WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon's season 1 finale and George R.R. Martin's book, Fire & Blood.A particularly shocking moment happens in House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale when Daemon angrily chokes Rhaenyra, exposing a different side of his character. Daemon has been known for his violence and cruelty in House of the Dragon, but not to his family. While he did kill his wife Rhea Royce (who he hated) and beheaded Vaemond Velaryon for insulting Rhaenyra, Daemon’s one redeeming quality has been his dedication to his family. His love for Viserys, care for his children, and support of Rhaenyra have given him a moral grayness that makes him a more compelling villain, but abruptly choking Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon episode 10 paints Daemon in a shocking new light.
After Daemon undermines Rhaenyra’s authority in a council meeting, she orders the room cleared as they discuss the cost of war. Daemon implores Rhaenyra to take back her birthright, but Rhaenyra says her duty stretches beyond the Iron Throne, citing the Song of Ice and Fire. Having no idea what Rhaenyra is talking about, Daemon chokes her after she elaborates on Aegon’s dream in House of the Dragon’s finale. Daemon only knows how to get his way through violence, and since Rhaenyra has the power to ascend the Iron Throne and not himself, he chokes her out of envy, desperation, and anger that she’s impeding his plans for revenge.
Why Daemon Chokes Rhaenyra After Learning About Aegon’s Dream
Part of why Daemon chokes Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon episode 10 is because he finds the notion of Aegon’s dream giving them their power ridiculous. Daemon believes dragons are what made the Targaryens kings, and while he’s right, he doesn’t understand the real reason why the dragons are so important to the family’s occupation of Westeros. They aren’t for war or defending the Iron Throne per se, but to keep the Targaryens in power so that they can band the realm together against the White Walkers. To Daemon, Aegon’s Song of Ice and Fire is trivial and perhaps mean nothing, but conquest through dragon power means everything.
Daemon choking Rhaenyra after learning about Aegon's dream is also based on his resentment that Viserys never told him. Rhaenyra says Viserys told her the prophecy upon being named heir, so Daemon now realizes that his brother never considered him his successor. Not only this, but Viserys never trusted Daemon enough to tell him this important secret about House Targaryen’s future and legacy. Daemon always wanted his brother’s trust, confidence, and approval, but now he resents Viserys’ weakness even more for passing it onto Rhaenyra, suggesting he’s also choking his brother in that moment. In reality, their restraint was a power that kept the realm together, which Daemon will never understand.
Hearing that the now-dead King Viserys told Rhaenyra about Aegon’s dream when she became his heir also reminds Daemon that he was Viserys' successor in the eyes of the realm until Rhaenyra was named. Had Viserys simply kept him as the presumed heir, Daemon believes the greens’ usurpation wouldn’t have happened; and, if it had, Daemon wouldn’t be too “weak” to fight back. This calls back to Rhaenyra confronting Daemon in House of the Dragon episode 2 by saying, “I’m right here, uncle. The object of your ire… If you wish to be restored as heir, you’ll need to kill me.” Daemon did nothing then, but now that the stakes have been raised, his rage truly has no bounds.
What Daemon Choking Rhaenyra Means For Their Relationship
Daemon choking Rhaenyra in response to Aegon the Conqueror's dream exposes a different side to his insecurities, revealing he resents her for being the rightful ruler instead of himself. He continually undermined her authority as Queen, went against her direct orders, and went on a warpath without her leave. Daemon wants to be the King without wearing the crown, and Rhaenyra now understands how difficult it will be for him to listen to her as his Queen. After this abuse in House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale, Rhaenyra will be more apt to assert her own dominance over Daemon, likely warning him what will happen if he does it again.
Considering Daemon is intent to fight in this war on dragonback, he and Rhaenyra will likely spend much of House of the Dragon’s future apart. Daemon and Rhaenyra remain married and he’ll continue to defend her, but her romanticization of him has been harmed. Even if Rhaenyra isn’t as in love with Daemon as before, they share children and their marriage is an important political alliance, meaning they’ll maintain a unified front in the war. Daemon choking Rhaenyra also means she has lost some respect for him and knows his true nature first-hand, so should he commit terrible war crimes or cheatson her, she won’t be surprised.
Does Daemon Choking Rhaenyra Change (& Hurt) His Character?
Daemon had been romanticized too much throughout House of the Dragon season 1, which makes his twist in the finale seem more jarring. Daemon was a much more despicable character in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book, so a desperate, rage-filled situation leading him to choke someone wouldn’t be surprising. However, Daemon was only violent to others in the books, not to Rhaenyra or their children. His dedication to and love for his family were some of his only redeeming traits, so choking Rhaenyra has changed what made him a gray character rather than a villain. Daemon choking Rhaenyra isn’t entirely uncharacteristic, but it does take away part of what made audiences still root for him.
Daemon’s familial dedication was also what separated him from Aemond as an unforgiving, irredeemable villain. Aemond was very unapologetic in his villainy with little regard for anyone other than himself in Fire & Blood, whereas Daemon was at least redeemed by his deep care for Rhaenyra and their children. Instead, House of the Dragon episode 10 makes Aemond remorseful for killing Lucerys at Storm's End while Daemon feels no guilt for choking Rhaenyra, which is fairly contradictory to their characterizations. House of the Dragon could have reasonably made Daemon more unhinged by violently and inexplicably killing others, but it was largely inauthentic for him to choke Rhaenyra – the one person he truly loved.
Rather than completely upending or hurting Daemon’s character, House of the Dragon’s scene where he chokes Rhaenyra seems to be saying that this is who he has always been. Perhaps Daemon would have been able to restrain his anger against Rhaenyra under different circumstances, but the urgency and weight of her hesitancy to take the Iron Throne from Aegon struck a nerve that he couldn’t control. While Daemon’s character isn’t ruined in House of the Dragon, he’s certainly painted in a worse light than before.