The House Of The Dragon Character That Fans Compare To Jaime Lannister

Of all the characters in HBO's "Game of Thrones," there is perhaps no character with an arc as surprising or impactful as that of Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who transforms from one of the most despicable characters in the series into a tragic hero and a force for good. Our first introduction to the Kingslayer (a nickname he earned for assassinating the king he was sworn to protect) saw him attempting to kill a child in order to hide his secret incestuous relationship with his sister. Throughout Season 1, he is perhaps the most revolting character in the entire show.

That changes during Season 3 when loses his sword hand after being maimed by a soldier named Locke (Noah Taylo ) –- taking away the one thing he was truly proud of. No longer the great fighter he once was, Jaime suddenly becomes a much more sympathetic character: a broken man whose arrogance is simply a cover for his own self-hatred. During this time we also learn that his true reason for murdering King Aerys II Targaryen (David Rintoul) was because the king had plans to blow up all of King's Landing using wildfire –- meaning that thousands of those who call him "Kingslayer" are only alive because he saved them.

The way that the show manages to draw sympathy for such an evil and detestable character is truly remarkable, and fans are already comparing Jaime's unique character arc to another particularly ruthless character on "House of the Dragon."

The character in question is Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith), the volatile younger brother of King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine), and a man with plenty of overtly villainous qualities. So far, we've watched Daemon lead an army into the slums of King's Landing and execute citizens with reckless abandon, toast his brother's dead son as "The Heir For a Day," and steal a valuable dragon's egg from the crown. Of all the characters we've met thus far, there's no doubt that Daemon is by far the most violent and aggressive –- though some fans are starting to compare him to Jaime Lannister due to his numerous redeeming qualities.

"I'm liking the nuance of Daemon's character thus far. He's clearly being poised as an antagonist, but he's also been shown to have plenty of redeeming qualities and genuinely valid gripes," wrote u/Mookies_Bett. "He's starting to drift into Jaime territory in terms of the morality spectrum." "He is closer to Jaime and Theon morality wise than he is to Ramsay or Joffrey," echoed u/rawsharks, referencing some of the more prominent villains of "Game of Thrones." "Not exactly a good person but he has redeemable qualities and most of the bad stuff he does is a reaction to circumstances of his life."

Indeed, the appeal of Daemon as a likable villain is something that even George R.R. Martin himself seems to be aware of –- as he has gone on record to name Daemon as his favorite amongst all the Targaryens. During an interview hosted by the Youtube channel Aegon Targaryen, Martin explained that Daemon's morally gray qualities make him by far his favorite Targaryen; and considering the comparisons he is drawing to Jaime Lannister, it's clear that some fans already feel the same way.