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

The dreaded moment everyone knew was coming.

It is well established by now that the Targaryens are an incestuous family. The ancient Valyrian house has wed family members ever since they first arrived in Westeros; indeed, Aegon the Conqueror took both of his sisters as wives when the Targaryens first swept across the country on their dragons.

The Targaryen's appalling habits are an integral cog in Martin's narrative and as such have almost been normalized to an extent within the context of said narrative. It's not even just the Targaryens; take the fact that Jaime Lannister became and remained a fan favorite despite the fact that he conceived three children with his own sister.

None of this changes the fact that incestuous scenes in general, let alone those between main protagonists within the story, makes for supremely uncomfortable viewing. It's hard to throw emotional investment behind characters possessing a predilection for (in this case, almost) sleeping with their family members and even more so behind a man who would exploit his own niece in such a manner.

It's a key flaw at the heart of the Game of Thrones universe and there is no easy answer; how can one become fully invested in incestuous characters? It may be Martin's way of telling us that all humans are inherently imperfect but it will never change the fact that nobody wants the word that springs to mind at the mention of their favorite character is often "incest".