Top 20 Brutal Moments from Game of Thrones and House of the Dragons

“Second of His Name”
Daemon may be a d-bag, but there’s no denying that he’s a fierce warrior. And it doesn’t get much cooler than watching him waltz out of the cave, Dark Sister in hand, and dragging what remains of Craghas Drahar. The Crabfeeder was occupying the Stepstones, and Daemon was none too happy about that. He subsequently attacked the Crabfeeder in a siege and pursued him into a nearby cave system. And while we don’t see the killing directly, we do see its aftermath, and it does not make for a pretty sight. It’s a great moment for establishing the tone of “House of the Dragon,” informing viewers that it wouldn’t be skimping out on either the battle scenes or the violence.

“The Old Gods and the New”
Theon Greyjoy’s betrayal of the Starks is upsetting for everyone involved. Ned Stark’s ward draws most of Winterfell’s forces, led by Ser Rodrik Cassel, away and takes the fortress. After Rodrik is brought back, he spits in the face of the traitorous Theon. When Theon’s men insist he kill Rodrik, Theon reluctantly does so. While Bran’s pleading for Theon to stop makes the scene traumatic enough, what’s worse is that Theon botches the beheading. Although we don’t see the act in detail, the fact that he has to hack away at a man’s neck and then kick his head off the rest of the way is disturbing enough in concept.

“The Green Council”
As the Dance of Dragons escalates, dissension proves to be a very deadly venture, something that Lord Lyman Beesbury learns the hard way. The Master of Coin on the small council, Lord Beesbury is one of the few who rejects the notion that King Viserys suddenly changed his succession plans on his deathbed. He’s right, of course, but that means little in the House of Green, and even less to Ser Criston Cole. Ser Criston incensed over Beesbury questioning Queen Alicent, he makes the old man take a seat and then some, slamming his head down on his personalized stone ball. Beesbury is killed instantly, and the rest of the council does nothing about it. Except promote Ser Criston to Lord Commander, of course.

“King of the Narrow Sea”
With so many Houses in Westeros, it’s understandable that not all of them can get their time in the spotlight. So credit this scene for giving a glimpse of the rivalry between House Blackwood and House Bracken. As Rhaenyra receives suitors at Storm’s End, she’s greeted by the particularly young Willem Blackwood. Willem does his best under pressure, but even that isn’t good enough for the spectating Jerrel Bracken, who incessantly rags on him with insults. Even though Rhaenyra elects to end the procession, Willem’s indignance compels him to challenge Jerrel. We’re immediately fearful for the significantly smaller Blackwood, so color our surprise when he runs through his tormentor. Something tells us those Houses are still gonna be on bad terms. Season two brought us further Blackwood-on-Bracken violence, with the devastating aftermath of The Battle of the Burning Mill.

“Second of His Name”
The war in the Stepstones proves to be a grueling campaign for Daemon Targaryen, so imagine what it must be like for the men on the ground. Daemon and the Velaryons are going up against Craghas Drahar, aka the Crabfeeder, who’s earned his nickname by staking his enemies and leaving them for the crabs. That’s already a terrible way to go, but leave it to Daemon to add insult to injury. As Drahar marks an unnamed Velaryon soldier for death, the latter promises retribution is coming. Sure enough, Daemon swoops in with his dragon Caraxes, leading the soldier to cheer. Trouble is, Caraxes lands directly on him. Yeah, Top 10 “House of the Dragon” Characters Who Celebrated Too Early: this guy.

“We Light the Way”
Granted, Daemon may not have even cared to notice he crushed our last entry; this one, he definitely knew what he was doing. After Daemon spends four episodes ragging on his wife, Rhea Royce, we finally get to meet her. Only, if this list is any indication, we wouldn’t know her for long. Ambushing her outside Runestone, Daemon doesn’t have to say a word before Rhea realizes he’s there to kill her so he can marry Rhaenyra. But before Rhea can do anything, Daemon gets her horse to upend and crush her. Knowing it’ll look like an accident, Daemon motions to leave, but Rhea’s goading compels him to finish her off. He grabs a nearby rock, and we’re left to imagine the grisly conclusion.

“The Princess and the Queen”
Like many characters in this world, Laena Velaryon was gone too soon, but at least she got to go out on her own terms. Sort of. Pregnant with Daemon’s third child, Laena remarks in this episode that half the dragon eggs never hatch. With Queen Aemma’s failed delivery burned in our minds, this bit of foreshadowing immediately made us worry for her. Sure enough, Laena’s birthing goes south. Rather than suffer another failed cesarean section, Laena slips away and finds Vhagar. In agonizing pain, she pleads with her dragon to end her suffering. Vhagar is noticeably hesitant, but fulfills her master’s request by roasting her alive. Laena probably didn’t feel the flames for long, but boy is this death brutal.

“We Light the Way”
If you’re a character named Joffrey in this world, you probably shouldn’t go to wedding receptions. Granted, Rhaenyra and Laenor aren’t hitched just yet, but we had a feeling their pre-wedding feast wouldn’t end without a little bloodshed. At this point, the tension between Rhaenyra and Ser Criston Cole is evident, and Laenor’s lover Ser Joffrey Lonmouth tries to blackmail Criston into keeping their secrets. Criston, heartbroken over Rhaenyra spurning him, takes it out on the Lonmouth knight in front of everyone. Laenor tries to intervene, but to no avail, as Criston pummels Joffrey’s face into looking like Hamburger Helper. Seriously, no one mess with Ser Criston Cole.

“The Wolf and the Lion”
A commonly used method for giving a character official “Bad Guy” status is to demonstrate their negative attitude towards animals. This is generally done with a simple dislike of dogs (or some other villainous spurn), but when you’re talking about Ser Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane, everything is over the top. In the ultimate rage-quit, after losing a joust to Ser Loras Tyrell, he kills his mount with a blow from his great-sword. Poor horse! The disturbing death and poor sportsmanship is something of a buzzkill for the joust spectators. Of course, it wouldn’t be the last shocking death at the hands of The Mountain.

“Driftmark”
For a second there, it seemed like Aemond might be the one Targaryen boy of the next generation to not grow up with a mean streak. But it turns out the others’ tormenting of him would turn him into the worst of the bunch. After Laena’s death, Aemond seizes the opportunity to claim Vhagar for his own. This doesn’t sit well with the others, Vhagar being Rhaena’s by right. Aemond is unremorseful, leading to a scuffle that sees Aemond deliver brutal blows to his nephews and cousins. However, Aemond gets it the worst when Jace blinds him with sand, allowing Luke the opportunity to slash his face. Aemond loses an eye in the ordeal, but he regrets it none considering what he gained.

“Battle of the Bastards”
If one character rivals Joffrey in the villainous department, it’s the psychotic Ramsay Bolton. Luckily, he gets his comeuppance in the legendary “Battle of the Bastards.” Ramsay is viciously beaten by Jon and locked in the kennels of Winterfell, where he is met by the vengeful Sansa Stark. It’s supremely satisfying watching her stand up to Ramsay and get revenge for all the harm that he caused her throughout the show. And no death is more poetic than Ramsay being slaughtered by his own hungry dogs.The same dogs that he used to kill his own stepmother and half-brother. You could say that his own tools of torment came back to bite him…

“The Mountain and the Viper”
By season four, audiences were starting to feel like they’d seen it all. The hardened viewers had watched their favorite characters die off (or just disappear); endured scenes of torture and betrayal; breathlessly and patiently awaited the Army of the Dead – and then this happened. Even those who had read the scene in the book and knew what was coming were shocked by the graphic nature of the moment. Ellaria Sand’s scream was all of us, to be honest. We knew not to get too attached to any one character, but seriously, this is audience abuse.

“The Last of the Starks”
Missandei is one of Daenerys’s closest advisors and friends. So when she’s captured, Daenerys, as well as her lover Grey Worm, are quite upset. During the ensuing standoff at King’s Landing, Missandei is displayed atop the wall. Despite Tyrion’s best efforts to talk Cersei down, Cersei ultimately decides to have Missandei executed in front of the two people who love her most – one of whom has a dragon. Missandei’s final word, dracarys, proves to be the last word on King’s Landing as well, when the distraught Daenerys goes full Mad Queen.

Various
Of all the terrible character journeys, Theon has perhaps had it the worst. One could argue that he brought it on himself – betraying Robb, killing innocent children, his clumsy capture of Winterfell and beheading of Ser Rodrik – but seriously, karma... this might be overkill. Over the course of multiple episodes in season three, Theon is brutally tortured. The barbaric scenes do not let up and there is just something so horrible about someone frantically begging for mercy; it’s deeply disturbing. Of course, when you think it can’t get worse, Theon is viciously castrated. Tortured both physically and psychologically, Theon becomes a husk of his former self and audiences were left shaken.

“The Heirs of the Dragon”
We suspected “House of the Dragon” would come out the gates hard in the first episode, but even we didn’t expect this. Before Laena’s complications, Queen Aemma’s experience reminded us how terrible it is to be a woman in Westeros. Her labors too go sideways, but she’s without the benefit of a dragon to put her out of her misery. Instead, she’s subjected to the decisions of the men around her, particularly her husband Viserys, who elects to have a C-section performed out of desperation for a son. We watch in horror as Aemma’s cut open against her will. And to make matters worse, not only does she perish, but so too does the baby. This is dark stuff.

“The Lord of the Tides”
The Velaryons have it rough in Season 1, but no one arguably got it worse than Vaemond. By all accounts, Vaemond is technically right in his conviction that Driftmark should pass through him, seeing as Rhaenyra’s children aren’t actually of Velaryon blood. But as we learned from Ned Stark, being right doesn’t mean diddly squat if you make enemies of the wrong people. Vaemond makes a vehement case for himself in the Great Hall, compelling Viserys to make good on his promise of removing the tongue of whoever calls his grandchildren bastards. Daemon however has other ideas, slicing off the top half of Vaemond’s head with one swift blade. Sufficient to say, the Queen of Hearts would be proud.

“The Black Queen”
Aemond was right in valuing Vhagar over his left eye, and this scene is grisly proof of that. With the Dance of Dragons starting in full swing, Lucerys travels to Storm’s End on his dragon Arrax to ensure Baratheon support. However, Aemond’s already beaten him there with more to offer and a heftier dragon. Apparently above killing him, Aemond only wants an eye from Luke in retaliation for the one he lost. Based on what happens next, we’re betting Luke wishes he’d taken him up on that proposition. Aemond taunts Luke in the skies with a clear weight advantage. However, he’s ultimately unable to temper Vhagar’s fury, as the Queen of All Dragons bites through the small one and sends Luke to an early grave.

“The Rains of Castamere”
Perhaps the most infamous scene in the entire series. After the death of Eddard Stark, it looked like Robb was on-track to avenge his father and take the North back as its own kingdom. Having never lost a battle, the Young Wolf seemed unstoppable, despite making a few little miscalculations along the way. Michelle Fairley’s powerful performance only ratchets up the tension until the final, brutal cut. To this day, the haunting refrain of Rains of Castamere remains the melody of treachery and defeat. The abrupt end to the King in the North storyline shocked fans everywhere, and left viewers wondering upon whom they should pin their hopes on moving forward.

“The Dance of Dragons”
One of the only truly innocent characters in the show, Shireen Baratheon, the only child of Stannis Baratheon, is sweet and kind to everyone she meets. As Stannis’ bid for the Throne continues to falter, Melisandre convinces him that the Lord of Light requires a sacrifice. Brought to the pyre, Shireen dies seeing her mother and father do nothing to save her - despite her heartbreaking pleas for help. Her mother, Selyse, belatedly tries to take it back, but it’s far too late. It is one of the hardest scenes to watch in the entire series, and we were more than happy to see Stannis meet Brienne in the very next episode.

“A Son for a Son”
The “Game of Thrones” universe is filled with deplorable and unspeakable acts of violence, and none are more vile than what befalls Jaehaerys Targaryen. The franchise once again pushes the boundaries of what is acceptable on television, and while we don’t see the murder itself, the implication, sound design, and resulting visuals are more than enough to disturb viewers. The event throws the Dance of the Dragons into even more disarray, and even Daemon’s supporters can’t defend the deplorable depths to which he sunk after ordering the hit. It’s one of the most horrifying things ever depicted in TV, let alone the franchise.

Are there any other scenes that troubled you? Let us know in the comments below!