The second season of House of the Dragon brings the Targaryen family’s civil war to a boiling point. In the season’s seventh episode, Rhaenyra goes completely unhinged with her new strategy, which involves using the dragons on a previously unseen scale.
However, Rhaenyra is warned about her actions by the Dragonkeepers, who try to stop her from taking the powerful creatures to the war. In the process, the series reminds viewers of Viserys foreshadowing a certain doom for House Targaryen while also examining the clan’s relationship with their trusted mounts.
House of the Dragon Proves Why the Dragonkeepers Were Right About Using the Dragons in War
The seventh episode of House of the Dragon season 2, sees Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) adopting a new strategy to get an upper hand in her bid to claim the Iron Throne for herself. The episode sees Rhaenyra searching for Dragonseeds, lowborn Targaryen bastards, to use them as Dragonriders.
However, Rhaenyra’s decision to take the dragons to war is questioned by the Dragonkeepers, the group responsible for looking after the fierce creatures. As a result of Rhaenyra ignoring their counsel, the Dragonkeepers abandon their post and are proven right later on.
Come the episode’s end, several smallfolk are killed in their attempt to tame one of the dragons, leading to pure carnage and destruction. The episode’s ending reiterates that Rhaenyra should have listened to the Dragonkeepers, who warned her about the power of the beasts.
Furthermore, the episode also highlights the dangers of leading the dragons to war and the threat they pose to the smallfolk, which explains why the Targaryens are looked down upon, especially in future generations. Hence, the destructive nature of the dragons witnessed at the episode’s end proves the Dragonkeepers right.
Rhaenyra Exploiting the Dragons Could Spell Doom for Westeros
The dragons are the superpower of the Targaryens for the most part but also play a key role in escalating the conflict between Team Black and Team Green. Prince Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) was unable to control Vhagar, leading to the death of his nephew, Lucerys.
The situation was foreshadowed when Rhaenyra was summoned by King Viserys, who admitted that the Targaryens weren’t meant to control the dragons and that perception itself was an illusion. Viserys implied the unpredictability of the dragons would eventually lead to his clan’s downfall.
On the other hand, the Dragonkeepers have somewhat of a religious outlook on the dragons, seeing them as the last remnants of Valyrian magic. As a result, the sect argues that controlling the creatures is futile.
The final moments of episode 7 reiterate the same while also foreshadowing a slew of unpredictable and uncontrollable dragons wreaking havoc on Westeros and fighting against each other as the conflict between Team Black and Team Green reaches a climatic point in the upcoming season 2 finale.
House of the Dragon is streaming on Max.
