House Of The Dragon Episode Eight Review - 8 Ups & 2 Downs

2. Up - Adult Aemond

The Lord of the Tides introduced the adult iteration of perhaps the only male character on House of the Dragon able to match Daemon Targaryen for levels of sheer enigmatic eccentricity; the one-eyed second son of the King, Aemond, brought to life in a thrilling first bow from The Last Kingdom's Ewan Mitchell.

Six years have passed since the Prince's midnight flight on Vhagar and subsequent blinding at the hands of his nephew Lucerys. Where once stood a sullen little boy stands a formidable warrior, who even at this tender age, is more than capable of besting accomplished combatant Criston Cole.

Aemond provides a further intriguing insight into his layered character when Cole, congratulating the Prince on his prowess, mentions his chances of success in future tourneys. "I don't give a sh*t about tourneys", the brash Prince contemptuously retorts; this is a man who wants to see real blood smeared on the end of his sword. Rather contrastingly, Aemond's menacing aura also extends to protecting the brother who tormented him in their childhood; the one eyed Targaryen instantly springs to his feet to stare down Jace when the latter loses his temper at Aegon.

This is terrible news for young Lucerys - Aemond has clearly not forgiven the loss of his eye. The Prince fixes his nephew with a gaze of murderous amusement for the most part, but the mask slips when Lucerys sniggers at his uncle's unwavering stare, culminating in Aemond's thinly veiled insult at Rhaenyra's children's heritage despite having watched Vaemond Velaryon lose his head for the exact same offense.