The sophomore season of House of the Dragon is fully underway, showing us the aftermath of Aegon II Targaryen usurping the throne from his half-sister Rhaenyra Targaryen.
War is, of course, imminent, as the greens and the blacks set their chess pieces on the board and carry out their schemes. That said, Rhaenyra is still adamant that she wants to prevent a war to the best of her ability, knowing that she has to protect the realm from the events of Aegon the Conqueror's dream. There's an extra level to her care for Westeros that no one else knows about, though she sheds some light on the prophecy to Alicent at the end of episode 3.
Now that Alicent knows that Rhaenyra is the rightful heir to the crown but believes it's too late to do anything about it, Rhaenyra can take action. And that's exactly what we're going to see in this Sunday's episode. Make sure not to miss a minute of episode 4, which is bound to be a major one based on what happens next in Fire & Blood.
The new episode of House of the Dragon season 2, which does not yet have a title announced, will premiere on Sunday, July 7 at 9:00 p.m. ET. The new episode will air on linear on the channel HBO, and will simultaneously be released on HBO's streaming service Max. If you're watching the linear showing and have to miss the premiere, don't worry because HBO will be airing multiple encore showings.
According to HBO's schedule, episode 4 will play for a second time at 10:00 p.m. ET, a third time at 11:00 p.m. ET, a fourth time at 12:00 a.m. ET, a fifth time at 1:00 a.m. ET, and a sixth time at 2:00 a.m. ET on Monday morning.
If you're watching the new episode of House of the Dragon season 2 on Max, you can stream it at any time after its premiere at 9:00 p.m. ET.
The third episode of House of the Dragon season 2, "The Burning Mill," is when we start to really pick up the pace. After the deaths of the Cargyll twins, Rhaenyra is at a loss. She is conflicted about what course to take next, and Rhaenys gives her advice. She decides to send Rhaena, Joffrey, and Aegon to Jeyne Erryn's for safety and sends them off with dragon eggs — which the episode's director has confirmed are Daenerys Targaryen's eggs. (This goes against the books and Game of Thrones, but whatever.)
After the Battle of the Burning Mill, the greens try to plan their next move but Aegon's Small Council can't see eye to eye. Criston decides he'll lead an army to the Riverlands, but Aegon and Aemond must stay put despite their desires to go with him. Alicent's brother Gwayne Hightower comes to King's Landing and joins Criston's army.
Daemon then arrives at Harrenhal and is surprised to be welcomed by Simon Strong, who does not support Larys. A character from Fire & Blood, Alys Rivers, is introduced — someone who will be very important later on. Daemon begins seeing disturbing visions at Harrenhal, with one of a young Rhaenyra (played by Milly Alcock!) sewing baby Jaehaerys' head back on and another of Alys telling him he's going to die here.
Another exciting character from the book is properly introduced in episode 3 during a scene at a bar in the city. Of course, I'm talking about Ulf White! He openly (though he tries to be secretive) talks about the fact that he's a bastard of Baelon Targaryen, making him a half-brother to the late King Viserys and Daemon. Aegon and his Kingsguard enter the bar and pay for drinks, where Aegon gets extremely intoxicated. The next stop on their night out is a brothel, where Aegon finds Aemond in bed with Slyvi and makes fun of him for it. Aemond is clearly angry with his brother and storms off fully naked.
Baela spots Criston's army while riding Moondancer and chases them through a field, though they're able to get away when they ride into the trees. Baela returns to Dragonstone to report what she saw, and Rhaenyra's council is certain they need to plan an attack. But Rhaenyra needs to be sure of it. Through Mysaria's help, she organizes a secret trip to King's Landing to speak with Alicent. Dressing up as a septa, she surprises Alicent at the sept and tries to talk to her about preventing the war. Alicent maintains that Viserys changed his mind about Rhaenyra before he died, and Rhaenyra asks her what exactly he said.
This is where Rhaenyra makes a major realization. Alicent explains that Viserys mentioned Aegon was the Prince That Was Promised to unite the realm, but Rhaenyra knows that he was referring to Aegon the Conqueror, not their son Aegon. She tells Alicent this, who is shocked, but it doesn't make her change her mind. She tells Rhaenyra that it's too late and leaves.
Rhaenyra now knows that her father never changed his mind about her, which is likely both satisfying and frightening for her. It means that she's in the right, but it also means war has to happen now.
Will we FINALLY see a battle in the new episode of House of the Dragon? Yes, we will! The Battle at Rook's Rest is looming, and based on the episode 4 preview, we know it's coming this week. Also shown in the preview, which you can watch below, Alicent and Aegon are at odds, while Criston wastes no time chopping heads off. Rhaenyra is ready to send her dragons to war, and while that's great, the preview ends with Vhagar showing up, who is a major threat to the blacks — and anyone in her way, really.
Without giving away too many spoilers from Fire & Blood, the Battle at Rook's Rest is a pretty big one in the Dance of the Dragons, and there is a casualty fans will likely be upset over. Though Criston's army first sets off for the Riverlands, he decides to change course and take Rook's Rest instead, located in the Crownlands. In addition to Criston, Gwayne, and their army of supporters, this battle includes Rhaenys and Meleyes from the blacks, and Aemond, Vhagar, Aegon, and Sunfyre from the greens. Clearly, the blacks are outnumbered in terms of dragons, but will that spell defeat? You'll have to wait and see!
If House of the Dragon pulls off the Battle at Rook's Rest well, this will be one of the best episodes of the season. Fingers crossed that's the case!
New episodes of House of the Dragon season 2 are released every Sunday night, and I'm here recapping each one at Show Snob. Check back in with us tonight for our thoughts on the Battle at Rook's Rest!