'House of the Dragon' recap: Rhaenyra has a secret rendezvous (2024)

Readers of George R.R. Martin may recall the saga of the feuding Riverlands Houses of Blackwood and Bracken. They made a quick appearance in House of the Dragon season 1, and they are still feuding over a century later when Jaime Lannister tries to mediate a dispute between them in A Feast of Crows. These long-warring houses have lost all memory of what started the original conflict, so one sin simply begets another as members of each take retribution against the other for the smallest of disagreements. The war between Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) and Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) simply gives them another reason to quarrel as Ser Amos Bracken names Rhaenyra a babe killer and Ser Samwell Blackwood takes her side in defense.

The initial disagreement turns into a slaughter that will be known as the Battle of the Burning Mill. Since it’s the first true battle of the war, it’s just a taste of the horrors to come for both sides. And it’s a warning to House Targaryen, whose members are splitting themselves in two for reasons they may not remember once the final drops of blood are shed.

Heavy is the neck that wears the chain of hands

In King’s Landing, Aegon II’s Small Council reflects on the importance of the Riverlands, and it's obvious that Criston the Worst (Fabien Frankel) is out of his depth as the newly installed Hand of the King. After Ser Arryk Cargyll’s tragic death at Dragonstone, the rest of the council doubts Criston’s basic wisdom, for it was his foolish plot that sent the loyal knight to his unnecessary death. On top of that, Criston no longer has the respect of the Kingsguard, which is now filled with Aegon’s undisciplined drinking buddies.

With Alicent (Olivia Cooke) shooting daggers as she disagrees with his ideas, Criston argues that they can no longer hide in their castle. It’s time to claim the Riverlands for the Greens. He hastily decides to ride out of King’s Landing with their meager forces. Alicent insists her brother, Ser Gawain (Freddie Fox), join Ser Criston on his journey. Gawain, himself, is pissed that their lord father has been unseated as Hand by such a lowborn creature.

He later revises his opinion somewhat when Ser Criston’s quick thinking saves them from an airborne attack from Baela (Bethany Antonia) on her dragon Moondancer. Though Baela has taken to the skies around King’s Landing and has violated Rhaenyra’s rules about not engaging with the Greens, Ser Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) convinces Aegon it would be best for him to stay put in King’s Landing rather than join the air battle himself. Larys is named Master of Whisperers in turn.

During a night of carousing with his Kingsguard in his favored brothel, Aegon discovers his brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) abed with the older woman who once deflowered him. Keeping his humiliation in check as Aegon cackles in amusem*nt, Aemond stalks away fully naked with his animosity towards his older brother growing stronger by the moment. It's clear Aemond thinks he would be the better ruler than the person sitting on the throne, but he’s not the only Targaryen with that thought.

The Ghosts of Harrenhal

Daemon (Matt Smith) arrives at Harrenhal during a fierce lightning storm and it’s clear that Larys, the castle’s current lord, hasn’t put any effort into restoring it or even making it somewhat livable. Water pours through the ceiling and the marks of Balerian the Black Dread’s fiery attack from long ago remain everywhere.

He stumbles onto the one inhabited part of the castle where its castellan, Ser Simon Strong (the marvelous Sir Simon Russell Beale) is supping in front of one of the only fires such a damp place can muster.

With an infamous Targaryen at his door, Ser Simon quickly declares allegiance to Queen Rhaenyra and disavows his relative Larys for the obvious murder of their family members. Daemon is wisely wary of being poisoned by Ser Simon and corrects the latter when he addresses him as Prince. It’s “Your Grace” now, and it’s pretty clear that if Daemon gets to King’s Landing before Rhaenyra does, he may very well take the throne for his own.

But if there is one thing Harrenhal is known for, it’s the ghosts that haunt its halls. Daemon has a vision of Rhaenyra sewing on Prince Jaehaerys head before a fire. The vision packs all the more punch since he sees his wife in the form of young Rhaenyra’s Milly Alco*ck, who makes a surprise guest appearance in the episode.

Distraught, he snaps out of his vision in Harrenhal’s former weirwood, where the mysterious Alys Rivers (Glow’s Gayle Rankin) warns him he will die there before quickly running off.

Dithering on Dragonstone

As Rhaenyra and Rhaenys (Eve Best) attend to the burials of Ser Erryk and Ser Arryk Cargyll on Dragonstone, the Queen that Never Was points out that Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) never would have planned something so rash as Ser Arryk’s suicidal task. She advises that King’s Landing is being ruled by hotter tempers now. As the two debate an appeal to Alicent, Rhaenys utters the first of her great quotes in the episode, “There's no war so hateful to the gods as a war between kin, and no war so bloody as a war between dragons.”

With Daemon gone and Corlys (Steve Toussaint) tending to the repair of the Sea Snake, Rhaenyra’s Small Council is filled with “the Ditherers of Dragonstone,” as Corlys terms them. Rhaenys eyes the squabbling with increasing displeasure, giving the council a stern warning once Rhaenyra departs: “The Council would do well to remember that the Queen wears the crown of my grandsire, Jaehaerys the Conciliator. A prudent ruler, the wisest of Targaryen kings, whose reign outlasted every other. Even Aegon the Conqueror’s.” All of Rhaenys’ scenes remind the viewer that if the Great Council had named her heir instead of Viserys, she could have been one of Westeros’ great rulers.

Matters of succession weigh heavily upon Rhaenys later when she visits Corlys at the docks with warm food. She suggests that Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell) be named heir of Driftmark over Joffrey Velaryon, but he won’t take her seriously since Rhaena is both dragonless and knows nothing of the sea. She presses him, unsuccessfully, but their discussion has an air of foreboding about it. War is coming and their time together may be short.

Rhaenyra herself seems to be rattled by the choices before her and still wants to avoid open war because she knows what that will mean for the smallfolk. After the dual assassin plots on her and Jaehaerys, she comes to the heartbreaking conclusion that Dragonstone is no longer safe for her three youngest sons. She decides the dragonless Rhaena must attend to Joffrey, Viserys II, and Aegon III as they travel to the protection of the Vale and, if necessary, take the youngest two on to Pentos. Though the future of Rhaenyra’s line depends on Rhaena acting as a mother to her sons and keeping them safe, the young woman has a warrior’s soul and hates that she’s being treated as the nursemaid.

But Rhaena relents, and Rhaenyra sends her off with not only the children, but dragon hatchlings Tyraxes and Stormcloud and four dragon eggs. As a tearful Rhaenyra packs away her sons’ toys, she finds the unopened letter from Alicent that she had tossed aside. She finally reads it and realizes that, just as Rhaenys suggested, reaching out to Alicent might be the only way to save the realm.

It’s Rhaenyra’s concern for the smallfolk that brings Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno) to her side as an advisor after the queen thanks her for saving her from Ser Arryk’s attack. Between them, they hatch a rather insane plan.

Upon her newest councilor’s advice, Rhaenyra, disguised as a septa, infiltrates the Grand Sept in King’s Landing and sits next to the praying Alicent. While Rhaenyra only plans to talk, she’s no fool, and has armed herself with a dagger in case her former bestie sounds the alarm.

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Face-to-face, the two have it out over the deaths of their two lost princes. As Alicent slings insults her way, Rhaenyra protests she had nothing to do with Jaehaerys’ death, which Alicent finds hard to believe. Rhaenyra, for her part, cannot believe that her father would have named Aegon his heir after he reaffirmed his belief in her on the very night of his death.

When Alicent explains that Viserys talked of Aegon as the Prince that was Promised later that same night, Rhaenyra realizes that Alicent misunderstood what Viserys was saying. She explains that he was referring to the Song of Ice and Fire prophecy by Aegon the Conqueror, not Aegon, his f*ckless son. Alicent cannot comprehend that she’s made such a dreadful mistake. Despite Rhaenyra’s pleas, Alicent insists it’s simply too late to turn back. The gears of war have been set in motion and they cannot be stopped.

Notes from the Archmaester

• As Aegon is out carousing with his Kingsguard, he comes across Ulf the White (Tom Bennett), who claims to be the bastard son of Prince Baelon the Brave. That would make him the half-brother of Viserys and Daemon and the fourth dragonseed that the show has introduced this season.
• The death of Prince Jaehaerys and the hangings of the ratcatchers have been added to the tapestry in the credits.
• Rhaenyra sent four dragon eggs with a possible final destination of Pentos. Could three of these eggs be the ones Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) receives from the Pentoshi merchant Illyrio Mopatis at her wedding? Three of them look very similar and they’ve never completely clarified where those eggs came from. Fire & Blood suggested a slightly different origin for them, but it’s never been confirmed.
• Why Criston received a haircut before leaving King’s Landing remains unexplained.
• Grover Tully made it into the show; could Kermit Tully be not too far behind?
• Based on how his armor fit the elfin Aegon II, Aegon the Conqueror must have been skinny as a rail.