Daemon Targaryen Should Have Been King in House of the Dragon

Rhaenyra Targaryen was the worst choice for heir in House of the Dragon. I think she could have been a great queen, but throwing in the concept of war is what is destroying Rhaenyra from the inside out. I think she is like her father, Viserys. She could have ruled without war, because all she ever wanted was peace. She is not fit for war, unlike her husband/uncle, who would have been the perfect choice as a ruler in King's Landing.

Daemon Targaryen knows how war works and is actually a very smart guy. He has been offering so much great advice to Rhaenyra and the small Council in King's Landing, but no one is taking him seriously.

And even though most of his advice involves violence, I think his ideas could have prevented so much carnage.

The biggest piece of advice that he offered to Rhaenyra in season 3 was getting rid of Ormund Hightower ahead of time, earlier in the season. Daemon had arrived with his dragon, including their two new dragonriders, Hugh and Ulf, to speak with Ormund. Daemon apparently wanted to burn his entire army, including Ormund, to the ground.

Rhaenyra refused this act of violence, only seeking peace.

Ormund gave up Alicent's fourth son to them, but in reality, he had tricked them by giving up a different child to Rhaenyra.

Then things only got so much worse from here with Ormund.

He has now captured Tumbleton, a small town that should never have been exposed to the war. He has also sent over secret assassins to King's Landing to dispose of the King's Guard, and Daemon has now lost his entire army, leaving King's Landing into complete disarray. People are getting killed or harmed on the streets, and Rhaenyra is doing absolutely nothing about the problem. She did hire more people for the council to tackle some of these problems, but they don't have enough resources to even think of a solution.

Ormund also was able to manipulate Ulf, one of her dragonriders, into working for him, who happens to be watching over Tumbleton. If Daemon had slaughtered Ormund and his army beforehand, I don't think Ulf would have turned against her. Even Hugh is facing the consequences of Rhaenyra's actions, when he learned that his wife is now living in Tumbleton.

I understand that Rhaenyra is experiencing a lot of loss of many family members, but she really should have had Daemon take over for now. Wanting peace was not going to fix anything, because the war had gotten so much worse after Jace's death. Daemon attempted to offer great advice to her about how to get rid of all of her enemies, but she is refusing to listen.

It also doesn't help how Mysaria has become Rhaenyra's source of information, and just like her father with Otto Hightower in the past, she is being tricked into listening to someone else's advice that is not going to turn out well for either of them or King's Landing. Mysaria has a big vendetta against Daemon, so she is most likely turning her against the prince.

It's funny how I was completely accepting of Daemon not becoming king beforehand in the first two seasons, but now I wish he had been the true king. He has been the most reasonable dude in the entire show so far, and yes, his ideas will get people killed, but at least the innocent people would never have been pulled into the fight.

Rhaenyra is the reason why Ormund was able to capture Tumbleton. Now we are about to reach the final episode, and I know that the town is completely screwed. If Rhaenyra had given orders to Daemon to dispose of this group, I bet that no one would have attempted to take back the Throne, because this would have been a sign for her enemies to know she means business.

Daemon would have been a terrifying king, but he would have gotten the job done.

Thank you for reading!

Emy Quinn