Game of Thrones was lauded for many of its aspects, with one key component being the plethora of strong female characters. The fantasy series was packed full of fearsome women, from Catelyn Stark to Daenerys Targaryen.
House of the Dragon has clearly followed this theme, with the women running the show. The first season has set up the Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons, and there are some female leads who will be major players in the story to come.
Rhaenyra Targaryen
The series centers on Rhaenyra Targaryen, who is initially played by Milly Alcock and then Emma D’Arcy after the time jump. The princess is the heir apparent to King Viserys Targaryen, and the late king was adamant that she would succeed him even after he had sired a son.
D’Arcy is the perfect casting for the powerful princess, and they made the role their own after Alcock’s fabulous turn in the earlier episodes.
The problem for Rhaenyra is that Westeros had never seen a female ruler, and many of the great houses can’t bring themselves to bend the knee to a woman. Hence why many of the allies of House Hightower plotted with the Hand of the King, Otto Hightower, to install Viserys’ son, Aegon II Targaryen, on the Iron Throne after his father died.
Alicent Hightower
Alicent Hightower is Rhaenyra’s childhood friend who goes on to become the second wife of Viserys. Olivia Cooke plays the role with aplomb, with Emily Carey acting as the younger version of the character in the first half of the season.
Queen Alicent shares a lot of similarities with Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones, in that she will do everything in her power to protect her children.
The Dance of the Dragons begins when she pushes her son’s claim for the Iron Throne, despite Rhaenyra being named as an heir. Alicent has already proven to be a skilled player at the game of thrones, having employed the highly useful services of Larys Strong.
The sneaky character played by Matthew Needham works in the shadows and does a lot of the necessary dirty work for Alicent behind the scenes. He also provides her with vital information that can help her get the upper hand over her rivals.
Rhaenys Targaryen
Rhaenys Targaryen is known as the Queen Who Never Was, as she had been a candidate to succeed King Jaehaerys as his granddaughter. Despite being next in line, it went to a vote among the ruling houses of the Seven Kingdoms, and she was passed over in favor of her cousin, Viserys.It’s clear that Rhaenys has a huge part to play in the coming wars, and the character played by Eve Best is also responsible for the most badass scene in the series so far.
In the penultimate episode when Aegon II was being anointed as the new king of Westeros, she burst into the coronation on top of her dragon, Meleys. At this point, she had the opportunity to burn the usurper on the spot, but she cleverly realized this wasn’t a great idea and fled King’s Landing instead.
House of the Dragon already has plenty of strong women in key roles, and they are set to have a huge influence on the seasons ahead. The HBO series has been met with critical acclaim so far, and it is only set to get better.