The 'House of the Dragon' Season 1 Finale Sets Up a Deadly Road Ahead
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When we last left King's Landing, a plot to take the Iron Throne away from its rightful heir went down overnight. Viserys died, Aegon II promptly became king, and the Hightowers thought frighteningly little about any potential consequences for their actions. Or any consequence entirely. You thought no one would notice?! This is a pretty big deal! Well, karma certainly came knocking in the season finale of House of the Dragon, promising only suffering and deafening dragon roars over Westeros from here on out.
The episode kicks things off at Dragonstone, picking up with Princess Rhaenyra. She was absent last week as Alicent and Otto, worked to put the crown on Aegon II. (Despite her claim as heir.) When we first see Rhaenyra, she's discussing Lord Corlys's illness with her son, Luke. He is set to inherit Driftmark should the Sea Snake pass away. This is all less important to me than, you know, the treason that just went down in King's Landing, but Rhaenyra presumably hasn't heard that her kingdom was rather rudely stolen yet.
Rhaenys arrives—after not killing Alicent and Aegon via dragonfire—but we won't harp on that insane mistake, which certainly would've prevented war. She TLDRs our recap of Episode Nine for Rhaenyra and Daemon, as well as defends HBO's position that this was not her war to fight. Rhaenyra is so shocked that she goes into labor. She makes her two sons, Jace and Luke, watch her struggle as she gives them the bad news. Outside, Daemon plots for war. He makes two feeble knights pledge their allegiances to Rhaenyra under the threat of his dragon, Caraxes. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra's moans echo throughout the walls of Dragonstone. This miscarriage scene is especially gruesome to watch. I don't think there's ever been anything quite like it before, but the showrunners definitely could have warned us after the reaction to Queen Aemma's death in the premiere. Hated watching that one? House of the Dragon said: hold my beer. Didn't have this one on my season finale bingo card.
The episode moves swiftly along with Ser Erryk Cargyll, one of the newly introduced twin knights, arriving at Dragonstone with a host of lords. He swears fealty to Rhaenyra, presenting her with Viserys's old crown, stolen in the night. Daemon places it atop her head as the crowd kneels. Rhaenys, who smiles from afar, remains standing. Despite taking Rhaenyra's side, she's really taking this not my war thing as far as she can. Heading back inside, the war table at Dragonstone is lit with fire—and it's one of the coolest things this show has offered us so far. I can imagine that something like this will be reproduced in nerdy basements for years to come.
As Team Rhaenyra discuss houses they'll need to gain alliances from, including familiar lords such as Stark, Arryn, Lannister, and Baratheon, Daemon rattles off in quick succession the name of every dragon on this show. They have 13 winged monsters compared to "The Greens'" four. It appears Alicent and the Hightowers are calling themselves the "Greens," while Rhaenyra and the Targaryens are now the "Blacks." The monikers are based on each squad's traditional house colors. Also, 13 dragons? Damn, where have they been? Daemon wants to take Harrenhal, which was just burned to a crisp following the death of House Strong. From there, he says, they could take King's Landing with the might of their dragons alone.
Surprisingly, Otto Hightower arrives at the bridge to talk with Daemon, mirroring their stand-off back in Episode Two. Rhaenyra also arrives on the back of a dragon, just as she did before. "You are all traitors to the realm," she tells Otto. The Hand of the King offers her Dragonstone if she bends the knee, even though the castle is something she clearly already has in her possession. It's where you're meeting her right now, Otto! "Every symbol of legitimacy belongs to [Aegon]," he says of his grandson's crowning. It took place in front of thousands of people already, before Rhaenyra ever even heard the news. She rips off his Hand of the King broach and tosses it into the sea, calling him a "fucking traitor." In return, he presents her with a memento from her childhood friendship with Alicent. She promises to give King's Landing her answer the following morning. Hopefully, without any bloodshed.
"When dragons go to war, everything burns," Rhaenyra warns her family later that night. "I do not wish to rule over ash and bone." Thrones fans will remember that Daenerys did just that in its controversial finale. Rhaenyra hopes to avoid that fate, though she lives nearly 170 years before Daenerys is even born. Good luck, Queen! "The enemy has declared war," Daemon insists. "What are you going to do about it?" Rhaenyra reminds Daemon about the Song of Ice and Fire prophecy. He simply scoffs before proceeding to choke her. Add domestic assault to a growing list of reasons why Daemon should not be our "Internet Boyfriend." He leaves to court an old and fearsome dragon, singing a little song. Are there even larger dragons just lying in wait?
Next, we cut to Corlys, whom we haven't seen since Episode Eight. Rhaenys chides him for leaving—and gives the news of his brother's death. "You were right, Rhaenys," Corlys tells her. "I reached too far, and for nothing. Our pursuit of the Iron Throne is at an end." She pleads with him to side with Rhaenyra. Bound by blood, Coryls offers her the full support of the Velaryon fleet, the largest host of ships in all of Westeros. "This Hightower treason cannot stand," he declares. Jace is sent to the North on dragonback to ask for the support of House Arryn and House Stark, while Luke is sent to Storm's End to discuss an alliance with Lord Boremund Baratheon. Rhaenyra makes her sons swear not to fight on this mission, but to only serve as messengers. Those are some famous last words to swear upon.
Luke spots Vhagar at Storm's End, meaning that Aemond is there as well. Regardless, he pushes on, finding Lord Baratheon sitting on his cold, stone throne. Boremund jokes about how "the house of the dragon doesn't seem to know who rules it." Luke presents him with a scroll bearing Rhaenyra's message... and Boremund calls the maester over without opening it. Does Lord Baratheon not know how to read? Aemond at least came with an offer, he tells Luke, mentioning a potential marriage pact. The Lord has four daughters, but Luke is already betrothed. He is told to go home, but not before Aemond reveals that he's replaced his missing eye with a sapphire. As Luke tries to make his escape in the pouring rain, the massive Vhagar swoops in overhead. Seemingly against Aemond's wishes, Vhagar chomps down on the boy and his dragon, killing them both. The music swells and Daemon presumably informs Rhaenyra that Luke did not return home, though their conversation is inaudible. She turns around, looking at the camera with her game face on. Now, it's personal.
With that, House of the Dragon's weird and wild first season comes to a close. Full of nasty births, violent deaths, and multiple casting changes, the show took a confusing path to get to this moment. If the season finale felt like even more set-up, well, this is arguably the start of where this story really begins. Thankfully, the finale finally delivered on the dragons, who will be the main instruments of the upcoming civil war. When we return to Westeros for Season Two, which may not air until 2024, we'll see an all-out war between Rhaenyra and Aegon II. And I have a feeling that we haven't yet seen anything close to how shocking this story will get.
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