‘House of the Dragon’ Recap Season 1 Episode 3: Second of His Name

Daemon will get just a little crabby at the finish of this week’s House of the Dragon, and his impetuous burst of violence seems being excellent news for the battle in the Stepstones (however spectacularly unhealthy information for the Crab Feeder, his males and one very unlucky messenger from King’s Landing).

Speaking of the Red Keep, Rhaenyra divides the hour between giving her dad an expertly deployed stinkeye and getting near Ser Criston Cole. One of these two actions ends with blood — in a second, we’ll get into which.

For now, learn on for the highlights of “Second of His Name.”

UPDATE FROM THE FRONT | We open on a ship being burned at night time; the scene is hellish. “House Velayron is coming for you!” a person yells at his masked attacker, who’s nailing him to a submit. That attacker, as we’ve glimpsed in flashes earlier than, is the Crab Feeder, and he unleashes a bunch of his namesake crustaceans on the nailed man, who curses him the complete time. But then: A dragon swoops in, horking up fireplace throughout the scene, and the crab-feedee will get very excited… till the beast lands and one of its toes inadvertently stomps him right into a paste.

Daemon is piloting the dragon, aka Caraxes. As males scatter in concern and take a look at to not get flambeed, Daemon taunts the Crab Feeder (he calls him Drahar) and winds up taking a fiery arrow in the shoulder earlier than Caraxes hauls tail out of there.

FAST-FORWARD | Meanwhile, at King’s Landing, we’re two years after the occasions of the earlier episode. Viserys and Alicent have already had a son, named Aegon, and she or he’s pregnant with their second baby. News of the Crab Feeder’s dominance arrives on Aegon’s second birthday, and Viserys doesn’t wish to hear about how Daemon’s forces are beginning to doubt his management, and the way it’s in all probability a superb time for the Crown to step in formally. “Daemon and the Sea Snake started their war without His Grace’s leave. Were he to intervene now, after so long, it would make the Crown appear weak,” Otto Hightower observes. But all Viserys actually cares about is the place an absent Rhaenyra is.

Alicent finds the princess studying beneath the weirwood, and it’s shortly clear that they’re now not the finest of mates — although it looks like Alicent, at the least, needs they nonetheless have been. Rhaenyra solely joins a celebratory hunt in the Kingswood as a result of she is commanded to take action, and she or he’s frosty to her father when he tries to attract her out. (Maybe speaking about how she’ll be married and pregnant herself quickly sufficient wasn’t the finest tack, dude.)

As Rhaenyra is strolling by way of the festivities, she catches the eye of a person who formally introduces himself some time later. “Lord Jason Lannister,” he says. “I gathered that from all the lions,” she shoots again. (Ha.) He’s as boastful as Game of Thrones‘ Season 1 Jaime, talking up Casterly Rock and all of the “means and resources” at his disposal. And he’s slick, too: When he brings up how he might simply construct a dragonpit, she wonders why he’d want one. “I’d do anything for my queen… or lady wife,” he says slyly, which I feel is that this period’s equal of “That dress looks great. It would look even better on my bedroom floor tomorrow morning.” It’s additionally an excessive amount of — she instantly confronts her father about making an attempt to wed her into House Lannister, and he will get very indignant in a short time when she says she doesn’t wish to marry anybody.

In her frustration, she shortly mounts a horse and rides off; Ser Criston Cole sees her and hurries to observe as she gallops by way of the woods. When they ultimately cease, she vents. He jokes about killing Jason Lannister. It defuses her stress, and she or he suggests a leisurely stroll by way of the Kingswood. She complains about being “toothless,” however he says that her selecting him for the Kingsguard was the highest honor his household had ever seen. “All that I have, I owe to you,” he says. “Now, I’d hardly call that toothless, Princess.” Related: I like him quite a bit.

VISERYS DRINKS AND THINKS | While this is occurring, King Viserys and quite a bit of the menfolk are on the path of a white hart, which is believed to be a superb omen for Aegon’s title day. Jason Lannister sleazes as much as the king throughout one of the meals and is like, “Here’s a giant poking device I fashioned” to kill the hart, then segues into how he assumes Rhaenyra will now not be Viserys’ inheritor now that Aegon exists. Viserys shortly tells him to hush up — and to ensure to let or not it’s identified that anybody else who assumes the similar will likely be thought-about mutinous.

Otto then sidles as much as his monarch and makes a heinous suggestion: Wed Rhaenyra to Aegon — sure, 2-year-old Aegon, her half-brother — and kill two blonde birds with one incestuous stone! Viserys laughs in his face, sends him away, after which drinks all the wine in the place as the night goes on. Out in the woods, Criston has constructed a fireplace and brought off his armor, as a result of the princess exhibits no indications that she’s going again to the social gathering. A boar approaches out of the surrounding darkness and assaults them; Criston takes it down, however when it gained’t go quietly, Rhaenyra grabs her dagger and makes pulled pork of the pig, sobbing as she frantically stabs.

Back at camp, Drunk Viserys staggers out to the bonfire and, when Alicent finds him there, sobs about how his obsession together with his dream/prophecy killed Queen Aemma. “I thought Rhaenyra was the way out of my abyss of grief and regret, and naming her heir would begin to set things right,” he says, close to tears and… startlingly in contact together with his feelings for a person of this age? Alicent tries to consolation him however it’s like she’s not even there, after which the horn sounds — indicating that the hart has been cornered — so the inebriated king stumbles off to kill a deer.

But it’s not the white hart that his males have tied up in the forest. It’s a big, brown stag as an alternative. The king ends its life it with the Lannister Poking Device, and the animal suffers earlier than it dies. Viserys seems extremely Not Into This as he turns away from the animal and all of his toadies applaud the anticlimactic kill.

The precise white stag? The one whose look is meant to predict greatness or one thing alongside these strains? It seems earlier than a bloodstained Rhaenyra and Criston that morning, and when the knight pulls his blade to kill it, she stops him with a delicate, “No.” The animal runs off. Make of that what you’ll.

ALICENT SUBTLY PULLS STRINGS | When everybody returns to the Red Keep, Otto visits Alicent and never so subtly predicts the finish of the realm if Rhaenyra really turns into queen. However, if little Aegon have been to ascend the throne… She reminds him that everybody swore obeisance to the princess, “our house among them.” But he’s nonetheless banging the gong laborious for the boy to change into ruler at some point, and advises her to information Viserys in order that he involves the similar conclusion. For the report, I’m an enormous fan of how Emily Carey is enjoying this scene, as if Alicent is distracted by her bodily discomfort and would do absolutely anything to ease the bodily burden of her late-stage being pregnant. “Yeah, sure, I’ll back whatever king you want, but for the love of the Seven will SOMEONE PLEASE DIG INTO MY LOWER BACK WITH THEIR ELBOWS?”

Anyway, she makes her strategy to chat with the king, who’s hungover as heck and lamenting the proven fact that Jason Lannister wasn’t a superb match for Rhaenyra. He’s additionally had a letter from the Sea Snake’s brother, asking the king for assist as a result of Daemon and Corlys are dropping their battle. Viserys isn’t inclined to assist, mentioning that the two males began the battle out of spite, however she frames it a distinct means: “Is it better for the realm if the Crab Feeder thrives, or is vanquished?”

So he sends assist. And shortly after, he will get into an argument with Rhaenyra. She is aware of that her half-brother has made her throne ascendancy pointless, and she or he resents that she’s now only a pawn to be married off for political achieve. “I do not seek to replace you, child,” he says. “I wish to see you contented, happy even.” So he tells her to make her personal match, discovering somebody she’s going to love the means he cherished Queen Aemma. Then, simply earlier than she leaves, he swears to her — “on your mother’s memory” — that she gained’t be supplanted in the succession to the throne. Why do I really feel like Viserys’ mouth is writing checks his platinum rear can’t money?

LAST-MINUTE SWITCHEROO | Let’s test in on the Stepstones, the place Corlys’ brother is near-mutinous and blaming Daemon for the Crab Feeder’s practically assured victory. And when a messenger arrives with information of Viserys’ imminent assist, Daemon beats the poor man. Then he rows himself out into the Crab Feeder’s territory, rips off a bit of white material that’s useful, and surrenders to the Crustacean King somewhat than settle for his brother’s help.

As Daemon kneels and provides up his sword to the Crab Feeder’s males, it looks like that’s that. But at the final minute he desires a blade from elsewhere on his individual and goes straight for The Big Rangoon himself. Hundreds of fighters shoot arrows at him. Others come for him with knives of their very own. But Daemon manages to run by way of all of them with nary a scratch on his demented face. Not since the Battle of the Bastards has one man evaded this sheer quantity of sure demise. How is nobody hitting him?

Oh wait, I spoke too quickly. Eventually he will get arrow’d! In just a few locations, together with the chest. King Crab’s males swarm, prepared to complete the Targaryen off, however simply then Corlys, the relaxation of their males and the dragon — piloted by Corlys’ son Laenor — arrive and assault. As they’re slicing and dicing in bloody style, Daemon follows the Crab Feeder into his cave. And when he exits, he’s dragging the disemboweled warlord’s torso behind him.