House Of The Dragon Season 2 Features A Cameo We Didn't See Coming
What do we say to the God of Spoilers? Not today. Warning: This article discusses major spoilers from the latest episode of "House of the Dragon."
For a series tasked with recreating many of the same elements that fans loved from the original "Game of Thrones," season 1 of "House of the Dragon" differed in one significant aspect: the decade-long time jump halfway through that required a major recasting for its two main characters, Alicent and Rhaenyra. It was always a risky choice on creator/showrunner Ryan Condal's part to expect audiences would remain just as invested in the adult versions portrayed by Olivia Cooke and Emma D'Arcy, respectively, as they became with the younger characters played by Emily Carey and Milly Alcock. But the older pair of actors always held an advantage — namely, that their portion of the story would inevitably encompass a far greater number of episodes than their younger counterparts ever had. Once the big switch occurred, viewers likely never expected to see Carey or Alcock in this series ever again.
That element of surprise is exactly what made a certain cameo in episode 3 of this second season so surprising. It isn't unusual for the franchise, based on the books by author George R.R. Martin, to mess with reality and rely on dream sequences every now and then. In an abrupt twist, however, season 2 used the fragile mental headspace of Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) to bring back one half of the show's original pair of stars: Alcock as young Rhaenyra. While many will gladly take this appearance as a welcome bit of fan service, it also plays a hefty role in revealing what's going on inside the head of the always-unpredictable Daemon and peeling back layers between his and Rhaenyra's most recent disagreement.
Daemon and Rhaenyra remain the show's most complex relationship
With circumstances so far from ideal, it's no wonder that Daemon is starting to mentally deteriorate. Having parted ways with Queen Rhaenyra following their heated argument over his attempt to murder either Prince Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) or Prince Jaehaerys (Jude Rock), two key figures on Team Green, Daemon has retreated to the ancient stronghold of Harrenhal, partly to brood and partly to plan Team Black's next steps in the war to come. Here, he meets a mysterious individual by the name of Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), who seems to have had a hand in the waking visions he's experienced soon after stepping foot in the cursed castle. The first ghostly visitor he runs into turns out to be none other than his niece Rhaenyra as a teenager, eerily sewing little Jaehaerys' head back onto his body as Daemon's forced to confront the results of his monstrous actions.
In a perfect intersection of giving the fans what they want while also servicing the characters themselves, this ominous sequence only deepens our understanding of Daemon. He and Rhaenyra clearly harbored inappropriate feelings towards one another, though the late King Viserys (Paddy Considine) was largely powerless to do much about it (short of banishing his reckless brother on multiple occasions though, ultimately, to little effect). But more than reminding us of past history, young Rhaenyra's reappearance further highlights the war brewing within the Targaryen king consort: his very real loyalties to his wife and Queen, and his own guilt over what he's done in his grand ambitions for power. Alys' creepy prophecy that he'll "die in this place" suggests he may never reconcile this split within himself.
"House of the Dragon" season 2 airs new episodes on HBO and Max every Sunday night.