HOD takes the moral ambiguity of GOT to another level. Rhaenyra is as straightforward a hero as anyone in GOT, until she canoodles with her despicable uncle and lies at length about it. These escapades continue through the years. Her despicable uncle is as straightforward a scoundrel as anyone in GOT, until he becomes her champion. Viserys pivots from gross patriarchy to a sympathetic ending, aided by some astonishing acting.
The comparative ambiguity doesn't end with character ethics. HOD feels ambiguous all around. Which plots deserve my focus? Who is whose child? Why did Martin pause A Song of Ice and Fire for this? Even GOT sported much aimlessness, but the deplored final seasons revealed each trend line. HOD is more aimless, capitalizing on viewers who no longer need coherent stories to escape into, as long as they can escape. Alas, I continue to watch, though I have no love for it.
I do like Rhaenyra, though she perches on a precipice. Daemon needs to prove himself. Viserys has been sympathetic for many episodes but one doesn't forget the first. Criston is very ambiguous. Most characters are ambiguous. Rhaenyra is the flawed hero.
Things certainly got more interesting in this last episode. The map of Westeros sprawls as armies and dragons muster.
The aging is distracting, like in The Irishman. Viserys ages an eternity while Hightower and Rhaenys, both seemingly older than him, stale, hale.
2/4
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