House Of The Dragon Episode Nine Review - 9 Ups & 1 Down

If an uninitiated House of the Dragon viewer glanced at the screen as Aemond wrestles his screaming and squirming brother Aegon in the mud, one would have a hard time convincing them who the future King was supposed to be.

Aemond is as calm and collected as his elder sibling is obnoxiously petulant. The juxtaposition between the two young men, both in terms of demeanor and standing within proceedings is absolutely enthralling; Aegon, the depraved lecher who wants nothing less in the world than to rule and Aemond, the brooding enigma who silently and desperately wants to be King but never can be.

The expression on Aemond's face as Aegon pleads with his brother to let him disappear and take his place as King tells the whole story. The Prince wants with all his heart to take his brother up on his offer but knows that tradition and decorum forbids it. Nevertheless, viewers can quite literally see the the ambition blazing in the Targaryen Prince's one eye as he wrestles internally with the tantalizing possibility.

Meanwhile the Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and the Protector of the Realm has been discovered on the back of another depraved binge, quite literally hiding from the opportunity to take to the throne. Aegon is a far more interesting character than Joffrey, his closest Game of Thrones counterpart; while he possesses similar vile predilections, his interactions with his family indicate far more layers to Aegon's character than Joffrey's cartoonishly evil villain. As such it will be intriguing to watch how such a character takes to the role of King.