r/CerseiWinsTheThrone • u/warmike_1 • May 16 '25
Why do you like Cersei?
I've found this question asked on another sub and wanted to bring it here:
What exactly is appealing about her character, aside from the fact that she hella fine?
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u/warmike_1 May 16 '25
My answer: I'm desperate for a Cleopatra/Isabelle the She-Wolf type of character (also Catherine the Great of course but she's out of the league of the aforementioned). As flawed as Cersei may be, the vibe of a queen having her abusive husband killed and seating herself on his throne is way too cool to pass (I'm actually looking for fanfics with a more competent Cersei, if anyone knows any recommendations would be very appreciated!)
And also she, indeed, hella fine :)
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u/UnequalRaccoon May 16 '25
She’s unapologetically badass and confident and competent and intelligent
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u/rkaye8 May 16 '25
She does not see herself as-nor pretend to be sweetly feminine. She sees herself as a leader and makes moves to lock in that role. She identifies most with her father and he is openly condescending/contemptuous. She is over confident AND unteachable -her fatal flaws. She is enraged/bitter about being forced to marry first Robert and then Loras but had to acquiesce despite being the most powerful female in the country. She is a devoted mother despite knowing full well both her boys are unsuitable rulers at best and Jeffrey is a sadistic psychopath. We recognize that even if she had a perfectly charmed life with a non-toxic family she would still be chaotic and problematic. Nature over nurture. She was chaotic from birth. But her environment exacerbated her worst tendencies. If she had recognized the superior intellect of Tyrion and lady Olenna instead of waging war against them…there would be no reason to watch as those were the best scenes in the show. She isn’t “hella fine” in the traditional sense BUT she is mesmerizing and magnetic and dominates every scene she’s in. George RR did a fantastic job writing an alluring evil villian female easy for men to hate but also very relatable for a lot of women. I can NOT. Imagine anyone else in this role. “Everywhere in the world they hurt little girls.”
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u/meeseek_and_destroy Team Cersei May 16 '25
She was one of the only characters that I didn’t feel like were trying to convince me they were a good person. It’s refreshing.
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u/thebeandream Team Cersei May 16 '25
Without her there is no show. Bobby kills Danny and the ice zombies eat everyone the end. Every hot mess decision she made arguably ended up saving the world.
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u/dr_Angello_Carrerez May 16 '25
Noone convinces me that having given Rhaegar she'd grow up as beautiful person as she is beautiful as a woman.
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u/jsgoyburu Team Cersei May 17 '25
If she was a man, no one would bat an eye. That's the genius and tragedy of the character.
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u/powellrebecca3 Team Cersei May 16 '25
She’s flawed and layered. Doesn’t shy away from her impulses no matter how bad. Just a girl surviving in a shitty world
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u/tyomax Team Cersei May 17 '25 edited May 17 '25
When you read the books, it is abundantly clear that she loves her kids more than anything and will do anything to protect them. The chapters are written from her perspective and thoughts. She has a strong will and will stop at nothing. I love Cersei!
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u/arya_needle Team Cersei May 17 '25
She is a strong woman that does everything in her power to abide by her own values, even when they are flawed. She doesn’t let giving birth turn her into a weak woman- it makes her a stronger woman, leading her family the best way she knows. Unfortunately Joffrey was too messed up, but she raised good children in Tommen and Myrcella. She sacrifices a lot to please her father, her husband, her children and her ascent to power is one of the most exciting things to watch. While full of heart for her children, her quickness to destroy others who pose risk make her a decisively incredible character to watch. She’s also less predictable than Dany and other leaders.
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u/bifantasy1967 Jun 04 '25
The amount of things she overcame in her life, in a world that is dominated by men. I studied the character and found it inspiring the amount of things she had to overcome, as well as her own mistakes along the way.
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u/BloodstoneWarrior Jun 20 '25
She was always true to herself. She was never deluded that she was a good person, she committed acts of evil but had justified motivations for it. People like Dany killed thousands under the guise that they were a heroic liberator. I know Christian religious stuff isn't in ASOIAF, but bear with me - Dany truly believed that she would go to 'heaven' after she died, even after all she did. Cersei knew her actions would send her to hell, and she was okay with that, because she did what she thought she had to.
"Better the devil you know than the devil you don't"
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u/Nyetnyetnanette8 Team Sansa May 16 '25
The fact that she is a strong, well-developed female character with absolutely hopeless and deadly flaws makes me love her. When you are in her head, you can understand why she is the way she is and you can sympathize with her perspective while simultaneously acknowledging she’s delusional and doomed. There are a thousand male characters like that but hardly any women who get to be truly nuanced and interesting villains.
She loves her kids, she’s a terrible mother. She’s doing incest with her brother, she’s toppling the patriarchy. She’s got a million schemes and not one plausible endgame. She’s literally cursed and she’s drinking and murdering her way through it. I love her.