Previously on HBO’s House of the Dragon, we learned that the witch Alys has been keeping Aemond in her home, helping him as he heals. Alicent continuously advocates for her daughter Haelena as she tries to decide what to do about the pregnancy. Lord Ormund continues to vocalize to Daeron that he shall become king one day.
Like the previous episode, this one is calmer, focusing on the politics of the war between our two factions. Rhaenyra and Lord Ormund bump heads, attacking one another. The episode also highlights the relationship between Daeron and Gwayne Hightower, as Gwayne vocalizes his concerns about Lord Ormund.
Two of the themes in this episode are fear and survival. We witness this with several different characters, highlighting the emotional toll that war takes on all parties involved rather than depicting it as something that is simply fought on the battlefield. Fear becomes a motivating factor in many of the actions made throughout the episode, from common soldiers wondering about their futures to political leaders making impossible choices. We see this theme show up for individuals such as Ser Criston Cole, Daeron, and Rhaena. A major decision made by Team Black focuses on this theme.
Another theme that shows up is making hard decisions. Almost all of the main characters in the episode must make tough decisions, many of which have no obvious “right” response. The episode highlights how difficult it is to make simple choices in times of war, whether it is between duty and family, survival and honor, or compassion and leadership. We see Rhaenyra still struggling to make decisions, especially now that she’s having this battle with Lord Ormund. We see this also from Alicent, Hugh Hammer, and even Aemond. House of the Dragon has always done an incredible job of having the characters face challenges and having to decide on doing what’s right or wrong.
Consequences have a way of always coming back in each episode, and it’s continued to show up as a theme in this episode. For Team Black, Rhaenyra and Daemon learn that every decision they make as leaders affects not only their closest supporters, but also the self-assurance of those who are fighting for their cause. They must deal with the challenging fact that even well-meaning choices can have consequences as the strain of the conflict keeps growing. The theme also applies to Ser Criston Cole, as his previous deeds finally come back to haunt him dramatically. The episode shows that in a war like this, every choice matters.
Overall, this was a really good episode, with many different shocking twists and turns. This season of House of the Dragon just continues to take more dramatic and emotional turns. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth did an incredible job in this episode as Daeron, as we watch him become more vocal about his feelings, realizing Lord Ormund’s real motives. There are only two more episodes left of this season, so what’s more to come?
Rating: 9/10