Bend the Knee: A Song of Ice and Fire Podcast

Princess Rhaenys arrives on Dragonstone to announce King Viserys's death and Prince Aegon ascending the throne; the news shocks Rhaenyra into a premature stillbirth. Daemon pressures Rhaenyra to go to war. When Ser Erryk brings Viserys' crown, Rhaenyra is declared queen. Ser Otto Hightower presents King Aegon II's terms for Rhaenyra's concession, including retaining her royal title and Dragonstone, and her sons' rights to inherit Driftmark; Daemon is angered when Rhaenyra considers conceding to unify the realm against the Northern threat foretold by Aegon the Conqueror's dream. Lord Corlys pledges House Velaryon's allegiance to Rhaenyra's "Black" faction; Daemon plans to recruit more dragonriders and awakens a large dragon hibernating in a cave. Princes Jacaerys and Lucerys are sent as envoys to secure Houses Arryn, Stark, and Baratheon as allies. Lucerys meets with Lord Borros Baratheon and discovers Prince Aemond is also there to secure the Baratheons as allies for Aegon II. King Aegon II has offered Borros a political alliance through marriage between his daughter and Aemond while Rhaenyra has offered nothing. Lucerys leaves on his dragon, Arrax, but Aemond pursues him on Vhagar. The fractious dragons defy their riders; Arrax burns Vhagar; Vhagar then devours Lucerys and Arrax, stunning Aemond. Rhaenyra is devastated and enraged upon receiving the news.

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After Viserys' death, Ser Otto and the Small Council plot to crown Prince Aegon. Ser Criston kills Lord Beesbury, who opposed the scheme. Kingsguard Lord Commander Harrold Westerling resigns in protest. Otto keeps Viserys's death a secret to fortify the council's position, then coerces the noble houses to switch their allegiance to Aegon. Those resisting are imprisoned or hanged. Otto and Alicent discuss on whether to kill or exile Rhaenyra and separately rush to find and influence the missing Prince Aegon: Otto sends Kingsguard brothers Ser Erryk and Ser Arryk Cargyll, while Alicent tasks Criston and Prince Aemond. The Cargylls find Aegon first, but Criston and Aemond forcibly take him. Lord Larys tells Alicent that spies, including lady-in-waiting, Talya, are within the Red Keep. Alicent approves eliminating the head spy. Alicent persuades a resistant Aegon to claim his birthright. King's Landing citizens are herded into the Dragonpit to witness Aegon's coronation. Princess Rhaenys, refusing to support Aegon’s claim, is held captive. Erryk frees her and she enters the Dragonpit caverns. Astride her dragon, Meleys, she violently breaches the grand hall, causing mayhem, death, and threatening the royals; Rhaenys then flees King’s Landing on Meleys.

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Six years later, Lord Corlys Velaryon is wounded fighting in the Stepstones. His brother, Ser Vaemond, petitions King's Landing to name him Corlys' heir, proclaiming Rhaenyra's son, Lucerys, illegitimate. Rhaenyra and Daemon return to the capital to defend Lucerys' claim. King Viserys is now bedridden, disfigured, and mentally muddled. Queen Alicent and the king's Hand, Otto Hightower, oversee all royal matters. Alicent covers-up Prince Aegon raping a handmaiden. Rhaenyra proposes two marriage arrangements with House Velaryon to gain Princess Rhaenys' support. She implores Viserys to defend her succession, quoting Aegon the Conqueror's dream about the Prince That Was Promised. As Vaemond's petition is presented at court, Viserys declares Lucerys the Driftmark heir. Daemon beheads Vaemond when he denounces Rhaenyra as a whore and her children bastards. The family appears to reconcile during a feast, but Aemond later incites a fight, insinuating Rhaenyra's three sons are bastards. Meanwhile, Alicent's lady-in-waiting, Talya, regularly provides Daemon's former mistress, Mysaria, with information. Viserys, near death, mutters parts of Aegon the Conqueror's dream, which Alicent mistakenly believes refers to Prince Aegon.

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King Viserys and his court attend Lady Laena's funeral in Driftmark. Rhaenyra and Daemon reunite and are physically intimate. Meanwhile, Viserys fails to reconcile with Daemon. Prince Aemond claims Vhagar as his dragon, causing an altercation with his cousins and nephews in which Lucerys slashes Aemond's eye with a knife. As revenge, Queen Alicent lunges at Lucerys with Viserys' Valyrian steel dagger. Rhaenyra blocks Alicent, but injures herself. After claims that Rhaenyra's sons are bastards, Viserys decrees anyone questioning their legitimacy will be punished. Later, former Hand of the King, Otto Hightower, assures Alicent they will prevail, while Rhaenyra and Daemon unite against Alicent and her family. To continue the true Velaryon lineage, Princess Rhaenys suggests that Lord Corlys pass his title through his granddaughter, Baela, by marriage to Prince Lucerys, as Laenor has not sired any children. Ser Qarl appears to murder Laenor, leaving behind a charred body. Daemon and Rhaenyra privately marry in the old Valyrian Dragonlord tradition to perpetuate the Targaryen bloodline. Meanwhile, Laenor, having faked his death, escapes Driftmark with Qarl.

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We just got the FINAL trailer for Season 2 of House of the Dragon and some news about the Aegon the Conquer series!

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Ten years later, Rhaenyra has three sons—Jacaerys, Lucerys, and newborn Joffrey. All lack the Valyrian platinum hair, but King Viserys rejects Queen Alicent's assertion that Ser Laenor is not their father. Alicent tells Aegon he must prepare to one day dispute Rhaenyra’s claim for the Iron Throne. As Viserys’s firstborn son, he will always be a threat to Rhaenyra's claim and his life will be threatened. Daemon and his wife, Laena Velaryon, visit Pentos with daughters Baela and Rhaena. The prince offers them a lordship in exchange for an alliance against a resurgent Triarchy. Unable to give birth after an agonizing labor, Laena commands her dragon Vhagar to incinerate her. Ser Criston, now serving Alicent, goads Ser Harwin into attacking him by implying that Harwin fathered Rhaenyra's children. To ease family strife, Rhaenyra proposes Jacaerys marry Helaena, Alicent's daughter, which Alicent rejects since she believes Jacaerys is a bastard. Shortly after, a disgraced Ser Harwin bids Rhaenyra and her sons farewell before his father, Hand of the King Ser Lyonel Strong escorts him to Harrenhal castle. It is implied that Ser Harwin fathered Rhaenyra's three sons. Alicent confides to Ser Lyonel's younger son, Larys, that she wishes her father, Ser Otto, was still the king's Hand. Larys recruits three criminals to set a fire at Harrenhal, killing Lyonel and Harwin. Rhaenyra moves her household to Dragonstone, also bringing Laenor's lover, Ser Qarl Correy.

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In the Vale, Daemon Targaryen murders his estranged wife, Lady Rhea Royce, framing her death as a hunting accident.

King Viserys and Princess Rhaenyra sail to Driftmark to arrange the princess's marriage to Ser Laenor Velaryon, the son of Lord Corlys and Princess Rhaenys, thus uniting the Targaryens and Velaryon Houses. Knowing Laenor is gay, Rhaenyra says that, once married, they can perform their royal duties and be free to have lovers. Later, Ser Criston Cole proposes that he and Rhaenyra run away to Essos and assume new identities. Rhaenyra refuses to give up the throne and says they can continue their current relationship. Criston feels used and despairs over breaking his Kingsguard vows.

Before leaving King's Landing, Ser Otto Hightower warns Alicent that if Rhaenyra becomes queen, Alicent's children will be considered a dangerous political threat to the throne. Ser Larys Strong slyly asks Alicent about Rhaenyra's health, mentioning she was given a medicinal drink. Alicent questions Criston about allegations that Rhaenyra and Daemon had sex; Criston, misunderstanding, confesses that he slept with the princess. Criston expects execution, but Alicent merely dismisses him and keeps the secret; Rhaenyra's dishonesty distresses Alicent.

At a feast celebrating Rhaenyra and Laenor's forthcoming nuptials, Alicent interrupts Viserys' speech, entering the hall wearing a green gown matching House Hightower's signal color for a call to arms. Her uncle, Lord Hobert, promises her full political support. Daemon unexpectedly attends the feast. Ser Gerold Royce confronts him, claiming he murdered Rhea. Daemon denies it and demands he inherit Rhea's lands. Daemon flirts with Lady Laena, Lord Corlys's daughter. Daemon privately questions Rhaenyra about her marriage; she teasingly suggests they wed.

Laenor's lover, Ser Joffrey Lonmouth, realizes that Criston is Rhaenyra's paramour. Joffrey tells Criston that they should protect the wedding couple's secrets. Criston perceives this as blackmail and brutally beats Joffrey to death, bringing the feast to a disastrous end and devastating Laenor. Rhaenyra and Laenor are hastily wed in a private ceremony the same night. The frail Viserys collapses immediately after the ceremony. Later, as Criston is about to commit suicide over his misdeeds, Queen Alicent interrupts him.

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On a realm-wide tour to choose a spouse, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, accompanied by Ser Criston Cole, has travelled to Storm's End. With Lord Boremund Baratheon's guidance, she meets and rejects countless suitors. Rhaenyra abandons the tour while a fight erupts between two suitors, in which one, an adolescent boy, kills another by sword. As her ship approaches King's Landing, her uncle, Prince Daemon, flies past on his dragon, Caraxes, victoriously returning from his three-year military campaign in the Stepstones.

Daemon enters the throne room, wearing a crown and claiming the title "King of the Narrow Sea". He gives up the crown to his brother, King Viserys, swearing his allegiance. As the reconciled brothers celebrate at a feast, Queen Alicent confides her loneliness to Rhaenyra, who also admits missing their friendship. Daemon speaks to Rhaenyra, advising her to indulge her desires while fulfilling royal duties.

Late at night, Rhaenyra, disguised as a boy, sneaks out with Daemon to explore King's Landing's seamier areas. They drink, attend a bawdy play, and visit a brothel, where Daemon removes Rhaenyra's disguise and seduces her. Although she is willing, he is unable to consummate the affair. A frustrated Daemon leaves. Returning to the Red Keep, Rhaenyra seduces Criston, who is initially reluctant due to his Kingsguard oath of chastity, but they ultimately fornicate.

Ser Otto Hightower learns about Daemon and Rhaenyra's exploits from a spy called the White Worm. Otto informs Viserys, who reacts angrily to the news, as well as Otto's apparent spying on Rhaenyra. Alicent overhears their conversation. She confronts Rhaenyra privately, inadvertently revealing Otto's spying to Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra denies having sex with Daemon. Viserys angrily confronts a disheveled and hungover Daemon, who seemingly confirms the accusations and proposes to wed Rhaenyra. Viserys claims Daemon only wants the marriage to gain the crown, and exiles his brother back to the Vale. Alicent tells Viserys her belief that Rhaenyra is still a virgin.

To avoid scandal, Viserys orders Rhaenyra to marry Ser Laenor Velaryon. In exchange, she demands her father dismiss Otto as his Hand, claiming he manipulates the king for personal ambitions. Viserys does so. He later sends Grand Maester Mellos to give her an abortifacient drink to prevent any "unwanted consequences."

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WOW What a massive two weeks, first we got the casting announcement for The Hedge Knight (Tales of Dunk and Egg/ A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms) and we got news on the Jon Snow series! Also we break down House of the Dragon Episode 3 as we continue our rewatch to get ready for season 2!

For three years, Lord Corlys and Prince Daemon have battled the Crabfeeder and his forces in the Stepstones without the Iron Throne's support. Meanwhile, King Viserys plans a great hunt to celebrate his and pregnant Queen Alicent's son Aegon's second birthday. Rhaenyra resents her father's excessive attention towards her half-brother, Aegon. The ailing king insists that Rhaenyra, now seventeen, must marry to form a strong alliance and protect their lineage. Many suitors are considered, including two-year old Prince Aegon. Lord Lyonel Strong recommends Ser Laenor Velaryon, Lord Corlys' son, as a potential match to mend the rift between the two houses. Overcoming previous doubts, Viserys assures Rhaenyra she remains his heir and can choose her consort. Meanwhile, brothers Hobert and Otto Hightower secretly scheme to make Aegon the successor, furthering their family's power and prestige. After Ser Vaemond Velaryon pleads for the king's help, Viserys sends aid to the Stepstones. Seeing his brother's support as ending his chance to prove himself, Daemon acts as bait to ambush the Crabfeeder, winning the ensuing battle before the crown's forces arrive.

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We finally got a casting announcement for the upcoming series The Hedge Knight aka The Tales of Dunk and Egg based off GRRMs work from A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms!

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