How HOTD Season 2 Changes the Fight of the Cargyll Twins

Perhaps even more so than the original series, House of the Dragons is filled to the brim with scheming characters, dangerous schemers, and brilliant strategists, all of whom have exactly what it takes to play the Game of Thrones… and then there’s Criston Cole. Everyone’s least favorite himbo has been harboring a grudge against his former lover Rhaenyra for several years, and has even gone so far as to switch sides with Queen Alicent (Olivia Cooke) out of purely personal feelings of dislike and jealousy. He’s not exactly the most ambitious man in the Seven Kingdoms, and seems content to serve as the Queen’s plaything, but indulging in some of the most pathetic lechery Westeros has ever seen is one thing. Actively acting as a hindrance to the war effort because he can’t help but freak out at the slightest provocation is another thing entirely.

The latest stunt by the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard – or rather, the new Hand of the King, as if he didn’t already have too much influence – is so brilliant that it was the central premise of Lindsay Lohan’s 1998 classic The Twins (not that he knew that, but still). Yes, his master plan revolves around Kingsguard knight Arryk Cargyll (Luke Tittensor) posing as his twin brother Eryyk (Elliott Tittensor), who is loyal to Queen Rhaenyra, infiltrating her fortress Dragonstone and killing her in a brazen attack that would surely end the war before it even begins. There are several Reasons why this would be doomed to fail, and it’s hardly a surprise when it happens. The two Cargyll twins inevitably clash, draw swords, and fight each other to the death.

Well done, Cristón.