The first family of Westeros might well be the Targaryens, but in our hearts it’s always going to be the tragic, brave, constantly murdered Starks. They might not be the flashiest of families but when one loyal to them appears we all sit up and take notice. Now, with House of the Dragon heading for the bloodiest part of the Dance of the Dragons, HBO has given us a first look at one of the most famous Northern figures in the history of the continent.
At today’s upfront, HBO’s tease of the third season of the series gave us a tantalizing glimpse at Alysanne “Black Aly” Blackwood, one of the most anticipated non-Targaryen characters from George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. Played by Annie Shapero, Black Aly is briefly seen riding into battle alongside Oscar Tully, covered in House Blackwood colors with black paint smeared across her eyes. Cool.
Black Aly is one of the noblewomen of House Blackwood and one of the fiercest warriors in the history of Westeros. She’s also a skilled archer and a key supporter of Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen’s claim, taking command of the Black Army’s archers during the brutal Riverlands campaign. She’s also the aunt of the young Lord Benjicot Blackwood, whose house is already involved in this dragon nonsense.
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Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
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🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
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01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
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02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
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03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
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04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
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05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
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06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
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07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
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08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
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Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
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The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.
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You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
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You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
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You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
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Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
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You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
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Who Stars in ‘House of the Dragon’?
The cast of House of the Dragon includes Emma D’Arcy (Truth Seekers, Wanderlust) as Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One, Bates Motel) as Alicent Hightower, Matt Smith (Doctor Who, The Crown) as Daemon Targaryen, Fabien Frankel (The Serpent, Last Christmas) as Ser Criston Cole, Tom Glynn-Carney (Dunkirk, The King) as King Aegon II Targaryen, Ewan Mitchell (The Last Kingdom, Saltburn) as Prince Aemond Targaryen, Steve Toussaint (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Small Axe) as Lord Corlys Velaryon, Bethany Antonia (Get Even, Stay Close) as Baela Targaryen, Phoebe Campbell (Midsomer Murders, Home from Home) as Rhaena Targaryen, and Tom Taylor (The Dark Tower, Doctor Foster) as Cregan Stark.
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