From the beginning of the HBO Max series, the main thread of the entire ‘The house of the dragon’ is who sits on the Iron Throne, especially following the appointment of Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy), which has divided the kingdom. As if that were not enough, this episode takes us to another controversial succession for many reasons: that of the house Velaryon.
By the way, from here spoilers for ‘The Lord of the Tides’, episode 1×08 of ‘The House of the Dragon’.
the sea serpent
And it is that the episode begins in Marcaderiva. Six years have passed, there is more light, and Rhaenys (Eve Best) receives the news that the Sea Serpent, Corlys Velarion (Steven Toissant), has been seriously wounded in battle. Although the possibilities of dying or living are not clear (according to the books he does survive the brutal wound), this opens an anticipated debate: who will be the next Lord of the Tides.
The main contender is Vaemond (Wil Johnson), brother (in the book he is nephew) of Corlys who considers himself the rightful heir because he is sure that first, Rhaenyra’s children are bastards and, second, the princess ordered the murder of Laenor (whom she last killed). we once saw eloping with her lover). Theories that seem to circulate both very insistently in all this time.
This will take us to visit, again, King’s Landing. A strange visit, in which Geeta Vasant Patel’s camera emphasizes that it is a very different place from the last time we visited it. Moreover, the coldness received by Daemon (Matt Smith) and Rhaenyra confirms that Alicent (Olivia Cooke) and her father Otto (Rhys Ifans) have taken control of the palace due to the decline of King Viserys (Paddy Considine).
A king whom we see in bed, “more pa’llá than pa’cá”, succumbed to an illness that has left him emaciated and barely conscious. Both Daemon and Rhanyra experience a mix of grave sadness and anger, something they soon express to the queen. A queen who, on the other hand, has to take care of the barbarities committed by his eldest son, an Aegon this time with the face of Tom Glynn-Carney.
Fortunately, the king has a sufficiently long moment of lucidity (basically avoiding being drugged with poppy milk), as if to try to solve the problem. Both the Driftmark succession and the problems within the family and the rivalry between his wife and his daughter.
On the other hand, we were saying, regarding the sixth episode, how ‘The house of the dragon’ embodies a conflict of generations and during these past three episodes we have seen quarrels and even stabs between the children of Alicent and those of Rhaenyra. Each time they gain a little more weight, but I have the feeling that the script does not allow itself (for time) to delve deeper into this second generation. At least in this season 1.
Where I see more problem in this sense is in the “vanilla” personality that both Jacaerys and Luke seem to have, Rhaenyra’s two elders, who are much more loosely defined than their Targaryen “rivals”. I imagine that as the series progresses this will change, but it is beginning to be time for them to stand out.
The engaged princess
The end of the episode also picks up a thread from these released years ago (or weeks): the “prophecy” of the Song of Ice and Fire, that of the promised prince. And it is that the last scene takes us to the last moments of King Viserys who, taking Alicent as his daughter Rhaenyra, assures him that the prophecy is completely real. That she is the princess bride.
This prophecy is from Aegon the Conqueror himself. that he had a vision in which a terrible winter would come and plunge the Seven Kingdoms into darkness and a prince would arise capable of uniting the kingdoms so that Westeros survives. While in the first episode it seemed like a simple reference to ‘Game of Thrones’, here it suddenly becomes something that adds fuel to the fire.
And it is that during the dialogue we see how Alicent seems (or wants) to understand that the Aegon he refers to is his firstborn instead of the Conqueror. Something that, in a more than evident way, will play as an asset in the succession of the throne. Never mind that even on his deathbed Viserys has repeatedly reaffirmed Rhaenyra as his heir. To her, Aegon is this promised prince..
Both responses to the prophecy, as we know, are wrong since this will not happen until centuries later in ‘Game of Thrones’ with the Jon Snow/Daenerys Targaryen duo also disputing another prophecy. Although we could interpret that the prophecy refers to a (distant) descendant of Viserys.
So, in case there was little fuel left for the impending war, here’s another can of gasoline. With the death of Viserys in this eighth episode, already we have reached the definitive moment on the way to the Dance of dragons. There are two chapters left whose titles (The Green Council / The Black Queen) define the sides… and we will be there to attend a final stretch that promises to be spectacular.