The following story contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 7.
HOUSE OF THE Dragon, at its core, is about the manifestations of destiny. To wit: A woman isn’t meant to rule, but Viserys (Paddy Considien) makes it so with his decree. Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) isn’t meant to be king, but the Hightowers will it to be. Lowborn aren’t meant to claim dragons, and yet, they do. In the face of an unbelievable calamity, traditions and myths are broken, reshaped, and transmuted into something new. Few things exemplify this better than this week’s episode.
Emboldened by Addam’s (Clinton Liberty) claiming of Seasmoke—or should we say, Seasmoke’s claiming of Addam—Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) makes dragon taming into the equivalent of an NFL team holding open tryouts. She brings forth all sorts of denizens from King’s Landing to try their hand at becoming legends… if they can survive, that is. And with that comes probably my favorite episode of this season and the series to date—a propulsive, beautifully shot, and wonderfully directed installment that almost plays like a season finale instead of the penultimate episode. As remarked upon by Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno), the order of things has changed, resulting in a tectonic shift of power.
Let’s dive into this barn burner of an installment.
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Rhaenyra’s Power Shift
The bulk of this episode—written by David Hancock and masterfully directed by Loni Peristere—is spent with Rhaenyra and the decision to “raise an army of bastards” to ride the remaining dragons dwelling in Dragonstone. When paired with last week’s episode, these two really feel like they should have almost aired back-to-back. There’s a bookended nature to them, with so much of what was set up throughout the season starting to draw inward last week and then paying off tenfold this week.
I’m really impressed with how well Hancock manages to pay off the threads of characters like Ulf (Tom Bennett) and Hugh (Kieran Bew) and how they respond when faced with a call to adventure. Based on how Ulf previously carried himself in the tavern, it feels like he’d be the first person to jump at the chance at a better life. But it takes a push from his friends to get him out the door. Even then, there’s an element of reluctance. However, Hugh, left without a child and with his marriage on the edge, is quick to embrace it out of a desire “to do something.”
The actual filmmaking around the call to action and the dragon-taming (more on that shortly) is exquisite. The game of telephone throughout King’s Landing is propulsive and feels a bit like a tried and true gathering of the team that you’d see in a heist movie. In some ways, it is. The dangers of rebellion against the Greens, whether done in secret or otherwise, would probably result in death. Hell, even if the Greens found out about the lineage of these riders, they’d be in trouble. So the result then is this: it’s either die at the hands of the Greens or die on your own terms, in the face of a dragon.
This is more or less exactly what Rhaenyra tells the gathered crowd once they reach the depths of Dragonstone. Even then, there’s a sense of doom around this whole endeavor going poorly. The religious-like Dragonkeepers, who know of the power and God-like status of the dragons from their days in Old Valyria, make it clear they want no part in participating in this sacrilege. From the moment Rhaenyra steps out onto the platform to declare that it’s time to let the “dragon speak,” Peristere begins cooking with Dragonfire; we know as an audience there are enough redshirts that the ensuing test to claim Vermithor will be deadly. Yet what’s compelling about this is how we take on the perspective of Rhaenyra, who is forced to watch all the chaos and triumphs as they unfold. The oner-style shot around Hugh and his efforts to save the trapped woman is befitting of a noble hero, bolstered by his guttural scream that he’s ready, and are gripping and tremendous to watch. Even though we know he’s likely to succeed, this framing gives Hugh his big moment.
Of course, given what we know about Ulf, it’s also fitting he seemingly stumbles into his destiny. In the wake of avoiding the chaos in the pit, he comes across a sleeping Silverwing. The quick juxtaposition of this fear smashed against the two flying through King’s Landing like a kid on a joyride is deeply entertaining. But it also highlights the point that the Dragontamers and Jace convey to Rhaenyra: who are they really letting into their house? Sure, Addam might be more keen to bend the knee given his father’s relationship with the Queen, but will commoners from King’s Landing be willing to do the same if a better offer comes along? Either way, the final shot of Rhaenyra standing on Dragonstone with three dragons flanking her signals the tides have just shifted—and becomes a series-defining image in the process.
Daemon’s Duty
“Do you want it still?” That’s the question Daemon’s (Matt Smith) faced all season long. After finally bringing the Riverlands to heel, thanks to some clever sparing with the young Oscar Tully, Daemon is forced to come to terms with actions through two critical encounters. At the behest of Tully, and in order to secure the Riverlands, he must kill Lord Blackwood. Swinging his sword has never been an issue, but this micro instance is a good stand-in for Daemon’s overall arc this season.
After his discussion with Alys last week and another visit from Viserys, I think Daemon’s answer is finally and definitively no. What’s great about the moment that Viserys and Daemon share together is the specific attention and framing of the crown. If you remember, in Paddy Considine’s final episode in season 1, there’s a moment where the crown falls off, and Daemon picks it up to give it back to him. There’s a bit of a parallel here, as Viserys seemingly offers it to him one more time, tempting him—almost in the style of the ring from Lord of the Rings. In a week where so many seek to gain power for themselves, what does it say about someone like Daemon that he may ultimately decide to reject it once and for all?
Odds & Ends
- I really like the idea of Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell) potentially trying to claim this massive, sheep-eating dragon for herself to make herself worthy. Let’s just hope it goes better for her than it does for the smallfolk!
- One of the other flourishes I loved about Peristere’s direction is the sense of scale he brings. I loved the framing of making the interior of Dragonstone, and the dragons themselves, appropriately massive. But the tighter shots in quieter moments help to convey a real sense of intimacy. Really tremendous stuff.
- Alicent (Olivia Cooke) is quite literally in the wilderness after she’s been rejected by everyone she loves. Tough beat!
