Warning! Major spoilers ahead for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 4
Summary
House of the Dragonstar Eve Best explains why Rhaenys turns back in season 2, episode 4. Returning for its sophomore outing last month, the hitGame of Thronesspinoff show has now given audiences the first major action sequence of the season with the Battle at Rook’s Rest. Rhaenys plays a major role throughout the sequence, supporting those inside the stronghold on her dragon, Meleys.House of the Dragonseason 2, episode 4, sees Rhaenys and Meleys meet their end, however, after they heroically turn back to take on Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) on Vhagar.
In a recent interview withVariety, Best explains why Rhaenys turns back to fight Aemond and Vhagar, despite knowing how it would end. The actor likens Rhaenys' role in the fight to a “kamikazee mission” and teases that her decision could effectively kick the dragon war into high gear. Check out her comment below:
I spoke with [episode director] Alan Taylor. We’d had a session where we talked about what was going on with her emotions, because I felt very strongly that there were these really important beats that we needed to mark. In particular, the knowledge of the fact that it’s very likely a kamikaze mission.
It has to be, because effectively, she’s starting a nuclear war, and she has been the one character throughout who’s done everything she can to stop them. Because she’s the one that knows from bitter experience, and all the younger generation are running around, saying “Send in the dragons!” She and Corlys are really the only adults left in the room who know, who’ve been there and seen it — what they’re facing.
The context of nuclear war was very, very helpful, because that’s the equivalent for us. And I knew that when she had proposed herself, that she knew she had to take that responsibility, if anyone was going to have that weight. It couldn’t be Rhaenyra.Shehad to do it. I think she knows that she has to sacrifice herself for the team.
Another journalist described her as Lancelot, Rhaenyra’s Lancelot, in many ways. I felt like that was very apt. There’s such a deep reluctance. In the end of Season 1, she makes that conscious decisionnotto start a war,notto nuke everybody. Everyone ever since has been saying, “Why didn’t you nuke them?” Everybody’s taking it personal, and she’s all the time looking at the bigger picture. All the time rising up, putting the personal aside, and rising above.
The point is, ultimately, whatever we feel, however attached and however devastated we may be, the bigger picture is we must not send dragons into war, we must not go nuclear at all costs. So for her then to say, “I will be the one to do this,” she knows that there’s no living after that. The choice to go, that second return to plunge in with Vhagar — that’s an absolute kamikaze mission.
To me, that was when she felt very samurai. It was that last stand of the noble warrior. She could have just about escaped, and they could have maybe left everybody to deal with it. But she turns because she knows that’s what she has to do, morally and spiritually.
What Consequences Will Rhaenys' Death Have In House Of The Dragon?
The Blacks Suffer A Major Setback
If theGreens and the Blacks inHouse of the Dragonwere teetering on the edge of all-out war before, they certainly aren’t anymore. Rhaenys' death will come as a major blow to Rhaenyra and her allies, as well as to Corlys Velaryon, Rhaenys' husband. Though Rhaenyra has been reluctant to fully commit to a war against King Aegon,Rhaenys' death could see the Blacks retaliate in a major wayinHouse of the Dragonseason 2, episode 5.
Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell)
Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia)
The events of season 2, episode 4, also mean that Rhaenyra is now without a key advisor. As Best explains, Rhaenys has always been level-headed, and her years of experience meant that she often saw things differently than some of the younger characters. With this key member ofHouse of the Dragon’s castof characters now gone,Rhaenyra could find herself feeling somewhat rudderless as those around her become increasingly incensed and filled with bloodlust.
It’s not just the Blacks who suffered a major setback, however. They may have lost a key ally with Rhaenys' demise, but the Greens may have just lost their king. King Aegon’s fate is left ambiguous at the end ofHouse of the Dragonseason 2, episode 4, meaning both sides will likely be licking their wounds in the episode ahead after the Battle at Rook’s Rest.
Aemond & Vhagar Will Be A Major Problem For Rhaenyra
Ewan Mitchell’s House Of The Dragon Character Is Emerging As A Key Antagonist
With Rhaenys' death, Aemond and Vhagar are cemented as perhaps the biggest militaristic threat that Rhaenyra and the Blacks face. TheHouse of the Dragonseason 1 finalesees Aemond and his dragon kill Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) and Arrax, and the scene makes abundantly clear just how utterly massive Vhagar is and how unhinged and unpredictable his rider can be. With Rhaenys having now also become a victim of Aemond’s wrath, the character and his monstrous steed have only grown as antagonists.
Vhagar is the largest and the oldestdragon onHouse of the Dragon, dwarfing all others on the show. His sheer size means he is likely to win any one-on-one battle in the skies. Overwhelming Vhagar with multiple other dragons, then, really seems like the only way he can be defeated on the field of battle. Alternatively, killing Aemond while he’s on the ground and more exposed is perhaps the only way to avoid a massive, fiery confrontation in the air.
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While Aemond and Vhagar have emerged as the most deadly pairing onHouse of the Dragon, Mitchell’s character has also proven himself an unreliable ally. Season 2, episode 4, sees the character attack his own brother, Aegon, seemingly in an attempt to ascend to the Iron Throne. It’s unclear who saw and would speak up about Aemond’s actions since Criston Cole was unconscious for much of the battle, butthe instability and unpredictability of Mitchell’s character means he could soon make enemies with others on Team Green, his own camp.
Will The Rest Of House Of The Dragon Season 2 Top Episode 4?
The Battle At Rook’s Rest Was A Major Highlight
As of writing,House of the Dragonseason 2, episode 4’s IMDb scorecurrently sits at a 9.7 out of 10 on IMDb. This cements the episode as not just one of the spinoff’s best, but one of the best in theGame of Thronesfranchise. It also means, however, that season 2 is in danger of peaking early and not matching the highs of the Battle at Rook’s Rest. It’s unlikely, for example, that the remainingepisodes ofHouse of the Dragonseason 2will feature any action set pieces of this same scale.
That being said,Game of Throneswas revered in part because its quiet, character-driven scenes were often just as powerful as its major action set pieces, andHouse of the Dragonhas been largely the same in this regard. The fallout from the Battle at Rook’s Rest is sure to play out over the rest of season 2, and it’s likely that more major character deaths, surprise reveals, and plot twists are to come.
New episodes ofHouse of the Dragonseason 2 air on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
