Warning: spoilers ahead for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1.
House of the Dragon fans can barely contain their disgust after watching the opening episode of season 3, which included a vomit-inducing mother-son kiss scene.
The Game of Thrones spin-off has never been one to shy away from controversy, particularly because House Targaryen – the family at the centre of the story – has a reputation for its incestuous ways.
However, the latest instance of incest in the series, where Prince Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) smooches his own mother, Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), has been blasted by viewers, with people claiming the scene was ‘unnecessary’ and included for shock value.
Episode one of the new season saw the highly anticipated Battle of the Gullet come to pass, resulting in the devastating death of Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett), the eldest son of Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy).
Before his death, Alicent secretly plots to get her son Aemond out of King’s Landing, so that Rhaenyra can swoop in and take back the Iron Throne from her half-brother, Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney), who’s fled the city after his life-changing injuries.
Alicent uses the influence that she has over Aemond to try to get him to leave the capital by any means necessary, telling him how she can’t lose him and giving him the motherly affection that he was missing as a child. (Hence why he developed ‘mummy issues’).
Aemond responds in a revolting way by kissing his mother on the lips, in a manner that was undoubtedly intended to be romantic.
Last season, audiences were left in shock when Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) had a sex scene with his mother in a dream sequence at Harrenhal. While that moment was also grotesque, it didn’t actually happen… unlike this.
‘If I had a nickel for every time [showrunner] Ryan Condal added non-canon mother-son incest to the show, I’d have two nickels. which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice,’ X user danyzstarlight remarked.
This scene with Aemond and Alicent is so gross 🤢,’ zee_xt wrote, while nyrasangel added: ‘There really was no need to have Aemond kiss Alicent in that scene, that was just purely for shock value.’
One fan called chattyreality referenced the fact that the kiss was rumoured before it aired, stating: ‘The Alicent/Aemond kiss was somehow worse than leaks suggested.’
‘Aemond kissing Alicent ???? Was that necessary??’ ashslnginslashr added.
Showrunner Ryam Condal gave his explanation for the scene, which didn’t happen in the book written by George RR Martin.
‘He’s somebody that was traumatised at an early age by his brother by taking him to a brothel long before his brain could probably process what was happening,’ he told Entertainment Weekly.
‘As these things do, that trauma then manifests a certain way in his behaviour as an adult. While I don’t think that Aemond is necessarily in love with his mother, I don’t think he’s able to separate the feelings that he has for her from these other male feelings that he experiences.’
Ewan added that, in his opinion, the moment shows that Aemond is ‘assuming control of the family’.
‘I always think of Ray Winstone from Scum. It’s like, “I’m the daddy now.” He’s the new leader. I think it leaves the question of what is the relationship gonna be with Alicent going forward?’
Olivia acknowledged to US Magazine how ‘shocking’ the interaction was, sharing: ‘I think it was quite odd for both of us. There has been this Oedipal undercurrent — unbeknownst to Alicent. And I think it’s shocking.’
While some fans jumped to Alicent’s defence, having been taken advantage of by men her entire life, others felt as though Aemond was the one being manipulated in that scenario.
‘I am going to hold your hand while I tell you this: Aemond was Alicent’s victim and not the other way around,’ dracalyrivers wrote on X.
House of the Dragon is available to watch on Sky Atlantic and NOW, with new episodes released on Mondays.
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