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We know a lot about House of the Dragon‘s story. We know all the major figures and events, who will survive, and how it will end. But despite all of that knowledge, the show’s premiere still managed to drop a huge revelation. It’s a monumental piece of lore that reframes the series, Aegon’s Conquest, House Targaryen, and Game of Thrones. Because a dream brought fire and blood came to Westeros to one day lead the fight against the White Walkers.
Once King Viserys decided to name his daughter heir to the Iron Throne, he told Rhaenyra a family secret few Targeryens ever even knew. It’s also a secret never before shared in all of George R.R. Martin’s grand story – the real reason Aegon conquered Westeros.
Before Aegon’s Conquest, House Targaryen stood as the world’s last dragonlords for nearly a century. A minor noble house of Old Valyria, they fled the empire twelve years before its Doom. They only left because Lord Aenar Targaryen’s daughter, known as Daenys the Dreamer, foresaw Valyria’s fall. When the Doom consumed all of the empire and its dragons, House Targaryen was safely on Dragonstone.
But despite possessing the greatest power in the world and residing along Westeros’s eastern coast, House Targaryen barely involved itself in the Realm’s affairs for nearly 100 years, let alone attacked. Aegon didn’t either initially. Before looking west he cared more about what was happening across the Narrow Sea in Essos. That only changed—or so we thought—when King Argilac Durrandon of Storm’s End insulted Aegon. One act of violence from a single old stubborn king led Aegon to conquer the whole continent, not just Argilac’s kingdom.
Until now there’s always been something strange about House Targaryen’s century of inaction followed by Aegon’s overreaction to Argilac. Westeros, rife with in-fighting and millennia old animosity, was ripe for a dragon invasion. And House Targaryen had good reason to do just that. Dragonstone was not the easiest place to live. Now thanks to House of the Dragon we know what changed Aegon’s thinking, and therefore the world forever. Here’s what Viserys told his daughter about Aegon the Conqueror:
Ambition alone was not what drove him to conquest. It was a dream. And just as Daenys saw the end of Valyria, Aegon foresaw the end of the world of men. It is to begin with a terrible winter, gusting out of the distant North. Aegon saw absolute darkness riding on those winds, and whatever dwells within will destroy the world of the living. When this great winter comes, Rhaenyra, all of Westeros must stand against it. And if the world of men is to survive, a Targaryen must be seated on the Iron Throne, a king or queen strong enough to unite the Realm against the cold and the dark. Aegon called his dream “The Song of Ice and Fire.” This secret has been passed from king to heir since Aegon’s time.
House Targaryen has a long recorded history of prophetic dreams starting with Daenys. In the novels Daenerys has them. As did a prince named Daeron the Drunken and the Targaryen bastard Daemon II Blackfyre. Now we know Aegon had them as well. He saw the return of the Night King three centuries before the White Walkers breached The Wall. That dream, more than personal ambition, pushed him to take over Westeros. That also helps explain why he let those who bent the knee keep their lands and titles rather than install lords loyal to him. From Aegon’s perspective, he was there to conquer so he could unite Westeros, not destroy or remake it. That was the only way to ensure a Targaryen could lead the charge against the Long Night. His dream fundamentally changes everything we know about Aegon came to Westeros with his sisters.
(Note: Dragons didn’t even exist during the first Long Night. Neither did House Targaryen.)
But the ramifications of this prophecy, shared only with a king’s heir, changes everything we know about every Targaryen king who followed Aegon. Each carried the burden of a dark secret that involved the very fate of the world. That huge responsibility re-contextualizes every decision any of them ever made. That even includes (without condoning or excusing) Viserys’s decision in House of the Dragon‘s premiere to sacrifice his wife for an heir. Viserys’s obsession with having a son whose claim could not be challenged was at least partly about ensuring a Targaryen sat on the Iron Throne until Aegon’s dream came true.
Aegon’s prophecy now also reframes why Rhaenyra will soon fight a savage civil war to claim the Iron Throne. Her father entrusted her with the most important responsibility in the world. But that secret doomed some of Aegon’s other ancestors, too. It’s the same secret King Daeron the Young Dragon knew of while singularly focused on bringing Dorne under his rule. It’s also a dream Aegon the Unlikely knew about when he died trying to hatch dragon eggs.
But this prophecy also changes everything we know about Game of Thrones and the events leading up to it. That includes how Daenerys Targaryen never knew about her ancestor’s dream, and why Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark’s love led to mankind’s salvation.
One day Rhaegar Targaryen—son of the Mad King, heir to the Iron Throne, and older brother of Daenerys—suddenly decided he had to become a great knight. Some believe he made that decision because he read about the Prince That Was Promised prophecy and thought he was that prince. Now we know it might have been because his father told him of Aegon’s secret. But no matter what made him pick up a sword, eventually he likely believed his future son would be the world’s greatest hero Aegon dreamed of.
Like Aegon’s dream, that Prince That Was Promised prophecy said a great hero would defeat the darkness and save mankind. But it was not Rhaegar who united the Realm against the White Walkers, nor even a king. It was Rhaegar’s son and rightful heir Jon Snow, whose real name was Aegon Targaryen. Jon Snow never knew about Aegon’s dream, either. But he was the son of Lyanna Stark, and his song was a song of ice (Stark) and fire (Targaryen).
In ways Aegon the Conqueror never could have predicted, his dream came true. A Targaryen united (enough of) the Realm to stand against the Night King and save the living. For nearly three centuries before Game of Thrones, though, that dream also influenced the lives of everyone in Westeros, because it influenced every Targaryen ruler who sat—or, like Rhaenyra, was mean to sit—on the Iron Throne. So much for what we “knew” about House of the Dragon, the Targaryen family, and why dragons came to Westeros.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
The post How HOUSE OF THE DRAGON Connects to GAME OF THRONES’ Ultimate Battle appeared first on Nerdist.
We know a lot about House of the Dragon‘s story. We know all the major figures and events, who will survive, and how it will end. But despite all of that knowledge, the show’s premiere still managed to drop a huge revelation. It’s a monumental piece of lore that reframes the series, Aegon’s Conquest, House Targaryen, and Game of Thrones. Because a dream brought fire and blood came to Westeros to one day lead the fight against the White Walkers.
Once King Viserys decided to name his daughter heir to the Iron Throne, he told Rhaenyra a family secret few Targeryens ever even knew. It’s also a secret never before shared in all of George R.R. Martin’s grand story – the real reason Aegon conquered Westeros.
Before Aegon’s Conquest, House Targaryen stood as the world’s last dragonlords for nearly a century. A minor noble house of Old Valyria, they fled the empire twelve years before its Doom. They only left because Lord Aenar Targaryen’s daughter, known as Daenys the Dreamer, foresaw Valyria’s fall. When the Doom consumed all of the empire and its dragons, House Targaryen was safely on Dragonstone.
But despite possessing the greatest power in the world and residing along Westeros’s eastern coast, House Targaryen barely involved itself in the Realm’s affairs for nearly 100 years, let alone attacked. Aegon didn’t either initially. Before looking west he cared more about what was happening across the Narrow Sea in Essos. That only changed—or so we thought—when King Argilac Durrandon of Storm’s End insulted Aegon. One act of violence from a single old stubborn king led Aegon to conquer the whole continent, not just Argilac’s kingdom.
Until now there’s always been something strange about House Targaryen’s century of inaction followed by Aegon’s overreaction to Argilac. Westeros, rife with in-fighting and millennia old animosity, was ripe for a dragon invasion. And House Targaryen had good reason to do just that. Dragonstone was not the easiest place to live. Now thanks to House of the Dragon we know what changed Aegon’s thinking, and therefore the world forever. Here’s what Viserys told his daughter about Aegon the Conqueror:
Ambition alone was not what drove him to conquest. It was a dream. And just as Daenys saw the end of Valyria, Aegon foresaw the end of the world of men. It is to begin with a terrible winter, gusting out of the distant North. Aegon saw absolute darkness riding on those winds, and whatever dwells within will destroy the world of the living. When this great winter comes, Rhaenyra, all of Westeros must stand against it. And if the world of men is to survive, a Targaryen must be seated on the Iron Throne, a king or queen strong enough to unite the Realm against the cold and the dark. Aegon called his dream “The Song of Ice and Fire.” This secret has been passed from king to heir since Aegon’s time.
House Targaryen has a long recorded history of prophetic dreams starting with Daenys. In the novels Daenerys has them. As did a prince named Daeron the Drunken and the Targaryen bastard Daemon II Blackfyre. Now we know Aegon had them as well. He saw the return of the Night King three centuries before the White Walkers breached The Wall. That dream, more than personal ambition, pushed him to take over Westeros. That also helps explain why he let those who bent the knee keep their lands and titles rather than install lords loyal to him. From Aegon’s perspective, he was there to conquer so he could unite Westeros, not destroy or remake it. That was the only way to ensure a Targaryen could lead the charge against the Long Night. His dream fundamentally changes everything we know about Aegon came to Westeros with his sisters.
(Note: Dragons didn’t even exist during the first Long Night. Neither did House Targaryen.)
But the ramifications of this prophecy, shared only with a king’s heir, changes everything we know about every Targaryen king who followed Aegon. Each carried the burden of a dark secret that involved the very fate of the world. That huge responsibility re-contextualizes every decision any of them ever made. That even includes (without condoning or excusing) Viserys’s decision in House of the Dragon‘s premiere to sacrifice his wife for an heir. Viserys’s obsession with having a son whose claim could not be challenged was at least partly about ensuring a Targaryen sat on the Iron Throne until Aegon’s dream came true.
Aegon’s prophecy now also reframes why Rhaenyra will soon fight a savage civil war to claim the Iron Throne. Her father entrusted her with the most important responsibility in the world. But that secret doomed some of Aegon’s other ancestors, too. It’s the same secret King Daeron the Young Dragon knew of while singularly focused on bringing Dorne under his rule. It’s also a dream Aegon the Unlikely knew about when he died trying to hatch dragon eggs.
But this prophecy also changes everything we know about Game of Thrones and the events leading up to it. That includes how Daenerys Targaryen never knew about her ancestor’s dream, and why Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark’s love led to mankind’s salvation.
One day Rhaegar Targaryen—son of the Mad King, heir to the Iron Throne, and older brother of Daenerys—suddenly decided he had to become a great knight. Some believe he made that decision because he read about the Prince That Was Promised prophecy and thought he was that prince. Now we know it might have been because his father told him of Aegon’s secret. But no matter what made him pick up a sword, eventually he likely believed his future son would be the world’s greatest hero Aegon dreamed of.
Like Aegon’s dream, that Prince That Was Promised prophecy said a great hero would defeat the darkness and save mankind. But it was not Rhaegar who united the Realm against the White Walkers, nor even a king. It was Rhaegar’s son and rightful heir Jon Snow, whose real name was Aegon Targaryen. Jon Snow never knew about Aegon’s dream, either. But he was the son of Lyanna Stark, and his song was a song of ice (Stark) and fire (Targaryen).
In ways Aegon the Conqueror never could have predicted, his dream came true. A Targaryen united (enough of) the Realm to stand against the Night King and save the living. For nearly three centuries before Game of Thrones, though, that dream also influenced the lives of everyone in Westeros, because it influenced every Targaryen ruler who sat—or, like Rhaenyra, was mean to sit—on the Iron Throne. So much for what we “knew” about House of the Dragon, the Targaryen family, and why dragons came to Westeros.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
The post How HOUSE OF THE DRAGON Connects to GAME OF THRONES’ Ultimate Battle appeared first on Nerdist.
Eating cereal, playing Tetris on Gameboy, and watching X-Men the Animated Series on Saturday mornings in 93 – that’s a core memory fam! A memory that’s beginning to fade now that Bryan Singer’s back-to-back bangers are 20 years old aka the X-Men have been out of the spotlight for wayyy too long. First Class was iight, and Days of Future Past had some really dope moments, but we’ve gotten our Spider-Man and Batman revival fix time and time again. And now it feels like the right time for the X-Men to get their shine on again!
Shout out to Kevin Feige for giving in and hittin fans with that X-Men introduction to the MCU teaser via Kamala Khan aka Nightlight aka Jersey’s Here! aka Ms. Marvel for those lackin in the back! Ok, quick spoiler-free end of series recap for anyone who skipped out on watching Ms. Marvel – Kamala is finally the hero she was always meant to be, and her homeboy Bruno finally comes back with some lab tests he was running on her genetic makeup. Turns out she’s not like the rest of her djinn family. Bruno tells her there’s something “different in your genes. Like….”
*cue X-Men TAS intro jingle and the whole X-Men fandom goes bananas!!*
Feige was strategic about how he did this soft intro too. He utilized Ms. Marvel who, at the end of the day, is a perfect character to poach from a different sector of the Marvel universe and sign to a max deal with the Mutants. She’s maybeee 1 out of the 4 Inhumans (Black Bolt, Medusa, her, and Lockjaw) that the average nerd/superhero fan cares about. No offense to the Inhuman ride to dies out there but the switch needed to be made.
Top 3 Reasons Ms. Marvel is the Perfect “First Mutant”
Youth
The older I get the more I realize how heavily this nerdy world is marketed towards younger fans. Everything that’s been revealed about phase 4 and 5 and the upcoming shows on the Disney+ slate tell us that the MCU is figuring out how they’re going to introduce all of their teenage heroes like the members of the Young Avengers and Champions.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will introduce Riri Williams as she stands alongside Shuri as arguably the 2 smartest people on the planet (sorry Tony Stark and Reed Richards stans). Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will kick off Phase 5 where Scott Lang’s daughter Cassie will suit up and be making her debut as Stature. While he isn’t young, a very new character in Adam Warlock will make his 1st appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy 3. Who knows which younger or surprise heroes will be pulling up in Secret Wars, but I got money on Hulkling.
Representation is the name of the game when Mohican and Menominee deaf actress Alaqua Cox who plays Echo makes the jump from poorly written and underutilized side character in Hawkeye, to the main stage in Echo, which is bordering on must-watch material for Daredevil fans. Kamala will be all up in The Marvels next Summer. And rounding out the younger side of Marvel’s upcoming lineup, Dominique Thorne’s Riri will get to take over level up the Ironman mantle when she gets her full-fledged debut in Ironheart. WOOOO!! Ya’ll got all that?! The X-Men have always featured the coolest young Marvel heroes, so making sure the rest of the MCU has some solid teens to utilize will be beneficial for everyone in the writer’s room.
Backstory
Ms. Marvel blessed us with a genuine portrayal of a young Pakistani Muslim navigating life in America. When people remember Ms. Marvel (after all the mutant hype dies down) they will remember how honest the show was about Kamala as a young hero discovering her powers and trying to find that delicate balance between her crime fighting life and mundane teen life. That same balance is essential to the identity of the X-Men.
Each mutant has their quirks and characteristics, all of which make reading and watching X-stories so dope and meaningful. You know Beast is calculating, Wolverine is coming in hot, Cyclops is leading like a war captain, and Gambit is talkin sly. It’s just who they are, and we love it because we’ve gotten to know these tidbits about each of them over the decades. When Kamala joins their ranks, she could serve as a bit of a mentor to mutants when their powers manifest. Hell, she could even be the leader of the MCU’s New Mutants, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
We met the teenager going through the motions in school, the daughter of proud immigrants, the sister of comedic and powerful siblings and the friend of change makers in this universe. Ms. Marvel was everything that we needed to get acquainted with the MCU’s Kamala Khan and exactly what we need for every big new character.
Getting more details on Echo’s upbringing with Kingpin should be nuts. Cassie will have some big shoes to fill if this is Paul Rudd’s last appearance as Ant-Man, not to mention the legacy pressure – the kid must be feeling like she’s walking in the shadow of a hall of famer. The hype I’m feelin for Riri to get her Chi-Town come up story and kid genius shine on is February 2018 worthy (the month a certain movie premiered)!
Interconnectivity
If Marvel/Disney puts the work in and gives these young heroes authentic backstories with top notch action and genuine cultural insight, it’ll be wildly beneficial to any potentially interconnected future for them in this universe or multiverse or whatever. Can I get crazy and theorize that Ms. Marvel, Ironheart, and the eventual Nova show will all be reminiscent of Captain America, Iron Man and Thor as standalone movies that were connected and led up to Avengers. “Ms. Marvel, the first Champion” anyone!?
We see the tip of the iceberg with Riri in BP 2 and Kamala in The Marvels. We all know anything is possible with the intergalactic gang so maybe Nova gets a post credit scene in GotG 3 or something like that. Keeping it real, Marvel has their pick of the litter when it comes to young hero teams. Champions is an easy move, Young Avengers wouldn’t be hard to pull off, andddd Iron Lad may be on the table as the potential end result of the currently developing Kang villainy.
The Kamala connected groundwork is there. It’s all up to Marvel and their interweaving skills. Will Xavier send out that telepathic message to every person on the planet, telling all mutants that they have a home on Krakoa? Will the Champions come together for a hot minute only to have the X-Men roll up on them one day and say they’re not leaving without Kamala? Or would Kamala and Scott just recreate this incredible panel?
X-Men! X-Men! Read all about em!
I’ll keep it a buck, Marvel/Disney better go younger in their casting of this new X-Men team. It would create some dope opportunities to see mutants that are historically portrayed as younger, like Jubilee or Kitty Pryde. We could see younger versions of fan favorites like Gambit and Rogue.. and maybe even see some sparks fly during their courtship?! Studio’s always need to pigeonhole a romantic angle into a movie, so this could be the natural move to make. Then we’d of course need younger, but still adult versions of legendary leaders Cyclops, Jean, Storm, and Wolverine.
A dream casting list you say? Off the rip, I’d be remiss if I didn’t say #BringBackJamesMarsden. Right the wrongs of X3 (the one we don’t talk about…like Bruno)! For Storm, I’d love to see KiKi Layne flex her acting chops or watch Candice Patton make the jump from DC’s Iris West to Storm. I’m bout to put people onto this next actress, who I think should play Jean – Saoirse Ronan. Google the name and watch your head do the *slow head nod*. Finally, we have the hero everyone has an opinion on. Everyone but me. I’m a documented Wolverine hater that has come around to him a little more in my comic reading older age. With that said, I don’t really care because I know they’ll make a good decision casting the next Logan (whether Joel Edgerton, Joe Mang, Taylor Lautner, or John David Washington) because they simply cannot afford to F this one up.
Now I’d like to invoke Chappelle Show’s Racial Draft episode and have some fun cherry-picking various heroes in Marvel to become MCU mutants. For my first pick, I’m heading to Haaaaaarlem and scooping up Luke Cage and bringing that invulnerability to the X side! Next up, I’m clearing up alllll the origin story BS and claiming both Cloak and Dagger! Deadpool, you’re still deaded, because it’s way more funny this way. This one might be a bit of a stretch, but I’m looking for some power and I’m getting it in the form of Sentry baby – we’ve got enough super soldiers running around these parts. Last but certainly not least, I’m bagging another Inhuman because the young genius deserves better, Moon Girl welcome to the X-Men! Your Devil Dino will be best friends with little Shogo.
Lastly, if…big big Colossus sized IF we get actual mutants on the big screen in the near future, I have to wonder, who would be our first team of X-Men in the MCU? Will they go old school and hit us with Xavier’s original 5? Do you think it will include or exclude some of the usual suspects? Which no name mutant will get a roster spot?! Here’s my 2 cents:
The Usual Suspects
Cyclops and Storm
Cyclops is basically the mutant constant. He’s the undeniable leader of the team and an absolute tactical technician in the field. I don’t even know how you create an X–Men team without the man with the visor! And Storm? Come on, I’d be writing until Christmas before I finish gushing about the reasons she BETTER BE on this eventual team. These two also have insane strategic chemistry and I cannot wait until we get to see them delivering fades again.
Young, Dumb, and Powerful
Kitty Pryde, Iceman, and Boom Boom
I talked all about the MCU getting younger, so here are my picks for the teens on the squad. Kitty because she’s beloved and her powers allow the writers to have so much fun with her character. Whether it’s as simple as playing tag – she runs through a wall and the mutant trying to tag her runs into said wall for some light laughs, or as savage as her phasing her hand through the chest of an enemy and threatening to stop their heart if they don’t cooperate, the possibilities are dam near endless.
Iceman because of his more adventurous and rambunctious younger years. He’d be able to wrangle Kitty and others into sneaking out lituations, while discovering how absurdly powerful (remember, he’s an Omega) he is the more he trains. I would love to see a scene of Bobby getting into a gay club then eventually bumping into Emma and Christian Frost on the dance floor. That could be LGBTQAI+ magic.
And for 3-0 count swing for the fences, I’m going with my girl Tabitha Smith aka Boom Boom! I am openly biased, and I don’t care because she would be the spice you need to keep a team exciting and full of surprises. Boom Boom has a heart of gold and a boatload of mischievousness flowing through her veins. She would rescue someone’s cat stuck in a tree without hesitation and leave a little time bomb in their mailbox, because take better care of your damn cats. Who do you think would be Iceman’s partner in crime in my fantasy casting?!
Sleeper Picks
Synch, Sage, and Manifold
At this point, everyone knows how OP Rogue is, and while I love her to death, I feel like we need some new power stealing blood on the team. Enter Synch and his ability to “copy/duplicate” the powers of anyone around him. Hickman’s X-Men run has written Synch beautifully and left open lots of room that could omegafy Synch one day. Put that man on the team!
You have to keep up with the times, so if we’re being reflective of today’s world, we need someone who speaks technology’s language, and Sage is the perfect individual for that. While she won’t be anything new to comic book readers, she should be very fresh face for your average MCU fan.
Manifold takes the last spot- a spot that every X-Men team needs, the teleporter. In addition to being the necessary mode of transportation in a pinch, manifold has an incredible backstory. It’s high time the Aborigines got some visibility on the big screen, and this could be the perfect opportunity.
So what do you think of my list? Or are you screaming at your screen saying something along the lines of “how dare you leave Jean and Wolverine off of this list”! I could get into the reasons why, but I honestly just hope you’re excited to have mutants actually join the MCU at some point in the near future. Hit us on social media with your thoughts!
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The post Thanks to Ms. Marvel, Mutants are Finally Coming to the MCU! appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.