House of the Dragon Season 2 official trailer
House of the Dragon fans have slammed Ser Criston Cole’s (played by Fabien Frankel) decision to parade a slain dragon’s head through King’s Landing.
The latest episode of the hit HBO fantasy drama picks up after the devastating outcome of the battle at Rook’s Rest, which left King Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) comatose and Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) killed.
In the carnage, Rhaenys’ dragon Meleys is throttled to death by Aemond’s (Ewan Mitchell) dragon Vhagar, and her head is later recovered.
To flaunt their victory, Ser Criston and his men cart the monstrous severed head amongst the smallfolk, who consider it a bad omen.
Many viewers have now pointed out this decision could come back to bite the Kingsguard, as it demonstrates the Targaryen’s infamous dragon mounts are capable of being killed.
One viewer on X (formerly Twitter) referred to one observer who remarks: “I thought the dragons was gods.”
They continued: “Parading Meleys’ head around King’s Landing, a dragon that is the symbol of House Targaryen’s power, was the stupidest thing Criston Cole could do.”
“Yes, because it showed that dragons are mortal, too. I think this scene is part of the setting up of the stage for what will happen eventually at the Dragon pit,” another fan replied, alluding to a pivotal moment in George RR Martin’s books.
A third said: “Criston Cole has made stupid decisions but this takes the cake.
“Parading Meleys severed head in front of the smallfolk showed that dragons, and by extension the Targaryens, are not invincible.”
“Criston Cole is truly an idiot,” a fourth fan fumed. “By showing meleys head through the city, he showed the townsfolk that dragons can be killed and in turn so can the greens and blacks.”
“Criston Cole's plan at the start of this week's House of the Dragon might just be the dumbest (in-character, not Game of Thrones season 7/8 writing) move I've ever seen a character make,” another added.
And a final fan hilariously commented: “Criston Cole is an all time dumba** tv character.
“Every week he does something so so much dumber than you could ever imagine possible. Just a nightmare of a man.”
Ser Criston is already out of favour with Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) after refusing to back her claim to rule while Aegon recovers.
Could his decision to reveal the dragons as mortal be the first spark that leads to the Targaryens’ downfall as seen at the start of Game of Thrones?
House of the Dragon season 2 is set to air in the UK on Mondays at 2am BST (British Summer Time) on Sky Atlantic and NOW. The same episode will also be broadcast again on Monday at 9pm.
