Something that made Matt Smith’s performance so great is that his character didn’t always have to talk. When he was quiet, he’d generate the upmost tension in the room, his gestures were incredible. You can see that the character has a mean and true drive, but always unpredictable
I really wasn't sure about Matt Smith as Daemon. He was one of my favourite characters from The Princess and the Queen but Smith brings a lot of charisma to the role.
I think what people forget is that Daemon is a combat veteran. I see a man with PTSD. His fear is immediately subsumed in anger. When Rhaenyra talks about dreams, Daemon sees the fall of his family. He sees enemies creeping in. And here is his wife rambling like his useless dead brother. He is Odysseus. He is every combat Veteran who survives war. He is my ex husband. No one seems to touch this. If you've read the Illiad, you would see all the different ways PTSD manifests and what it does to the families of those soldiers.
I kinda got that too, ESPECIALLY with him planning defense during Rhae's labor. Like to me he wasn't a man gleefully planning his war and immune to his wife's pains. This is a soldier planning the defense of a puny island with too few men against the rebels who killed his brother after he ruined their plans, plotted against his family and stole his wife's crown. Granted they didn't kill Vizzy but its not crazy to think do. And his fears about the Greens were RIGHT, Otto was already set to butcher everyone on Dragonstone just to secure Aegon's claim ( oh the irony lol). Daemon 100% saw Otto for who he was.
The Maester in-universe who chronicled The Dance of the Dragons had this to say: Over the centuries, House Targaryen has produced both great men and monsters. Prince Daemon was both.
@that one black dude Well, yeah that's true in the books. Aemond is mostly connected to the Dance, more than Daemon is, and so Aemonds actions during the war is what's more written about. Daemon had more time to add to his reputation, him being over 20 years older, and was around at a different time. Makes you wonder how Aemond would've been viewed had he fought in the Stepstones and interacted with more people like Daemon did
@Thalmor Agent I don't aggre because nobody liked aemond people liked daemon hense him being seen as both hero and villain aemond doesn't get that treatment.
True. Still, I think Aemond is an approach I like better to this dichotomy, but I respect the Dragon in both.. but don't forget; "Daemon Targaryen was more snake than dragon"
Honestly, I love Daemon since I ^ve red the books...but Matt makes me love him even more.He was the wonder and the terror of his age and that's interesting , intense and attractive .
Me: I'm concerned that you're fetshizing a very "bad boy" type (and an actual sadist 😲) but I don't want to lecture. I've lived with two people who were actually somewhat like that and stayed married to and with one if them until the end of his life. It's...an experience. Definitely eventful--but not healthy. Anyway, no more lecture! TV shows are downtime fun. But if your interested in more thoughts on problematic seductive types you might find my new comment in the main thread. The actor is probably a lovely guy and that helps muddy the water with these kinds of characters. Though the real ones do often notoriously seem like charming angels until you know them better. By then it can seem too late to turn away. Though it isn't.
His aura was bold and full of excellence. Smart in what he did in the series. Although it is scripted, he falls in love, proof of his effective character. In the real kingdom, HIS character is really what is needed to have a really abundant kingdom with order. That's why I really like him among all the kings. Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) made a big impact in the movie. Kudos!😘💛🫰💕✌️I'm from the Philippines 😘 #Gamesofthrones more power po from the Philippines 😘🌷✌️🧡💚💚💚💚🙏🏼🛐😘😇🫶 praying for your more success po 😘
I don't think we can talk about Daemon's "love" for Rhenera (sorry for spelling, I'm new to the show) without noting that he deliberately sullies her reputation in the hope of reducing his rivals to marry her himself, is trying to marry his neice So That He Can Usurp her power, and seduces a minor as part of his process of grooming her. As I wrestle with the charismatic, sometimes good, but sometimes pretty nakedly evil people in my own life, I need to Understand Them and what makes them tick. Whitewashing the motivations of an exploitor and sadist like Daemon sets us up to fall for these kinds of morally unreliable people in real life. And trust me, that's no fun at all. Or rather it IS fun--until suddenly it REALLY ISN'T.
@Jeavan - get out of whatever relationship you're in. If you can't do it all at once, use everything that happens as a knife that cuts another thread in your emotional ties. I used a loom as a model to get out of a situation like this. It was hard - until it suddenly wasn't. Your comments are a bit worrying to me. There seems to be a lot of pain in your life...
That was good! Shows how big and massive his balls must be . Hahaha.. My favorite scene with him was when he picked up his brother's Crown after helping him to the throne and place it on his head. Such a small split second gesture really showed just how much he truly loved his brother. Plus I read that that wasn't even written into the script, Matt Smith "freestyled" that himself, if I'm remembering correctly. He's such a fantastic actor.
I think the reason we love Daemon is because he's both good and bad and he's upfront and honest about it he truly is a grey character society always gets caught up in good versus evil light versus dark we never see one person truly embrace both so when Daemon does it we are drawn to him I personally like this Ive always lived this way myself you need to live this way if you want balance in your life
@alextrudelle yeah every person have different a view or pov. and agree with u about daemon going so far in the show make him into villain. tbh, i don't like alicent and nyra to be friends coz alicent in the book it's very annoying. but in hotd they make alincent softer. daemon character already mess in the show. and ppl said daemon worse than ramsay. i'm glad they're delete daemon bi scene. i hope next season they're make daemon character batter than S1. better anti-hero daemon than villain daemon. but i think its late
@JN Lui no worries, I understand you. I agree book Daemon is better too. I like that the reader doesn’t know exactly which story happens in the book and can read into it in whatever way makes the most sense to you. In the book it is said that Daemon was rumored to have something to do with his first wife’s death, but it seems very unlikely. Based on the bias of the “author” Maester Gyldane, it even makes sense that book Daemon might be a good guy (compared to others). In the show I think maybe they went too far in trying to make him a mixed good/evil character and he just ended up mostly evil. Based on what he did in earlier episodes I don’t think it was a bad choice to cut that scene with him hugging his daughters. For now I’m not too worried that this show will fuck up as bad as season 8 GoT but I’m not thinking it will be as good as season 1-3 either
@alextrudelle daemon book > daemon htod. i love matt and daemon is my fav character in book. but bad written, ruin daemon character. daemon not good and bad person. but why daemon always exiled. maester in book so biased, mushroom always make some rumour about daemon. in the show, the writer (sara hess) hate daemon so much. cut the scene when daemon hug his daughter, make daemon into vilian. they're ruined dany, jonshow and bran the broken character. the ending GoT is suck. if hotd S2 getting worse. i think batter just read the book than watch the show. sorry my bad english coz english my sec language
@JN Lui lol no way, the change to make Alicent and Rhae friends is waaaaay better than the source material, 1000%. Fire and Blood is no masterpiece. That said I do agree that they went a little hard on Daemon, they should have kept out the wife murder (or kept it ambiguous) and the Rhae choking, those were just too much. And yea, the time jumps suck, tho I’m not sure how you possibly do this story as a show without at least some of that, but they still didn’t do it very well
It's amazing how Daemon's reception to other characters in the show is exactly the same as real life fans. "To some he was a hero, to others the blackest of villains."
Here’s the viewpoint of a unbiased friend about Daemon. Although Vicerys was his fav character this season, what he loves about Daemon is his unpredictability. He knows when Daemon enters any scene, you don’t know what he’ll do and it’s great fun. On the other hand it feels like what he does is still within his character driven by the prime motivations of family that Matt Smith has outlined. Prrsonally, I’m biased. He’s been my fav actor since Doctor, one of the few I like. I agree totally about the missing context and his neglect of his daughters. If he loves family, he doesn’t love his children? Makes no sense to me. But tbf, they may have just run out of time, and this has to be one of the hardest characters to write. I think your point about his authenticity is one of the major ones. People hate hypocrites. Nice job on this
@alextrudelle He is. He's never been a good guy since EP1. But the prob for some people is, they got too deep on projecting his relationship with Rhae. They forgot Daemon is (mostly) a bad person. Let us see him on another perspective like Ser Harrold perspective. Ser Harrold as the Lord Commander who'd been around Viserys 24/7 still thinks Daemon is an asshole. He even got title for that, the rogue prince. But everytime a Targaryen is born, the gods toss its coin to see where it landed. And his coin is still spinning
@alextrudelle I thought it was clear, he chokes her bcs he was mad that Rhaenyra doesn't share the same rage as he was. At that moment he lost a baby, a brother, and his wife's crown. Plus, Viserys never considered him as his heir. Imagine not being considered by someone you love in a whole life. Viserys was like a father to him. You see how he behave when he's mad. When Viserys send him away to the Vale on EP1, he went straight up to Vis before the Kingsguard stopped him. You can see Vis was shaken. But on the next episode when Corlys mock Vis, Daemon threaten him. EP3 also shows Daemon response when Vis undermine him. He beats up the messanger. He could love them and still attempt to hurt them bcs that's how he is. That's how unpredictable he is. Rhae knew what she brought into her table when she claim him. Targaryen are chaotic
@Gaby Green Daemon “loves Rhaenyra more than Laena,” really? Is that why he chokes her? No, dude is a straight up misogynist who never really loved anyone but himself and his brother. It makes way more sense to the personality they’ve established (wildly inconsistent though it is) that he’s a shit dad to his daughters and only gives any scrap of attention to the dragon riding one
He value his blood so much. Targaryen glory is what he fight for. I kinda think he likes Rhaenyra's bstrds bcs they're all dragon riders. I have hypothesis Targaryen only value the children from their true love. Bcs it happened on Aegon I to Rhaenys, Viserys to Aemma, and Aegon the Unworthy to Princess Daena too. Viserys only loves Aemma for his whole life. That's why there's difference between Aemma's and Alicent's children for him. Daemon favor Baela bcs she's a dragon rider but IF he favor both his sons more than his daughters despite of his youngest son's egg never hatched just like Rhaena, then it must be true. Bcs it seems to me he loves Rhaenyra more than Laena
teamdaemon because he is the only one who knows that the hightowers have been the problem from the beginning he told his brother I will take care of anyone but his brother I never trust him and there is the result that is what I like about daemon's character because that he can be good or bad with anyone but the only thing that matters to him is his family and he does everything possible to protect them
Exactly #TeamDaemon I love that he saw through the Hightowers he was smart. Viserys should have listened to him. I wonder if he might have listened if Aemma had still been there. Daemon and Princess Rhaenys are my two favorite characters.
Daemon is a compelling and complex villain (despite being written wildly inconsistently from episode to episode) but he’s not some kind of antihero. Not on the show, anyway. In fact I don’t think we EVER see him do anything “good” that can’t be attributed to self-motivated reasoning. Against that we have to weigh all of the unforgivable shit he does throughout the season, which he never shows the slightest remorse for. Add it all up and he’s definitely an evil character overall and not “grey” as so many people insist.
The TV show turned Daemon into a villain. Even one of the female writers posted a hate filled rant on Twitter about him, and fans that like him (The choking scene is absolutely stupid), all while making excuses for The Greens, and demonizing The Blacks.
Daemon is the archetype of a tragic hero, like Macbeath. The paradigm of the tragic hero emerged in Ancient Greece, and is described by Aristotle in his "Poetics" which outlines the origins and factors involved in Greek Tragedy. The tragic hero is a "great soul," but is fatally flawed. He or she, though, is always utterly compelling. Fortunately, in this series the tragic hero, Daemon, is portrayed by a fine actor.
@ Jesse Tate - This is very well done. Pleasant to listen to, while being intricate enough to keep the brain busy. Do you have material of your own available to readers somewhere?
@alextrudelle what's really meant by neutral is the fact that you don't quite know who's side they are. Daemon sort of just does his own thing and Tyrion sort of does the same. This is more emphasized in the books though. Tyrion for example is a Lannister but he still shows Stark sympathies and seems to fight for his family more out of desire for his own survival then any genuine loyalty to them. Daemon similarly just does his own thing as well especially in the beginning of the show. Neither would exactly be considered "good" Daemon chokes Raenyra in the finale and sleeps around a fair bit and Tyrion strangles Shae (in a much more brutal way in the books). At the same time though they kind of do some "good" things as well.
In the show they become embarrassingly scared to make him seem like a villain and they get caught up in the barely compelling “romance” with Rhaenyra that is gonna amount to nothing. But in the books, although he still has some humanity, he is a complete monster and one of two major contributors to the war. That’s why he’s GRRM’s favorite in the Dance.
Listen I wasn’t rocking with Daemon until he defended Ray-Ray when her sons were called bastards. “ He can keep his tongue” 😱😱😱😱😱Then he sings to the dragon😍😍😍😍😍😍.
6:35 to 7:55 REALLY creative cross cutting of images from GOT and even The Lord of the rings. A beautiful passage about when the heroic days become mere legend. I was dubious about celebrating Daemon too much, but setting that aside this is a very creatively and well made video. And the narration doesn't sound like a chipmuck on Meth! Meaning it's not too fast. It might be interesting if this channel and the slightly but not excessively female oriented cha Hills Alive did a discussion and or civil debate video...
I agree partly, The only issue I have with this statement, if you can even call it an issue, more like A small friendly Disagreement lol, is that Dameon Was a favorite character long before there was ever a show or actor to portray him. He is just a Testament to George RR Martin's great skill as a writer to develop compelling characters.
I do believe Matt Smith is brilliantly cast as Deamon. I think I can relate to him because as much as I TRY to be a "good person", and I mostly succeed @ it- I am well aware of being flawed, and am well aware of the "bad deeds" I have committed in my past. (Mind you no stealing of virginity, murder, or treason). So we can see ourselves in Daemon. Ps: Leonor DID try to do his duty EVEN in the show the make sure to establish that. Also:FYI I am mixed race like "Leanor" and married to a fully Caucasian man and my children are all "white in skin tone". What gives Rhynara away in this story is the lack of Valarian Silver-White hair, not skin tone. Granted- Deamon's kids with Laena are pretty dark- I believe that's why they cast Leanor and Laena slightly different in "melanin" level. Leanor was always pretty fair like myself, so his children being white is not crazy. It's all about the hair. Really. ( And yes I read the books too). I LOVE the choices the made with the show 99.5%
@Musey's Modern Dreadfuls; &Tales Of Terror ok ok ok, sooo maybe they all think this is the case, until Icarus Targaryen flies too close to the sun while trying to hatch the moon like a dragon egg. His dragon gets sunburnt then attacks the sun in a rage a la Vhagar, but they freeze to death in space. At the last second he looks back at Planetos and sees whatever it is that makes the seasons so wonky
@alextrudelle We should come up with some crazy theory on that. Lol. But there are Dragons and "TRUE Dragons" amongst the Targaryen family. Perhaps the impulsive behavior, and chaotic energy comes from Deamon being a True Dragon. And maybe heat and fire really don't affect "True Dragons".
@Musey's Modern Dreadfuls; &Tales Of Terror oh man another good point, even the dragon riding Targs are suuuuper pale. Daemon in particular fought several years from his dragon on a bunch of tiny islands in the ocean and is straight up Elmer’s glue white. If I’m honeypotting, maybe their fire resistance applies to sunbeams? 😅
@alextrudelle I dig what you're laying down. And I'm glad I'm finally talking to someone that knows that it's pretty unlikely that skintone would be the give away when a mixed race person marries/has kids with a fully Caucasian person. I mean- can you imagine ppl wondering if Zendaya got pregnant with Tom Holland in the future if their kids would be the exact same skin tone as her? People just have to realize, just like when painting, if you add brown and white you get tan, when you add tan and white you're eventually get such a light tan that it may as well be a shade of white. (But they'd probablytan very easily while riding their Dragons in the Summer). I like the idea one of Allicent's kids having maybe a darker blonde "golden blonde instead of silver blonde) hair, or brown hair with blonde streaks...but I believe that's supposed to show up more often when the Blackfyres come along.
He will end up being the hero of the show, he has an heroical spirit , althought yes he is brutal, violent but he protects his family, now he will have an important mision: To destroy the greens, specially we know who
@A Jae I already know that people who read the books think they are superior telling how things will end but they are not better than the people who didnt read the book and Daemon will always be a hero to me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Spoiler He never manages to protect anyone except his mistress. He does a pretty glorious murder-suicide with his doppelganger, but also orchestrates a brutal murder of a little child which drives its mother to suicide as well.
I dont knoow if you remember but actually Rhaenyra said that she tried to make babies with Leonor so nope its not her fault...then its just as much Leonors fault .... fact is that Rhaenyra needed heirs anyway... youy can say that why couldnt she fall in love with someone black but love doesnt work like that ;D at least in season Rhaenyra has done nothing wrong if it comes to that
You do realize that he groomed Rhaenyra, right? He didn't fall in love with her, he probably wanted to marry her ever since he realized that she wouldn’t have brothers. I don't think praising his honesty is the best read.
The problem with attraction to power and competence is that incompetent narcissists are so could at faking both. Or the selective competence of the famous. My late husband still has admirers all over the globe because of the books he wrote and speeches he gave, but his love life and family life was a series of dysfunctional failures covered over with bravado. Often the people who act out the part of the powerful, competent hero or guru are the most dysfunctional behind closed doors.
If you are a woman this makes sense. Women seem to be more capable of seeing Daemon for what he is. Maybe it's his murder, manipulation, abuse, and negligence of the women and girls in his life that helps. Perhaps that helps in be seen as a hero, too. "He can control his wimmins and mAke ThEm aCcouTabLe". He hasn't actually done anything particularly heroic on the show, but he's still getting the "cool, badass" title. He went to fight a war because he was sulking. People attribute winning that war to him forgetting that it was a teenager who came up with the winning plan that needed a psychotic asshole that no one cared about dying to make it work. Old man Corlyss fought harder in that battle. I get why he's loved, but it's so fucking gross.
6:25 to 7:10 Okay, this is more than naive bad boy worship, this idea of the primal and the wild versus the corrupted and overly softened is philosophically interesting. It's probably a boring solution but just as psychologists say that the father style of parenting, which involves challenging them and giving them a little push out into the world, and the mother style of parenting, which is protective and nurturing, are really Both needed, in equal measure, maybe the best ruler is neither a sadistic adventurer or a soft and spoiled person but someone in that often healthier place between extremes. "All things in moderation" is hardly a sexy medsage but it's often true. Susan Sontag wrote about reliable thinkers who were like husbands versus adventurous thinkers who were like lovers; clearly she preferred the later. My problem with the latter is that at the end of the day their ideas are exciting but inapplicable and sometimes dangerous, like the wild idea of Nietzche being used, with his sisters full support, to legitimize Hitler and the Nazis. Wheras an author like...maybe Camus is more likely to give you less Outrageous ideas but ideas you can actually use to improve your life. Maybe?
24:44, I disagree. What choices did Rhaenyra have ? Laenor is gay, they tried to have kids and they couldn’t. She needed heirs from somewhere so she got them from Harwin, it was their agreement too . Alicent has not served the crown faithfully by sowing the seeds of conflict and scheming to put her son on the throne behind the kings back .
@Ahmed Osman I always wondered why she couldn't have chosen Harwin as her spouse. He was from a high ranking house, not anywhere near as high as the Velaryons tho. But being the heir to the Iron Throne, I'd feel like she'd still have more say in who she wanted.
@Agah Pito how exactly do you figure that ? Daemon would not go behind Rhaenyra’s back to harm the greens if they didn’t usurp the throne. Rhaenyra is also a rare person whose able to get Daemon to listen to her. The greens caused their own demise, Alicent’s fears are a self fulfilling prophecy. By attempting to prevent her children’s death, she causes it. Rhaenyra wouldn’t have killed her kids if they usurp her .
@Mack Mitchell eaven if they didn´t usurp the throne daemon would have them killed, as long as they live the greens would be a threath to rhaenyra´s already fragile claim.
@ro4eva Agreed! There is a pretty big difference between VILLIAN and ANTI-HERO. I do see Deamon as a Grey character. He's far better than his nephew; Aegon the drunken rapist. Now THAT is villainy. In fact; Deamon is often accused of things he either did NOT do (de-flowering Rhynara) which he didn't do, but doesn't bother denying OR that he may have done but they don't show the a Tualatin context (he looked pretty sad when he was going to make a toast to "the heir for the day toast"- so we have no idea if it was said solemnly or mockingly. Maybe I'm biased- I love an anti-hero.
@Agah Pito actually, I think his marriage with Laena was the one time he mellowed out and actually developed his good side. The contrast between him and Viserys' approach to the caesarian was probably meant to underline that. Of course he immediately went back to his old tricks the minute the heir to the throne was back ln the menu.
@Skooma fiend First - your head canon isn't lore. A lot of stuff in the books is just rumors. Second - I never said he was a hero. My favorite GoT character is Tywin and in ASOIAF - it's Tyrion. They're hardly saints, but I like interesting characters. 🤷
Daemon was not a character I love, as he was acted by Matt Smith. There were far better characters and actors than Matt Smith in 'House of the Dragon.' Is his character integral to the story? Well, of course, but it could have been better cast, and better acted imo.
@Marshall Nichol As much as I want to back you up, because I love Matt Smith and I love him in this role (I truly believe there was no one else who could have played him the way smith did) Fallen soul is definitely entitled to their opinion, especially since all art forms are subjective. Neither opinion is truly right or wrong. But then again, this is just my opinion. Hahaha
Rhaenyra no traiciono a alicent si lo pones así ella fue la primera en aser lo en casarse con viserys la diferencia es q alicent envidia a rhaenyra q ella no sigue las reglas y ella si ese es todo el problema si ella se enoja por eso con rhaenyra por q no se enoja con otto q fue quien la metió en todo eso mandándola donde viserys y luego quiere poner a aegon q sea rey sabiendo q el no sería un buen rey pero por eso ningun personaje es bueno o malo todos son grises
WTH? You were talking about the blonde guy's and switched over to The Lord of The Rings? Oh well, I always liked JRR Tolkien better than George RR Martin
Something that made Matt Smith’s performance so great is that his character didn’t always have to talk. When he was quiet, he’d generate the upmost tension in the room, his gestures were incredible. You can see that the character has a mean and true drive, but always unpredictable
Honestly I think a big part of why we love Daemon is because we love Matt Smith.
I really wasn't sure about Matt Smith as Daemon. He was one of my favourite characters from The Princess and the Queen but Smith brings a lot of charisma to the role.
Never thought I'd love Matt Smith. Never been a fan of him before. I've seen him on few movies before but damn he ate this character so well
He’s also one of GRRM’s favorite Targaryens and it shows
Yeah he’s entirely too good at this role
Honestly I've never really watched anything else with him in it so I wouldn't know but from what I've seen he is incredible
I think what people forget is that Daemon is a combat veteran. I see a man with PTSD. His fear is immediately subsumed in anger. When Rhaenyra talks about dreams, Daemon sees the fall of his family. He sees enemies creeping in. And here is his wife rambling like his useless dead brother. He is Odysseus. He is every combat Veteran who survives war. He is my ex husband. No one seems to touch this. If you've read the Illiad, you would see all the different ways PTSD manifests and what it does to the families of those soldiers.
Very interesting take.
I kinda got that too, ESPECIALLY with him planning defense during Rhae's labor. Like to me he wasn't a man gleefully planning his war and immune to his wife's pains. This is a soldier planning the defense of a puny island with too few men against the rebels who killed his brother after he ruined their plans, plotted against his family and stole his wife's crown. Granted they didn't kill Vizzy but its not crazy to think do. And his fears about the Greens were RIGHT, Otto was already set to butcher everyone on Dragonstone just to secure Aegon's claim ( oh the irony lol). Daemon 100% saw Otto for who he was.
The Maester in-universe who chronicled The Dance of the Dragons had this to say:
Over the centuries, House Targaryen has produced both great men and monsters. Prince Daemon was both.
@that one black dude
Well, yeah that's true in the books. Aemond is mostly connected to the Dance, more than Daemon is, and so Aemonds actions during the war is what's more written about.
Daemon had more time to add to his reputation, him being over 20 years older, and was around at a different time. Makes you wonder how Aemond would've been viewed had he fought in the Stepstones and interacted with more people like Daemon did
@Thalmor Agent I don't aggre because nobody liked aemond people liked daemon hense him being seen as both hero and villain aemond doesn't get that treatment.
True. Still, I think Aemond is an approach I like better to this dichotomy, but I respect the Dragon in both.. but don't forget;
"Daemon Targaryen was more snake than dragon"
Honestly, I love Daemon since I ^ve red the books...but Matt makes me love him even more.He was the wonder and the terror of his age and that's interesting , intense and attractive .
Me: I'm concerned that you're fetshizing a very "bad boy" type (and an actual sadist 😲) but I don't want to lecture.
I've lived with two people who were actually somewhat like that and stayed married to and with one if them until the end of his life. It's...an experience. Definitely eventful--but not healthy.
Anyway, no more lecture! TV shows are downtime fun. But if your interested in more thoughts on problematic seductive types you might find my new comment in the main thread.
The actor is probably a lovely guy and that helps muddy the water with these kinds of characters. Though the real ones do often notoriously seem like charming angels until you know them better. By then it can seem too late to turn away. Though it isn't.
His aura was bold and full of excellence. Smart in what he did in the series. Although it is scripted, he falls in love, proof of his effective character. In the real kingdom, HIS character is really what is needed to have a really abundant kingdom with order. That's why I really like him among all the kings. Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) made a big impact in the movie. Kudos!😘💛🫰💕✌️I'm from the Philippines 😘
#Gamesofthrones
more power po from the Philippines 😘🌷✌️🧡💚💚💚💚🙏🏼🛐😘😇🫶 praying for your more success po 😘
I don't think we can talk about Daemon's "love" for Rhenera (sorry for spelling, I'm new to the show) without noting that he deliberately sullies her reputation in the hope of reducing his rivals to marry her himself, is trying to marry his neice So That He Can Usurp her power, and seduces a minor as part of his process of grooming her.
As I wrestle with the charismatic, sometimes good, but sometimes pretty nakedly evil people in my own life, I need to Understand Them and what makes them tick. Whitewashing the motivations of an exploitor and sadist like Daemon sets us up to fall for these kinds of morally unreliable people in real life. And trust me, that's no fun at all.
Or rather it IS fun--until suddenly it REALLY ISN'T.
Well said!
@Jeavan - get out of whatever relationship you're in. If you can't do it all at once, use everything that happens as a knife that cuts another thread in your emotional ties. I used a loom as a model to get out of a situation like this. It was hard - until it suddenly wasn't. Your comments are a bit worrying to me. There seems to be a lot of pain in your life...
The most bad ass moment for me was when he boldly and without any care told the the king his is weak to his face😂 😂😂 I loved him since then
That was good! Shows how big and massive his balls must be . Hahaha.. My favorite scene with him was when he picked up his brother's Crown after helping him to the throne and place it on his head. Such a small split second gesture really showed just how much he truly loved his brother. Plus I read that that wasn't even written into the script, Matt Smith "freestyled" that himself, if I'm remembering correctly. He's such a fantastic actor.
I think the reason we love Daemon is because he's both good and bad and he's upfront and honest about it he truly is a grey character society always gets caught up in good versus evil light versus dark we never see one person truly embrace both so when Daemon does it we are drawn to him I personally like this Ive always lived this way myself you need to live this way if you want balance in your life
@alextrudelle yeah every person have different a view or pov. and agree with u about daemon going so far in the show make him into villain. tbh, i don't like alicent and nyra to be friends coz alicent in the book it's very annoying. but in hotd they make alincent softer. daemon character already mess in the show. and ppl said daemon worse than ramsay. i'm glad they're delete daemon bi scene. i hope next season they're make daemon character batter than S1. better anti-hero daemon than villain daemon. but i think its late
@JN Lui no worries, I understand you. I agree book Daemon is better too. I like that the reader doesn’t know exactly which story happens in the book and can read into it in whatever way makes the most sense to you. In the book it is said that Daemon was rumored to have something to do with his first wife’s death, but it seems very unlikely. Based on the bias of the “author” Maester Gyldane, it even makes sense that book Daemon might be a good guy (compared to others). In the show I think maybe they went too far in trying to make him a mixed good/evil character and he just ended up mostly evil. Based on what he did in earlier episodes I don’t think it was a bad choice to cut that scene with him hugging his daughters. For now I’m not too worried that this show will fuck up as bad as season 8 GoT but I’m not thinking it will be as good as season 1-3 either
@alextrudelle daemon book > daemon htod. i love matt and daemon is my fav character in book. but bad written, ruin daemon character. daemon not good and bad person. but why daemon always exiled. maester in book so biased, mushroom always make some rumour about daemon. in the show, the writer (sara hess) hate daemon so much. cut the scene when daemon hug his daughter, make daemon into vilian.
they're ruined dany, jonshow and bran the broken character. the ending GoT is suck. if hotd S2 getting worse. i think batter just read the book than watch the show. sorry my bad english coz english my sec language
@JN Lui lol no way, the change to make Alicent and Rhae friends is waaaaay better than the source material, 1000%. Fire and Blood is no masterpiece. That said I do agree that they went a little hard on Daemon, they should have kept out the wife murder (or kept it ambiguous) and the Rhae choking, those were just too much. And yea, the time jumps suck, tho I’m not sure how you possibly do this story as a show without at least some of that, but they still didn’t do it very well
I love daemon because he is a complex character, also matt Smith is so cool
It's amazing how Daemon's reception to other characters in the show is exactly the same as real life fans.
"To some he was a hero, to others the blackest of villains."
Here’s the viewpoint of a unbiased friend about Daemon. Although Vicerys was his fav character this season, what he loves about Daemon is his unpredictability. He knows when Daemon enters any scene, you don’t know what he’ll do and it’s great fun. On the other hand it feels like what he does is still within his character driven by the prime motivations of family that Matt Smith has outlined. Prrsonally, I’m biased. He’s been my fav actor since Doctor, one of the few I like. I agree totally about the missing context and his neglect of his daughters. If he loves family, he doesn’t love his children? Makes no sense to me. But tbf, they may have just run out of time, and this has to be one of the hardest characters to write.
I think your point about his authenticity is one of the major ones. People hate hypocrites.
Nice job on this
@alextrudelle He is. He's never been a good guy since EP1. But the prob for some people is, they got too deep on projecting his relationship with Rhae. They forgot Daemon is (mostly) a bad person. Let us see him on another perspective like Ser Harrold perspective. Ser Harrold as the Lord Commander who'd been around Viserys 24/7 still thinks Daemon is an asshole. He even got title for that, the rogue prince. But everytime a Targaryen is born, the gods toss its coin to see where it landed. And his coin is still spinning
@alextrudelle I thought it was clear, he chokes her bcs he was mad that Rhaenyra doesn't share the same rage as he was. At that moment he lost a baby, a brother, and his wife's crown. Plus, Viserys never considered him as his heir. Imagine not being considered by someone you love in a whole life. Viserys was like a father to him. You see how he behave when he's mad. When Viserys send him away to the Vale on EP1, he went straight up to Vis before the Kingsguard stopped him. You can see Vis was shaken. But on the next episode when Corlys mock Vis, Daemon threaten him. EP3 also shows Daemon response when Vis undermine him. He beats up the messanger. He could love them and still attempt to hurt them bcs that's how he is. That's how unpredictable he is. Rhae knew what she brought into her table when she claim him. Targaryen are chaotic
@Gaby Green Daemon “loves Rhaenyra more than Laena,” really? Is that why he chokes her? No, dude is a straight up misogynist who never really loved anyone but himself and his brother. It makes way more sense to the personality they’ve established (wildly inconsistent though it is) that he’s a shit dad to his daughters and only gives any scrap of attention to the dragon riding one
He value his blood so much. Targaryen glory is what he fight for. I kinda think he likes Rhaenyra's bstrds bcs they're all dragon riders. I have hypothesis Targaryen only value the children from their true love. Bcs it happened on Aegon I to Rhaenys, Viserys to Aemma, and Aegon the Unworthy to Princess Daena too. Viserys only loves Aemma for his whole life. That's why there's difference between Aemma's and Alicent's children for him. Daemon favor Baela bcs she's a dragon rider but IF he favor both his sons more than his daughters despite of his youngest son's egg never hatched just like Rhaena, then it must be true. Bcs it seems to me he loves Rhaenyra more than Laena
teamdaemon because he is the only one who knows that the hightowers have been the problem from the beginning he told his brother I will take care of anyone but his brother I never trust him and there is the result that is what I like about daemon's character because that he can be good or bad with anyone but the only thing that matters to him is his family and he does everything possible to protect them
Exactly #TeamDaemon I love that he saw through the Hightowers he was smart. Viserys should have listened to him. I wonder if he might have listened if Aemma had still been there. Daemon and Princess Rhaenys are my two favorite characters.
We love him because he is true Westeros badass
Daemon is a compelling and complex villain (despite being written wildly inconsistently from episode to episode) but he’s not some kind of antihero. Not on the show, anyway. In fact I don’t think we EVER see him do anything “good” that can’t be attributed to self-motivated reasoning. Against that we have to weigh all of the unforgivable shit he does throughout the season, which he never shows the slightest remorse for. Add it all up and he’s definitely an evil character overall and not “grey” as so many people insist.
@mxflint lol well I do like him as a villain but yeah, as a person he sucks!
Hey this an excellent video and very well thought out. You need to do more GOT videos!
Daemon is like anyone else …does that love you seee you as a hero and those that hate you and fear you see you as the great villain
The TV show turned Daemon into a villain. Even one of the female writers posted a hate filled rant on Twitter about him, and fans that like him (The choking scene is absolutely stupid), all while making excuses for The Greens, and demonizing The Blacks.
Daemon is the archetype of a tragic hero, like Macbeath. The paradigm of the tragic hero emerged in Ancient Greece, and is described by Aristotle in his "Poetics" which outlines the origins and factors involved in Greek Tragedy. The tragic hero is a "great soul," but is fatally flawed. He or she, though, is always utterly compelling. Fortunately, in this series the tragic hero, Daemon, is portrayed by a fine actor.
@ Jesse Tate - This is very well done. Pleasant to listen to, while being intricate enough to keep the brain busy. Do you have material of your own available to readers somewhere?
GRRM said Daemon is one of his favorites since he like Tyrion is a almost a pure neutral
@alextrudelle what's really meant by neutral is the fact that you don't quite know who's side they are. Daemon sort of just does his own thing and Tyrion sort of does the same. This is more emphasized in the books though. Tyrion for example is a Lannister but he still shows Stark sympathies and seems to fight for his family more out of desire for his own survival then any genuine loyalty to them. Daemon similarly just does his own thing as well especially in the beginning of the show. Neither would exactly be considered "good" Daemon chokes Raenyra in the finale and sleeps around a fair bit and Tyrion strangles Shae (in a much more brutal way in the books). At the same time though they kind of do some "good" things as well.
What a weird thing to say about two characters who are anything BUT neutral. When did he say this?
In the show they become embarrassingly scared to make him seem like a villain and they get caught up in the barely compelling “romance” with Rhaenyra that is gonna amount to nothing. But in the books, although he still has some humanity, he is a complete monster and one of two major contributors to the war. That’s why he’s GRRM’s favorite in the Dance.
Well said. This was really well done.
Listen I wasn’t rocking with Daemon until he defended Ray-Ray when her sons were called bastards. “ He can keep his tongue” 😱😱😱😱😱Then he sings to the dragon😍😍😍😍😍😍.
Daemon was shocking and outrageous I think that's why he was liked, I'll be honest I liked him until...well, we know what it is...
Thank you for this video essay, and definetly start a channel! =)
6:35 to 7:55 REALLY creative cross cutting of images from GOT and even The Lord of the rings. A beautiful passage about when the heroic days become mere legend. I was dubious about celebrating Daemon too much, but setting that aside this is a very creatively and well made video.
And the narration doesn't sound like a chipmuck on Meth! Meaning it's not too fast.
It might be interesting if this channel and the slightly but not excessively female oriented cha Hills Alive did a discussion and or civil debate video...
is that a quote or just him talking?
He's not a good man, but he's a good character
Hey Jesse, you seemed to have stepped up your production, good on ya.
He’s a badass!
Book daemon is clearly the hero of the dance. Show daemon is just Matt Smith.
A great actor will make you love a bad character. Tony Soprano , Jimmy McNulty , Walter White. It's all about the actors and script
@Agah Pito Hahaha, I love this added statement. Lol
I agree partly, The only issue I have with this statement, if you can even call it an issue, more like A small friendly Disagreement lol, is that Dameon Was a favorite character long before there was ever a show or actor to portray him. He is just a Testament to George RR Martin's great skill as a writer to develop compelling characters.
@Bubblegum Crash and hair colors :/
@xxwhispersxx History doesn't remember blood. History remembers names!
Eh, the script ain't so hot on HOTD.
I love Daemon
I do believe Matt Smith is brilliantly cast as Deamon.
I think I can relate to him because as much as I TRY to be a "good person", and I mostly succeed @ it- I am well aware of being flawed, and am well aware of the "bad deeds" I have committed in my past. (Mind you no stealing of virginity, murder, or treason).
So we can see ourselves in Daemon.
Ps: Leonor DID try to do his duty EVEN in the show the make sure to establish that.
Also:FYI I am mixed race like "Leanor" and married to a fully Caucasian man and my children are all "white in skin tone". What gives Rhynara away in this story is the lack of Valarian Silver-White hair, not skin tone.
Granted- Deamon's kids with Laena are pretty dark- I believe that's why they cast Leanor and Laena slightly different in "melanin" level. Leanor was always pretty fair like myself, so his children being white is not crazy. It's all about the hair. Really.
( And yes I read the books too). I LOVE the choices the made with the show 99.5%
@alextrudelle I ❤️ that. I don't know how GRRM is allowing HBO to do this show w/o us! 💀💀💀
@Musey's Modern Dreadfuls; &Tales Of Terror ok ok ok, sooo maybe they all think this is the case, until Icarus Targaryen flies too close to the sun while trying to hatch the moon like a dragon egg. His dragon gets sunburnt then attacks the sun in a rage a la Vhagar, but they freeze to death in space. At the last second he looks back at Planetos and sees whatever it is that makes the seasons so wonky
@alextrudelle We should come up with some crazy theory on that. Lol. But there are Dragons and "TRUE Dragons" amongst the Targaryen family. Perhaps the impulsive behavior, and chaotic energy comes from Deamon being a True Dragon.
And maybe heat and fire really don't affect "True Dragons".
@Musey's Modern Dreadfuls; &Tales Of Terror oh man another good point, even the dragon riding Targs are suuuuper pale. Daemon in particular fought several years from his dragon on a bunch of tiny islands in the ocean and is straight up Elmer’s glue white. If I’m honeypotting, maybe their fire resistance applies to sunbeams? 😅
@alextrudelle I dig what you're laying down.
And I'm glad I'm finally talking to someone that knows that it's pretty unlikely that skintone would be the give away when a mixed race person marries/has kids with a fully Caucasian person.
I mean- can you imagine ppl wondering if Zendaya got pregnant with Tom Holland in the future if their kids would be the exact same skin tone as her? People just have to realize, just like when painting, if you add brown and white you get tan, when you add tan and white you're eventually get such a light tan that it may as well be a shade of white.
(But they'd probablytan very easily while riding their Dragons in the Summer).
I like the idea one of Allicent's kids having maybe a darker blonde "golden blonde instead of silver blonde) hair, or brown hair with blonde streaks...but I believe that's supposed to show up more often when the Blackfyres come along.
Love This one!!! Do not waste another day - Promo-SM!
We all prefer a character with depth and not just one note stereotyping characters
He will end up being the hero of the show, he has an heroical spirit , althought yes he is brutal, violent but he protects his family, now he will have an important mision: To destroy the greens, specially we know who
@A Jae I already know that people who read the books think they are superior telling how things will end but they are not better than the people who didnt read the book and Daemon will always be a hero to me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Spoiler
He never manages to protect anyone except his mistress. He does a pretty glorious murder-suicide with his doppelganger, but also orchestrates a brutal murder of a little child which drives its mother to suicide as well.
Daemon is not a good character, he is a great character.
very very goood work, motivational and scientific
I dont knoow if you remember but actually Rhaenyra said that she tried to make babies with Leonor so nope its not her fault...then its just as much Leonors fault .... fact is that Rhaenyra needed heirs anyway... youy can say that why couldnt she fall in love with someone black but love doesnt work like that ;D at least in season Rhaenyra has done nothing wrong if it comes to that
hes irritated that weaker men rule but hes still loyal
In no way do I side with Alicent or her children!
Great video!
…you sure call Daemon “pure” a gross number of times in this, huh?
He's a Dragon. That's all.
You do realize that he groomed Rhaenyra, right? He didn't fall in love with her, he probably wanted to marry her ever since he realized that she wouldn’t have brothers. I don't think praising his honesty is the best read.
The problem with attraction to power and competence is that incompetent narcissists are so could at faking both.
Or the selective competence of the famous. My late husband still has admirers all over the globe because of the books he wrote and speeches he gave, but his love life and family life was a series of dysfunctional failures covered over with bravado.
Often the people who act out the part of the powerful, competent hero or guru are the most dysfunctional behind closed doors.
If you are a woman this makes sense. Women seem to be more capable of seeing Daemon for what he is. Maybe it's his murder, manipulation, abuse, and negligence of the women and girls in his life that helps. Perhaps that helps in be seen as a hero, too. "He can control his wimmins and mAke ThEm aCcouTabLe".
He hasn't actually done anything particularly heroic on the show, but he's still getting the "cool, badass" title. He went to fight a war because he was sulking. People attribute winning that war to him forgetting that it was a teenager who came up with the winning plan that needed a psychotic asshole that no one cared about dying to make it work. Old man Corlyss fought harder in that battle. I get why he's loved, but it's so fucking gross.
Enjoyed your thoughts good listen
6:25 to 7:10 Okay, this is more than naive bad boy worship, this idea of the primal and the wild versus the corrupted and overly softened is philosophically interesting.
It's probably a boring solution but just as psychologists say that the father style of parenting, which involves challenging them and giving them a little push out into the world, and the mother style of parenting, which is protective and nurturing, are really Both needed, in equal measure, maybe the best ruler is neither a sadistic adventurer or a soft and spoiled person but someone in that often healthier place between extremes.
"All things in moderation" is hardly a sexy medsage but it's often true.
Susan Sontag wrote about reliable thinkers who were like husbands versus adventurous thinkers who were like lovers; clearly she preferred the later.
My problem with the latter is that at the end of the day their ideas are exciting but inapplicable and sometimes dangerous, like the wild idea of Nietzche being used, with his sisters full support, to legitimize Hitler and the Nazis.
Wheras an author like...maybe Camus is more likely to give you less Outrageous ideas but ideas you can actually use to improve your life. Maybe?
"they share an ancient tongue" 😉
@hereiam lol wut
Also an ancestors tongue 🤢
24:44, I disagree. What choices did Rhaenyra have ? Laenor is gay, they tried to have kids and they couldn’t. She needed heirs from somewhere so she got them from Harwin, it was their agreement too . Alicent has not served the crown faithfully by sowing the seeds of conflict and scheming to put her son on the throne behind the kings back .
@Ahmed Osman I always wondered why she couldn't have chosen Harwin as her spouse. He was from a high ranking house, not anywhere near as high as the Velaryons tho. But being the heir to the Iron Throne, I'd feel like she'd still have more say in who she wanted.
@Agah Pito how exactly do you figure that ?
Daemon would not go behind Rhaenyra’s back to harm the greens if they didn’t usurp the throne. Rhaenyra is also a rare person whose able to get Daemon to listen to her. The greens caused their own demise, Alicent’s fears are a self fulfilling prophecy. By attempting to prevent her children’s death, she causes it. Rhaenyra wouldn’t have killed her kids if they usurp her .
@Mack Mitchell eaven if they didn´t usurp the throne daemon would have them killed, as long as they live the greens would be a threath to rhaenyra´s already fragile claim.
He's a villain. He hasn't done a single good thing the whole season. His popularity among fans is only due to the actor's charisma.
@Sam Burns this. 💯% this!
@ro4eva Agreed! There is a pretty big difference between VILLIAN and ANTI-HERO.
I do see Deamon as a Grey character. He's far better than his nephew; Aegon the drunken rapist. Now THAT is villainy.
In fact; Deamon is often accused of things he either did NOT do (de-flowering
Rhynara) which he didn't do, but doesn't bother denying OR that he may have done but they don't show the a Tualatin context (he looked pretty sad when he was going to make a toast to "the heir for the day toast"- so we have no idea if it was said solemnly or mockingly.
Maybe I'm biased- I love an anti-hero.
@Agah Pito actually, I think his marriage with Laena was the one time he mellowed out and actually developed his good side. The contrast between him and Viserys' approach to the caesarian was probably meant to underline that.
Of course he immediately went back to his old tricks the minute the heir to the throne was back ln the menu.
@Skooma fiend First - your head canon isn't lore. A lot of stuff in the books is just rumors. Second - I never said he was a hero. My favorite GoT character is Tywin and in ASOIAF - it's Tyrion. They're hardly saints, but I like interesting characters. 🤷
@Skooma fiend Those claims are vague at best in the book. In the show, they is no room for doubt about how evil the guy is.
Great video
Daemon was not a character I love, as he was acted by Matt Smith. There were far better characters and actors than Matt Smith in 'House of the Dragon.' Is his character integral to the story? Well, of course, but it could have been better cast, and better acted imo.
You made me laugh.
@Marshall Nichol As much as I want to back you up, because I love Matt Smith and I love him in this role (I truly believe there was no one else who could have played him the way smith did) Fallen soul is definitely entitled to their opinion, especially since all art forms are subjective. Neither opinion is truly right or wrong. But then again, this is just my opinion. Hahaha
You’re objectively wrong
Daemon is GRRM favourite character if I'm not correct?
Cause what we see is what we get
Cause Matt Smith is a very good actor.
27:58 Not an innocent girl. An innocent woman, and both of her children.
I adore Aimond too...
he's simply an ancient Tyler Durden duh
@Egilhelmson lol might be
What? The hallucination of a Mad Man?
Ye olde Sigma male
Sheep falling for the wolf!
I mean have you seen the fanbase for Loki? Are we surprised?
Rhaenyra likes him because grooming lol
@VanessaLore it’s 100% grooming lol
@VanessaLore I dunno, seems like she's only responsible for her own actions when it suits her fans
@VanessaLore she’s a teenager and he’s in his thirties. There is some element of grooming and abuse of one’s position
Sure that’s totally it. She’s never smart enough to figure that out. She’s never responsible for her own actions. How insulting to her
Because he's an anime character.
Rhaenyra no traiciono a alicent si lo pones así ella fue la primera en aser lo en casarse con viserys la diferencia es q alicent envidia a rhaenyra q ella no sigue las reglas y ella si ese es todo el problema si ella se enoja por eso con rhaenyra por q no se enoja con otto q fue quien la metió en todo eso mandándola donde viserys y luego quiere poner a aegon q sea rey sabiendo q el no sería un buen rey pero por eso ningun personaje es bueno o malo todos son grises
because hes the guy from morbius
He’s cute!😍
WTH? You were talking about the blonde guy's and switched over to The Lord of The Rings? Oh well, I always liked JRR Tolkien better than George RR Martin
Every hero eventually becomes a bore
Subbed
I wonder,, how these people keep a straight face while speaking in high volarrion !! 🙄
One: In the words of SNL’s Jon Lovitz, ACTING!
Two: Multiple takes.
Its not that deep, he played that guy on that show that people love...so they love him. Character kinda meh.
The faceless men are boring
Not in the books, they aren’t.
Whos we
all the 🐑 infatuated with the fake charms of a bad boy
Cosmo: Or my favorite; Weeeeeeeeeee!!!!
I dont like him