The battle of black against green is in full swing in House of the Dragon Season 2. After both sides have already suffered heavy losses, Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) and his newly appointed Hand Ser Kriston (Fabien Frankel) on the one hand and Daemon (Matt Smith) on the other hand are not afraid of impulsive and serious attacks. The voice of reason is always Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy), who in Episode 3 surprisingly seeks a clarifying conversation with Alicent (Olivia Cooke).
As someone who is not familiar with George RR Martin’s novels, I honestly expected this storyline to come later in the season, as a clarifying conversation between the two most important characters in the entire series would surely change the course of events… or would it? On the contrary, the meeting of the former friends shows definitively that in this Targaryen-Confusion All hope is lost. And that is so frustrating that I almost don’t feel like watching the series any more.
Rhaenyra and Alicent’s encounter in House of the Dragon is an exercise in frustration management
It is of course completely my mistake to expect anything from House of the Dragon after 8 seasons of Game of Thrones that Reason and logic Yet I always find myself letting myself be led around by the nose and hoping for the best. If only they all sat together in a room one day and spoke openly about the awkward throne situation, everything would turn out for the better! That’s where the good-natured Viserys in me comes out. But of course it’s not quite that simple.
It probably wasn’t really her fault that Alicent read Aegon as heir to the throne from the words of the dying Viserys (Paddy Considine) in the season 1 finale. After all, she wanted the best for her family, for her son and also to honor her husband’s supposed final wish. Whether she could be accused of malicious intentions towards Rhaenyra was certainly debatable at the time. Even if I wasn’t the only one who threw things at her TV while watching.
HBO
Alicent (Olivia Cooke) recognizes her mistake
However, the encounter between Alicent and Rhaenyra in the episode The Burning Mill showed that Alicent actually believed in Ageon as heir to the throne: When Rhaenyra tells her about Aegon the Conqueror, we see in Alicent’s wide eyes how the puzzle pieces come together and she is shocked to realize that she has made a mistake. In Rhaenyra’s no less wide eyes, we see almost incredulous bewilderment that she might have lost her entire future. lost to a stupid misunderstanding has.
The misunderstanding in House of the Dragon is just a placeholder for a senseless conflict
Rhaenyra’s hope that the clarification could now put an end to the entire conflict reflects my naive belief in justice, which was shattered by Alicent just a few seconds later. Because the misunderstanding about Aegon or Aegon the Conqueror was never really the issue. Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) and the Privy Council were probably just waiting for the opportunity to question Rhaenyra’s succession to the throne. Alicent’s belief in Aegon’s right of succession was of course a godsend. Had this not been the case, they would probably have another pretext found to overthrow Rhaenyra.
Losses on both sides and hatred that has built up over decades have now heated up the situation to such an extent that a war can no longer be stopped. And admittedly, there would probably be no story left to tell if the conflict could simply be resolved by clearing up a small misunderstanding. So I don’t want to complain too much about reason and logic – and I know full well that I will be watching this complete catastrophe again next week. But I still enjoy getting upset about it.
The 4th episode of House of the Dragon Season 2 is released in the night of 7 to 8 July 2024 in the streaming subscription at WOW.