re: House of the Dragon S1E10: “The Black Queen”--Official Thread. Season Finale NO SPOILERS!!

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How did Ser Criston Cole escape the ramifications of beating a fellow Knight to death in a crowded wedding feast? It's not like his indiscretion with Rhaenyra that could be contained by Alicent= this happened in front of everyone.

If an unprovoked beating by Ser Harwin Strong is enough to relieve him of duty in the Citywatch= how is Ser Criston still serving in the Kingsguard?

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So, for the sake of clarification that didn’t happen in the book. Sir Criston Cole injured Sir Harwin Strong in a tournament melee that was part of Rhaenyra and Laenor’s wedding celebration. He then cracked Sir Joffrey’s skull in the same tournament (he died 6 days later).

People were upset about it but Queen Alicent requested he be her personal sworn shield which allowed him to be under her protection.

What protected him on the show was the shock of it all and then Alicent giving him protection (similar as to the book).

I would’ve preferred they went with what happened in the book as I think it would’ve been more believable (as you pointed out).

As Belle stated in the books the death of Ser Joffrey Lonmouth occurred during a melee so it was not seen as a crime. As for the show's brutal murder there are a couple of reasons why this might have been swept under the rug.

To start no one really knows what was said or done to lead up to the brawl. The whole scene was chaotic. This could allow Criston to spin his own tale. In their world it is appropriate to answer certain insults with force sometimes even lethal. His standing as a kingsguard and the fact that he was sober and the other dude seemed like he had been drinking would make his version of events seem trustworthy. If I am Criston I would simply say that Joffrey made accusations that the princess isn't a maiden and I was defending her honor.

Lord Corlys likely would be happy to have his son's lover removed. He expressed earlier to his wife that he thought his son could grow out of his "phase". To put Criston on trial might lead to some awkward questions about the nature of Joffrey and Ser Laenor's relationship so he may have been happy to just let it go.

Finally he had the Queen backing him up. Viserys has shown that during conflicts involving his family he prefers to just have everyone make up and move on. If she spoke in Criston's defense and Lord Corlys himself doesn't want to press the issue then it makes sense he wouldn't make a big deal about the death of a knight of little importance who he knows nothing about.

The only one who would be enraged by Joffrey's death is Laenor but it would be tough for him to pursue justice without it leading to speculation about his sexuality.

Of course the show never bothered to give an explanation so this is all just speculation.

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To start no one really knows what was said or done to lead up to the brawl. The whole scene was chaotic. This could allow Criston to spin his own tale. In their world it is appropriate to answer certain insults with force sometimes even lethal. His standing as a kingsguard and the fact that he was sober and the other dude seemed like he had been drinking would make his version of events seem trustworthy. If I am Criston I would simply say that Joffrey made accusations that the princess isn't a maiden and I was defending her honor.

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A solid point IMO.

Even as they shot it at one point we thought Daemon may have been the one to unsheath his sword with the way the shot was set up. I did appreciate the way they set that up visually.

Finally got around to binging season 1 over the past few days. Enjoyed it. Im glad that im not as miserable as that TD dipshit who ruins every topic they post in, and also glad i only have to wait a year instead of 2 for more.