chrisdaw

She is making him temporarily more pliant to the detriment of his long term health, as has been explained to her, which is the purpose of the storyline.

There is quite literally a magical world ending antagonist established in the prologue of the series, the seasons are magically altered, beasts are being taken for a second life and that magic is getting stronger isn't really arguable. GRRM said the below, one can determine for themselves if this rules out characters second lifing animals/beasts to create hybrid beasts that some in world will perceive as gods. For mine that the concept of the Drowned God is explained by an ancient magical ability of the Ironborn to second life aquatic animals does more to disproves the existence of the god than prove it, though the Ironborn may think otherwise. The Others are certainly real and Craster takes them for his gods.

It's a textual fact that she's poisoning Sweetrobin.

If she will or will not kill family for power might be an edge she's going to teeter along, a red line that if she were to cross there'd be no coming back from.

Obviously Littlefinger is backing himself to be able to ingratiate himself into Harry's inner circle and Sansa is the opening gift. Littlefinger would almost certainly play it from the angle that he just gave Harry the keys to the North. Gambling on himself is what Littlefinger does, and he's not about to stagnate behind Robert Arryn in the Vale. But it doesn't matter because none of this is happening, Harry is dead man walking and Littlefinger isn't far behind, Sansa will be playing for Sansa well before the end of Winds. It is very simple, Sansa is the one with the arc, the character that matters, and Sansa's arc is pawn to player and Robert Arryn is the perfect pawn for her to play, the easiest and first, he continues to live and love Sansa and and she controls the Vale.

No the concept has a meaning and it is not the regular actions of an everyday high lord.

No to be a high lord doesn't mean you're just automatically playing the game of thrones, the concept has a meaning and it's not that.

No I'm not mistaken. Ned went against his nature to play the game not for his own benefit as a player in the game of thrones does but because he felt bound to put the realm to right, he was bad at it mainly because he didn't truly engage in it because it's not in his nature and he's not willing to go to lengths others were. Jon's not playing the game of thrones, he's trying to lead the watch and then tried to save Arya. The Direwolf is the symbol of House Stark and Sansa's was killed very early when she betrayed the Stark ethos in this story. That her lies may not have directly lead to Lady's execution is immaterial. Sansa's path is very linear from the trident lies for Lannister benefit in early AGOT progressing to her poisoning Robert for Littlefinger's and her own benefit.

No the Direwolf is the symbol of house Stark and her's is killed when she betrays the truth and family for personal expedience. It's very clear, as her path is ever towards the game of thrones and away from House Stark, Catelyn and Ned wouldn't accept in the slightest her poisoning or manipulation of Robert or ever endorse the continual lessons she's taking from Littlefinger.

Lady's death is a simple symbolic breaking of Sansa from the ethos of the contemporary Starks.

That's where she's headed sure. So why would she kill Sweetrobin for Harry? She has more control over Sweetrobin than she could hope to exert over Harry. The person in the way of her control of the Vale is Littlefinger.

She saw what Joffrey was really like at the Trident and she was fine with it, but then I suppose it was only a smelly butcher boy.

Yep but it's not a plot from her POV, it's just to keep him pliable with minimal fuss. Robert isn't going to die though but Littlefinger and Harry are, and Sansa is going to take control of the Vale through Robert. The Vale will do whatever Sansa wants because she'll tell Robert to do it and he will because he loves her, or she'll name a Lord Protector of her choosing who will do whatever she tells them because they owe her their position. And with the Vale in her back pocket Sansa will move onto bigger pastures. If Sweetrobin lives or dies will depend entirely on if his living or dying is of benefit to Sansa's political position.

Honestly I can't argue the finer points because I just can't remember. But the dragonseeds one I do, she expected the realm to accept her bastard heir and children while personally committing the greatest act of discrimination against bastards in the whole series, which caused her the loss of the Velaryons which was I think crippling.

Rhaenyra's sin here is that she would presume to rule the realm without subjecting herself to any of the sacrifices that come with it due to the people's beliefs, laws, customs and expectations. The shit they care about. That's yasss queen girl boss stuff in these times to these audiences, but in world this stuff matters and can very possibly mean war and a million dead.

Thank you very much. That's pretty huge to me. He says he's singing to the dragon to bind it so I've no doubt he's doing with song what Euron's Dragonbinder does too when it is blown. And Visenya life/soul is the blood magic payment and her soul having gone into Vermithor is one of the heads. Daemon himself is the third head, the singer, and the supposed rider though it seems he's able to ready it for someone else to slip into the role. The other head maybe Vermithor itself? Or in this instance no-one in particular but typically it'd be one of the parents sacrificed too (Drogo/Rhaego, 2 kings to wake the dragon....), unnecessary this time perhaps for reasons unknown, possibly relating to having already been ridden. It feels like Daemon understands a lot about how the magic works and can manipulate things whereas others just happen into it through precedent.

I think Visenya's soul --> Vermithor and such a close blood bond and recent soul swap allows Daemon to skinchange it.

It was a very good season of TV. Much better than I thought it would be, they've some good writing talent. I'd rather the fire breathing dragon queen from the book though than this soft imposter Rhaenyra. And it was completely humorless with everyone dead serious all time, but thankfully it found some tenderness and heart along the way. They failed to convey a sense of the smallfolk, how they're doing and how they feel about anything besides that one time (episode 4?). That shit is important, it's why it's in the text, although honestly I can't remember if there was much of it through the pages this season covered.

What do you take from that? What I take from it is that it's probably a hint towards him being able to skinchange dragons. It'd be a huge spoiler for the actual series so I don't think they'd fully commit to it beyond doubt. His (and Rhaenyra's over Syrax) control over Ceraxes is straight telepathic but that can just be TV contrivance, but his eye literally taking the shape of the dragon eye is pretty fucking out there. As you ask, wtf is the point of that? But I want to know what everyone else thinks of it because I've been banging the drums on this theory (or adjacent) for a long time so it can be a case of seeing what you want to see.

Will make it all the more fun when it all falls down.

Why Otto always got to stand side on?

This week it seemed was supposed to be about Alicent trying to find a peaceful way out. Then Rhaenys has the chance to blow everyone up but stays her hand. Next week Rhaenyra will probably think about going a peaceful way too but then Aemond does a man thing killing whichever Strong it is, and the moral of the story is the women wanted peace and this all would have worked out if not for the bloody men being men. Which is eh, kind of shit, contemporary girl power fighting the patriarchy stuff but whatever. The writing is not particularly good in this instance and has fallen away somewhat. But GRRM spent a not insignificant amount of page time explaining what makes Jaime Jaime, Bloodraven Bloodraven, Tywin Tywin etc, and it's exemplary writing. For people to think Rhaenys would not just jump into that company but eclipse them with the darkest deed inworld is disheartening.

Criticism sadly most often mounts to, "I wouldn't have done X, so therefore it makes no sense character Y did X."

Ok so show only watchers have an excuse to not understand that one reason of multiple reasons Rhaenys would have never done it.

They made an effort to allude to Daemon having sexual difficulties but then he was particularly attracted to Rhaenyra and Laena. Rhaenyra always particularly had the hots for Daemon. And now we have Aemond seeming to desire Helaena. It may be the point that the more dragon like (wilful to the point of destruction) the Targaryen the more attracted they are to incestuous relations.