The following contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 1, Episode 9, "The Green Council," now streaming on HBO Max. This article also contains mention of suicide.
HBO's House of the Dragon has given Otto Hightower a lot to think about as he schemes to make The Iron Throne his. He manipulated King Viserys, used his daughter Alicent as a pawn, and despite being fired, he's back at the helm thanks to Larys Strong's ever-creepy scheming. No matter the circumstances, Otto finds a way to win, which is why -- in the wake of the king's death -- he's perfectly positioned to install Alicent's firstborn son Aegon as his puppet leader.
Otto, however, has met resistance from Alicent, who doesn't like his bloodthirsty ways, especially the plan to commit genocide against the Targaryens and their supporters. Interestingly, more family drama is cropping up with the grandsons, who are giving the Hand a massive political headache. Ironically, upon closer inspection, Otto's problems closely resemble what Tywin Lannister endured on Game of Thrones, which inevitably broke his House beyond repair.
Tywin Lannister Had Royal Drama With Cersei & Her Sons
In Game of Thrones, once the opportunity arose for Cersei to start leading the way after King Robert Baratheon's death, Tywin started pulling his strings to set himself on the throne. He always whispered in her ear, wanting the Lannisters to assume full power. It's also the reason he advised on Joffrey's rule, consolidating the knowledge and influence of his loyal lords. Unfortunately for Tywin, however, the petulant Joffrey kept messing things up, garnering a bad public image to the point where it was hard to keep up a united front. Tyrion going rogue on top of that didn't help matters either.
Tywin's problems also repeated themselves after Joffrey was killed and Tommen took over. The boy wasn't equipped to deal with the killing that had to occur to keep insurrectionists away -- including his own bride, Margaery -- and how overall conniving Cersei and her father were. Tommen's heart and soul was career suicide, and much to the horror of fans, it led to his actual suicide as well. To make matters worse, Cersei gave Tywin attitude as well, wanting to do things her way. All of this angered Tywin, who felt it should have been easy to have his dynasty rule; all they had to do was listen to him, and they didn't. This also led to their deaths and the Lannister legacy crumbling at King's Landing.
Otto is Facing Similar Opposition from His Kin
House of the Dragon's Otto ends up arguing with Alicent, who chides him for wanting to mercilessly murder the remaining Targaryens and stoke the flames of war. She calls out his manipulating, as well as that of the royal council, acknowledging he's over-controlling and never gave her agency. It's best summed up in how their retrievers literally come to blows to find Aegon, who runs away because he doesn't want the throne. Alicent is scared he'd convince his grandson to be a brutal leader, while Otto is bewildered on why she'd coddle him and create a path to weakness.
It's a lose-lose situation, because coupling this with Aemond's unhinged attitude, Otto has no patience for a family that just won't adhere to a simple plan. They're ruining his legacy, making Team Green flawed, and ultimately, destroying the entire chess game he played from the time he saw an opening in Viserys' bedroom. These are all stumbling blocks he didn't prepare for, hating how the domestic civil war at home is scuppering his dream. Luckily, for him, he does have some hope seeing Aegon basking in the public's approval. It all still feels unstable and temporary, however, leaving him as frustrated as Tywin was by individuals who ignore their experience and strategy on a constant basis.
The Season 1 finale of House of the Dragon airs Sunday, Oct. 23, at 9:00 pm EST on HBO and will be available on HBO Max.