Hate Criston Cole All You Want, but He Doesn’t Come Near Game of Thrones’ Biggest Villain

From the very pilot of House of the Dragon, it was clear that the show would be a perfect match for its predecessor in terms of production quality and audience impact. Even the most skeptical viewers, who hadn't forgotten the disappointment of the Game of Thrones finale, were willing to give it a try.

But the prequel ended up being even more morally gray than the original show. Back then, we knew which family to root for. Now that the war has torn two branches of one family apart, finding the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ guys is an entirely different task. However, there is one character that no one wants to root for anymore.

Is Ser Criston Cole a Villain in House of the Dragon?

Introduced in the very pilot of the show, Criston Cole appears to be a skilled knight in shining armor who takes his duty very seriously. Despite his background, he ends up being Princess Rhaenyra's sworn protector, but then their relationship becomes much more intimate. And when love enters the picture, the problems begin.

By rejecting Cole's proposal to run away, Rhaenyra has hurt his ego to the point of no return. He's grown bitter and hateful toward her, and is making rash decisions. If it weren't for Alicent, Criston Cole would be dead by now, but she saved him once, and then he got attached to her instead.

Does that make him pathetic? Perhaps, but it certainly doesn't make him a villain. Throughout the 8 seasons of Game of Thrones, viewers have been introduced to much more spiteful characters, with King Joffrey Baratheon and Ramsay Bolton being the most hated.

Both very sadistic and truly sociopathic, they have grown to make the audience tense every time they appear on screen. With Criston Cole, however, the only reaction most viewers get is mild annoyance.

If there are any House of the Dragon characters that could be compared to Game of Thrones' level of evil, it would have to be Daemon and Aemond Targaryen. However, given the nature of the civil war and their relationship to a family, House of the Dragon makes it much harder to hate either of them. Cole, on the other hand, is an easy target.

If you are interested in seeing what awaits Ser Criston Cole in the second part of the second season of House of the Dragon, be sure to tune in to HBO or Max every Sunday to not miss another episode.