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You REALLY Shouldn’t Love Daemon Targaryen As Much As You Do

Despite the fandom’s praise for his protective nature as a father, brother, and husband, Daemon Targaryen has set up his house for a tragic collapse.

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Warning: Contains spoilers for House of the Dragon episode 9.

House of the Dragon‘s Prince Daemon Targaryen has built a devoted fanbase during the show’s first season; however, his on-screen actions and achievements don’t match the online adoration Matt Smith’s character has received. Sara Hess, an executive producer on House of the Dragon, recently said as much herself, asking what Daemon has done to earn the praise he’s received as a father, husband, and brother. While fans may point to scenes like Daemon and Viserys’s iron throne moment as an example of Daemon’s protectiveness and love for his family, it is a reflection of the selfish ambition that has colored every decision Daemon has made to this point and has ultimately set up his third wife Princess Rhaenyra for ruin.

Throughout House of the Dragon season 1, Daemon Targaryen’s thirst for violence and lust for power has made him a liability to the ruling Targaryens rather than an asset. From his introduction as the loose cannon Commander of the City Watch to his ill-advised war in the Stepstones to murdering his first wife Lady Rhea, at nearly every turn Daemon has put himself above the needs of his own house. Over the several years covered in House of the Dragon‘s first season, those decisions have slowly but surely worked to the detriment of Daemon’s now-wife, Rhaenyra. Ultimately setting up the conditions which allowed for the Targaryen’s “Green” and “Black” split that will be her downfall. The reputation he’s earned as a loving protector who would never let anyone cross his family without consequence is largely a work of fan fiction.

Why Daemon’s Marriages Failed His Brother

Daemon Targaryen’s first two marriages to Lady Rhea Royce and Laena Velaryon were intended to strengthen the alliances of House Targaryen and help protect King Viserys and the crown. However, Daemon’s own selfish ambitions and attempts to empower himself led to both Rhea and Laena’s deaths and failed his brother in the process. From the beginning of House of the Dragon Daemon made his contempt for his wife Rhea Royce fully known. Calling Rhea his “bronze b*tch,” Daemon and Rhea never consummated their marriage or attempted to have children. Daemon’s decision to kill Rhea was ultimately a power play against his own brother. After Viserys had banned Daemon from King’s Landing, Daemon knew Rhea Royce’s death would let him inherit Runestone and strengthen his own station. Runestone gave Daemon an important seat of power and a bargaining chip that would eventually pave the way for him to marry Laena Velaryon, bringing himself closer to his ultimate prizes: future Queen Rhaenyra and the power of the Iron Throne that he has always coveted in his brother’s shadow.

After killing Lady Rhea in House of the Dragon episode 5, the show immediately begins laying the groundwork for Daemon’s next marriage and power play with Laena Velaryon. When Laena’s brother Laenor is set to wed Princess Rhaenyra, Laenor Velaryon finds herself intrigued by the newly unattached Targaryen Prince. Daemon, realizing that a marriage with the eldest daughter of House Velaryon will give him a powerful ally on the seas to combine with his dragon, Daemon Targaryen sets up a romance with Laena.

Following House of the Dragon’s 10-year time jump and the birth of two daughters, Baela and Rhaenya, Laena Velaryon realizes that Daemon will sacrifice her life to protect their unborn child and instead decides to go to her dragon Vhagar and commands him to kill them both. While Daemon does mourn with his daughters, the prince wastes no time moving on with his ultimate conquest to marry his niece Rhaenyra and return to a position of power in King’s Landing and give himself a direct line to the Iron Throne against his brother Viserys’s wishes. Through his two failed marriages Daemon Targaryen has successfully undermind his brother each time and amassed yet more power for himself.

How Daemon Allowed the Hightowers to Seize Power

Daemon Tatgaryen’s most important – and most blatant – power grab against his brother came in the form of his team-up with Corlys Vaelaryon in the war of the Stepstones. Despite King Viserys’s direct orders, Daemon and Corlys launched a war against the Crabfeeder in the Stepstones which was unsuccessful for many years. With Daemon away from King’s Landing fighting a largely unsuccessful war, Otto Hightower and his daughter Alicent were left largely unchecked as two of the three most influential voices in the King’s ear, alongside Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen. This atmosphere, created directly by Daemon’s own ambitions for power, partially created the conditions that allowed the Hightowers to become the influential force that they now are in House of the Dragon.

Even though Daemon Targaryen heroically slays the Crabfeeder in episode 3 of House of the Dragon, it is revealed to viewers that consequences from the war of the Stepstones continue in episode 8. Lord Corlys Velaryon’s serious injury in Daemon’s own selfish, unnecessary years-long war is what necessitated the hearing on who would be House Velarayon’s heir and set the groundwork for Daemon’s murder of Vaemond Targaryen that has become an important part of Daemon’s growing online fanbase. Had Daemon not agreed to start a war with the Triarchy against his brother’s wishes, Daemon could have remained in King’s Landing to counterbalance the Hightower family’s own growing ambitions and remain a protective shield for House Targaryen. However, instead, Daemon was busy running his own power play in parallel with the Greens which will ultimately lead to Rhaenyra’s downfall.

Will Daemon’s Failures Be Rhaenyra’s End?

House of the Dragon has already set up Rhaenyra Targaryen’s death and the part that Daemon’s own greed has played in it. As the war of the Stepstones and his two failed marriages have made clear, Daemon has been so busy planning his own power play for the Iron Throne that he could not inherit to protect his brother and his niece/wife’s best interests. Allowing the Hightowers the space necessary to build their own power and influence in King’s Landing has created the hostile environment that has led to King Aegon II being able to claim the throne in House of the Dragon episode 9.

Any victory that Rhaenyra Targaryen is able to win against the crown in House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale will be short lived, assuming the show does not completely depart from the books and from Joffrey Baratheon’s Game of Thrones story. Daemon’s ambition to undermine his brother’s rule and to get himself as close to the power of the Iron throne as possible have sealed his wife’s ultimate fate and made House of the Dragon‘s central story a tragic one. Daemon Targaryen, ultimately, has set up his own house for ruin and has not earned the beloved reputation he has garnered from fans online.

New episodes of House of the Dragon release Sundays on HBO & HBO Max.

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