HOTD Showrunners (supposedly): Okay We Arent Going To Have Maelor As A Character Because Having A 2 Year

HOTD showrunners (supposedly): okay we aren’t going to have Maelor as a character because having a 2 year old on set makes things really difficult, what with child labor protections, all the people around them, and the kind of scenes they would be in.

Also the HOTD show runners; okay so Aegon the Younger is supposed to be about 5 years old while all this goes down. It’s essential he is old enough to remember the events of the war, because it marks him as a person and is the reason for most of his personality and actions as an adult, which has far reaching implications for House Targaryen and Westeros as a whole.

Show runners; so here’s this 2 year old babe in arms, and that’s his dragon who’s about the size of a cat. Everyone ready to shoot around him? Cool, let’s head to The Gullet!

**** Spoilers for TUA S4 ****

My frustration with the Lila/5 plot in S4 is that they had such a complex and layered relationship already, developed across S2+3 and which truly felt earned by the time we rejoin them in S4. Why would you ruin that by introducing romance?

Lila and 5 have always had a fascinating relationship, mirroring one another and matching one another in a way no other character’s can.

Lila is the only other character to have lived, worked in and experienced the Commission and to therefore know how 5 thinks and operates because of it. Similarity 5 was also once the tool of the Handler, used to do her dirty work and to be wielded against her enemies for her own interests. Lila was in many ways 5’s replacement; the Handler decided to raise her from a child so she would be more malleable and easy to groom in comparison to 5 who was a grown man with trauma from decades of isolation when she recruited him.

Even in this they are mirrored: 5 would definitely see similarities in the Handlers parental manipulation to Sir Reginald’s brand of parenting. Both parents out for their own interests and keen to have superpowered children to deploy as and when they wish.

In S2 once both of them are aware who the other is and how powerful they are, their interactions show their balanced nature. They meet one another punch for punch, witty quip for witty quip. Lila’s powered aids in this as she is literally using 5’s own ability to fight him: visually they are mirrors of one another through that fight scene, through to the end of the season. Lila is the only character we’ve seen able to fight 5 to a standstill for any period of time.

Then throughout S3 we see their relationship develop from grudging acceptance via the proxy of Diageo (she’s my brothers girlfriend vs he’s my boyfriends brother) to actual reliance upon one another. By the end of S4 they acknowledge and appreciate one another’s strengths and truly feel like sibilings in their bantering and teasing relationship. 5 actually calls her family, and Lila’s behaviour towards him becomes familial: ruffling hair, teasing, dancing alongside them all.

There would have been such opportunity for more growth in the subway if they kept it platonic.

Let’s dive into 5’s trauma-bonding to Delores due to lack of human contact; Lila takes up drawing and paints a mural of Diageo and her children, which she talks to every evening. It starts as something funny and to poke fun at their situation but she confesses to 5 that she’s actually come to rely on it, imagining their responses to her questions and guessing what their life has been without her. 5 has the opportunity to be honest about Delores and his love for her; he knows she’s a manaquin but

Have them bond over abusive narcissistic parents: Sir Reginald and the Chairwoman had a lot in common, how is Lila dealing with that as a mother now herself? They grew up running training drills and completing missions: stuck on their own they probably would create obstical courses of doom and fight one another for first place.

Let’s fucking talk about 5’s clear trauma from his first isolation: the poor guy was alone for 40 years with no one, and as a result he put his sibling bond upon a pedestal and risked everything to save their lives. This continues through multiple timelines and in the face of all their shenanigans, even when they are foiling his own plans; through it all 5 will defend his siblings at the expense of anything and everything else. This trauma-bonding to his siblings, when he’s been separated from them for twice as long as he was with them, shows the lasting impact of this isolation on his ability to form relationships or let relationships end. Now he’s once again separated from them; he’s probably going to be bouncing off of the walls about that, and it would be fun to watch.

Plus being on his own again?! Let’s have 5 rage at Lila about it, break down and despair over having to do this all over again. This time he has Lila to talk to but he’s still trapped in a version of his own personal nightmare. The whole attempt to save his family must feel completely useless because here is is again, at the end of the world, alone and without his family.

The plot wouldn’t have had to be changed much at all and we would have gotten fantastic character exploration, and more of the sibling bonding moments that are so key to carrying the show through its more ridiculous or fantastical moments.

On top of all of this one of the key characteristics of 5 and one of his main motivations is his love for his family and his need to protect them. He’s lied, betrayed and murdered people in cold blood all in the name of familial love. Why *on earth* would a character with that history ever consider a romance with his brothers wife and the mother of his brothers children?! Are they trying to argue that if Sloan has been able to come with them after the reset and it was her who was trapped with 5 for all those years, then he would have started something with her too? That goes against a core tenant of his character and is a bridge he just wouldn’t cross no matter how alone he felt.

And why does this character just *have* to have a romantic love plot when their entire character arc across 4 seasons has been about their devotion? Whether devoted to their siblings or their ‘manaquin-love’ coping mechanism, 5’s actions have always been to protect the people he loves.

Calling any of these characters stories lacking because the love wasn’t romantic shows how little the writers understand their own story. Nothing felt missing or absent from 5’s character, and their actions have always fit into the wider show narrative that love makes you do crazy things. Whether it’s Alison’s devolution to Claire, Sir Reginald’s devotion to Alyssa, of 5’s devotion for Delores The Umbrella Academy is united and driven by love.

The Elephant and the Chisel

For my whole life I've thought of myself as a statue, but I didn't know it until today. Until someone made a comment about a skinny girl inside who'll never arrive and I thought wait, I've thought that before.

I realized that is how I've been viewing myself and my body. That inside of me there is a more beautiful version of myself just waiting to be free, and if I can only chip away enough I can free her. If I can find the right creams and gels, the right clothes and poses, stop eating the wrong foods, if I can find the right exercises and do them for long enough, no longer, longer still...eventually this inner me, the beautiful woman who I'm waiting to be, will be revealed.

All I must do is chip away at the extraneous. Remove those parts society tells me I shouldn't have or don't need. That let me down or spoil the whole. My uneven skin tone. My heavy frame. My poor posture. My bad dress sense. My buck teeth. My frizzy hair.

Don't worry there's a cream for that. What's your skin care routine? You should add this one, once a month, it helps tighten your face. And this one, once a week to make it plump. And this one, everyday to smooth the tone.

And your hair. Have you tried this brush or that shampoo? No? But it can fix that issue, so and so swears by it, honestly look at the reviews.

Where do you work out? Do you work out? How do you work out? Oh you haven't tried this, you simply must, its essential to tone your arms. You should add that to your leg day, it really helps with you butt. Add this, stop that, change everything.

Have I chipped enough away yet? Can you see her, the beauty stuck within me? I know she's there. The world has told me she will come if I just do this right. If I do all the right things, in the right way, then eventually that striking, beautiful woman will be set free. Finally.

And that is what I've been told I should dedicate my life to, all of my precious and limited spare time, removing parts of myself. Chipping and cutting and picking and prying until finally someone will say 'voila! There she is. We always knew you could be beautiful!'

'There was always an elephant inside the rock, I just removed the parts that weren't'. How did those parts feel, to be torn from their whole? Told they were getting in the way. Told they spoilt the view?

Thinking again about the Eternals and how bad they fumbled that potential. Because you have an Oscar winning director, who ensures breathtaking cinematography, solid performances from capable and exciting actors, with set pieces and choreography that is honesty very good.

And you fuck it up with the script.

It’s the same issue we had with Batman v Superman: there’s 3 good movies fighting for space in 1 film.

Firstly you could focus on relationships, exploring the found family/ageless guardians/eternal love story route with the ‘urgent problem’ just being a more powerful or capable version of the Deviants. From Friends, to The Umbrella Academy, via The Avengers, Avatar the Last Airbender, Big Hero 6 - we love a found family trope, especially if they’ve been brought (back)together to save the world. Ultimately the other Eternals are the only beings on the planet who can truly understand and empathise with each other so let’s explore and show that bond. Tell their story across the ages of the Earth with proper time spent to flesh out these conflicts and moments which define the group as a whole and how they individually relate to one another.

Tell the eternal love story of Sersi and Icarus, but consider the view of the brilliant Only Lovers Left Alive: Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swindon convincingly portray an ageless love, unconcerned with immediate worries. They are currently living apart but both know that eventually they will make their way back to one another, and they are in constant contact across the globe. Sersi and Icarus could be that: they have been/are/will be together but as they measure life by millions of years living separately for a couple of decades is nothing. They will be drawn back together again and in their hearts only the other can truly know and love them for all that they are. Explore this while they fight for the planet they both have come to love.

Or consider the less brilliant but arguably more entertaining eternal love in Hitchcock: Charlize Theron and Will Smith are thousands of years old and have been driven apart by circumstance but now Charlize loves another man and wants to spend his moral lifespan with him. Both acknowledge that it’s inevitable they will be together again as some point in the future but for the next 60ish years they will live apart so she can experience that love. Maybe in the time they’ve been apart Sersi has come to love another and now that war has brought Icarus back into her life and they have to fight together their different assumptions are being tested; Icarus assumed they would fall back into their love, while Sersi wants another 60 years with her mortal lover. All to the backdrop of fighting to wipe out The Deviants forever and be released from their duty.

Secondly you could tell the story of soldiers betrayed by their general and commander, using the same plot from the actual movie. The Eternals are foot soldiers stationed to defend the human population and have devoted their lives to their growth and safety. They’ve even stood aside when other threats revealed themselves (the MCU up to this point) because their mission was Celestially Ordained and to deviate from it would compromise their purpose. To realise that devotion was twisted and they must now stand aside and allow those they spent their lives protecting to die horribly would be traumatic; explore and tell that story. Again we love an underdog discovering they have been lied to or used and turning on their previous corrupt commander; Mission Impossible, Gladiator, all the Bourne movies. We *like* the story of cogs in the machine realising they have been used and standing up for their principals. Have them discover this news earlier and the movie then deals with their decision to accept their assigned role or rebel against their commander. Add Athena’s PTSD and past memory revelations to bring home the stakes of their choice, with a ticking clock counting down to ‘emergence’, and you’ve got a real tragedy brewing,

Furthermore, weave in the power struggle between Sersi and Icarus regarding who will be leading them with Ajax dead. Icarus is the loud and commanding ‘leader” type stepping forward to assume command, but Sersi is the reassuring rock for the team who each member finds themself turning to for advice, guidance, or to ask what she wants to do next with the expectation they will follow her. Or Ajax isn’t dead here but Icarus has fallen in line as her loyal lieutenant, assuming the rest would follow his lead. Instead of the eternal love story being the focus it’s instead a clashing of ideologies and personalities; upon learning of the betrayal and their assumed role Icarus and Sersi react very differently, showcasing what kind of leader they would be. The team being forced to fight one another as they also split along lines of ‘acceptable collateral’ allows for personal stakes and drama for the audience as well; we’ve spent the movie learning about this family and now they’re being forced to destroy one another…? In the words (and voice) of Benoit Blanc ‘it compels me’.

Finally, you could tell the mystery of an unknown threat present on the planet who takes out Ajax without warning or explanation. The team must gather or be gathered to solve the whodunnit, assuming Deviant involvement despite flimsy and unconvincing evidence, and the shared mystery brings the group together once more, forcing them to confront buried history and historic disputes while they plan an attack on the remaining clusters of Deviants. The Umbrella Academy S1 followed similar lines but you’ve got a list of movies that also circle this plot: R.E.D, The A Team, Watchmen. The revelation of betrayal from within doesn’t need to go hand in hand with the Celestials betrayal plot , as long as Icarus has another reason for turning on the team.

This plot could dive more into the tensions and strain of their posting to Earth; they’ve had different opinions on how problems with humans should be solved, leading to fall outs and separations. Sometimes one or other of them has ‘called it wrong’ and another has had to come bail them out of a situation they created. But what unites them was a shared purpose and assumption that they would what’s have one another. Losing that surety is scary and forces character exploration.

All of these ideas were present in the actual movie, but were fighting for screen time to do their plot lines justice. The Eternals was such an interesting concept and honestly was executed well in so many regards. But trying to tell all these tales, while also encompassing the breadth of time and circumstance they encompass, and allow for personality and individuality in each team member to be showcased… that movie is bursting at the seams and the poorer for it.

Article in 'Film Threat' mag from the early 90s. We're either looking at a cool movie which went into production but never released, or Goncharov 2

Daemon's Wrong Wraith-visions (2/2)

Harrenhal and the visions or illusions therein should be a great narrative device to explore the newly discovered shortcomings of Daemon as a husband and leader, and it would make sense to address them now; after taking Harrenhal Daemon isn't said to have done much for a while in Fire and Blood so it makes sense to fill out the plot. There are also some hugely tough and tragic events on the horizon, and having Daemon recommitted to Rhaenyra is essential for the Black Faction to remain as a challenger for the throne. Additionally in the final arc of the Dance, Daemon being firmly and assuredly devoted to Rhaenyra will add tragedy to both his and her actions. To have the impact of those events and actions truly land, the audience's faith in Daemon as a husband to Rhaenyra and as a King-Consort to his Queen need to be unshakable. So it makes sense to devote time now to addressing any cracks in him.

But they picked the wrong wraiths to do it.

The first vision should have been of Viserys, allowing Daemon the chance to lash out at him properly; for never treating him as the true heir, and for not realizing Daemons devotion to him as a brother and a ruler. A lot of this was Ottos HighTower's poisoning of Viserys against him, but Dream-Viserys should also bring up all the instances in which Daemons selfish and short sighted actions not only undermined his own cause but harmed those he proclaimed to love.

Case in point; Rhaenyra and the brothel. Riding high on the step stones victory Daemon could have used that leverage and well thought out arguments and petitioned for her hand; It would quieten those people who didn't like a woman as the next ruler, as they may feel he would rule through her, which was incorrect but it would mean they didn't act against her rule; it would have stopped those who were whispering that Aegon should be the heir as he was a son, as now the kings brother would be the next King(in a way); it wouldn't have been out of character for the family, and Daemon had always treated her well (even if Viserys didn't believe he truly loved her); Rhaenyra hadn't found any men on her tour she liked but after such a procession she needed to announce a betrothal. And Viserys could annul the marriage to Rhea and allow her to marry again - another female 'ruler' of her house, which would lend support to Rhaenyra's claim to rule as a woman and a daughter of the former Lord.

But instead Daemon tries to 'force' Viserys to give him what he wants, and looses out on all of it. Not only that, Rhaenyra's reaction to his abandonment is sleeping with Sir Criston and then rejecting him which creates an enemy for life, one who is now in command of her bothers Kingsguard and Army; An enemy she would not have if not for that night. Additionally a key part of Daemon trying to force the marriage relied upon Rhaenyra's reputation being sullied, which would have carried over to her as Queen. She would have started her rule with people whispering that she was a whore in the same way they currently whisper that her sons are bastards. In trying to get what he wanted Daemon actively harmed Rhaenyra, something he claimed in his next breath he would ever do; why on earth should Viserys trust that he loved her when his first act when back home was to harm her?

These discussions and scenes would be compared to Daemons actions with Blood and Cheese; anther instance of Daemon acting selfishly because he was frustrated but which harmed Rhaenyra's reputation and position as Queen. He needs to stop acting this way, or no one he loves will ever trust him to act without supervision.

The second vision should have been Jaehaerys, for Daemon to work through his reaction to having to manage both the duty as a ruler and that of a husband. Jaehaerys is seen in Fire and Blood and GOT as probably the greatest Targaryen King, however his actions as a father and grandfather were terrible and caused untold issues within the Targaryen family which Daemon is still dealing with. His disregard of his children left them feeling like pawns in his plans, his lack of care for his daughters and forcing them to not only marry but marry young lead of 4 of them dying before the age of 20 and 1 fleeing the continent, his decision to change the succession from Aemon's line (i.e. Rheneys) to his second son Baelon (who was alive with two sons - Viserys and Daemon) caused his wife to leave him and live apart for ~2 years, and his refusal to betroth Daemon to his youngest daughter instead of Rhea Royce caused Daemon years of anguish and didn't prevent his daughter Geal from dying a few years later.

Jaehaerys also put the succession to the vote in The Great Council, instead of deciding the succession for himself; he had already declared Baelon as his heir over Rhaenys when her father Amon died, he could have done the same again when Baelon died and simply stated that the succession stood unchanged and Viserys would continue to be his heir. Instead he called all the great houses and asked their opinions; not only did this fracture the relationships between Rhaenys and Viserys/Daemon as they stood as challengers to one another, it established a male heir as 'better' than a female one and it gave the houses the impression that their opinion on the succession could and should be asked for. Now The Greens are exploiting these precedents to argue that the houses (who follow Andal succession rules) should champion Aegon and ignore the previous Kings wishes. Jaehaerys acted as a ruler by soliciting his lords opinions, and not as a head of the family to prevent fracturing relationships.

As a result of or at least partially because of Jaehaerys' actions the Targaryen family at the time of his death had only 4 members (if you count Rhaenys as a Velaryon due to her marriage) and was fundamentally fractured, and now a succession is able to be challenged.

A Dream-Jaehaerys who praised Daemon for prioritizing the realm over his laboring wife would likely horrify Daemon. To be told that he was on the course to be that kind of ruler would be a great opportunity for Daemon to work through what kind of father and grandfather he wants to be within the context of also being a King. Daemon was shown to be quite a loving husband to those partners he loved and respected, so having him reaffirm that he doesn't want to be a great ruler at the expense of his family would be an amazing character moment.

The final vision should be of Aemma, his mother Alyssa, and his first wife Leana, to make Daemon realize that his 'role' is one traditionally held by women and yeah, news flash, it sucks. Oh your opinions and views, which are informed and intelligent, aren't being listened to? You can only advise the ruler and not just have your advice acted upon? Your power is dependent upon the person you married, and all your decisions, advice and suggestions must be run past them before they can be actioned? Wow, truly shocking, how horrible for you.

This is the reality of those married to the ruler and while that has up until now been a women you are seeking to change that and so it will be the role you occupy; Your duty is to advise and aid them, you will not be able to act in your own interest unless it aligns with theirs. Daemon would struggle with this, both as a man who has never needed to defer to his wife or to any woman to be 'allowed' to do anything, and also as a person who has never liked answering to others or having to have approval for his actions. When we see Leana and Daemon in Pentos it is clear that Daemon is in control of their life and decisions as a couple and a family; Leana wishes to return to Driftmark and needs to petition Daemon for permission to return. Daemon is not used to being the one needing to petition. This position is hard to navigate and so those who occupy it, and up until this point that was been women, have learned to work by influencing others and controlling those who are able to act without oversight or restriction.

It wouldn't be 100% the same for Daemon of course as he still is both a man in a world that values that and a proven leader, so his opinion will be sought out and heard. But he will need to come to terms with the reality of his role and the world in which he will operate.

If he wishes to be given greater freedoms to act independently then he must earn that trust, and to do so he needs to stop acting selfishly and re-prioritize his role as a husband and father over that of a leader and ruler. Then the actual ruler will trust in the decisions he makes enough that they will not need to constantly limit or review them.

And if he can make peace with the reality of his role within his family, in that he was never supposed to be King and will always be second to his wife, then he can finally be the support and comfort that he claims he wants to be to the woman he loves. He can stop judging her actions by the yardstick of his own perspective (i.e I would have handled that differently, and by not doing it my way you are doing it wrong) and truly help his family heal and reestablish themselves as the gods-amongst-men which he views them to be.