House Of The Dragon Episode 8 is here and let’s break it down in detail. With episode 8 of House of the Dragon, we reach our final time Jump of the season and probably of the show as a whole. This time it is of six years, or so the main adult cast all stay the same, but we have some new actors for the younger generation. Most importantly, we are now officially in the timeline of the Dance of the Dragons, the actors we have now are the ones we will have going forwards.
A few things have happened while we’ve been away Rhaenyra and Daemon are now a proper married couple with two children, Aegon and Viscerys, both looking very Valyrian already. Yes, this does mean that there are now two Aegons and an Aemond, and two Viserys’ in the show. Let’s just get into this week’s House of The Dragon Episode Recap.
House Of The Dragon Episode 8 Recap
Baela and Rhaena, the daughters of Damon and Laena Velaryon, are being brought up on Dragonstone and drift mark, respectively. Given the close ties, you might think that those two parts of the family would now be quite close, but no. Rhaenys now believes Rhaenyra and Daemon arranged for Laenor, her son’s death, so they could marry. Now of course we know that actually what happened was that Daemon and Rhaenyra arranged for Laenor to escape to a new life in Essos. It’s to Rhaenyra’s credit that she seems at no point in this episode to even consider revealing lane or secret and bringing him back to King’s Landing; it could have saved her a lot of trouble.
Over in King’s Landing Rhaenyra’s absence and Viserys’s illness mean that the Hightowers are now in complete control. Alicent and Otto between them are running the realm while Viserys is left alone and drugged up with milk of the poppy in his Chambers. There’s a shocking lack of care, to be honest, his room is dark and musty and his beloved model of Valyria has cobwebs on it and outside the whole palace is getting less Valerian and more Westeros. Targaryen Furnishings have been taken down and replaced Alicent makes a big show of her faith in the seven pendants and prays to the seven before meals.
This is shown in marked contrast to life on Dragonstone where the so-called Strong boys are seen learning Valerian and Targaryen history and Damon hikes off the dragon monster to pick up some dragon eggs. This issue of cultural identity is the catalyst for the action in this episode.
Vaemond Wants The Driftmark Throne
Corlys Velaryon has been out at sea and away from Driftmark for most of the last six years, it would appear, fighting in the Stepstones that war is just dragging on. And now he is very injured so the question of succession there is suddenly quite important. We saw last time that Corlys wanted Luke to inherit, but Vaemond calls his brother to take Velaryon’s identity seriously. Remember it was him in toning the burial rights at Laena’s funeral, talking about the historical distinction and uniqueness of House Velaryon.
Well, he seems now to be willing to say what everyone knows Luke may be the named Heir and have the Velaryon name but he is not Velaryon, he doesn’t look like a Velaryon, hasn’t been raised as Velaryon and seems not to even like the sea. Corlys may have been willing to look the other way so that the history books will record an unbroken line of Velaryon, but it’s a lie, Raymond intends to go to King’s Landing and plead his case.
Intriguingly this is the mirror of the conversation that Rhaenys had with Corlys in the last episode. But here, Rhaenys urges Vaemond to take the pragmatic approach, whatever the truth of the matter. Vaemond thinks he can get away with all of this because things have changed in King’s Landing. The king himself might have opposed it, but all the decisions now are being made by Otto and Alicent.
Indeed when Vaemond gets to King’s Landing he quickly secures a private chat with them and hints heavily about how grateful he would be if he were made the Heir. It would bring house Velaryon back into line supportive of Alicent and her children.
Rhaenyra And Daemon Back At King’s Landing
Rhaenyra and Daemon quickly realized the significance of all of this, if Luke isn’t affirmed as the heir to Driftmark the only possible reason is that the throne officially believes that he and Jace are bastards. Rhaenyra’s claim would be called into question. Viserys was always very strong on this, but Viserys is not exactly in the best of health. The pair of them rushed to King’s Landing to make their case, and when they get there they find out quite how bad it is.
Their arrivals should have had a proper welcome party but only Lord Caswell turns up, Lord Caswell isn’t a big character here but he is an important Bellwether of what’s going on. He is a rhaenyra loyalist in an increasingly team green Red keep (keep an eye out for how he fares over the next couple of episodes).
And Viserys is not in good shape, he’s clearly drugged, barely opening his eyes, mistaking people’s identities, not following conversations. The idea of him being able to effectively intervene appear Slim. So things don’t look good for team Rhaenyra.
Vaemond Speaks His Mind
But then we have a last gasp of greatness from King Viserys, a last effort to take control of the situation. A quick nod here to Paddy Considine, I think he was excellent in this episode. Viserys refuses to take his milk of the poppy, orders a family to suffer for later, and struggles his way into the throne room in visible pain to pronounce the matter of the day. We should note how the only person that Viserys allows to help him climb to the throne is his brother Daemon.
I said last week that I hoped that they had a final moment together to reconcile just a Little and this was it. There were no words, but they didn’t need words, theirs was a complex relationship, but there’s no doubt that it was based on love.
Until Viserys’s entrance, Vaemond had probably expected a fairly easy hearing with Otto on the throne, but we see once more how Viserys, for all his faults, doesn’t flinch in his support for Rhaenyra and always wants people to say what they mean, rather than hide behind insinuations. Daemon clearly wants that too, he knows how Viserys will react to Vaemond accusing his daughter of adultery and treason.
But there’s no backing down now Vaemond pronounces Luke no true Velaryon, Rhaenyra’s children bastards, and her a whore. Viserys responds by reaffirming that Luke is “my trueborn grandson”. Daemon kills Vaemond for treason, the clean-cut here is because of the Dark Sister of Valyrian steel sword. We often hear of how they are so much better than normal swords, but here we actually see it. They aren’t just good swords, they are swords forged by Magic.
Rhaenys Supports Rhaenyra
Rhaenys’ role in all this is pivotal, Viserys gives her center stage, and she could have backed Vaemond. She shares his view about the Primacy of Truth over historical Legacy after all. But no, she affirms Corlys’ View and basically condemns Vaemond to death. There is some poetic symmetry in Viserys deferring to her in this. If you think back to where we started this season, she could have been Queen, and her constant refrain to Rhaenyra has been that the powers that be in the land won’t allow a woman to sit on the iron throne.
And Viserys gives her the opportunity to choose whether to support Rhaenyra’s claim or shoot it down, she supports it. We’re not told, but I suspect that Rhaenys is vigil over Vaemond’s dead body later was not guilty so much as an honor guard of sorts. Vaemond was telling the truth, she knows it, and she knows that she made the decision that killed him, the least she can do is stand to watch over him. It means that she misses the supper that Viserys had planned for the whole family.
The Family Supper
Viserys again makes a point of not taking any milk of the poppy, he needs a clear head, and as he says he needs to put things right, he nearly manages it. He knows there’s a big chance of the Kingdom tearing itself apart on his death, and this is his last chance to stop it. Remember, for him, this is more than just arguments about who should rule, it is a matter of saving the whole of humanity. The Targaryens have to stay united. He gives an impassioned speech begging them to set aside their differences, if not for the crown, then for him. And it works Rhaenyra offers a toast praising Alicent and Alicent returns it to talking about how Rhaenyra will be a Good Queen.
The music starts Helaena and Jace’s dance, this is I think a subtle part three of Helena the prophet being ignored, this is the eve of the Dance of the Dragons and she is the first of the House of the Dragon to dance. And Viserys clearly feels his work is done he heads off to bed.
And for a few moments, all is well. Then the next generation down does their best to ruin it. We’ve seen Aegon being a bit of an ass before and here as well as being crass rude and bullying there was that whole incident with the serving girl that Alicent dealt with. Let’s not dwell on that but yes I think she did kill her and here Aemond makes the one toast that is guaranteed to open up all the old wounds again, to the Strong Boys.
There are clearly tensions still simmering, keep an eye on that because even if the older generation wants peace. Alicent’s children seem set against it. It doesn’t matter that Aegon doesn’t even want to be King, Aemond probably has enough ambition and anger for both of them. And also book readers can probably note the foreshadowing flowing everywhere in this scene. Aemond and Luke are at loggerheads, Daemon and Aemond squaring off, and so on.
Rhaenyra promises to Alicent to return to King’s Landing after dropping her children off at Dragonstone, so they can work on improving things. I am calling it now that her saying “I’ll Return on Dragon back”, will get the reference when she does much later return on Dragon back in very different circumstances to what either of them is imagining here.
House Of The Dragon Episode 8 Ending Explained
But then we get onto the end scene that changes everything. And to understand the context you need to go back to Viserys telling Rhaenyra about Aegon’s prophecy and the song of ice and fire, all the way back in episode one. It’s why he’s so adamant that the Targaryens have to stay united. Partway through this episode, she talks to him about it again while he’s apparently not all there, eyes closed, muttering and mumbling to himself.
Rhaenyra asks him whether he believes it. Was Aegon the Conqueror right? Now, after the supper when Unity was once more sort of established, Alicent gives Viserys his medicine, and he goes back to that conversation with Rhaenyra. We know he mixes people up, and even more so when he has had some milk of the poppy. And here he thinks he is talking to Rhaenyra again, but Alicent doesn’t know that. It is true he says Aegon “the prince that was promised, the prince to unite the kingdom”.
He means Aegon the Conqueror, but Alicent assumes he means her son Aegon. “It is you”, Viserys says “you are the one, you must do this”. It’s all a bit vague but she clearly thinks this is something of a deathbed change of mind. She must unite the kingdom, her son Aegon is the prince that was promised. She heads off saying that she understands him.
This of course changes everything she now thinks that Viserys has changed his mind, and her son is the rightful heir. This did not happen in the books and puts a new spin on what is to follow. We may not support Team Green but we do now understand a bit more why they did what they did and in particular why Alicent did what she did.
But let’s leave the episode with Viserys, he did everything he could this episode and will have died thinking that he had perhaps achieved the family Unity he so dearly yearned for, “no more, no more” he begs the empty room before reaching out to touch “my love”, his last words. He finally found peace as his kingdom is about to descend into war.
Also Read: Aegon’s Conquest Explained: The New Game Of Thrones Spinoff
