"I don't think it's a foot fetish like we understand in 2022. I think it's weirder than that," he mused. "It's not just about a man with a clubfoot being attracted to feet. It's that he can make her do it," he noted. "This is a very disturbed person with a lot of trauma... It's about making her feel as much shame as she does for that part of her body as he does for his."

Freddie: [...] It really shows what their relationship was, which is one that's been very distant. But one that is quite loving, even if only in sort of theory, rather than practice. I did a lot of backstory on him and I feel he was very much raised by his mother who he lost very young. He's sort of been an abandoned child. And so consequently, reaching out, as well as he knows how, to his sister in that scene I thought was very touching.

And there's that lovely bit in the end when you touch very briefly.

Freddie: Yeah that was an addition from me and Liv. We just thought that…that symbolizes everything you need to know. There's an affection but it's just not practiced. It's sort of skittish, but it's still there.

clock it!

i'm still shocked there's people who interpreted the episode 8 dinner scene as helaena "being amused by aegon's actions, including towards baela" and that she was smiling at aegon. like this is the hotd fandom, i've seen plenty of dense takes, but this one might take the cake at times.