House of the Dragon fans are expressing disgust after the latest episode of the fantasy series featured another instance of Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) being sexually assaulted. In season 3 episode 2, Alicent is attacked by Lord Jasper (Paul Kennedy), but the assault is interrupted when Grand Maester Orwyle (Kurt Egyiawan) and guards enter the room.
Pattern of exploitation
Since the show began, Alicent has endured near-constant exploitation by men. As a teenager, her father Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) manipulated her into seducing King Viserys (Paddy Considine), who was 30 years her senior. She later gave birth to four of his children. After becoming Queen, Alicent was used by Master of Whisperers Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), who demanded she show him her feet for sexual gratification in exchange for information. Following Viserys' death, Alicent entered a sexual relationship with Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel), which was portrayed as her first consensual exploration of her desires.
Season 3 escalates abuse
In season 3 episode 1, Alicent allows her second-eldest son Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) to kiss her on the lips, despite her clear discomfort. The latest episode's assault scene has sparked outrage, with viewers questioning its narrative purpose. 'Literally no reason for the Alicent Jasper SA [sexual assault] scene. Really disappointed in Ryan and Sara,' one X user named elumaxluv said, referencing showrunner Ryan Condal and executive producer Sara Hess, who wrote the episode. Another user, Promiseishim, added: 'Alicent SA scene made me sick. I genuinely have no words at how sad and sick I feel. It didn't even serve a purpose.'
Fans criticize narrative necessity
Many fans have taken to social media to express their frustration. User _allyriadayne remarked: 'The Alicent assault scene was sooo pointless.' Cronagod commented: 'I'm so serious the SA Alicent goes through [at this point] adds NOTHING to her as a character or her arc so what is the point besides to humiliate her.'
Olivia Cooke's response
Following the episode where Aemond kisses Alicent, Olivia Cooke spoke to TVLine about her feelings on season 3. 'Sometimes I'm reading these scripts, and I'm like, 'What has Ryan and Sara got for me this season?!'' she said. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Cooke added: 'It's sort of the humiliation of Alicent and Olivia Cooke by default, this show. The feet wasn't great. And then there's many more in season 3.'
House of the Dragon is available to watch on HBO Max, Sky Atlantic and NOW, with new episodes released on Mondays.
