Very quickly, House of the Dragon has established itself as a worthy successor of Game of Thrones. In part, this is because the series has a number of powerful female characters.
Of course, one of the most notable of these in Game of Thrones was Catelyn Stark, who was a powerful influence on the events of the series through the first few seasons.
Although a very important character, she is also one who has aroused a significant amount of commentary from the users of Reddit. Many users on the site have, in fact, expressed some very unpopular opinions about this particular character.
Catelyn Is A Terrible Player In The Game Of Thrones
One of the most important aspects of Game of Thrones is the titular game, in which all of the characters are involved in one way or another. Reddit users have been quick to point out that Catelyn is not one of the best of these. In fact, Harpy_McSnarky writes that she is “one of the worst players in the game of thrones.”
While she might not be as cunning or as ruthless as characters like Cersei, she does have her own skill set. In particular, as she shows with Robb, she does recognize how the threads of influence work in Westeros, and it’s a tragedy that Robb doesn’t listen to her often since they could have avoided death if he had listened to her advice initially.
Ned And Cat Are A Boring Couple
For many people, Ned and Catelyn were one of the best couples in the series. However, this is not an opinion that everyone on Reddit shares. Healthy-League9402 bluntly writes that “Ned and Catelyn are the most boring couple in the entire story.”
This argument ignores the fact that, boring as they might be, Cat and Ned are one of the best couples on TV. They are two people who have grown closer together over the years. Ultimately, they bring out the best in one another, with their particular strengths shown to be rather that are complementary rather than contradictory.
She Was Terrible, Both As A Character And To Jon
Although some might regard Catelyn as one of the best characters in Game of Thrones, some Redditors look very harshly on her. _Dracarys98 writes scathingly: “Man I can’t believe how much I dislike her. She was such an a**hole to Jon and I hate the fact he felt so outcasted by almost everyone that he had felt he had no choice but to commit himself to the Night’s Watch forever.”
While it is true that Cat was very cruel to Jon, it’s easy to see why she would adopt such an attitude. After all, he was supposedly the living emblem of her beloved husband’s infidelity, so it’s likely that she projected her hurt and anger onto him. It by no means justifies her actions, but it does help the viewers understand her mindset a bit more.
She Was Wrong Twice
Although she is a bit of a realist, it is also the case that Catelyn can be a bit too optimistic when it comes to others. The_Predator_Gamer seems to take pleasure in pointing out the fact that she was a “fool” to trust both Walder Frey and Littlefinger (both of whom ultimately betrayed her family in one way or another).
What’s important to recognize here, however, is that Catelyn is doing the best that she can with a very limited set of information. Just as importantly, her optimism, while not necessarily politically savvy, is in its own way a refreshing change from the cynicism that is so often a part of the show’s ethos.
She Was A Genius For Arresting Tyrion
One of the most notable events of the first couple of seasons is Catelyn’s arrest of Tyrion (himself one of the smartest characters in the series). Domino_stars writes that “her actions make complete sense given her circumstances.”
This is one of those moments, however, where Catelyn’s good sense rather abandoned her. Yes, her circumstances were rather restrictive, but it was still a foolish thing to arrest one of the most notable members of House Lannister, particularly given just how unsettled the Seven Kingdoms had already become. As so often was the case in the early seasons, small actions could have major consequences.
No Lady Stoneheart Was Good
One of the most notable changes between the books and the series was the excising of Lady Stoneheart, who is Catelyn’s identity after she is brought back from the dead. Sterbs says that this was a good decision, writing: “But at this point, for the integrity of storytelling within the show, I really do not want her to become a thing.”
At the same time, it has to be said that this decision robs the show of a certain menace that was present in the book. After all, this resurrection is one of the moments that makes it clear how much magic is making a return to the world, for better and for worse.
The Fandom Done Her Dirty
For much of the series’ run, Catelyn was seen as a less than stellar character by the larger fandom. As Bergmaniac argues: “Catelyn somehow manages to end up being one of the most loathed ones even though objectively her actions are nowhere near as bad ethically as that of most other PoV characters and countless more minor characters.”
It is true that her actions are not as bad as those of others. At the same time, it is a little fair to judge her since, as so many others have pointed out, she is one of the few characters who does have a moral compass. The fact that her actions aren’t consistent with her own system is the source of the condemnation.
The Show Catelyn Was A Shadow Of The Book Catelyn
Part of what makes Game of Thrones such a strong fantasy adaptation is its ability to stay largely true to its book characters. Some Redditors, however, didn’t think that the series was true to the spirit of Catelyn’s personality. Wearnotlegion writes that Catelyn in the show “is reduced to a “sad mom” cliche and stripped of all her ambition, wrath, and political acumen.”
It has to be said, though, that this is a selective misreading of the book’s version of the character. If anything, the book’s version of the character is even more capable of making foolish decisions than her series counterpart. She is also far more prone to hand-wringing and endless introspection.
She Just Wants To Keep Her Family Safe
One of Catelyn Stark’s overriding ambitions as a character is her desire to keep her family safe. A4187021, in fact, points out that this is the essential aspect of her character.
However, while it is true that family is very important to Catelyn, it’s a bit reductive to say that this is the entire defining aspect of her personality. Like so many other Game of Thrones characters, there is actually a lot going on with Catelyn, and it is precisely her complexity that makes her such a fascinating part of the series.
Letting Jaime Go Was A Disaster
One of Catelyn’s most notable decisions was letting Jaime go. However, while this earned her some plaudits with his fan base, others, such as JasmineSnape argues “a stupid move on her part.”
On the other hand, it is very much in keeping with Catelyn’s personality that she would decide to release Jaime. At this point in her character arc, the only thing that mattered was getting her daughters back. More to the point, she was also doing the best that she could with a very small amount of information. She had good reason to think that this particular move on her part would be successful.
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