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The Home of the Dragon Scorecard is an accounting of the occasions of this week’s episode, wherein factors are awarded to characters on a scale of 0 to 10. Factors might be awarded for any or no motive.
Issues have a method of coming to a head as a season of tv nears its conclusion. What meaning, precisely, will depend on the sort of present you’re watching. On a present with spies, it’d imply somebody will get captured and finds themself in peril. On a comedy with a season-long arc, it’d imply our beloved little scamps are able to set their plan in movement. On a present like Home of the Dragon, then again, it may imply lots of issues. Perhaps a bunch of dragons attempt to kill one another on a seashore. Perhaps a mom tries to assassinate her one-eyed son with a cup of poison tea. Perhaps the queen begins a scandalous affair with a brand new lover as a betrayal takes place round a campfire in one other city. Or perhaps all of that occurs in the identical hour.
Sure, it’s a busy week within the Seven Kingdoms as we strategy subsequent week’s season finale. There are lots of balls up within the air, with nearly each character coping with a precarious and delicate scenario that would lead to catastrophe. Baela may need unintentionally torn two brothers aside. Somebody misplaced a finger. There are probably a number of free dragons. It’s all slightly thrilling and slightly messy. However there might be time to kind via all of that later.
For now, there are factors at hand out.
Let’s verify in with the queen as we strategy the tip of the season. She:
• Is accosting teenagers of their bedrooms to ask in the event that they’ve had goals about her being good at her job.
• Has been spending sort of lots of time staring on the cranium of the person she believed was answerable for her son’s loss of life.
• Simply heaved the cranium into the hearth after studying her son’s loss of life was really brought on by her rebellious stepdaughter, whose involvement was hid by her husband, the one who murdered some poor man and introduced his cranium to her.
• Has began a torrid affair along with her high adviser.
• Appears to be on the verge of shouting “I’m doing the perfect I can!” to everybody and nobody each second she is on the display.
I sincerely marvel if she would do all of it once more if she discovered a method to return in time. I wager she does, too.
I’ve been having lots of enjoyable just lately including the phrases “Oh, nice …” to what I think about Alicent’s operating inside monologue appears like.
Oh, nice, I’m trapped on this darkish hallway …
Oh, nice, I’ve to sneak an murderer right into a leaky outdated fort so he can homicide my horrible son …
Oh, nice, my son killed the murderer …
Oh, nice, my son is courting a witch …
Oh, nice, I suppose I’ve to attempt to homicide my son with these poison berries now …
You would swap in an “Oh, brother,” too, when you’re feeling extra New England about all of it.
Daemon tries to be a very good dad to his teenage daughter for as soon as in his life, and it ends in 4 dragons making an attempt to tear one another aside on a seashore as their riders all shriek impotent instructions at them.
I’m certain a bunch of dads sat at residence watching these unintended penalties of tried parenting spiral uncontrolled and located themselves pondering, Buddy, I’ve been there.
Hmmm. A devious blond man is left to lick his wounds inside a leaky fort beneath the care of a mysterious witch and immediately begins having vivid goals about being seduced by a member of his speedy household. Sounds acquainted. I wager Aemond and Daemon may have an interesting dialog about all of it.
Anyway, let’s go forward and assume Aemond survived Alicent’s poisoning, if solely as a result of the one individuals who have positively, one hundred pc died this season are those whose heads we’ve seen absolutely indifferent from their our bodies. I believe he’s going to be slightly cranky once we see him subsequent. Which isn’t totally unreasonable given this very particular set of circumstances.
Women, you’ve all been there. You’re beginning a brand new relationship with a man. He has his faults, certain, however it’s working. You then meet his mother, and she or he’s … lots. He doesn’t see it, both. He’s inviting her to dinner and suggesting the 2 of you change into pals, and immediately lots of issues about his complete deal make sense. You attempt to warn him. You particularly inform him that she could also be doing all of this for herself, to fill some want or stop him from changing into unbiased, however he brushes you off.
Then, in the future, she feeds him poisoned wine and flees your fort, and also you’re left to cope with his silly crawling physique as he appears up at you with a mixture of confusion and helplessness.
Hey, talking of characters we assumed have been lifeless for an prolonged time period solely to be stunned with their sudden and dramatic presence on the display … what’s up, Sunfyre?
Was all of this perhaps slightly too cute, this factor the place Aegon — after weeks of marching via the woods with little obvious goal — decides to make his huge stand and is miraculously backed up by the dragon nearly everybody assumed was lifeless many episodes in the past? I imply, certain. I groaned and laughed slightly. However it’s enjoyable to have one other free dragon again on the board. I’ll take the win.
Two notes on Tyland:
• Not often has any particular person been happier to see a fire-breathing hellbeast than he was in that second.
• After weeks of making an attempt to place my finger on it, I’ve determined that he appears like Donal Logue.
Transferring on.
Man, there’s unhealthy timing, after which there’s “lastly resolve to bail on the badly injured king you’d been hoping to rehabilitate via schemes to help your individual rise to prominence just for him to stumble throughout his long-lost dragon and change into extra highly effective than he’s been at any level in your journey.”
I believe, when Larys finds out what occurred in these woods, he’s going to groan for 90 uninterrupted seconds.
He spent the entire episode being a smug little snot — this can be a praise, in some way — about some huge secret he had, after which, on the very finish, after an hour of dragon fights and scandalous affairs, we uncover he has recruited Ulf to betray Rhaenyra.
On one hand: Having a dragon will presumably assist his trigger, particularly if Ulf can act as a double agent and sow chaos from inside town partitions.
Then again: lol, think about counting on Ulf.
I’m genuinely very excited to see how this performs out.
Poor Gwayne, man. Went from serving with Criston straight to serving with Ormund. Nobody will ever high Alicent within the area of constructing faces that scream Now how the hell did I get right here?, however he’s making a pleasant run on the silver medal on this occasion.
Candy youngsters with concepts don’t do very properly on these reveals, sometimes. I believe Daeron will proceed that development sooner or later. It’s difficult as a result of, like, Ormund wants him alive but additionally looks as if a man who would gladly kill him and pivot to a different plan the following day. I’ve taken to making an attempt to shush him via the display when he’s making an attempt to scheme slightly. It’s not going nice for both of us.
Couple of notes on Helaena:
• She’s having visions of her idyllic chicken-keeping future being interrupted by a really literal “Winter Is Coming” scenario, which is perhaps not one thing different folks might be stoked to listen to.
• If I have been Helaena, I might be like, “Uh, yeah, I had a imaginative and prescient. It stated … um, it stated an amazing doom will befall the complete realm until somebody goes to get me a big cheese pizza. And mozzarella sticks. Sure, ache and destruction for all in any other case. Marinara on the facet for dipping, please.”
I might be murdered inside weeks.
Actually very exhausting to place into phrases how excited I’m to see Ulf try subterfuge on a grand scale. I hope the following episode opens with him sporting a trench coat and hiding round corners of the fort.
Proper, in order we’ve mentioned, all characters on this present must be assumed dwelling until they’re decapitated on-camera, which suggests I’m going to imagine Sheepstealer survived. This implies we now have two free dragons on the market, together with Vhagar, whose personal rider simply received poisoned slightly. Let’s go forward and proceed to watch this example.
Six factors would possibly seem to be lots, however contemplate:
• She’s actually simply so fed up with all of those folks, which is past truthful at this level.
• She made Daemon squirm slightly bit, which is all the time a deal with.
• It’s enjoyable to image her getting some DoorDash for lunch after which tossing her empty takeout container down that huge homicide gap within the sky she has.
So I believe six is fairly truthful.
It’s been a bizarre few weeks for Mysaria, with Daemon’s affect rising and falling, and her plan to leverage Helaena’s being pregnant falling aside inside moments. She appears to be flailing a bit. And when you’re flailing a bit professionally, what’s the universally accepted greatest plan of action?
That’s proper: Seduce your boss.
What may go unsuitable?
Sylvi confirmed up for like two minutes, known as out Mysaria to her face, stated “a whore will all the time be a whore” — which, one presumes, straight led to the aforementioned queen seducing — then marched out of the fort to return to regardless of the heck Sylvi spends remainder of the day doing. Affordable arguments may be made that she is the perfect character on the complete present.
I don’t suppose I might get pleasure from having my decapitated head paraded via city as folks cheered on loudly. No thanks to that.
I additionally don’t suppose I might get pleasure from receiving a finger within the mail, my father’s or in any other case. I actually can not stress this level sufficient. Please don’t mail me a finger.
When Baela advised him about Alyn, after he’s spent like half the season making an attempt to get her to eat and take a nap and actually simply laying it on as thickly as he is aware of how, it was about as shut as any live-action present will ever get to that Simpsons scene with Ralph Wiggum the place “you’ll be able to really pinpoint the second when his coronary heart rips in half.”
Everybody on this present has lots of plates spinning directly, however don’t low cost Baela’s mixture of:
• Simply came upon her sister was the one who sort of unintentionally murdered her betrothed husband.
• Might need two brothers, one in every of whom has a dragon, making ready to tear one another aside for her affection.
That’s a full day proper there.
The funniest second of this episode, fingers down, was when Torrhen was on the council assembly shouting about how “I really feel like I’m being made a scapegoat!” and the digital camera minimize to Mysaria doing a full-on Kermit the Frog “however that’s none of my enterprise” sip of her tea.
This present loves nothing extra this season than to introduce a possible murderer and promptly thwart his plan through blade to the pinnacle or neck. There was the man Daemon stabbed via the ear, after which the smelly killers Gwayne sniffed out, and now Ser Adrian, who took a knife to the throat inside seconds of seeing Aemond. It’s changing into a enjoyable development to trace.
Anyway, I’m giving Adrian some extent simply because a minimum of he received launched by title earlier than dying. Given the fates of the others, that has to depend for one thing.
I nonetheless suppose I might get pleasure from a whole episode that simply follows the fort workers as they gossip amongst themselves in regards to the issues they’ve seen whereas doing their jobs. The scene the place Rhaenyra’s maid will get to inform everybody in regards to the dialog between her boss and Daemon she was pressured to be current for … I imply, that will be riveting tv. Let the folks speak slightly shit, I say.
Alys the Witch: 45
Mysaria: 42
Alicent Hightower: 36
Alyn of Hull: 36
Helaena Targaryen: 36
Daemon Targaryen: 33
Gwayne Hightower: 28
Rhaenyra Targaryen: 27
Alysanne Blackwood: 25
Larys Robust: 25
Addam of Hull: 24
Baela Targaryen: 23
Hugh Hammer: 23
Corlys “The Sea Snake” Velaryon: 23
Ulf the White: 23
Daeron Targaryen: 22
Ser Torrhen Manderly: 22
Grand Maester Orwyle: 22
Ormund Hightower: 21
Rhaena Targaryen: 20
The Rats of King’s Touchdown: 19
Sylvi: 17
Tyland Lannister: 17
Oscar Tully: 14
Aegon II Targaryen: 14
Woman Jeyne Arryn: 13
Ser Simon Robust: 10
Admiral Sharako Lohar: 9
The One Man at Harrenhal Who Noticed a Large Fireplace-Respiratory Dragon Swoop Towards the Fortress and Reacted by Shouting “DRAGON”: 9
Numerous Fortress Workers: 9
Joffrey Targaryen: 8
The Excessive Septon: 5
Pretend Daeron Targaryen: 4
Otto Hightower: 2
The Poor Shepherd Daemon Torched and Stated Was Sheepstealer’s Rider: 2
Jacaerys “Jace” Velaryon: 1
Ser Lorent Marbrand: 1
Ser Adrian: 1
Ser Criston Cole: 0.00000000001
Lord Jasper: 0
Numerous Undercover Assassins: 0
Aemond Targaryen: -90
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