House of the Dragon has come out swinging with Season 2 Episode 1, subjecting viewers to the dreaded Blood and Cheese incident, as the murder of Jaehaerys Targaryen closed out the episode. However, one of the lesser shocking aspects of the show was the ‘relationship’ that has blossomed between Ser Criston Cole and Alicent Hightower.
No romance or relationship of any kind is attested between Criston Cole and Alicent Hightower in Fire & Blood, and it seems to be a wholly new invention for the show. However, some fans had been dreading an uglier and more twisted relationship to unravel over the course of the show, seeds for which have been planted in Season 1 of House of the Dragon.
Fans feared that Alicent Hightower would be in a relationship with Larys Strong
Larys Strong, the Lord Confessor of the Red Keep, showed some interest in Queen Alicent Hightower, becoming her close confidante and putting his own father and brother to death to open up the position of the Hand of the King for Otto Hightower, Alicent’s father. Season 1 depicted the now head of House Strong being particularly interested in Alicent’s feet, something that made the queen quite uncomfortable.
Given that this was already set up in House of the Dragon Season 1, fans were scared that this could result in a full-blown affair between the two, something that would have been infinitely more disgusting than Criston Cole and Alicent Hightower’s affair, which has become a reality in the show’s second Season.
Not only is Lord Strong a sniveling snake of a character, but fans are not particularly fond of how the character views the Queen. While the affair between Criston and Alicent is not something fans are happy with (for narrative and extra-narrative reasons), it is much more preferable than a transactional power dynamic between Larys Strong and Alicent Hightower.
Fans took to the internet to talk about their disgust at the thought of Larys and Alicent getting together. User u/Lumpy_Flight3088 said:
I can’t tell you how relieved I was when I realised it wasn’t Larys’ head between Alicent’s thighs
This was also agreed to by a slew of other users, who had considered this scenario as well, and some were relieved despite never having thought of it either. There were a lot of digital sighs of relief that Alicent had not entered a transaction relationship with Larys, especially given how uncomfortable the character makes her.
Criston Cole’s affair with Alicent Hightower exposed their hypocrisy
Criston Cole has a seething hatred for Rhaenyra because she refuses to commit to him after their night together. Olivia Cooke‘s Alicent Hightower, for the same reasons, believes that Rhaenyra should be prosecuted. Given that both these characters hate Rhaenyra for all the ‘wrongs’ she has done, the two have begun to engage in the same kind of behavior that they condemn Rhaenyra for.
This not only exposes the duo as the hypocrites that they are but also works towards making the Greens less sympathetic to the audience. This makes it very difficult for fans to side with them, despite the marketing that the show has put out, expecting fans to declare for either side when one is clearly in the wrong while the other seems morally righteous.
This is something that has even overshadowed the Blood and Cheese incident, which could have worked towards making audiences sympathize with the Greens. However, the underwhelming presentation of the murder, along with the undercutting of the tension with Alicent and Criston’s affair. has made fans turn against the Greens even more, despite one of the Blacks being responsible for the murder of a sleeping child.
House of the Dragon Season 2 is currently streaming on HBO Max
