TWO Dragon Battles?!? | House Of The Dragon episode 3 Reaction And Review | HBO Max & Crave 

Sorry for the peaky audio y'all but we will be back to our better audio set for next weeks episode!!!

Once they take the Kingsguard oath they can neither marry nor have children, just like the night's watch

I love being here with people who actually enjoy dialouge, acting and story. I die inside every time someone calls this show boring. It's like they are begging for a fast track to this show becoming late stage game of thrones.

I honestly don’t think there was really a fight between Crabfeeder and Daemon. Crabfeeder just seemed like a sickly dude who would’ve been no match for Daemon. Daemon likely just slaughtered him

The way caraxes flies with his tiny hind legs open is so goofy, I love him.

I will add some fauna information: a horse with a rider will outrun a deer, even if the rider wears armor, because deer have poor endurance. This is how wolves manage to kill deer. So hunting a deer on horseback with a sword is definitely possible, although people used spears, not swords. Domesticated pigs can be dangerous and sometimes kill their owners. A wild boar is definitely dangerous. They charge, throw their target on the ground and then use their tusks. If the tusks do not get the job done, they will shuffle back and charge again.

The dragon at the end was Seasmoke, you guys filled in the rest!

He didn't see it as his brother coming to help him, he saw it as his brother coming to take his glory Also, the crab dude ain't got no Two Rivers men, of course they failed to hit Daemon for so long.

I think Daemon was pissed bc for 3 years him and his allies were fighting while his brother did nothing then all of a sudden his brother comes in to steal the victory and the credit

The dragon's name is Seasmoke ridden by Ser Laenor Velaryon, the son of Lord Corlys Velaryon, the Sea Snake and Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, the Queen Who Never Was. The dragon's name is a perfect reflection of Laenor's heritage (Sea for his Velaryon heritage and Smoke for his Targaryen heritage). I know that Corlys initially mentioned that the Velaryons were not dragonlords, but that was when the Velaryons first left Valyria. When the Targaryens migrated to Westeros, there have been many intermarriages with House Velaryon, and centuries of intermarriage made the Velaryons practically a branch of House Targaryen. Aegon the Conqueror's mother was a Valaena Velaryon, same goes for King Jaehaerys I's mother Alyssa Velaryon. Lord Corlys himself is Viserys' second cousin. This intermarriage allowed the Velaryons to sire possible dragon riders (there will be a Velaryon born from a common-born mother who'll be a dragon rider in the future), and Laenor being the son of Princess Rhaenys gave him enough dragon blood to be a dragon rider, same as his sister Laena.

Daemon is one of the best Anti-heroes in a long time.

"He got taken out by a pig!" A lot like King Robert. Wild boars are quite angry beasties.

That metaphor of little nicks building up over time is super on point; we're literally seeing the little nicks and infections Viserys has gotten from sitting the iron throne build up to the point where he's already losing his fingers

Daemon basically waited for his brother to concede for him to actually decide to win the war just to make his brother look weak. It's cutthroat politics 101 and now in the next episode he will stroll in to kings landing like a champion the Prince who defeated the crab lord with only 700 men damn this show has excellent writing.

They also mentioned a lack of supplies (specifically food) for why the crab people were doing well vs daemon & corley's army. They said tey weren't having enough luck fishing, because I guess the crab people would know where to fish in the caves

It's not necessarily a Targaryan only thing to have dragons. What bonding with dragons *does* require is the blood of old Valyria, which is very rare after the Doom. It's one of the reasons why the Targaryans justify intermarriage with their relatives, because it maintains that blood and bond with dragons. The Velaryons do have that connection to old Valyria and have intermarried with the Targaryans in the past. So they can ride dragons. Also, as was mentioned, Corlys's wife is a dragonrider, so it makes sense that her son is as well.

The Crabfeeder's forces were backed by 3 of the free cities with finances, men, and material. Daemon and House Velaryon were self supplying their war efforts. Beyond the couple of dragons and household troops, Corlys only had mercenaries, and were generally out matched for the entire war effort.

Visyres laughing at Ottos marriage suggestion is one of my favorite GoT moments. Just being so fed up with the politics that you have to laugh.

I want to point out a couple cool moments I picked up on. 1. Alicent's motives are interesting because the Hand sent her in to try and sway Viserys' mind with regards to the heir, but instead she suggests a course of action to try and bring more peace to the realm by helping in the Steps. Not even bringing up the heir making it look like her motives are more for her husband than her father. (Even though Daemon negates the gesture to save his own face. Him walking back into court after that victory will be interesting). And 2. They set up Rhaenyra as the stronger hunter and by having her march through camp with the boar, herself all covered in blood and Ser Criston not so, which makes her look like she took down a dangerous boar by herself. Whereas Viserys had an entire party help him and the half hearted clapping from the people when he kills the stag show just how strong they think their king is. Just a nice juxtaposition.

I don’t know who said it, someone from the Alt Shift X livestream, but I was taken aback when they compared the screams of pain and suffering the stag made to the screams of pain and suffering Aemma made, both caused by Viserys’ believed need to act like a king he doesn’t want to be. He believed he needed a son, so he got Aemma pregnant. He believed that the killing of a stag would be a good omen for Aegon, so he felt compelled to kill it but couldn’t do it cleanly.

This was a masterful episode from a writing and acting perspective. A three year time skip could easily give us a lot of telling instead of showing where Viserys, Rhaenyra, and Daemon are at now. However, this episode, while it did tell, it showed so much more. Hats off to these actors!

It took 3 years to beat the crab king because he was fighting in the steps which are basically just small rocky Islands. The seasnake is used to fighting on the sea however when you're fighting with Jagged rocks everywhere there's no way to really land a ship repeatedly without damage. Also its hard to have armies set up camp in that terrain. And every time they would fight the crab people they would just Retreat into they're impenetrable caves. You have to think of this like Afghanistan. And dragons are basically useless in that terrain because they can't dive into caves and flush people out. The only way to get that Army is to make sure they're in one place at one time and that's what Daemon finally did risking it all to draw them all together by fake surrender.

Alicent kept her trips to the Kings chambers a secret from Rhaenyra, with full understanding of how Rhaenyra would feel and knowing that providing male kids would give Rhaenyra problems. Alicent is not completely innocent here.

Love y’all’s reactions!!! The Lady asked why they were shooting fire arrows at a dragon, and it’s because they were aiming for Daemon. Also shooting unlit arrows is a devious trick but in the dark….let’s just say it’s hard enough to hit a target in broad daylight. So fire arrows are a good way for siege defenders to gauge distance and see if they were actually hitting anything. Attackers used them to light a town on fire from outside of the structure. Plus it looks badass🤣🤣😎😎

I totally agree with both of your assessments on the episode and the show. The time jumps were a little jarring but understandable when you realize these are the key moments we need to know for character development later on. Plus other houses don't seem to have major plot lines early on to justify dragging the story along. Also good catch Nerdy I didn't notice Rhaenyra was sitting in Otto's chair and I will miss Milly as Rhaenyra.

thank god for you guys, reactors with great understanding of the art of storytelling because I've seen so many people complaining about the time jumps or not being able to see certain scenes/fights

"He is a literal madman!" As they say: Every time a new Targaryen is born, the gods toss the coin in the air and the world holds its breath...

Yes he's a madman and the best character on the show. Millie is my second favorite and just wish she wouldn't be replaced. But everyone is killing it can't wait till Sunday.

You’re correct. King’sguard can’t marry, since they must always put the king first.

Laenor's dragon is called SeaSmoke, he can ride dragons due to his Targaryen blood on his mother side. Rhaenys rides Meleys, the Red Queen. Laena will also ride her own dragon, but I'll keep the name a surprise

Targaryens are the only dragonlords to have escaped Valyria before the Doom. There were 40 Dragonlord Families who all intermarried, including within their own families (hence the incest) to keep the Dragonlord/Dragon Riding gene within the 40 families. All Dragonlords are of Valryian descent, but not all Valyrians are dragonlords or dragon-riders. House Valrayon were one of those families that are of Valyrian decent, dating back to before the Doom, but not Dragonriders. Until they started intermarrying with the Targaryens.

I really like lord laynell. I think he is the only member In crown court that actually gave best advise for the king and realm and not for his own agenda. I also like his two sons. I want to know more about his family and house. Wish to get more screen time

Tipsy Viserys is such a mood, turns out if he permanently had a mild buzz then he would be a much more confident king.

“The Volume” technology being used on House of Dragons, same as on Mandalorian, et al, is actually cheaper and provides much better results than previous Game of Thrones. Reason why dragons look so much more detailed and ep2 Bridge scene…

As for the arrows being on fire. Yes, it would be easier to see where they were being shot from but also allow corrections from the archers as to know where their arrow is going.

Laenor (Son of Corliss Valeryon and Rhaenys Targaryen) coming in on Seasmoke was….perfection!

Welcome Seasmoke! With Laenor Velaryon as a package.

Ser Criston is blessed with such happy manners.

Love the analysis of the death by a thousand cuts! So true for this story

I liked the conversation between Rhaeneera & Viscerys...i'm not sure i believe him when he says he won't replace her as heir though. He's kind of a weak person, who doesn't make very good decisions...i think he could be pushed into changing his mind, if the right words are whispered in his ear. Especially after he said..."i swear on your mother's memory." I immediately thought...oh boy, he's gonna break that promise for sure 😉. It's the equivalent of saying "i'll be right back" in a horror movie...as soon as you hear that, you know that they aren't gonna make it back...

Dragon choose whether to be ridden, Valyrian blood or not. Viserys says it in the first episode:”The idea we control dragons is an illussion” sorry for not perfect english.

I rationalize the war taking 3 years because there are a LOT of islands in the Stepstones, and you have to clear them out one at a time, and make sure they don't just go occupy it again after you leave. It's not like conquering one island, it's invading the whole Caribbean. They might even have to establish colonies on key islands in order to establish control.

8:06 the way y'all were on cue for that laugh and clap has me rolling 😭😭😭

Daemon definitely proved he is a Rogue with high luck and agility thus high evasion

The Velaryon dragon Corlys' son rode to battle is called Sea Smoke according to the episode's subtitles.

"Fire & Blood" does not really go into that much depth about Daemon's and Corlis's war in the Stepstones. We also now have three living Dragons seen: Caraxes, Syrax and Seasmoke. Two others have been namedropped: Dreamfyre and Vhagar.

One of the easiest examples I have, to display martins ability to tell a story through puzzle pieces, is the doom of Valyria. The faceless men take credit for the doom… however, who paid them? In the world book it has a line saying: “Valyrian legend said their downfall would come from Lannister gold.” Later in the world book it says: the lannisters gained bright roar (a Valyrian sword) in the century before the doom. Aenar Targaryen moved from the freehold 12 years before the doom, setting up on the coast of Westeros in dragon stone. In another text/book it mentions that Valyrian steel costs what you would pay for a small army. Peter balish says in a game of thrones that the faceless men charge the price of a small army. Because Valyria would not take Lannister gold, you can deduce that the lannisters bought bright roar from the Targaryens. And when the doom fell and the aftermath was done. The targaryens were the only dragon lords left alive… From all these little pieces you get the idea that: the lannisters paid the targaryens for bright roar, and the targaryens then paid the faceless men for the doom… From various texts all in passing dialogue or description George paints a picture of what is the likely story that played out. And he does THIS type of writing throughout all the plots and all the books… you don’t even know something is a plot till you delve into details like this… lol. It’s insane.

I feel like Daemon having dark sister and going up against a diseased crab feeder probably didn't last long anyway haha. Pretty visceral showing him just dragging a chunk of the dude

Fun Details: Crab Feeders were supported by not inly the Triarchy, but also Dorne. Those people with Turban are Dornish Men.

Another place we see the huge budget is comparing them the Baratheon boar hunt from the beginning of GoT to the name day hunt in this episode!

I'm assuming the war of the stepstones lasted as long as it did because a) it took so long for anyone from westeros to really muster their forces and fight back and b) logistics. The Crabfeeder had advantage of at least a few months to build up his forces, his war chest, without repercussions, as well as not having to go much of anywhere to refill, whereas the westerosi were always away from their home. Maybe not very far, but far enough that it every move they made would take several days to plan, to pack, and to enact. Also, spoilers, but in the book I believe the Crabfeeder began as an actual admiral from one of the free cities, rather than a pirate, so he had actual state funding at first.

two episodes in a row Rhaenyra makes a good point and Viserys can only be like... ok well yeah you're right lol

in the book Aliscent is 19 and Rhaenyra is 9. they made them friends in the show for us to be heartbroken when they fall out. In the book they are friendly but only for a while.

Kingsguard are forbidden to hold lands or titles, or to marry

The dude over Seasmoke (the grey dragon) is Laenor Velaryon (the same boy that orchestrated this whole ploy). He can ride a dragon because he is part Targaryen (his mother is Rhaenys Targaryen, Daemon's cousin). At that time in a song of ice and fire's history, only targaryens or people with targaryen blood can ride dragons, otherwise the dragon pretty much would kill anyone who try (and many even with targaryen blood can't).

I appreciate how they have shown how low standing Lannistes are in this time, makes me like Tywin more.

I don't think he had burns, I think he had greyscale (and, you know, he wore the skin of his enemies as a mask...)

"Daemon is a madman"... without his box

remember HBO did not give them a second season until ep. 1 was shown, so they had to cram alot in 1 season, I hope the end of this season which is already made does not screw up next season

Btw the crab feeder doesn’t have burns it’s a disease called Gray Scale. Same disease Jorah had in Game of thrones

The fire arrows is so the audience can see them and realize what is going on. Edit: the Valeryon children are also Dragon riders since their mother was a Dragon Rider.

Thanks For Supporting Atlantus! Pray That Yall's Heart Was Fairly Taken Care Of WlTH GREAT Hospitality...During The Festival. AMEN! Keep Listening!

42:39 the reason why they can't take out all their ships is because they're getting everything from 3 free cities, Lys, Myr and Tyrosh. These free cities are providing so much material that realistically its not possible. It was also mentioned in the table battle that they killed most of the soldiers but the Crabfeeder hired sell swords to help him

The fire arrows probably help to illuminate the target so they can hit the dragon rider in the darkness. Other thoughts: 1. The cave problem is quite like Afghanistan…or Okinawa…where we actually went into the caves… 2. Homer has massive time jumps, not all sequentially, in the telling of his two epics.

I am so glad you talked about disaster. Unlike GOT where we had years to get attached to Arya, Jon, Dany and the others, I would truly advise folks not to get too emotionally attached to any of these characters.

Also, Kingsguard marrying is a HARD no. There was a major scandal when a Kingsguard was found to have 3 families, all secret from each other. He was forced to take the black.

i think crabfeeder wasn't really supposed to be a focus. The fact daemon killed him and earned that glory was the real point of it. If he was a villain that really meant something to the story, it would have been different, but that was just a stepping stone (no pun intended 😂) to bigger plot lines

9:45 Little did we all know just how serious this question actually was...

Daemon is a bit draconian, but of course he is. He is a dragon.

I just enjoy your reactions so much, and your discussions even more!! So fun.

I am so glad I found your channel. I really enjoyed your reactions to the episode and I cannot wait to watch more House of the Dragon reactions from you guys and other reactions too. I also hit the subscribe button too.

Fire arrows look cool on TV. That's why they are used.

The war and crab feeder are no better than a footnote in the books. They say in episode one or two that the triarchy alignment have the resources to continuously supply the crab feeder with supplies and men. They are backed by tons of gold. Daemon and Corly’s only have their own resources as the crown has refused to help for 3 years. I’d check a map so you can see what the step stones are like. It might explain the shipping routes supplying the army better for you

It's ironic that on a previous video you made a comment about "Rhaenyra" being a badass name. I Googled it and the name has skyrocketed since HotD premiered. Ironically the top 2 names in 2023 so far are Olivia at #1 and Emma at #2. The names of the adult actresses that portray Alicent and Rhaenyra, of course. 😊

The Crabfeeder has greyscale :) it was confirmed in the official inside the episode video. Also this Stepstones war lasted so long because the Stepstones is a very big area with lots and lots of islands. In episode one it is said that the Crabfeeder called himself king or prince or something of the area there and it is implied that the Free Cities were helping those pirates by sending them supplies (weapons/food/ships maybe). This episode it was said that the pirates abducted a woman which would porbably be sold to a whorehouse in the Free Cities, more prove of the Free cities helping those pirates. To be able to control all of the Stepstones area and the trading route that runs through it those pirates must be at many more islands in the area next to the one where we saw the battle happen. We only saw that specific area because the Crabfeeder was there, but there probably still were lots of pirates at other islands in the Stepstones left that need to be defeated. But they wanted to show us Daemon take out their leader.

Laenor Velaryon is the son of corlys and Rhaynese and as such is of pure valerian blood which is why he is a dragon rider his dragon is also called Seasmoke

Daemon : Leroooyyyyy Jjjenkinsss

Right before Deamon's arrival, they discussed the plan to send a single man in there as bait to lure everyone out. Immediately forgotten or have you both not listened. Furthermore, there will have been no fight between Deamon and the crab guy. He hid in his cave all the time from the beginning, as cowards do. Deamon is in there and has done one strike with the sword and that's it.

There's a simple answer for why they used fire arrows...so we can see them. Pretty much the same for most movies/shows where fire arrows are used at night when not specifically trying to burn anything.

A madman? GIVE HIM A BLUE BOX

Rhaenyra got Lan Mandragoran teleportation skills.

I would think the fire arrows at night are less about burning the target and more about the archers knowing if they are actually hitting there targets or if they're just shooting way off in the dark. Even if the fire doesn't burn them its still an arrow and still gunna stab

Hmm not sure if she meant it that way but Alicent did issue a diss.. The baby came quickly and without fuss.. no remember how Rhanerya mom dies.. its kinda messed up what she said.. Rhaneyra walking through after her stag kill was everything... Daemon was the MVP of this episode and he literally didnt utter a word.. if Matt Smith doesnt get an Emmy.. he will be CHEATED!! EPISODE MVP's Daemon Targaryn Rhaneyra Targaryon Laenor Velayron King Viserys Corlys Velaryon They were all amazing this episode...

It's Corlys's son. His mother is a targaryan

That's Corlys and Laenys, the queen that never was, son riding his dragon at the end. The one who called his uncle the master of complaints at the stepstones. He is of Velaryon blood and half Targaryen on his mom's side which is why he is a dragonrider.

I love how Cristin Cole subtly swore fealty to Reynaera. He very carefully told her he was forever loyal to her. It was a great moment.

They are shooting flame arrows in order to see where they hit... i mean its complete darkness.

They were essentially doing a siege there, and a rule of thumb regarding sieges is that the besieging forces need to be at least 10x bigger than the ones being besieged. Another massive issue regarding sieges (and war in general) is the matter of logistics, which would be a big problem for the Velaryons, since they need to establish a supply line all the way from Driftmark to the stepstones, which is a big challenge even for them. They can't count on being supplied from the Stormlands, and Dorne's still hostile at this point, whereas the Crabfeeder has support from a number of Free Cities. Most wars and battles were won and lost on logistics. Also, the history of Westeros has shown Dragons aren't the be all, end all on the battlefield, as Dragons failed to bring Dorne into the fold.

20:13 "or at least the animals do" I mean, that's what the boar was trying to communicate, right!? He was just a little over enthusiastic, and had no sense of personal space! We've all known people like that! 😁

Daemon may come off as a madman, but it was a method to his madness… And it work! He is a quintessential Alpha Male, and that’s what they do.

Crabfeeder's disfigurement is not due to burns, it is the result of Greyscale infection.

For future reference I'd hold back talking about specific spoilery fates of characters you know about even if you don't know the full details. Some people might not want the same half-spoilers you've had. I've read the book so for me personally it's fine, but for the sake of others I'd suggest sticking to what you know from the show, or at least verbalise a disclaimer to give people a chance to leave the video before you discuss book spoilers for season 4 or 5 events.

Lenore Valarians dragon at the end is named Sea Smoke:)

Laenors dragon I believe was named sea smoke.

Keep in mind Criston is 15 years older than Rhaenyra

I too thought that was Jaskier for a sec! 😅

Laenor Velaryon rides Seasmoke.

The dragon rider is Leanor Velaryon, with his dragon seasmoke, his father is Corlys Velaryon and his mother is Rheanys Targaryan (queen who nevernwas) so he is half Targaryan which is why he has a dragon. Seasmoke is the white dragon u see and is the child of Dreamfyre, a theory says that Dreamfyre is probably the mother of the 3 stone eggs that Daenerys gets which where stole from Dreamfyre long ago Edit: That is why the white dragon and Drogon look similar

Fun fact caraxes aka The Blood Wyrm ( Daemon's dragon) is actually deformed, hence the long neck. Thats also why he has the winged legs to help fly with that deformed body. Makes for cool design though

Cragas isn't burned but rather afflicted by Greyscale.