Rhaenyra the Cruel...
House of the Dragon Season 3, episode 2 concluded with Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) finally taking her rightful place (well, depending on who you ask) on the Iron Throne, but she walked through the blood (literally) of a man she'd known her entire life to do so.
Stricken by grief after the death of her eldest son Jace (Harry Collett), Rhaenyra is convinced to follow through with her plan to travel to King's Landing and seize power by Daemon (Matt Smith). Thanks to Alicent (Olivia Cooke), their path to the Red Keep goes relatively smoothly, with Daemon making short work of the few remaining Gold Cloaks loyal to the absent King Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney).
Unfortunately for Rhaenyra, a show of force is necessary before she can ascend the throne, and with Aegon long gone, Daemon retrieves the scheming former Hand of the King, Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), from the cells and urges his wife to perform the execution.
Despite his treachery, Rhaenyra is hesitant to kill her late father's close friend, but ultimately swings the sword (it takes two blows) and beheads Hightower, while Daemon does the same to Lord Jasper Wylde (Paul Kennedy).
The heir of King Vicerys Targaryen (Paddy Considine) then climbs the steps and sits on the throne of swords, just as Alicent and her daughter Helaena (Phia Saban) are brought before her. Alicent looks in horror at her father's head, before fixing her "sister" with a gaze of disbelief and fury. Rhaenyra is visibly distraught by her actions, but finally meets Alicent's eyes with steely resolve.
“Rhaenyra still perceives Alicent as her judge and jury, regardless of how polarized their positions have become,” D’Arcy tells Variety. “I think, because they were friends — best friends — in childhood, and because they were so close at the point of Rhaenyra’s mother’s death, I think there was some sort of transference there. Ultimately, I still think that Rhaenyra craves Alicent’s affirmation. So to find herself so far from Alicent’s kindness and affirmation is really stark. And as with those long relationships where we witness one another through our life, Rhaenyra sees something of herself from the outside: sort of everything that’s come before.”
“I think Rhaenyra has had a two-season-long battle with both colleagues and subjects to be recognized and respected as a potential ruling queen,” they added. “This is an instance of having to present as something that is familiar to a patriarchal idea of power. And whether or not that’s a line that she should have crossed, morally and ethically, and whether that’s a departure from herself or a step towards, is for audiences to determine”
You can check out a teaser for next week's episode below.
"The prequel series finds the Targaryen dynasty at the absolute apex of its power, with more than 15 dragons under their yoke. Most empires—real and imagined—crumble from such heights. In the case of the Targaryens, their slow fall begins almost 193 years before the events of Game of Thrones, when King Viserys Targaryen breaks with a century of tradition by naming his daughter Rhaenyra heir to the Iron Throne. But when Viserys later fathers a son, the court is shocked when Rhaenyra retains her status as his heir, and seeds of division sow friction across the realm."
House of the Dragon season 3 sees Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D’Arcy, Steve Toussaint, Fabien Frankel, Ewan Mitchell, Tom Glynn-Carney, Sonoya Mizuno, and Rhys Ifans reprise their respective roles. Additional returning cast includes Harry Collett, Bethany Antonia, Phoebe Campbell, Phia Saban, Jefferson Hall, and Matthew Needham.
Season 3 directors include Loni Peristere (episodes 1,6), Clare Kilner (episodes 2,3,4), Nina Lopez-Corrado (episodes 5,7), and Andrij Parekh (episode 8).