, a second-son rather than the head of his family, and as such he has been a courtier most of his life, being Hand during peacetime. Tywin, as the Lord of his house and Warden of the West, is experienced in plenty of roles and responsabilities unknown to Otto, especially in war.
- Tywin is an unpleasant person who verbally demolishes anyone who disagrees with him in virtually every exchange. Otto tends to be polite and way more affable, keeping his tone and manners respectful and civil rather than insulting.
- Tywin is The Patriarch of his dynasty and lords over the rest of the Lannisters, Otto is deferential to his elder brother, Lord Hobert of Oldtown, and its implied Hobert pressured him into using his position to benefit their family rather than Otto doing so of his own volition.
Aegon Targaryen
- To King Joffrey Baratheon:
- Before dying, King Robert dictates his will to Ned Stark, who changes "my son Joffrey" to "the rightful heir" to make it ambiguous. A moribund King Viserys delivers an ambiguous Deathbed Confession to Queen Alicent, who mistakenly understands it as a verbal request to change his will, making Aegon the designated heir in place of Rhaenyra.
- Both blonde teenagers are woefully inadequate rulers with sociopathic tendencies, installed in the throne by their mother and grandfather, and whose ascension requires strong palatial intrigue and a coup to purge of the legalist opposition.
- They both ascend to the throne after long periods of peace on Westeros, with the only wars fought taking place on the peripheral islands away from the mainland. The inherited peace is no longer sustainable shortly after their inaugurations.
- They differ in that Aegon is his Targaryen father's legitimate son, he doesn't want the throne but is pushed by his family to sit on it, while Joffrey is a Lannister power-hungry bastard eager to exert his power and disobey his mother from the get-go.
- Aegon is a lecherous Royal Brat who spends most of his time drinking, whoring, or forcing himself on servant girls. Joffrey was remarkably disinterested in sex and had a far greater interest in both watching and inflicting violence.
Criston Cole
- Ser Criston highlights a contrast to the foremost Kingsguard character, Jaime Lannister.
- Jaime is the firstborn son of House Lannister, anointed Kingsguard to spite his father Lord Tywin (and turning him into Aerys II's glorified hostage). Criston is born to a far lowlier-steward of the Dondarrions of the Stormlands, and his appointment was the highest honor any Cole ever received so far.
- Both were culturally raised Andals under the Faith of the Seven. Jaime, due to his unique life experiences, has remained mostly a Hollywood Atheist. Criston, however, leans hard into the Faith after turning over himself as Alicent's loyal knight.
- Both started out their knighthood in feats of derring-do: Jaime for his involvement against the Kingswood Brotherhood, and Criston for both campaigning against the Dornish and The Tourney of the Heir.
- Jaime was defined by his Single-Target Sexuality for his sister Cersei—and it complicated his honor, loyalties and Kingsguard vows throughout his life. Criston, for his part, sought to live as a more straightforward Knight in Shining Armor—but was reduced to being a more bitter and spiteful man following Rhaenyra's seduction-then-rejection, and his subsequent devotion as Alicent's primary sworn sword.
- Jaime was prevented from winning any glory during the War of Five Kings (due to being captured, maimed, and forced to wander). He doesn't even do much leading until King Tommen dismisses him and sends him as a Lannister commander to the Riverlands. Criston, in contrast, is a central player since the leadup to the Dance of the Dragons, both for training Princes Aegon II and Aemond in warfare and disposing of potential enemies like Lyman Beesbury.
- Both broke their Kingsguard oaths and this has played a very defining moment in their life. Jaime embraced and played up his image as a nefarious rogue to cover his deep-seated insecurity and self-loathing. By contrast, Criston doubles down on trying to be his ideal of an honorable knight, to a violent and obsessive degree.
Corlys Velaryon
- Like Otto Hightower, he invites comparison to two notable Great House patriarchs in proximity to the Crown in Game of Thrones, combining their best attributes.
- In contrast to Otto, Corlys shares the positive martial and administrative reputation Tywin Lannister has—especially since he is the richest House (even richer and with a larger fleet than House Lannister, in fact) during this time. His ambition and desire for proximity to power ("backdoor influence", as his actor Steve Toussaint describes) is very plain. His daughter Laena being spurned by Viserys I (leading to his resignation) is identical to Tywin's unsuccessful attempt to marry off Cersei to Rhaegar Targaryen (albeit Aerys II's reasons were much pettier). Unlike Tywin, however, Corlys is by all accounts a very honorable, straightforward and good lord and father—as exhibited by the general warmness and unity of his house (his belligerent brother Vaemond notwithstanding).
- These positive attributes also invite comparison with the Decoy Protagonist of Game of Thrones Season 1, Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark. Throughout his stint in the Small Council, Corlys has demonstrated an interest in good governance, smallfolk and border security (the issues that preoccupied Ned as Hand). Furthermore, despite his children still serving as actors and pawns in his political ploys, Laenor and Laena seem to have been raised in a positive environment, ensuring they grow to become very eligible and good noblefolk. (The fact that he doesn't worry a lot about Laenor being badass and gay and Laena being a Tomboy Princess also harkens to Ned's acceptance and support of Arya's more warrior-like pursuits). Finally, Ned's Papa Wolf tendencies (especially for his bastard—actually nephew—Jon Snow) is also reflected in Corlys' sheer willingness to protect Laenor's "sons", even if they are plainly not biologically related to him. As opposed to Ned however, who was comparatively humble and often had Honor Before Reason, which got him killed in the end, Corlys is more pragmatic and sometimes prone to more selfish ambitions.
Rhaenys Velaryon
- As the elderly stateswoman of the court with a very withering snark, she invites comparisons to Lady Olenna Tyrell. Much like her, Rhaenys represents the belief that women can (and should) be given the opportunities to rule—as per her lingering resentment over the succession and her active administration of Driftmark while Corlys is away. Unlike Olenna, however, Rhaenys being a Targaryen Dragon Rider even as a grandmother means she can be (and has been) directly involved in war, as witness her symbolic strike against Aegon II's coronation. She also has a better marriage than Olenna had with her husband Luthor Tyrell, especially as Corlys is an amazing lord and husband, his ambition notwithstanding.
- With Corlys's comparability to Ned Stark, she is a close comparison to Catelyn Stark, as the matriarchs of their house who lose their family members and (initially) resented having bastards brought in their family—the way Catelyn treated Jon and how Rhaenys intended to favor Baela and Rhaena over the "Strong boys". Unlike Catelyn (who was killed at the Red Wedding and never managed to reconcile with Jon), she manages to come around earlier and commit House Velaryon to protect her "grandsons", the same way Corlys would.
