Robert carries all his grief over Lyanna, all his sense of hurt and injustice, as an excuse to do as he pleases. If she had lived, he could have been a better man, or at least so he tells himself. But because he’s been harmed he has license to live freely.
The Sellsword King. That’s his dream. He loves the fight and hates the crown he won with it. Only the thought of Joffrey as king stops him from haring off.
“Defiance was not a dish he tasted often.” Why is Robert so insistent on killing Daenerys, even against the counsel of his friend and Hand? He hates being king, yet he’ll fight to stay. He hates the Targaryens even more. What a tragic figure. Lyanna’s death, and his understanding of their relationship, drives him in unconscious ways. Ned, sworn to secrecy, never feels responsible for letting his friend continue on like this. However, Ned also knows that Lyanna never seriously considered Robert as a true prospective husband. She says that love “can never change a man’s nature”, and Robert’s nature is to sleep around. Denial, if not defiance, was something he rarely experienced even before he was king.
As in the show, Robert backhands Cersei and regrets it after. He uses the oldest excuse — “you see what she does to me” — of blaming the struck for getting hit. It’s funny, I always liked Robert but he’s quite despicable. If he can’t beat on something he has no idea what to do. Fighting, winning the kingdom, were his destiny. He’s a terrible king, though, and a rotten husband. Sometimes he’s Ned’s good friend and sometimes he’s confused by his role as king and leaves Ned to twist. This is a character written to die. His conflict can’t be resolved.
Before becoming king Robert was like a warrior god: tall, muscled, wielding the warhammer and wearing an antlered helm that made him tower over others. Robert’s last act, his stand against the boar, is described as another physical feat. His custom is to plant himself and curse at the boar, thrusting for the kill at the last moment. These are the actions of a Body Type. He’s too imposing to be a One, so we’re looking at an Eight or Nine.
He loves the fight too much to be a Nine. As an Eight, he would impress people that he could be their leader, that he would make a good king. They would be wrong.
