Please be warned that this review contains heavy spoilers for the House of the Dragon Season 2 Finale: ‘The Queen Who Ever Was.’
Whether you ride for Team Black or Team Green, season two has challenged you with unsettling moral ambiguity. Even if you consider one claim to the throne more righteous than the other, the smallfolk of Westeros seem to lose and lose no matter who is in charge. It also seems like almost everyone is starting to feel the weight of the chaos descending upon them. Perhaps Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel, The Serpent) frames it best when he tries to explain his bleak life philosophy and recent emotional detachment from everyone around him: “The dragons dance, and men are like dust under their feet…we march now toward our annihilation.”
Criston Cole is not alone in his desperation, and as a result, the House of the Dragon Season 2 Finale, ‘The Queen Who Ever Was,’ decides to linger on that desperation rather than wrap with a final battle or a shot of a new royal sitting upon the Iron Throne. Fans who are hungry for action might feel a bit disappointed, but those of us who love great conversations in beautiful rooms now have a complicated chess board to examine while we wait for Season 3.
We kick things off with our daintiest lord, Ser Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall, Tenet), who has his hands full with the Triarchy. After a mandate from Prince Regent Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell, High Life) to procure the services of this network of pirates to break the blockade in King’s Landing, Tyland struggles in negotiations. He completes his task, but not without forfeiting The Stepstones and subjecting all Westerosi traders to what we can only assume will be a fair and reasonable tax determined by these wildcard marauders. Tyland knows this is a bad deal, but he seems to be even more terrified of going home empty handed.
Later, things get worse for Tyland before they get better when he has to endure some humiliation in the mud-wrestling pits at the hands of our fun new pirate commander, Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn, The Acolyte), and agree to some light cannibalism (just kidding!) and dinner theater. In all seriousness, though, it’s fun to see a female actress portray a character who is referred to as a man. We still don’t know if this is Lohar’s true identity or a necessity for navigating a patriarchal system, but whatever the circumstances, this dynamic reminds us of the frustrations that our core female characters are navigating within their own circles. It’s also a fun choice to challenge viewers’ assumptions about Lohar’s identity and make sure that we aren’t falling into the same trap as so many lords and ladies of Westeros. (P.S. Tyland seems to have a new air of swagger and confidence in the closing moments as he sails toward the blockade).
Meanwhile, Master of Whisperers Lord Larys Strong (Matthew Needham, The Ritual) is doing his best to operate ten steps ahead of the chaos. He convinces King Aegon II Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney, Dunkirk) to escape King’s Landing before the seat of power is overcome by Team Black’s three newly-acquired dragons. Even as he pulls at these delicate strings, Larys can’t resist an opportunity to put some mustard on his report that Prince Aemond was seen to “flee in terror.” It’s just the right vibe to confirm that Larys is putting his personal vendetta against a man who humiliated him a couple of weeks ago over the good of the realm or his loyalty to Team Green.
In fact, we learn that Larys has set up a special rainy day fund in his offshore bank account and he is ready to whisk the young king away for an extended vacation while Westeros rips itself to pieces. He hopes to ride in after the dust settles as the trusted advisor to the returning king. Not to be outdone by Team Black’s supremacist language from last week, Aegon reminds us that Team Green is also made up of selfish bigots when he refers to the people of Essos as “goat fuckers,” and can’t seem to look any further than his burnt genitalia. Nevertheless, Larys closes his pitch by appealing to Aegon’s desperate need for approval. He helps Aegon imagine a world where he is able to return to a great legacy as a peacemaker or a rebuilder. Aegon takes things in a somewhat more selfish direction when he lands on “The Realm’s Delight” as his future title, but Larys is just happy to get out of there with his own personal kingling.
Of course, Larys isn’t the only one looking to cut their losses and get out of Dodge. It seems that Queen Alicent Targaryen (Olivia Cooke, Ready Player One) did have an epiphany last week. She wants to seek passage out of King’s Landing, and if possible, she aims to take her daughter, Queen Helaena Targaryen (Phia Saban, The Last Kingdom) along for the ride. She also seems to have developed a sudden tenderness for the smallfolk when she derides her son, Prince Regent Aemond Targaryen, for taking selfish and fiery vengeance on the innocent people of Sharp Point. While it is a bit rich coming from a woman who has ignored her children for two seasons, we are happy to see Alicent stand up for her daughter Helaena when Aemond tries to force her into military service alongside her dragon, Dreamfyre.
Over at Dragonstone, Prince Jacaerys Targaryen (Harry Collett, Dunkirk) is still focused on making his case to be burnt to a crisp. When the realm’s silliest dragon rider, Ulf (Tom Bennett, After Life), puts his feet up on The Painted Table as if it were some rotting barstool in Flea Bottom, Jace can’t wait to put his fellow bastard on notice; he does succeed in getting the last laugh in the argument, but not before Ulf makes it very clear that he believes they are on even footing. It feels like we haven’t seen the final sparks from these two, even though Lady Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia, Stay Close) rolls in with a great pep talk to encourage her betrothed to chill out and rise up to his station instead of wallowing in self-pity. Jace takes some strides, but we watch his heart shatter into tiny little pieces later on when his mother calls Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty, Touchdown) to her side instead of her rightful heir.
Of course, Jace isn’t the only one struggling with bloodlines. Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint, Before We Die) continues to dance around the question of whether or not to claim his bastard sons. It’s a bit of a frustrating look from a guy who already received his wife’s blessing to raise up his illegitimate sons, but we can’t stay mad at him for too long when we learn he has renamed his ship after his late wife. “The Sea Snake” is now “The Queen Who Never Was.” It’s a beautiful sentiment for all of us still mourning the departure of Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best, Nurse Jackie) after her death at the Battle of Rook’s Rest. Plus, Corlys doesn’t get off too easy this week. Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim, Raised by Wolves) later pushes Corlys to confront the pain he caused by withholding his favor for so many years. As Alyn puts it, “I will continue as I began…alone.” Perhaps this will prove to be the final push that Corlys needs to acknowledge his progeny. In any case, even though Corlys is an absent father, he seems to be speaking sense when urges Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy, Mothering Sunday) to act quickly while she holds the advantage in terms of dragon math.
Of course, viewers are left wondering about those final numbers. Ser Alfred Broome (Jamie Kenna, Coronation Street), the biggest tool of all the tools on Rhaenyra’s useless council of bros, finally makes his way to Harrenhal to check in with Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith, Doctor Who). He was sent several weeks ago to check in on the state of Daemon’s allegiance to Rhaenyra, and from a certain point of view, he follows through on that mission here – the thing is, instead of simply inquiring after Daemon’s allegiance, he offers to join Daemon in usurping Rhaenyra. Ser Simon Strong (Simon Russell Beale, The Outfit) senses treachery, but eagle-eyed viewers are not surprised to see Daemon bend the knee to Rhaenyra after his recent lessons in humility at Harrenhal. Of course, if you missed those threads, the finale also preps us for this moment with another game-changing vision.
Yes, before the bending of the knee, Daemon checks in for one more witch vision. Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin, GLOW) applauds his newfound humility before helping him see far into the future. Daemon sees a hell of a lot, including our Game of Thrones gal Daenerys Targaryen with her three dragon hatchlings and the good ol’ Night King – but the most exciting reveal for this reviewer was the sight of sweet innocent Helaena appearing to take an active part in the magic. We are left to believe that she has been living with the same sort of flashes that Daemon has experienced throughout season two. This decision also adds weight to her confrontation with Aemond in the next scene. She reveals the circumstances of Aemond’s death and stands her ground against committing the same atrocities that her brother has committed, and that Rhaenyra plans to unleash upon the smallfolk of King’s Landing. As we prepare for the closing sequences of the season, it’s effective to confront us with such large and eerie stakes.
We’ve spent so much time hearing of inescapable fates and hearing characters reflect on the question of whether or not death would be a gift at this point in The Dance of Dragons that it is hardly surprising to watch Lady Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell, Midsomer Murders) chase her way across the wilds of the Eyrie in search of a wild dragon. She, too, seems ready to claim a dragon or die trying.
Of course, the emotional heart of the episode reveals itself when Alicent arrives at Dragonstone in the night to cut a deal with Rhaenyra. She is hoping to hand over the throne without bloodshed once Aemond leaves for Harrenhal. Rhaenyra is naturally skeptical because it sounds too good to be true (and it probably is). She holds her ground as the rightful heir and makes it clear that she will have Aegon’s head no matter what deal Alicent is ready to make. This exchange is possibly Olivia Cooke’s finest work of the series as Alicent (though she is consistently excellent); we see her acknowledge all of her doubts and mistakes and even return to her childhood nail-biting as she lays herself emotionally bare before her childhood friend. While we don’t get a storybook ending, Rhaenyra lets Alicent go with a new feeling of freedom. As Alicent puts it, she no longer cares what history will say about her part in The Dance of the Dragons: “Let them think what they must. I am at last myself.”
We end the season on a surprisingly soft note. We don’t get any big battles or claim any new dragons. Heck, Alicent doesn’t even make it off of Dragonstone. Instead, we get to linger on the beautiful armor pieces the creative team has assembled while the show tosses some crumbs to hold us over until next season (Will Rhaena claim a dragon? What’s up with Otto?). It’s not the most action-packed sequence, but we do end on a beautiful shot of Rahenyra framed, even trapped, in her wall of scrolls. As big as her ambition and the prophecy that drives it may be, we know that she is just one piece of a much larger tapestry. We may be stuck on the precipice of the next stage of this civil war for a while, but we sure have an awful lot to talk about while we wait.
So, who won the season? In terms of The Dance of the Dragons, we are left to assume that Team Black remains in the lead. Not only do they have the numbers to take King’s Landing, but they seem to have Queen Alicent’s blessing. Additionally, the closing montage implies that Rhaena is likely to claim another dragon. We even see our guy, Ser Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans, The Amazing Spider-Man) seemingly imprisoned… somewhere. He is the only person on Team Green with a mind for political strategy, so this is great news for Rhaenyra and company.
As for the question of who won the individual episode, that honor goes to the one and only Emma D’Arcy as Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. While this reviewer was pretty agitated by Rhaenyra’s reckless and selfish vibe last week, this week brought a more grounded Rhaenyra. Sure, she still may fall to the call of power and glory, but she does seem to have some serious second and third thoughts about torching more smallfolk this time around. More importantly, Rhaenyra displayed a newfound sense of swagger. Not only has she decided to take to wing whenever she damn well pleases, but she gave off an epic and commanding presence when she arrived at Harrenhal to bring Daemon to heel.
That, in and of itself, might have been enough to win her the week, but D’Arcy also got to play a wider range of emotions. In addition to all of the incredible emotional beats they played opposite Olivia Cooke when Alicent showed up in the night to humble herself before Rhaenyra, Emma’s perfectly-timed sarcastic scoff at the mention of Alicent’s lover (“Oooh! The incorruptible queen sullies herself with a lover.”) transported us back to the two childhood friends that we love to root for. It was truly a master class. Here’s hoping that there is still room for such humanity and joy in the coming seasons, even with the grim and foreboding elements that are taking form around the conflict.
Not only is there an air of doom and trepidation hovering over the finale, but also some very direct reminders of the destructive power of dragons. This episode brings some of the most overt nuclear language we’ve heard all season. Rhaenyra discusses how she hoped to use dragons as a form of deterrence – but will now use them in a battle of wills to bring the enemy to its knees. It’s the kind of logic that no philosophy can ever fully explain or fully justify – and it is incredibly effective to evoke the biggest moral question that hangs over the legacy of World War II: to what extent do the ends justify the means?
This reviewer can’t think of a better way to explore those types of questions than through a fictional story – particularly a story set in the rich world of fantasy and politics that House of the Dragon has constructed for us over the course of two seasons. We have more than enough to discuss and debate while we wait for season three.
Thank you for joining The Pop Break for our House of the Dragon coverage, and we can’t wait to see you again for season three!
