House of the Dragon Recap: Season 2, Episode 5

Last week’s House of the Dragon hit exactly the right notes for a mid-season episode, giving us huge, fiery action and a devastating tragedy. But as fans of both this show and Game of Thrones well know, controlling the Iron Throne requires more than battlefield victories. There are also the all-important sneaky schemes, whisper campaigns, cultivations of valuable allies, and the ability to visualize what your opponent is planning—maybe before they themselves even realize it. Episode five, “Regent,” may not boast any dragon brawls, but it still offers an important perspective on war in Westeros as we move into season two’s second half.

We open, as we must, with stirring reactions to the events of last week’s episode. Corlys and Rhaenyra separately express silent moments of grief. The loss of Rhaenys is heavily felt. And the fact that this conflict is now a full-blown war that’s using dragons as weapons is also monumental; in King’s Landing, hungry smallfolk are scrambling for precious food when a jaw-dropping procession comes into view: it’s “the traitor dragon Meleys”—just her giant severed head, to be precise—”slain at Rook’s Rest by your king!” We, of course, know that’s a bit of misdirection, as does Ser Criston Cole, but he’s more surprised by the crowd’s shocked reaction to seeing a dead dragon in their midst. “Don’t they realize we won the battle?” he mutters to Ser Gwayne, who says “Strange victory… if it was one..”

At the Red Keep, Alicent and Aemond peer down at the procession, zeroing in on a box so unremarkable that nobody else seems to notice it. It sure looks like it could be a coffin—a feeling that intensifies as it’s carefully carried into the castle while somber music swells on the soundtrack. It’s actually a primitive ambulance concealing Aegon’s return; the king, whose armor has literally melted into his flesh, is alive “for the moment,” to quote the Grant Maester’s gloomy prognosis. Alicent looks more stricken than Aemond—he, of course, has just one thing on his mind: finally getting his own chance to rule—and she’s determined to find out what really happened on that battlefield. Her (correct) suspicions that Aemond had a hand in things remain unconfirmed for now; when she asks Cole point-blank about it, he lies (of course) and says he doesn’t know.

Meanwhile, on Dragonstone, Rhaenyra’s Small Council is trying to pick up the pieces, and it’s going about as well as you’d expect. Ser Alfred Broome assures Rhaenyra that he 100% supports her claim to the throne—but he because she’s of “the gentler sex,” he thinks she’s ill-equipped to rule during wartime. “You’ve seen no more battles than I have,” she reminds him. And in truth, nobody in the room knows what the hell to do next, other than argue. Certain absences (the late Rhaenys, along with Corlys and Daemon) are pointedly felt. Meanwhile, Jace, who’s tired of being a “coddled princeling,” decides to go on his own mission without clearing it with Rhaenyra. His first instinct is to visit Harrenhal and see what the hell is keeping Daemon away; after Baela gently talks him out of that idea, he decides he’ll instead head to the Twins and have a chat with House Frey, a name Game of Thrones fans will hear and think “Red Wedding.” If he can get House Frey on Team Black, thus ensuring Rhaenyra’s army an easier route through the Riverlands, Daemon’s inaction at Harrenhal won’t matter as much.

But Daemon, for once, isn’t wandering around a hulking old castle sipping witchy potions at the moment. Instead, he’s issuing threats to House Bracken while sitting atop a screeching Caraxes: “The hour is late and my dragon is hungry. You have no choice but to submit!” But when House Bracken’s leadership makes it clear they have no intention of joining the same side as their hated enemies in House Blackwood, Daemon lets them trot off unharmed. “I came here to raise swords, not corpses,” he explains to an incredulous Ser Willem Blackwood, and the men agree to explore alternate methods of persuasion, using off-the-books tactics that Daemon, as a representative of the crown, can’t officially engage in. They don’t get into specifics, but as we all know, Daemon recently engineered the murder of a toddler. Fear the worst!

In the Eyrie, Rhaena is trying to close Rhaenyra’s deal with Lady Jeyne Arryn, who’s not pleased that Team Black has sent a pair of wimpy little baby dragons and still expects an army in return. “I have hunting hounds that are more fearsome,” Lady Arryn sneers. Rhaena does her best to hold her own in this exchange, but she’s in over her head. (This is the only scene in the Eyrie in this episode; it’s brief, but telling.)

Rhaenyra, meanwhile, turns to her wisest advisor: Mysaria. Of her Small Council, she says, “they speak around me, not to me.” But she admits to her weaknesses. She doesn’t know anything about fighting, she’s been dependent on Daemon for too long, and frankly she’s feeling a little lost. Mysaria brings up Cole’s stunt with the dragon head, and tells Rhaenyra the knight has made a big miscalculation; instead of filling the people of King’s Landing with victorious pride, he spooked them. 

“They are afraid,” she tells Rhaenyra. “Bread is scarce. The king has fallen. They whisper to each other that when Viserys lived, there was peace.” She also reminds Rhaenyra that the smallfolk have strength in numbers, and—in the second conversation this episode revolving around alternate methods of persuasion—tells her that “to the discontented, rumors are feed … what you cannot do, let others do for you. There is more than one way to fight a war.” As the scene ends, we see one of Rhaenyra’s maids, who’d conspicuously barged into their conversation earlier, heading away from the castle, a determined look on her face.

Next, Rhaenyra and Baela share a tender scene remembering Rhaenys, a true badass, and Rhaenyra reaffirms that she’ll need Baela’s support—and through her, Corlys—in the fight ahead: “I do not wish to stand alone.” Then we cut to the person who left her alone: Daemon, who’s having a kinky vision-slash-fantasy involving a woman so blonde she can only be a Targaryen. She praises him, says he’d have been a better ruler than Viserys, and calls him… her favorite son? Wait, what? Ser Simon Strong interrupts before that really sinks in, and we see that Daemon has drifted off into this bewitching waking dream while sitting at the Harrenhal dining table. He pulls it together though, as Alys Rivers peers at him suspiciously, and tells Ser Simon that “Willem Blackwood is bringing House Bracken to heel,” and that they’d better start preparing to receive a great host. 

He seems awfully confident about that, but Ser Simon is skeptical—and after he updates Daemon on how the work’s going with getting the dilapidated Harrenhal back in order, he awkwardly admits that he’s not sure how they’re going to pay all the workers. (Ser Larys Strong transferred all his family’s wealth to King’s Landing after his convenient inheritance, because of course he did.) Might Daemon be willing to, ah, ask Queen Rhaenyra to chip in? From Daemon’s reaction we can tell that’s out of the question, and quickly says he’ll cover the debt himself. Then, he instructs Ser Simon to address him as “My King” rather than “Your Grace.” Not “King Consort,” but “King.” Seems like those royal delusions are really starting to fester, aren’t they? Surely that won’t cause any problems down the line…

Back at King’s Landing, the Grand Maester offers a gloomy update on Aegon to Alicent, Aemond, and the rest of the Small Council. He’s done all he can do, and the king’s fate “lies with the gods now.” Alicent rises. The time has come to name a Regent to rule in Aegon’s place. She nominates herself, which is a very Alicent thing to do—but she is the most experienced, having kept Westeros peacefully running for years while King Viserys slowly succumbed to his illness. 

But just like Team Black, Team Green’s Small Council has some mighty condescending ideas about women ruling, particularly during wartime. They think Aemond should get the gig, even when Alicent points out her son has some well-demonstrated issues when it comes to exercising restraint. Larys points out that it would be a bad look if Team Green put a woman on the Iron Throne after blocking Rhaenyra’s claim—then he point-blank asks Cole what he thinks, because you know Larys loves the feeling that comes from putting people on the spot. Cole votes Aemond. And if looks could kill, he’d drop dead from Alicent’s glare. Having gotten his way, Aemond moves to the head of the table and briskly starts asking the men for updates on the war. Their conversations fade out and a single furious heartbeat gets louder; the camera moves in on Alicent and—in a fantastic Olivia Cooke moment—the potent rage boiling up inside of her practically radiates through the lens.

There’s anger elsewhere in King’s Landing, as Hugh the blacksmith and his wife, still tending to their sick child, worry about the declining conditions in the city. She wants to leave, and has serious doubts that Hugh will ever see any of the money Aegon promised him several episodes ago. We agree, frankly. But when the family—along with what look like dozens of other desperate citizens—tries to make their exit, they find that the new King Regent (surprise! Aemond’s in charge now, everybody!) has ordered the gates to King’s Landing closed and locked. Nobody in, nobody out. 

At the Red Keep, Cole is overseeing the removal of all those ratcatcher corpses (bonus: one last moment showcasing the dog George R.R. Martin was so fond of!) when Alicent corners him. He’s still a bit shell-shocked from Rook’s Rest, and explains his decision to back Aemond over Alicent in that context: “We have given the war to the dragons. A dragon rider should lead us.” He also thinks that putting Aemond in charge is sparing Alicent from ruling over a war that he knows, firsthand, is going to be truly hideous—but as she reminds him, she didn’t ask to be spared. (She also snaps at him not to address her so casually, using her first name. Oooh!) 

At the Twins, Lord and Lady Frey are taking a meeting with Jace, who’s doing his best to come across as confident even as nervously taps his fingers on his leg. He’s reminded that Lord Grover Tully, the region’s aging Lord Paramount, hasn’t declared for Rhaenyra, and “it means death to bear steel against your liege.” Also, quite frankly, everyone’s deathly afraid of Vhagar. Jace assures them he’s there to protect them, with his own dragon—and says he can guarantee the protection of Daemon, too. He also tries to bargain with them, asking what they want in return for their support. Turns out they want Harrenhal. “For that, my mother will want more than your crossing,” he says, and tells them they’ll have to bend the knee to get it.

Speaking of Harrenhal, we go back to Daemon, who’s chopping wood when he hears horrible screams… in his mind! The timing can’t be coincidental as Alys saunters by for a chat. The screams, she explains, reflect the agonizing pain echoing across the nearby Bracken lands as women and children are being kidnapped, tortured, and worse. (Now we get an idea of what Willem Blackwood meant by “everyone has a weakness.”) “This is not war,” Alys says. “These are crimes against the innocent that any upright man would repudiate.” Daemon points out that he’s not an upright man, and besides—it’s the fault of the Brackens, who should have just followed his orders in the first place.

Their conversation continues, as she wonders why he’d want to raise an army of men that hate him, and says “the weak and the women” are the ones bound to suffer the most from all this. He turns that around by telling her “Aemond One-Eye” will truly make the realm suffer if he’s allowed to remain on the Iron Throne. But Daemon has an equally fearsome reputation, and Alys gets him to admit the truth we’ve already been assuming: he’s planning to claim the Iron Throne for himself, not for Rhaenyra. “The people who support her will not be led by her—they look to a man for strength,” he says. It’s a huge betrayal, but everything we’ve seen on House of the Dragon, including in this very episode, unfortunately suggests that he’s right. The scene ends as Ser Simon enters and tells Daemon that the Brackens have yielded to the Blackwoods.

Back on the islands, Baela tracks down her grandfather, Corlys, who’s just as morose as you’d expect. She has a message from Rhaenyra: she’d like him to serve as Hand of the Queen. When Corlys resists, Baela reminds him that Rhaenys wasn’t just his wife; she was a Targaryen princess who meant a lot to many, and she died with honor fighting for her family. “I will see Rhaenyra ascend the Iron Throne as Rhaenys wished. As Rhaenys herself should have,” Baela says. Impressed, he offers to make Baela his heir, but she says it’s not for her. “I am blood and fire,” she says. “Driftmark must pass to salt and sea.”

In the castle, Rhaenyra summons Ser Alfred, who’s a bit of a prickly guy but has always been fiercely loyal, and asks him to go to Harrenhal. Daemon is, of course, ignoring her ravens—and that army he’s supposed to be gathering is taking way too long to come together. She lets Ser Alfred in on her (correct) concerns that Daemon’s intentions have shifted, and that he’s now eyeing the Iron Throne for himself. “He would not dare!” Ser Alfred responds in shock. “Have you known Daemon to lack in daring?” is her perfectly weary response.

Speaking of, Daemon is deep asleep when he’s interrupted yet again by Ser Simon with urgent business. The River Lords have arrived amid a violent rainstorm and are demanding an audience. After crabbing about etiquette, and referring to himself as “your Targaryen master,” he snaps, “Is there some reason you feel free to wake a king in his bed?” 

Well, yes: they’re hopping mad about the cruel tactics House Blackwood used to bring House Bracken into line, especially “works of barbarity” against women and children. These are war crimes beyond the pale; there’s no honor or decency involved, and the atrocities are all being committed under the banners of House Targaryen. As Daemon’s absorbing their sharp complaints, he has a vision of his late wife, Laena, who remarks on the “terrible war.” Daemon was all puffed up with haughty arrogance when he entered the room—how dare these underlings barge in like this?—but his carriage visibly deflates, especially when one of the Lords brings up the murder of little Prince Jaehaerys. Daemon protests that wasn’t his doing, but the River Lords are through with him. They storm out, declaring “dragon or no, we shall not raise our banners for a tyrant.”

At the gates of King’s Landing, Rhaenyra’s maid begs to be let inside. She has an errand to run for Mysaria, and a sympathetic guard lets her through. The thunder and rain are still going as we cut to different scenes in different locations, all shrouded in darkness. There’s Corlys, deep in thought, considering what to do about Rhaenyra’s Hand of the Queen offer. Then, Aemond standing in front of the Iron Throne, looking as pleased as he’s capable of looking—then turning as someone appears in the throne room behind him: it’s his sister Heleana, who’s also Aegon’s wife. She asks, “Was it worth the price?” We see an ailing Aegon in his bed as Alicent briefly watches over him, then leaves him to suffer by himself. 

Then we come to Rhaenyra, engrossed in a stack of history books. Jace appears with the news that the Freys want Harrenhal as payment for joining Team Black. We’re expecting her to be angry with him for acting out of turn, but she says she’s proud of him, and that “you have done our cause a great service.” She’s still upset—but not at Jace. Instead, it’s because the responsibility that comes with being queen means she can’t just dive into the action herself. The talk then turns to an absolutely crucial step in winning the war: neutralizing Vhagar. “I need dragons,” she tells her son.

When Jace points out there are two spare dragons—not as big as Vhagar, but certainly capable of engaging him—sleeping beneath their very castle, she responds that they don’t have riders. Not just anybody can hop on a dragon; they have to have the right kind of blood. Then Jace has another idea: what about all those Targaryen-adjacent folks out there? “Those who married into other noble houses, their children born with other names?” Rhaenyra emphasizes that a dragon will only accept a Dragon Lord as a rider, but we can tell she thinks the notion has merit. She knows the importance of understanding the past, and not for nothing does House Targaryen have a well-documented history charting its entire line. “It’s a mad thought,” she says. But is there any other solution?

New episodes of House of the Dragon arrive Sundays on HBO and Max.

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