u/Ready_Theory1129

People complain that adult Rhaenyra has none of young Rhaenyra’s sass or spark, but I actually don’t think the script supports that at all. She served roasted rat to make a point last episode! But older Rhaenyra’s shenanigans are largely received as cringey writing or incompetent character choices by the audience instead of high risk, high reward entertainment.

I absolutely LOVE Emma’s portrayal, and I still find myself laughing out loud at older Rhae’s audacity multiple times an episode. But Emma’s vibe is just different from Milly’s, and it seems like a large segment of the audience isn’t connecting to it.

Milly’s Rhae feels spunky. Her audacity is amusing. Her big swings are charming. Her features, voice, and delivery have a sharpness and specificity that is easy to be hooked by.

Emma’s Rhae is subtler, sadder. Their voice is deep and round. They do fantastic face-work, but the experience of the character as a whole is more obscure. I don’t feel like I know her Rhaenyra as well, so I have to think about the character’s choices longer to understand how I’m supposed to feel about them.

Combined with the clunky writing choices, shortened schedule/budget, writers strike- I can see why some people don’t connect with older Rhaenyra yet.

EDIT
I completely agree it’s reasonable for Rhaenyra’s vibe to change. It’s been decades and she’s experienced a lot of loss and life since then. Of course she’s different, and I think her changes are very realistic to the character they set up in season 1! I love Emma’s portrayal.

My comment was more meta - I don’t actually think the script characterization of her is that different from season 1. But the overall experience of her is very different. There’s various contributing factors, one of which is Emma’s general vibe.