Why Did Daemon Beat the Messenger in House of the Dragon?

Daemon Targaryen is easily the most interesting and complex character in House of the Dragon right now, and the motivations behind his actions are often deliberately left vague. The third episode of the show further proves this point, so here’s why Daemon beat up the messenger in House of the Dragon.

Why Did Daemon Beat the Messenger in House of the Dragon?

Towards the end of the third episode, we see a messenger arrive from King’s Landing informing Daemon that Viserys would be sending men and ships to the Stepstones to help him beat the Crabfeeder. After reading the letter, Daemon starts violently hitting the messenger with his helmet. Considering what we’ve seen of his relationship with Viserys thus far, it’s probably safe to infer that Daemon beats up the messenger because he’s enraged at the thought that he’d only be able to defeat the Crabfeeder with assistance from his brother.

Daemon has been shown to be a rather cocky and prideful prince, so it stands to reason that he couldn’t bear the thought of accepting help from his “weak” brother in order to achieve victory. Viserys also says as much in the scene prior to this one, where he tells Rhaenyra that Daemon didn’t call for aid, and that he’d sooner die than ask for his brother’s help.

Especially having spent three years waging war on the Crabfeeder in the Stepstones, the thought that he’d only be able to finally clinch that victory with help from Viserys must have wounded Daemon’s pride. In the second episode, Daemon had also agreed to the war with the Crabfeeder because this would be a chance for him to prove his worth to the world, so he had a lot riding on this. This led to him taking his anger out on the messenger and subsequently making a reckless and bold push against the Crabfeeder’s forces.

That’s all you need to know about why Daemon beat up the messenger in House of the Dragon. Be sure to search for Twinfinite for more news and information on the show, including Rhaenyra’s marital status, the existence of pugs in Westeros, and the incestuous nature of the Targaryens.