Hello! Goodbye! ☂ The Umbrella Academy

I saw someone post about this photo saying that it makes zero sense that HOTD gives Daemon and Ormund such great-quality armor while the actual rulers and the people at the center of the conflict get such mediocre-looking armor, and honestly, I agree.

With Aegon, I know what they were trying to do. He is wearing Aegon the Conqueror’s armor, crown, and sword to further legitimize his claim, which also explains why the armor looks so oversized on him. Aegon the Conqueror was a much taller and more heavily built man, and his armor would also be more than a century old by the time of the Dance. Armor design would obviously have changed and improved over that time.

But still…

It’s hard for me to believe that the Targaryens of Aegon the Conqueror’s time would have had such mediocre-looking armor.

They had only been in Westeros for about a hundred years after the Doom, and they brought with them whatever wealth, treasures, and possessions they had managed to preserve from the Freehold. This wasn’t some minor Westerosi house that suddenly became rich after conquering the continent. They were a Valyrian family with centuries of history and wealth behind them (even if they were a minor House)

So when I think of Aegon the Conqueror’s armor, I imagine something much more impressive.

I would have imagined it being made of Valyrian steel, or at least incorporating Valyrian craftsmanship, perhaps something inherited from his ancestors or reshaped over generations. It could have been ancient and outdated while still being incredibly beautiful and extravagant.

Something with black steel, intricate Valyrian designs, red gemstones, rubies, dragon motifs, and a crown covered in red stones.

Basically, something closer to what we see with Rhaegar’s armor — something that immediately communicates Targaryen royalty and ancient Valyrian wealth.

Anyway, the real reason I’m bringing this up is because I’m almost certain Rhaenyra is wearing that horrible-looking armor, and I can already see the show explaining it by saying that it belonged to Queen Visenya.

Because apparently they are trying that hard to make Rhaenyra into some combination of Visenya and Daenerys.

And honestly,she looks just as ridiculous in that armor as Aegon II did in Aegon the Conqueror’s armor.

Now that it has been confirmed that we’re getting a movie about Aegon’s Conquest, I honestly have really high expectations and hopes for it.

I would love for it to have the same sense of scale and epicness as Dune. And I really hope they are willing to completely overlook the visual continuity established by Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon and instead make the movie as book-accurate as possible.

For example:

1. The Targaryen features

Pale skin, PURPLE EYES, and pale/silver hair.

I want the Targaryens to actually look distinctly Valyrian, rather than simply being attractive people with silver-blond hair.

They had no reason not to do this. We already have characters like Yennefer in The Witcher who have purple eyes, so we know it can be done convincingly on screen.

And in this movie, we’re only going to have three Targaryens to worry about — Aegon, Visenya, and Rhaenys. It’s not like they would have to put purple contacts or CGI them on an entire cast.

Let the Targaryens actually look otherworldly.

2. The castles

I really hope they make the castles look much closer to how they are actually described in the books.

Dragonstone, Casterly Rock, the Eyrie, Winterfell, etc. should feel much more distinct from one another and much more fantastical.

Especially Casterly Rock. I want an enormous mountain that has literally been carved into a castle, not just another medieval-looking fortress.

And Dragonstone should feel like something that doesn't quite belong in Westeros — this strange, imposing Valyrian fortress covered in dragon imagery.

3. The dragons

This is probably one of the things I’m most excited about.

Give us the actual sizes. Give us the actual colors. Give us the different colors of dragonfire.

And please, make Vhagar look terrifying.

Let her have enormous horns. Not some weird lizard T-Rex hybrid.

4. The clothes

I would also love for the Targaryens to dress differently from the Westerosi.

At this point in their history, I find it hard to believe that they would have completely assimilated into Westerosi fashion.

They had only been in Westeros for roughly a century, and they came from Old Valyria, one of the greatest civilizations in the history of the world.

So I would love to see their clothing retain elements of ancient Valyrian fashion — something more exotic, elegant, and distinctly different from what the Westerosi wear.

And I think that would also help establish that the Targaryens are foreigners who conquered Westeros, rather than just another Westerosi noble family.

5. The personalities and nuance

This is probably the most important one for me.

Please don't be afraid to make these characters morally grey, cruel, selfish, ambitious, or even outright terrible people.

Don't whitewash them into pathetic, self-righteous characters who are constantly trying to convince us that everything they do is justified.

One of the things I love about the Targaryens is that they are complicated.

Aegon can be charismatic, brilliant, ambitious, and selfish at the same time.

Visenya can be fiercely loyal to her family while also being ruthless and terrifying.

Rhaenys can be charming and compassionate while still being part of a conquest that involves burning entire armies and cities.

And Aegon himself shouldn't need to constantly explain why he is doing what he is doing.

DO NOT OVERUSE THE DREAM NARRATIVE, especially after we saw how little it ultimately meant with Daenerys and Jon.

I don't need Aegon to constantly tell us that he had a dream about the White Walkers or that he believes he is destined to unite Westeros because of some greater purpose. If they want to include the dream, fine, but don't make it the explanation for his entire character or the justification for the Conquest.

Let Aegon have his own ambitions, flaws, beliefs, and motivations.

And most importantly, let the audience decide.

Let us decide whether we support the Targaryens or oppose them.

I don't need the movie to tell me who I'm supposed to hate or love, who is right or wrong, or who is secretly the good guy.

6. Make the world feel BIG

And I think this is probably the most important thing of all.

Make the world feel big again, the way Game of Thrones did.

I want to actually see the kingdoms.

Show us the kings and queens. Show us their courts, their families, their rivalries, their problems, and the conflicts that existed before Aegon ever arrived.

I want to care about these people before Aegon starts killing them.

Because if a king refuses to bend the knee and then gets burned alive by a dragon, I want to actually feel something when it happens. I want to understand what was lost or gained when a kingdom surrendered or when another chose to fight.

That is one of the biggest problems I have with House of the Dragon: so much of the world exists off-screen.

We constantly hear about important things happening without actually getting to experience them. Look at Jace and Cregan Stark, for example. Their relationship is important, but instead of actually showing us their time together and allowing us to understand why they formed this bond, we're basically expected to accept that it happened.

Don't do that with the Conquest.

Show us Westeros before Aegon.

Show us how divided the kingdoms were. Show us the problems between them, their wars, their alliances, their rivalries, and the reasons some people might actually welcome the Targaryens.

Because I think that's a really interesting part of the story that could easily get lost if the movie becomes nothing more than “Aegon comes, dragons burn things, everyone bends the knee.”

And then I want to see what Aegon's rule actually changed.

Maybe some things genuinely became better because the kingdoms were no longer constantly fighting one another. Maybe trade became easier. Maybe the roads became safer. Maybe there was more stability.

But I also want to see how Aegon's rule made things worse.

Because uniting Westeros doesn't automatically mean that everything becomes better.

And obviously, Dorne is the perfect example.

Show us how the conquest looks from the perspective of the people being conquered. Show us why the Dornish refuse to submit, why the Targaryens can't simply force them into submission the way they did the other kingdoms, and how the conflict ultimately creates generations of hatred between Dorne and the Iron Throne.

I want the world to feel like it existed before Aegon arrived and continued to exist after he left.

That's what made Game of Thrones feel so massive to me. The world didn't revolve around the main characters. There were kingdoms and characters and conflicts happening hundreds of miles away, and sometimes we would leave one storyline entirely to go see what was happening somewhere else.

That's what I want from the Conquest.

Don't make Westeros feel like a backdrop for Aegon's story.

Make Westeros a living world that Aegon is actually conquering.

And last, but not least...

7. THE IRON THRONE

Give us the real fucking terrifying Iron Throne.

Not the chair we’ve been seeing in the shows.

I want the absolute monster described in the books — this enormous, grotesque mass made from the thousands of swords Aegon took as the spoils of his conquest.

It should look uncomfortable, dangerous, ugly, and completely impractical.

Because that’s the point.

The Iron Throne isn't supposed to look like a beautiful royal chair. It’s supposed to look like a mountain of conquered enemies’ swords, melted and twisted together by Balerion’s dragonfire.

This is the throne that killed Maegor, that cut and wounded so many kings and queens afterward, from Viserys to Rhaenyra.

I want the first time we see it to actually make us understand why people are terrified of it.

Because every time someone looks at the Iron Throne, they should see Aegon and Balerion.

They should see the Conquest.

They should see the thousands of swords of the people who refused to bend the knee, melted together into a throne by dragonfire.

They should see the power of the Targaryens and their dragons.

The Bad, the Redeemable, and the Absurd.

THE BAD

Rhaenyra

In my previous post, I talked about how the writers seemed determined to portray Rhaenyra as the best choice for the throne and as this empowering female character who has constantly been wronged and looked down upon simply because she is a woman.

Well, it seems to me that the writers saw the backlash the character received in Season 2 and decided to go back to the original — or at least a more accurate — version of Rhaenyra in Season 3. Which should have started in Episode 3.

And I actually think this version of Rhaenyra makes better sense. In the books, it is explicitly said that she was not a good ruler, or even a particularly good person. She was paranoid, spoiled, and foolish, and that is precisely what the show is finally starting to portray.

The problem is that it comes far too late.

The pivot happens only after the writers spent two entire seasons trying — and failing — to convince us that Rhaenyra was the right/better choice just because she was the rightful heir according to Viserys. After spending so much time presenting her as the better alternative, it becomes difficult to suddenly ask the audience to accept her as she was always supposed to be.

And the fact that she is incapable of making any good or bad decisions for herself, and still has to be pushed around by other characters like Mysaria or Daemon, puts her among the worst characters on the show.

Her inconsistency is also incredibly frustrating. You want me to believe that she can forgive Alicent for her actions, but she cannot move past Baela and Rhaena’s mistakes, despite the fact that they are young and almost like daughters to her.

And it’s not even like Rhaena killed Jace. She created more chaos during the fight, yes, but Jace and his dragon were ultimately killed by the ships.

Then there is Rhaenyra’s sheer stupidity when it comes to the people she chooses to listen to. She takes advice from Mysaria and Alicent instead of her own son, Jace, or her husband, who has actually been to war and understands what she is dealing with.

Her decision to put her trust in the smallfolk — people who can apparently be bought with a few scraps of bread — instead of the Gold Cloaks, who had already proven their loyalty to Daemon and to her, makes absolutely no sense.

Then there is her treatment of the Dragonseeds, her treatment of the lords and ladies on her council, and, of course, her hypocrisy regarding Corlys’s bastards.

She is just an incredibly unlikeable character.

And I’m sorry to say this, but the actor’s charm isn’t enough to make me enjoy Rhaenyra’s scenes the way Lena Headey’s performance managed to make me enjoy Cersei’s.

Cersei could be horrible, paranoid, hypocritical, and downright awful — but watching her was still entertaining. Because the show always presented her as someone we were supposed to hate. We enjoyed hating her, and even then, there were small moments when the writing allowed us to sympathize with her or understand where she was coming from.

Rhaenyra is becoming increasingly difficult to watch for the opposite reason. She was never presented as someone we were supposed to hate. Quite the opposite: the way the show framed her was designed to make us sympathize with her, root for her, and see her as the better choice.

So when the writing finally starts portraying her as paranoid, spoiled, hypocritical, and incompetent, there is no foundation for that hatred to be enjoyable. We were never given the opportunity to love her flaws or even hate her for them. We were told to sympathize with her.

And at this point, the writing simply isn’t giving the actor enough to compensate for that disconnect.

Alicent

For me, it’s clear that Alicent is the character the writers have absolutely no idea what to do with anymore.

She no longer has a consistent plot, personality, or even goals.

After Rhaenyra kills Otto, she shows no grief, no anger, nothing. She is happy to protect her daughter but is also perfectly willing to leave her granddaughter behind while she escapes.

She would sacrifice her children — and even directly kill one of them — just to save Helaena.

And then there’s her decision to reveal that the Daeron we saw in Episode 3 wasn’t actually her son.

Why?!

She could have simply lied and protected the one son she has who is actually good and kind. If she were discovered, she could have claimed that she hadn’t seen him in so long that she genuinely believed it was him.

And then there are all the things that have simply been forgotten.

Her relationship with Criston Cole? Forgotten.

Her loyalty to her house and her family? Practically nonexistent.

The deeply ingrained mistrust her father spent her entire life instilling in her regarding Rhaenyra’s mercy? Also forgotten.

It’s as if Alicent spending years raising her children to hate and mistrust Rhaenyra’s children, rejecting the possibility of marriages between them, and maintaining that quiet animosity toward Rhaenyra were all for nothing.

And it wasn’t supposed to be for nothing.

If you’ve read the books, you know what ultimately happens to Alicent, and her regret over the choices she made — and everything those choices eventually led to — creates one of the most shocking and tragic culminations of the Dance.

But now, with Alicent reduced to such a bland character, that entire arc loses its emotional weight.

And this is why I think the reality is that Alicent was never meant to remain a main character once the Dance of the Dragons began.

She was one of the central characters in Season 1, but once the war started, she should have taken a secondary role to her son, Aegon.

She doesn’t need to be in every episode, nor does she need a separate storyline simply to justify her screen time.

But because the writers wanted to frame the series as a female-empowerment story centered around Rhaenyra and Alicent — and then largely abandoned that rivalry in Season 2 — this is the result.

The writers now seem forced to invent storylines for Alicent simply because she is one of the show's leads, even when those storylines don't contribute much to the overall narrative.

The entire Harrenhal subplot feels unnecessary to me. Alicent could have simply remained a prisoner in the Red Keep after King's Landing fell, and the story wouldn’t have lost anything.

There was simply no need for all of this.

Aemond

Aemond was one of the most compelling and complex characters in the show.

His descent into becoming a cruel ruler was one of the most interesting parts of last season. His backstory was that of a child who was bullied, finally got a taste of power, and then transformed into someone willing to take revenge on anyone who had ever wronged him — Aegon, Rhaenyra’s children, and eventually Rhaenyra herself.

But this season, he seems to be suffering from the same problem as Alicent:

The writers don’t know what to do with him.

His Harrenhal storyline is also a huge disappointment. Instead of using this opportunity to actually enrich his character, we get incestuous dreams about his mother.

Again. Why?

Why not show us his guilt over what happened to Aegon? His feelings about Lucerys’s death? His growing paranoia? Something that actually fuels his rivalry with Daemon before their eventual confrontation?

Or, at the very least, give us more of his relationship with Alys.

There was so much potential in sending Aemond to Harrenhal. He is isolated from everyone, surrounded by the ghosts of his past — both literally and metaphorically — and he is preparing for what could be the most important confrontation of his life.

That could have been an incredible opportunity to explore what is going on inside his head.

But no.

Instead, we get bad writing where Aemond spends most of his time injured in bed, hallucinating about Alicent, or becoming a puppet for Alys’s plans.

And that’s what makes it so frustrating.

There was so much potential with this character, and this is what we got.

Rhaena

If I dislike the choices made with the previous characters I mentioned, Rhaena just fills me with rage and embarrassment every time she comes on screen.

There is simply no reason for her to be in this season.

She had already been written as a character with almost no personality beyond being engaged to Luke and not having a dragon. So when they decided to give her Nettles’ storyline, I was actually not initially mad about the change. I thought it could be a great opportunity to finally give Rhaena something meaningful to do.

But… they handled it so badly that it’s honestly embarrassing.

The problems started with putting her in the battle and then using her actions to somehow manufacture conflict between Rhaenyra and Daemon.

You’re telling me nobody in that entire battle saw the wild dragon burning people on both sides? Rhaenyra just assumes the dragon is from the Greens and that it killed Jace?

It’s not as if he was eaten like Lucerys, or even burned.

NO.

And then Rhaena, instead of going back to Dragonstone — which was right there — and explaining what happened, just… runs away to the Vale? I get it. It was probably the dragon’s choice, but it had already obeyed her order to enter the battle. So does it obey her or not? Consistency.

She runs away from the woman who raised her almost like a mother for all those years? The same Rhaenyra we have constantly been shown is so forgiving?

And what about her sister and father? She could have explained herself. Maybe they would have been angry. Maybe she would have received the silent treatment. Fine.

But instead, we get this entire storyline of her hiding in caves and being mistreated by this Lady who has absolutely no reason to be on screen as much as she is.

And then we get to the part that makes absolutely no sense to me.

When your dragon is being butchered by the other dragons, you just leave him?!

This is the dragon who chose you. The dragon you have spent all this time desperately wanting. The thing that has defined so much of your character up to this point.

And when he is finally there, and is literally being attacked and killed in front of you, you just… leave?

Honestly, I would have expected Rhaena to rather die there with him than abandon him.

Her entire storyline is insufferable and completely all over the place.

And I’m sorry to say this, but while watching Episode 7, I kept hoping one of the dragons would accidentally step on her during the fight.

Or at least that Rhaenyra would drop her from the sky so we could finally be done with her.

Mysaria

Another insufferable character who feels like she is getting far more screen time than she deserves.

The affair storyline feels like pure fanservice for people who want Rhaenyra to be queer. Because God forbid an LGBTQ+ actor plays a straight character.

I wouldn’t have minded Mysaria’s storyline if it had focused on her creating discord between Daemon and Rhaenyra through political manipulation, or even if she had become a council member who genuinely cared about the people.

That could have been interesting.

In Season 1, I thought Larys and Mysaria were clearly being set up as something like Varys and Littlefinger from Game of Thrones: two incredibly intelligent, manipulative players operating behind the scenes, each with their own agenda and constantly trying to outmaneuver everyone else.

But so far, only Larys has actually lived up to that potential.

Mysaria just creates silly conflicts.

And I genuinely don’t know what the writers want us to think about her. Are we supposed to believe she is a genuinely good person? Because if so, then why is she constantly creating rifts between Rhaenyra and Daemon? Between Rhaenyra and Alicent?

For what?

And if Mysaria is supposed to be a good person who genuinely cares about Rhaenyra and the people, then why doesn’t she ever seem to give her the advice she actually needs?

Why doesn’t she tell Rhaenyra to forgive Baela, especially when the whole situation was an accident and Jace’s idea? Why doesn’t she warn her about the danger of mistreating or alienating the Dragonseeds, when they are literally the people she needs to fight a war? Why doesn’t she tell her that alienating the lords and ladies of her own council is a terrible idea?

I honestly don’t know, because the show never makes it clear.

And that could actually be interesting if the ambiguity were intentional — like it was with Littlefinger and Varys. With those characters, we were never completely sure whether they genuinely cared about certain people, like Sansa or Tyrion, or whether they were simply playing the game and using everyone around them.

With Mysaria, though, the writing doesn’t create that kind of ambiguity. It just feels unclear and messy.

And then they added the possibility that she is genuinely attracted to Rhaenyra, or that there is some kind of romantic connection between them, and honestly, it doesn’t pay off in the way the writers seem to think it does.

Instead of making Mysaria more interesting or complex, it just makes her feel even more disconnected from the story.

And that's the biggest problem with her character for me: I can’t figure out what the point of Mysaria is anymore.

Criston Cole

Criston, like several of the others, feels like a character who is simply there to fill space.

I think they could have done much more with the whole depressed, doomed knight storyline. There was actually a lot of potential in seeing what years of bitterness, failure, and disillusionment had done to him.

And his death — which I had been rooting for since Season 1 — ended up being incredibly weak.

It was nothing like the satisfaction we felt watching Joffrey or Ramsay finally die. Those deaths felt like payoffs. After everything those characters had done, watching them finally get what they deserved was incredibly satisfying.

Criston’s death, on the other hand, felt more like the Lannisters getting squished by some rocks.

For a character I had spent three seasons desperately wanting to see die, I expected to feel something.

Instead, I was just disappointed.

Baela

Another bland character we are apparently supposed to care about, but I simply don’t.

And that’s not really the actress’s fault. The character has barely any personality or storyline of her own.

Her entire existence this season seems to revolve around her getting the silent treatment and the possibility of a love triangle involving her uncles.

And that’s it.

I want to care about Baela.

The show just hasn’t given me a reason to.

THE REDEEMABLE

Episode 3

Episode 3 is probably my favorite episode of this season, and definitely my favorite episode focused on Rhaenyra.

What I love about it is that it finally shows us what happens when you actually get the thing you have been chasing for so long.

Rhaenyra finally gets to experience what being a ruler actually means.

And she is completely overwhelmed by it.

That incompetence is then repeated throughout the rest of the season, as we slowly see her become the unfit and increasingly paranoid queen she was always supposed to be.

And for me, that is redeemable.

At this point, it would be absurd to continue pretending that Rhaenyra is obviously the best choice to rule. So watching her slow descent into paranoia, while the people around her begin to recognize how unstable and incompetent she is, feels like a potential return to the book version of Rhaenyra.

There are also little moments where we get glimpses of the young Rhaenyra again, like during the feast when she threatens the lords and ladies with their food. I really enjoyed that.

I also liked her growing interest in Helaena’s dreams. And how utterly ignorant she is about that too.

And I appreciated the parallel with Viserys: Rhaenyra cutting herself on the throne because she is not fit to sit on it. That was a nice touch. I hope we see more of that as well.

I’m also glad we seem to have finally dropped the whole obsession with the sword.

So while I still find Rhaenyra incredibly frustrating, Episode 3 finally gave me the version of her I actually wanted to see.

Ormund Hightower / Gwayne Hightower

It honestly surprised me that I would find myself looking forward to the Hightowers this season more than I look forward to seeing Rhaenyra.

I really love the complexity they are giving Gwayne, and I appreciate the adversary they have created in Ormund.

I’ve particularly enjoyed their scenes with Daeron. There is something about the dynamic between the three of them that has been much more interesting to me than a lot of the main storyline.

But after Episode 7, it started to feel like they were extending their storyline beyond the point where it had actually served its purpose.

Daeron

Another character I found myself really liking.

His scenes have been interesting, particularly his interactions with Gwayne and Ormund and, of course, his bond with Tessarion.

And I have to admit that, out of everyone currently contending for the throne, I’m rooting for Daeron the most. Of course, once we get rid of Ormund.

Addam and Alyn

Two characters I’ve genuinely grown to respect. To the point that I actually felt angry and disappointed when Rhaenyra refused to legitimize them.

The Dragonseeds

I’m not going to comment too much on the eventual betrayal yet, but I actually like Ulf and Hugh.

I wish we had gotten more of them.

There is something about these characters that makes the whole Dragonseed storyline feel much more interesting than it probably should be considering how little time we have spent with them.

Every Scene With Dragons

At this point, the dragons are probably the only thing carrying the show. And I’m only half joking.

Every time a dragon appears, I immediately become more interested.

Helaena

I love that they are taking the time to build up Helaena’s breakdown rather than rushing through it.

And I absolutely love what they are doing with her Dreamer storyline.

She is also one of the few characters who has remained relatively consistent throughout the show, which makes her increasingly compelling compared with everyone else whose personalities seem to change depending on what the plot needs.

And for a moment, I actually wished she had told Rhaenyra that Aegon would rule again.

Just to spice things up.

Aegon

I have to say, one of the things I absolutely did not expect from this season was to start liking Aegon more than I like Rhaenyra.

A big part of that is the actor, who brings so much charisma to the character that I’ve actually found myself feeling sorry for Aegon.

The scene where Aegon finally finds Sunfyre is heartbreaking, not only because it reminds us that the dragons are ultimately the ones paying the price for this family’s war, but also because it shows us what could have been.

Aegon clearly isn’t someone who was born with a cruel heart. He was taught to hate and resent his own family because of the pressure, neglect, and treatment he experienced growing up. He is selfish, spoiled, and deeply flawed, but there is still a vulnerability to him that makes him different from some of the other characters.

And his relationship with Sunfyre is probably the only truly pure bond he has.

And I particularly liked his ultimate decision to face his possible demise rather than flee like a rat.

It’s actually interesting character growth for Aegon.

And honestly, if you had told me at the beginning of the season that I would be more emotionally invested in Aegon than Rhaenyra by the end of it, I would have laughed at you.

Larys Strong

I don’t have much to say about Larys this season, but now that the foot-fetish storyline is out of the picture, I’ve actually found some of his scenes pretty good.

I actually look forward to his and Aegon's scenes, which is more than I can say for some of the other characters this season.

Alys Rivers

I expected to see much more of her by now, but I keep waiting for the character to actually go somewhere.

There is definitely a certain charm and mystery to Alys that makes me interested whenever she appears. She has the potential to be a really compelling character if the writers actually take the time to develop her properly.

But that’s the problem: I’m still waiting.

There’s something there, but I’m not sure the writers actually know what to do with it yet.

NOTE: I want to clarify what I mean by “redeemable.” I don’t necessarily mean that these are good characters, or that their storylines are well written.

Honestly, the general writing of the show is still messy, inconsistent, and often outright bad.

What I mean is that there are certain characters, storylines, or moments that I still find enjoyable despite the writing around them. There is something there that makes me interested whenever they appear on screen, or something that I think could actually become good if the writers took the time to develop it properly.

For example, I really like Addam and Alyn, but that doesn't mean I think they are brilliantly written characters or that their storyline has been particularly well handled. I just enjoy watching them. They have traits that make me want to see more of them, which is more than I can say for some of the main characters.

So this section is less “the good parts of the season” and more:

“These are the things that aren’t necessarily good, but there is still something here worth saving.”

THE ABSURD

Fake Daeron

I have to admit, at first I genuinely believed it was the real Daeron. I thought Ormund had some kind of Trojan horse plot going on.

But as the episode progressed, I found myself wondering:

Where is Tessarion?

Because surely she must have followed him to the capital, right?

And if that had happened, they would have at least shown us a scene of them locking Tessarion in the Dragonpit.

When the reveal came, I was surprised. But only for about a few hours.

Because the more I thought about it after the episode ended, the more it felt like a plot created for shock value rather than something the writers had actually thought through.

Daemon, Rhaenyra, or literally anyone familiar with Daeron would have noticed that his dragon was missing.

It’s not exactly a small detail.

The whole twist works for the five minutes when you’re watching it, but falls apart the moment you start asking basic questions about how this could have actually happened.

Corlys’s Outburst

Besides the initial pleasure of finally having someone spit the facts about Rhaenyra’s shame and hypocrisy directly to her face, I found Corlys’s outburst incredibly out of character.

Not because he shouldn’t be angry. He absolutely should be.

But because of the way he expressed it.

Jace died protecting Corlys’s fleet and fighting alongside him. And Corlys spent years protecting and caring for those children as if they were his actual grandsons.

So watching him suddenly become so cruel toward them felt wrong.

I could understand Corlys being furious with Rhaenyra. I could understand him demanding that Addam and Alyn be legitimized.

But the way the scene was written felt less like Corlys finally reaching his breaking point and more like the writers needed someone to tell Rhaenyra how hypocritical she was.

Addam / Alyn / Baela

This is probably one of the stupidest decisions the showrunners have made.

The kiss between Baela and Alyn makes absolutely no sense to me.

Baela and Alyn have barely had two scenes together, while Baela and Jace grew up together and were supposed to love each other.

And now we’re suddenly supposed to believe that she has this romantic connection with Alyn?

Why?

And after the last episode, with what happened with Addam, it’s pretty obvious where they are heading with this.

It feels like the show is creating a romantic storyline simply because they don't know what else to do with these characters.

Hugh Entering Tumbleton

Hugh entering Tumbleton with the most recognizable Targaryen hair imaginable without facing any threats, questions, or confrontation is honestly ridiculous.

It’s about as believable as Alicent sneaking into Dragonstone and Rhaenyra sneaking into King's Landing.

At this point, apparently the guards in Westeros just stop existing whenever the plot needs someone to sneak into somewhere.

Scenes That Exist for Shock Value or Fan Service

Another problem this season is how often we get scenes that don’t seem to contribute anything meaningful to the plot or the characters, and instead feel like they exist purely for shock value or fan service.

The obvious examples are Aemond and Alicent’s incestuous scenes, Alys and Baela kissing, Mysaria and Rhaenyra’s affair, and Alicent’s whole side quest to Harrenhal to try to kill Aemond.

At a time when the show already has too many characters and storylines competing for limited screen time, why are we spending that time on things that don’t meaningfully develop the characters or advance the war?

Episodes 6 & 7

Episodes 6 and 7 were Game of Thrones Season 8-level bad writing.

And you cannot expect one or two great scenes to save an entire episode.

Yes, Aegon and Sunfyre was fantastic.

Yes, the Feast of Traitors scene was fantastic.

But having one or two genuinely great moments doesn’t magically make the rest of the episode good.

A great scene is not the same thing as a great episode.

And that has been one of my biggest problems with this season: there are still moments where I can see the House of the Dragon I loved in Season 1.

But they’re increasingly surrounded by writing that makes me wonder how the hell we got here.

If I Had to End the Post on Something Positive…

For me it would probably be Daemon.

Obviously, he is one of the few characters who has remained consistent throughout the show. Although, sometimes I feel like we are stuck even there.

The pacing of the story has become painfully slow, and I think that’s largely because it’s very obvious the writers wanted to end this season with the Battle of Tumbleton. So much of the season feels like we’re just waiting for the story to finally get there.

And then there are the Winter Wolves and Oscar Tully, who I actually enjoy. But once again, I keep expecting the show to give me more of them, and it never quite does. The same goes for Black Aly.

There are so many characters and storylines that I find interesting enough to want more of, but the show keeps giving us just enough to make me interested and then moves on before doing anything substantial with them.

These are entirely my own opinions and feelings regarding both the source material and the changes made for the television adaptation.

I think it's pretty obvious to say that Season 1 was excellent. The show had so much potential. The characters were complex and genuinely felt like they belonged in the same world as Game of Thrones: vicious, manipulative, ambitious, and dangerous. One of my favorite episodes is still Driftmark because every character felt driven by their own motivations, and you never knew what someone would do next. This is where House of the Dragon reached its peak—unfortunately.

Even after that, the season remained very strong.

However, I think the problems began with Episodes 8 and 9.

The decision to have Alicent usurp the throne because she misunderstood Viserys' final words about Aegon the Conqueror was the first major crack in the writing for me. While I actually enjoyed Episode 9 overall—Aegon running away, Aemond bringing him back despite clearly wanting the throne himself, and Otto encouraging Alicent's misunderstanding because it aligned with his own ambitions—that change already started shifting responsibility away from the characters.

I also didn't mind the change where Aemond accidentally kills Lucerys. In fact, I thought it worked. His intention was to humiliate and terrify Luke, but he lost control of Vhagar, and that became the consequence of his own recklessness. It was a change from the book that still respected the themes of the story.

Unfortunately, I think Season 2 is where the show truly lost its plot for me.

My biggest issue is that the writers seem determined to whitewash the characters.

One of the reasons Game of Thrones became one of the greatest television series of all time was its morally gray characters. Almost everyone operated in that gray area, making ruthless decisions driven by survival, ambition, revenge, or the pursuit of power. You never knew what a character was capable of, and that unpredictability made every interaction compelling.

I think House of the Dragon initially understood that. Season 1 presented us with complex characters whose flaws and ambitions constantly clashed, making the conflict feel inevitable. But by Season 2, the show seems far more interested in making its protagonists sympathetic than allowing them to be flawed, ruthless, or even unlikeable. In trying to make them more "good," it has made many of them feel less believable.

Once Lucerys and Jaehaerys were dead, there should have been no turning back. No more peace talks. No more attempts at negotiation. No more illusions that this war could somehow be stopped. At that point, both sides had already lost children. The conflict had crossed a line that made reconciliation impossible.

Instead, the show repeatedly portrays both Rhaenyra and Alicent as passive women constantly trying to avoid conflict while being manipulated by the men around them. Rather than driving the war through their own choices, they often feel like spectators to events set in motion by Otto, Daemon, Aegon, and Aemond.

For me, that's where the adaptation loses one of the central themes of the Dance of the Dragons. This should be a war fueled by ambition, vengeance, survival, and conscious choices—not by misunderstandings, hesitation, and characters repeatedly trying to undo a conflict that had already become inevitable.

Two of the worst mistakes in Season 2 come from scenes that were never in the original source material and, in my opinion, only serve as fan service for viewers who insist on seeing Alicent and Rhaenyra as having some sort of romantic relationship. God forbid two women can deeply love and care for each other as friends.

Rhaenyra sneaking into King's Landing to speak with Alicent. Alicent traveling alone to Dragonstone.

To me, these scenes feel completely unbelievable. Not only because they no longer make emotional sense after so much blood has been spilled, but because they don't make sense politically or even logistically. How does either of them simply sneak out of one of the most heavily guarded castles in Westeros and into the other's stronghold without anyone noticing? No guards questioning them. No servants recognizing them. No rumors spreading across the realm. It completely breaks the world's internal logic.

Even worse, neither of them, as the heads of their respective houses and women in positions of power, even considers capturing the other, despite that being the most logical military decision to end the war. The only reason neither of them does is because the plot needs both characters to survive. It feels less like two intelligent political players making difficult choices and more like the writers refusing to let them behave like rulers in the middle of a civil war.

One of the things I always loved about Game of Thrones was that even women living under patriarchal systems found ways to seize power. Characters like Cersei, Daenerys, and even Sansa were constantly constrained by the men around them, but they adapted, manipulated, and fought back.

Here, Rhaenyra and Alicent often just feel... weak.

What frustrates me is that I think this could have been fixed without changing the overall story.

For Alicent, I would have preferred if, after realizing she misunderstood Viserys' final words, she simply refused to admit it—to herself or to anyone else. She could have buried the guilt, convinced herself that usurping the throne was still the right decision, and continued making ruthless choices because there was no turning back. That would have made her far more compelling.

Likewise, Rhaenyra could have slowly lost pieces of her humanity after Lucerys' death. At first, she might genuinely feel sympathy for Helaena after the murder of Jaehaerys, but as the war escalates, she could begin justifying increasingly cruel actions. That's a tragic arc. That's the kind of moral deterioration I expected from the Dance of the Dragons.

Instead, both women keep trying to hold onto peace long after peace has become impossible.

The biggest example of this is Alicent going to Dragonstone and essentially offering up her sons' lives in exchange for her own freedom and Helaena's safety.

To me, that's not only unbelievable—it feels completely out of character.

Take Cersei, for example. She was cruel, manipulative, and often monstrous, but one thing was always consistent: she loved her children. She would kill for them, lie for them, and die for them. That consistency made her believable.

If the writers wanted Alicent to abandon Aegon and Aemond, then they needed to explore why.

Maybe she never truly loved her children because they were a constant reminder of the life she was forced into. Maybe she sees Aegon and Aemond as monsters she helped create and decides they're beyond saving. That could have been interesting.

But then what about Daeron?

We're repeatedly told that Daeron is kind and honorable. If Rhaenyra's victory means eliminating every rival claimant, then Daeron would also be in danger. Alicent's decision completely ignores that reality.

Even more importantly, it contradicts one of Alicent's defining beliefs from Season 1.

She repeatedly told Aegon that, whether he wanted the throne or not, he would always be a threat to Rhaenyra simply because he was Viserys' eldest son. From Alicent's perspective, taking the throne wasn't just ambition—it was survival.

So why would that suddenly stop being true?

If anything, after blood has already been spilled, she should believe it more, not less.

Or perhaps her motivation was never really about power. Maybe it was about validating the sacrifices she had been forced to make: marrying a man she didn't love, producing heirs out of duty, and spending years defending a system she never chose. Perhaps crowning Aegon was the only way to convince herself that none of those sacrifices had been in vain.

Or maybe she genuinely believed in tradition—that the throne belonged to the eldest son, regardless of Viserys' wishes.

Any of these motivations could have worked. The problem is that the show never fully commits to exploring any of them, leaving Alicent feeling inconsistent from one episode to the next.

Episode 3x01 – The Battle of the Gullet

My first criticism is that this battle should never have been delayed until Season 3. Ending Season 2 before one of the biggest battles completely killed the momentum.

That being said, I actually like one adaptation choice: giving Nettles' storyline to Rhaena. Considering Daemon's later storyline with Nettles, I think merging those characters could be a smart long-term decision.

However, I do have doubts about how this will eventually create conflict between Daemon and Rhaenyra, especially because of three important writing choices: first, Daemon has never been shown to have any particular protectiveness or emotional attachment toward his daughters; second, Rhaenyra has been consistently written as more forgiving and soft-hearted compared to her book version (so if she can forgive Alicent and even cry over killing Otto despite them indirectly contributing to the deaths of Lucerys and Jace, it’s hard to imagine her refusing to forgive Rhaena, who has essentially been like a daughter to her, even if Rhaena is indirectly involved in Jace’s death); and third, it seems the entire infidelity storyline is being shifted toward Rhaenyra and Mysaria instead, which feels unnecessary to me.

What I don’t like is how the beginning of this conflict was handled. Once again, the writers fall back on the same explanation they used with Aemond: “We can’t control dragons.”

The first time, with Vhagar, it was shocking. The second time, with Sheepstealer, it just feels like they're repeating the same narrative device to justify questionable writing.

Even worse, Rhaena becomes another character who makes dumb choices mainly to cover for previous plot decisions instead of developing naturally.

The biggest issue for me, though, is how they changed the Battle of the Gullet itself.

In the book, Rhaenyra is devastated by Lucerys' death and isn't in a condition to lead the battle. Jace steps forward largely because his younger brothers are in danger, and that's what leads to his death. That makes sense.

In the show, however, Rhaenyra is literally locked inside Dragonstone by her own guards because Jace ordered it. I'm sorry, but that makes absolutely no sense. Since when do the Queen's guards obey the prince over the Queen herself?

It feels like another example of the writers taking agency away from Rhaenyra instead of allowing her to make difficult decisions herself. Making her a victim of circumstances and man power. Boring.

The absence of Rhaenyra and Daemon's younger children from the battle also removes much of the urgency that exists in the source material.

Another recurring problem is that the show keeps trying to portray Rhaenyra as brave by having her insist on personally flying into danger. But being a good ruler isn't about constantly proving you're brave. It's about making smart strategic decisions. A queen should know when not to fight.

Instead of demonstrating intelligence by sending the appropriate dragonriders, the show repeatedly has her trying to do everything herself, which ironically makes her seem less capable as a ruler.

Finally, I have to admit that Jace's death didn't affect me nearly as much as I expected. Not because of the scene. But because I don't think the show invested enough time in him.

We barely saw his diplomacy in Winterfell, his political instincts, or why he was such an important asset to Team Black. Instead, the show often made him seem less competent so that Rhaenyra could appear wiser or more heroic. Ironically, that decision hurts both characters.

Jace's death should have been one of the most heartbreaking moments of the series. The same Lucerys was.

Instead, it was Episode 2—watching Rhaenyra grieve over his body—that finally made me feel something. And that's a shame, because the emotional impact should have come from losing Jace himself, not from the aftermath.

Before I get into Episode 2, I want to point out a few more criticisms of Episode 1.

One of my biggest disappointments was the Battle of the Gullet itself. This battle is supposed to be one of the largest and bloodiest conflicts of the Dance, yet it never felt as grand as it should have. Honestly, I don't think it even reached the level of the Battle of Blackwater from Game of Thrones. There was something off with the audio as well.

Part of the problem is that I simply don't feel as invested in many of these characters as the show expects me to. If Corlys died here, I don't think I'd feel nearly what I felt when Rhaenys died. On the other hand, I have been enjoying Alyn's storyline, and both he and Addam are becoming some of my favorite characters this season.

Sharako Lohar also didn't work for me. I mean no disrespect to the actress, but the performance felt stiff and exaggerated, and I never really bought the character.

I was also disappointed that we didn't get to see the Winter Wolves/ Lannister in battle. At this point, I feel almost no emotional investment in that storyline, which is unfortunate.

As for Rhaena and Sheepstealer... I’m sorry, but those scenes happening during the Battle of the Gullet actually made me cringe. They completely broke the tension of what should have been one of the show’s defining battles. I was just rolling my eyes at yet another “rider loses control of their dragon” moment. It feels like the show keeps falling back on the same explanation to justify chaos in these sequences, and instead of raising the stakes, it just makes the world and the battles feel smaller and cheaper.

One thing I did love, however, was Jace's death. I thought the way it happened was believable. The arrows came quickly, there wasn't some exaggerated heroic last stand, and that made the moment much more tragic.

As for Aemond and Alicent’s kiss… honestly, I’m still not sure how I feel about it, or what the point of it even was. We already know Aemond is cruel and unstable. We already know Alicent has raised men who have become monsters. We already know she is, in many ways, powerless against them.

I just hope this isn’t the prelude to more bizarre mother–son hallucinations in Harrenhal, because that storyline is already wearing thin.

Episode 2 - Queen's Landing

Overall, I actually enjoyed this episode much more than Episode 1.

The aftermath of the battle was handled very well.

Watching Baela bring Jace's body home, seeing the guards carry him through Dragonstone, and especially Rhaenyra's reaction—it all landed emotionally. Ironically, I felt more from the aftermath of Jace's death than from the death itself, which says more about how underdeveloped his character has been than about the performances.

The sequence of Vhagar burning Harrenhal was fantastic.

Aemond executing Simon Strong without hesitation also reminded me of the ruthless character I expected him to become. Simon will definitely be missed.

However, I think the show once again falls into the trap of convenience.

Aemond being badly injured so quickly feels less like a natural consequence of a fight and more like an excuse to introduce his storyline with Alys Rivers. Personally, I think it would have been much more interesting if Alys had survived because of her intelligence and manipulation rather than because the plot conveniently left Aemond vulnerable.

The dragons arriving over King's Landing was easily one of the highlights of the episode. I completely understand why this was originally intended to be the season finale.

Otto's execution was also long overdue...

...but it's also where my biggest criticism of the episode begins.

Once again, I think the writers continue portraying both women as passive participants in a war they should be driving.

Take Alicent.

She tells the guards about Rhaenyra’s arrival, trusting them far too easily and putting both herself and Helaena in danger.

Personally, I think it would have made much more sense for her to quietly prepare an escape. She shouldn't care if dragons fought outside the city or if lives were lost in the process—as long as the chaos allowed her and Helaena to get away.

That would have been a strategic decision.

Instead, she reacts. She rarely acts.

The attempted rape scene also felt completely unnecessary to me. At this point, we already understand what Alicent has been through. We’ve watched her be manipulated since childhood, sold by her father, forced into an unwanted marriage, and made to bed a sick old man she never chose. We’ve watched her give birth too young, and endure years of emotional and psychological pressure. We’ve even seen her abused by her own son in the previous episode.

The audience doesn’t need another scene reminding us that she’s a victim. Especially after the scene in Dragonstone. This moment undercuts what the show had just established about her—she is finally gaining agency and taking power.

Simply imprisoning her would have accomplished the exact same narrative purpose while making her desperation to escape even stronger.

One character I actually think has remained surprisingly consistent is Helaena. I really don't have many complaints about her characterization. She's one of my favorite characters. That said, I do think the show missed an opportunity to let her unravel after Jaehaerys' murder. I expected to see her slowly descend into grief and madness, which would make her eventual fate all the more tragic.

Then we come to Rhaenyra.

She's grieving. She's broken. But once again... she isn't making the choice. Daemon once again has to come and push her toward action.

For a brief moment, I genuinely thought this would be the turning point of her story. She has lost her father. Her unborn daughter. Lucerys. Jace. Her throne. Everything has been taken from her because of Otto, Alicent, and the Greens. I thought this was finally going to be the moment where she decided that she had already sacrificed too much for any of it to be in vain.

Instead... Daemon has to convince her to act. Again.

I actually loved Daemon cutting his way through the Red Keep for her. It reinforces just how dangerous and skilled he is, and exactly why the Greens have always feared him. The Gold Cloaks sequence was incredible—I had no idea how the throne room would play out, but seeing them turn and side with Daemon was easily the most satisfying moment of the entire scene.

But then I have to point out the most cringe-worthy and anticlimactic part of the scene: Rhaenyra drawing her sword. Seriously?

I know the show wants this to be a “strong female character” moment, but strength isn’t about pretending to be someone you’re not.

What exactly is Rhaenyra going to do with that sword?

She has never been portrayed as a warrior. She hasn’t trained like Visenya the Conqueror, who, as we are constantly reminded, she admires. She hasn’t proven herself in combat, and she hasn’t led armies or shown consistent strategic brilliance.

She’s not suddenly going to defeat trained knights just because the music swells.

Instead of making me admire her, the scene made me react exactly like the guards did.

I laughed.

Then comes Otto.

This is where I think the show fundamentally misunderstands what makes the characters in Game of Throne so memorable.

Otto Hightower is responsible for almost everything that has happened. He convinced Viserys to name Rhaenyra heir. He spent years undermining that very decision. He manipulated Viserys into marrying Alicent. He usurped the throne. He sent men to kill Rhaenyra.

He's responsible, directly or indirectly, for the deaths of countless people—including Jace and Lucerys.

So when she finally has the chance to execute him...

...she hesitates. She cries.

I understand why killing Otto would be emotionally difficult. He had been part of her life since childhood. He was her father's closest advisor. The father of her closest friend. In another life, he might even have been someone she trusted.

But that's exactly why I think she should have hidden those emotions.

A queen should mourn in private—especially the dead of her enemies. She cannot break down in front of the entire court she is trying to rule.

Instead, Daemon once again has to place the sword in her hand and push her toward making the decision.

At that point, I honestly think it would have been stronger if Daemon had simply executed Otto himself. Their rivalry goes all the way back to Season 1. Otto spent years trying to keep Daemon away from power. Daemon killing Otto to finally secure Rhaenyra’s reign would have been poetic justice.

I also think Alicent should have witnessed Otto's execution firsthand instead of only seeing the aftermath.

That emotional confrontation feels like a missed opportunity.

I think this scene is where I finally lost respect for Rhaenyra as a ruler. Not because she cried. Not because she hesitated.

But because, once again, the show refuses to let her make difficult choices on her own. She ends up feeling too much like Viserys: kind-hearted, indecisive, and unable to act until someone else forces her hand.

And that’s why I disagree with the direction the show seems to be taking.

It often feels like the writers want us to believe Rhaenyra is unquestionably the rightful choice for a ruler simply because she is the “less evil” option compared to Aegon and Aemond. In doing so, they’ve made her feel more naive, weaker, and less capable.

But what has Rhaenyra really done to deserve the throne? When she was younger, all she ever did was claim that Viserys named her heir and that everyone else should accept it. But she never had to fight harder, prepare more, or truly prove herself worthy of that position. That kind of effort could have made her claim feel earned, and it could also have highlighted the injustice of a system that denies women the throne by default.

After the time jump in Season 1, she loses much of the strength she once had as a younger version of herself. She has already sired bastards, which weakens her political claim in the eyes of Westeros. When she is challenged, she often shields herself behind Viserys’ authority rather than confronting criticism directly. She doesn’t feel politically sharp, and she doesn’t seem prepared for the realities of war or leadership.

At the same time, none of the alternatives feel fully compelling either: Aegon is incompetent, Aemond is intelligent but unstable, and Daemon is reckless. So Rhaenyra ends up feeling like the “best option” by default, not because she is actively proven to be the most capable ruler.

But I don’t think that should be the point anyway. That should be the viewer’s decision—who to side with—while the characters themselves remain complex and morally gray.

Instead, it often feels like that complexity is being stripped away: Aemond is pushed closer to a cartoon villain, while Rhaenyra is shaped into something closer to a martyr.

But I never thought that was George R. R. Martin’s point.

To me, The Dance of the Dragons is a tragedy because no one was truly fit to rule.

That is the beginning of House Targaryen’s decline.

Not because one side was good and the other evil…

…but because ambition, pride, vengeance, and family ultimately destroyed them all.

For example, I’ve written reviews and theories about The Umbrella Academy, The Hunger Games and From Blood And Ash along with a few short stories here and there.

Now I’m really excited to share that I’m opening a new page on Fiverr as a beta reader.

I will read anything—fantasy, romance, comedy, romantasy, thriller, fanfiction—anything you’re working on! I’ll give feedback on:

Plot

Characters

World-building

Overall reading experience

Of course, my opinion will always be honest, but constructive and professional, since I know how much work and passion goes into writing.

My goal is to give thoughtful reader feedback that helps you improve and refine your work, while still respecting your creative vision.

So if you’re working on a project and would like a real reader’s perspective, I’d absolutely love to help! 💛

Feel free to reach out anytime!

Before this, I honestly didn’t think much about it. Part of me felt that usual frustration whenever something gets remade—like, why not adapt the countless incredible books out there that haven’t already had their moment? But I was also curious. I wanted to see what a Harry Potter story could look like with today’s CGI, especially since I never read the books myself. I grew up with the movies, and I almost avoided the books on purpose because I didn’t want to fall into that mindset of “they should’ve kept this” or “they changed that”—which I always do.

But watching the trailer today just felt… strange.

It’s so weird seeing characters I grew up with played by completely different faces. There’s a kind of nostalgia that hits you immediately—not just for the main trio as kids, but for the entire cast. Maggie Smith as McGonagall, Robbie Coltrane as Hagrid, Alan Rickman as Snape… those performances feel so tied to the characters that it’s hard to separate them.

I know a lot of people are unhappy with the new casting for Snape, but I do want to give the actor a fair chance. If he was chosen, there must be a reason—and a great performance can always surprise you. And I actually really like Janet McTeer, so I’m curious to see what she brings to it.

Still, even with that curiosity about seeing storylines from the books that never made it into the films, there’s also this underlying disappointment. Why revisit something that was already done so well? The original films weren’t perfect, but they were magical in a way that felt sincere and cinematic.

This new version… at least from the trailer… feels a bit soulless. Like something designed more as a commercial project than an epic experience.

Aegon The Conqueror - Josha Strawdoski

Visenya The Warrior Queen - Lucy Boynton

Rhaenys Targaryen - Jessica Alexander

Stop. You are missing the entire point. People aren't just mad about a single text; they’re calling her out because these unsealed documents prove exactly what many have complained about for ages: the "Good Girl" image is a carefully curated brand, but the "Mean Girl" reality is what’s running the show.

1. Taylor literally claimed she had no idea Justin was there and just "happened to pass by" Blake’s house. The texts prove that was a lie. It wasn't a coincidence; it was a coordinated "ambush".

2. The texts show Taylor used her massive star status to pressure a director with significantly less power to help her friend—all while admitting she hadn't even read the script she was pushing for. That’s not "supporting a friend"; that’s using your influence as a blunt instrument to bully someone in the industry.

3. Katy Perry called it years ago: "Regina George in sheep’s clothing." From the leaked messages where they joke about Justin’s "tiny violin" to her history of playing the victim card with exes and industry "enemies," the pattern is clear. She creates a narrative where she is the perpetual victim so her fans will go out and harass whoever she’s targeted.

4. You can’t claim to be a champion for "women supporting women" while simultaneously trying to block every other female artist. We see it every time she drops 30 "variants" of an old album the second another woman (like Billie, Charli, or SZA) is about to hit #1. It’s basically the same situation. They’re working together to undermine the work of someone who actually seemed genuinely invested in his project, unlike Blake’s tone-deaf interviews about the film. It’s ironic that Taylor spoke so strongly about losing her song rights, calling it the worst experience for an artist, yet now supports Blake in taking creative control of a film from Justin, who invested years into the project.

Look at the Olivia Rodrigo “Cruel Summer” situation — taking 50% of a teenager’s royalties who saw her as a role model, then blatantly “borrowing” melodies from the Jonas Brothers and the Pixies on her latest album because she knows she’s too powerful to be sued, or that artists would be too afraid of harassment from her most extreme fans. The hypocrisy is undeniable.

This isn't just about "leaked messages." It’s the mask slipping on a decade of calculated behavior.

When is she actually going to own up to her antics? Instead of an apology, she just keeps ignoring the backlash from her mediocre last album, the messy Blake drama, the MAGA speculations, and her mean-girl behavior toward other women. That silence is exactly what’s making her so unlikeable to the general (non-swifties) public right now.

We’re living in a time when media tries to mask poor quality by using rage bait to attract views, boost numbers, and make money. But that doesn’t mean the content is actually good — people are just watching out of curiosity or to criticize. It’s the same thing that happened with The Life of a Showgirl, and what Taylor said about how, during the first week, people listen or talk about the album just to judge it or see what all the fuss is about — and that attention still benefits the creators. That kind of engagement inflates numbers and drives sales, but it doesn’t necessarily reflect quality.

Since Midnights, though, a lot of her songs have started to sound the same. The chorus of Midnight Rain feels almost identical to My Tears Ricochet, and with The Tortured Poets Department, many tracks blend together in the same range and vibe.

I was excited for this new album, hoping for either more upbeat songs or deeper lyrics about the toll the music industry can take on you. But most of it felt like recycled sounds or samples from other artists.

Besides The Fate of Ophelia — which I loved — nothing really stood out for me. The Life of a Showgirl was fun, but mostly because I love Cool by the Jonas Brothers. The rest of the lyrics just felt awkward and kind of cringy.

The Fate of Ophelia video was visually stunning though.

Honestly, the album doesn’t feel genuine — more like she leaned into a trend (Sabrina’s showgirl aesthetic) that doesn’t fit her usual style (Tortured poet or girl next door).

And Actually Romantic? Total Regina George vibes: “You’re so obsessed with me, you must be in love with me.” Also, mocking someone’s addiction isn’t cool, especially when you’re a grown woman who has repeatedly claimed to be a feminist.

And “CANCELLED!” is a very bright red flag.