House of the Dragon may be a series about kings and queens, medieval violence, and flying dragons, but George R.R. Martin's fantasy epic has also become synonymous with its controversial sex scenes. Like the royal families of old, incest made up for some of the most important relationships in Game of Thrones—a tradition that the prequel series, House of the Dragon, seems hellbent on carrying on.
In Episode Four, the young Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock) and her uncle, Prince Daemon (Matt Smith), get hot and heavy in a brothel. Fans at home were shocked by the event (of course), but not everyone found the scene so awkward to see as we wound down on a Sunday night. "Strangely enough, [Matt Smith and I] were just kind of mates. So, it was quite comfortable," Milly Alcock told the New York Post. "We had an intimacy coordinator, and we worked with her through the rehearsal process and blocked it out months before."
"Clare Kilner, our director, made sure that we hadn’t seen any of the brothel stuff until we were shooting," Alcock continued. "So, that was our first time walking through the brothel, and he’s guiding her through the room with all of these other bodies. So, that was quite shocking. You’re like, 'This is kind of weird and silly.' There were extras who we had just met who were like, 69-ing for 12 hours. It’s pretty gnarly. We felt pretty overdressed because everyone else was nude."
Some fans joined Alcock in making light of the steamy situation. While viewers nearly gagged at sex scenes from Game of Thrones between siblings Cersei and Jaime Lannister, or aunt and nephew Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow, many are supporting Rhaenyra and Daemon's taboo affair. "We all were judging the Lannisters for 8 seasons but now rooting for Rhaenyra and Daemon within 4 episodes," one Twitter user wrote. But where are all my #TeamSerCristonCole shippers? Does no one hope to see a romantic, love-at-first-sight relationship with someone they're not related to on this show?
After her incestuous make-out session with her uncle, Rhaenyra returns home and directs all that pent-up sexual energy at Ser Criston Cole, a knight tasked with standing guard outside her bed chambers. Though hesitant, he eventually concedes and takes the young princess's virginity. However, anyone fighting for the two to break tradition and stay together may have a tough time. Otto Hightower informs the King of Daemon and Rhaenyra's "coupling," as he nervously calls it, and the prince is banished from the realm for the second time in just four episodes. How will things pan out if the court finds out that she actually slept with Criston Cole instead? Well, for fans of the books who are aware of a certain spoiler that is not to be named, Rhaenyra's story ends up trending in quite a different direction.
"I wrestled with [her feelings for Criston] the whole time, in the show," Milly Alcock told the Post. "I think that she wants to be seen, and ultimately Daemon and Criston Cole are the only two people who really see her. Both of them see her for different reasons. Daemon kind of has the upper hand, and Rhaenyra has the upper hand with Cole, and that turns her on a bit. I think that she genuinely likes him. But I don’t think she would pick him over Daemon, ultimately... I think Daemon is good for her… but whether or not he’s the right thing for her, time will tell... I think that she understands that there’s a feeling here [with Daemon], but she’s not quite sure where it lands, and how to behave with it and navigate it."
Clearly, fans are not sure how to behave with it and navigate it either. "Daemon did nothing wrong. They should rule together!" another Twitter commenter boldly declared. Buckle up, boys and girls, because this was only Episode Four of House of the Dragon. This unholy train is just leaving the station.
Josh Rosenberg is an Assistant Editor at Esquire, keeping a steady diet of one movie a day. His past work can be found at Spin, CBR, and on his personal blog at Roseandblog.com.
