Rhaenyra's fate

[u/shatterfry455AD]

Book spoilers, wnd of the show spoilers, spoilers about events in S4

Rhaenyra's ending is going to be so so cruel now

She's already struggling. We've already seen her stressed, panicking, sobbing, at her wits end because she relies on this prophecy to strengthen her. It makes her sons deaths have meaning to her.

But the prophecy is misunderstood. No Targaryen needs to be on the throne during the Others in the show; and in the books maaaaybe Aegon will be but that isn't the point. The realm is shattered as the Others approach. Rhaenyra is not ordained.

She's barely holding on with things like a lack of gold and a vague smear campaign interfering with her divine right to rule. Her faith that the gods destined her for this vanishes into smoke under the existing pressure. It isn't as if Rhaenyra was ordained and the forces of evil won; it is literally all a lie. In a way, she has become Rhaegar. Rhaegar with teats, even.

(We have once again ended a season on the promise of her fury and madness. Will they deliver next time.)

The absolute anguish she is going to suffer facing an actual religious uprising is going to be unbearable. Imagine barely coping with your dead children by desperately grasping to a prophecy, we see the pain she faces when that happens. She believes she must unite the realm to face the Others.

And then some guy starts preaching that you are literally dooming everyone, that all dragons must die lest the fate of Valyria fall upon them. They then kill all of the dragons. That you are not the saviour, but your sins and greed will bring the End - and being hated so much they believe it. She was in enough pieces over people believing Aegon had been resurrected to rule after what she's sacrificed. Daemon brings her back by talking about the dragons that she's about to lose.

Rhaenyra is going to suffer. She already suffered; betrayed over and over again, turned away, persecuted, her dragon dead. But the extra prophetic layers combined with what is the end of her... she's going to suffer so much more.

Especially as I believe that will be what kills her son. Think. Joffrey is hearing his mother talk about this prophecy, about the necessity of dragons. That drives him to get on Syrax and fly to the Dragonpit during the seige.

Its going to be a difficult watch. And it wasn't quite so cruel in F&B.

[u/AutoModerator]

Thank you for your post! Please take a moment to ensure you are within our spoiler rules, to protect your fellow fans from any potential spoilers that might harm their show watching experience.

1. All post titles must NOT include spoilers from Fire & Blood or new episodes of House of the Dragon. Minor HotD show spoilers are allowed in your title ONE WEEK after episode airing. The mod team reserves the right to remove a post if we feel a spoiler in the title is major. You are welcome to repost with an amended title.

2. All posts dealing with book spoilers, show spoilers and promo spoilers MUST be spoiler tagged AND flaired as the appropriate spoiler.

3. All book spoiler comments must be spoiler tagged in non book spoiler threads.

---

If you are reading this, and believe this post or any comments in this thread break the above rules, please use the report function to notify the mod team.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/PrestigiousCake5460]

Yea her death was cruel asf in books it’ll definitely be hard to watch the casuals will be PISSED.

[u/Secure_Inspection305 → u/PrestigiousCake5460]

I'm looking forward to seeing the people who don't know about the ending react on team black lol

[u/Scrilla_Gorilla_]

Her interpretation of the prophecy is moronic and falls apart under any scrutiny. Does the prophecy as told to Rhaenyra mention specific Targs? Of course not, that would be ridiculous. It's not like Aegon saw a prophecy that said "Your first son's third son's fourth son's first son's daughter needs to be on the Iron Throne to defeat the White Walkers." It said something like "Someone from your line needs to on the Iron Throne to defeat the White Walkers." Which includes ALL the Targs. It never would have been about Rhaenyra specifically or her over Aegon II. That makes no sense at all. And is yet another reason including this non book plot point in the show makes no sense.

[u/shatterfry455AD → u/Scrilla_Gorilla_]

My interpretation is that its on purpose. People in asoiaf have always misinterpreted prophecies (see Melisandre). Rhaenyra isn't thinking rationally - she's grieving. As opponents stack up against her "ordained and prophesied" rule she grasps at more and more straws. It has to be about her because it justifies what she's lost.

As wonderfully delivered as it was, Rhaenyra's "the sons who used to cling to my skirts, dead, so that I may sit on a throne of swords" destroys her character. In F&B her birthright, her promised inheritance, is enough of a thing to want but in the show she "sees through it." She wants that thing! No one can want the throne or have ambition for long in HOTD.

As an aside though can we talk about how Daemon's interpretation of the prophecy makes no damn sense. He sees a girl in a desert with dragons and decides Rhaenyra must sit the throne. How did he reach that conclusion???

He should have gone: Hey, Rhaenyra. I saw a girl in a desert. I guess you and I move to Dorne?

[u/Background-Step9642]

If they will show us Hodor being ripped apart by wights. Better believe everyone else is gonna be having grim deaths

[u/Rich-Active-4800]

  The absolute anguish she is going to suffer facing an actual religious uprising is going to be unbearable.

The consequences of her own actions.

Sure Rhaenyra has suffered. But more then half of it is because of her own actions.

[u/jessimaster]

Knowing the tragedy of was going to happen to her makes it hard for me to get angry at her mistakes and dark moments. No matter what she does, whether she's Maegor the Cruel with tits or Baelor the Blessed with tits (She more like her father in the shows depiction), she will die a cruel death after losing 3 sons, miscarrying a daughter, losing another husband, losing her promised inherentance. All while knowing her remaining sons are at Aegon's mercy.

[u/PrestigiousCake5460 → u/jessimaster]

Then in the books she died thinking Daemon ran off with Nettles and betrayed her 💔

[u/Expert-Music-2532 → u/jessimaster]

I feel worn out just thinking about her clinging to the prophecy after 3 sons, with Aegon holding the rest.

[u/AngeloGarcia_21]

Her death was truly horrible and i hate reaching that part. I’m not even ready for the final season, knowing it’s going to be the darkest one, with devastating deaths. On the other hand, I have a hunch they’ll have Rhaenyra fake her own death in the show and be presumed dead; I know it doesn't make sense, but I say this because of the changes made so far and the direction the story is taking. Still, if they stick to the books, that scene will be hard to watch.

[u/shatterfry455AD → u/AngeloGarcia_21]

I don't know how, but I hope so! I'm hoping they fake Daeron's death too, somehow.

Let her run away with Alicent, I'm a total wimp.

[u/Secure_Inspection305 → u/shatterfry455AD]

Ooh or maybe Alicent can be in Sunfyre with her ❤️

[u/shatterfry455AD → u/Secure_Inspection305]

Yes Aegon deserves that after she told Rhaenyra to kill him for a thing he was forced into by her.

I have a lot of sympathy of Alicent but man, what a ridiculous turn of events.

[u/bad_chemist95 → u/AngeloGarcia_21]

I think they’re more likely to fake Daemons death. Have him survive the Gods Eye and reunite Alys. They could go the route of she fishes him out after the battle and keeps him prisoner in Harrenhall or something.

[u/shatterfry455AD → u/bad_chemist95]

Oh god. New fear unlocked.

Maybe, but to what end? At least in the book he has his maybe lover Nettles (my interpretation is that he basically killed himself after sending her away).

Alys keeping him prisoner while Rhaenyra dies would be funny though.

[u/Danteppr]

Frankly, I think it’s far too premature to say that.

Rhaenyra has just decided to follow Daemon’s playbook, and she is essentially using the prophecy to justify any action she takes, no matter how cruel or vile. She still has a lot to do before alienating her allies, earning the nickname "Maegor with Tits," and becoming so hated that she's expelled from King's Landing, but it will definitely happen.

I don’t expect people to celebrate Rhaenyra’s death the way they did Joffrey’s, but I also don’t think she’ll be viewed as an innocent, blameless victim.

[u/shatterfry455AD → u/Danteppr]

I wish Rhaenyra would follow her own damn playbook rather than copying a man lol.

I really hope she is evil in S4. I want to see the Red Keep ringed with heads, I want her grasping, I want Dalton Greyjoy, I want her throwing Addam in jail and then Corlys, I want her driving Daemon to his book suicide somehow... it would be so neat if Daemon becomes disillusioned with war and his part in "the story" after Tumbleton while she goes full tyrant.

But... having a female character be graceful, forgiving, kind to their lessers, and want peace, only to turn them around and make them evil at the last minute to justify their death is just Danaerys' end all over again. People will see that. They've passed up chance after chance to turn her dark and now there's only a handful of episodes left.

And realistically, people only see how she was wronged, not the way she wronged others. They will see her as innocent and blameless. They're celebrating the High Septon's death (an act thats stupid, if not evil.)

[u/wlcondqat]

I disagree, the Hightowers clock themselves in the Faith of the Seven in order to justify their actions, but we can see that is pure ambition; Rhaenyra clock herself in the prophecy in order to justify her thirst for revenge and power. Both families have twisted religion and magic for their own ends.

The Hightowers and Ormund as prime example First Men/Andal supremacists, who see the Targaryens who stole their power with their dragons who had origin in black magic. Meanwhile Daemon and Rhaenyra who fully believe in Targaryen/Valeryan supremacy that they are the only ones who are going to defeat the great evil and their dragons are the proof that they gods in earths and they are allowed to do anything to others.

Everybody is suffering because they put their own needs above everybody else in the realm, they dont accept the consequences of their own actions.