Everything You Need To Know Ahead of House Of The Dragon Season 2

The highly anticipated return of “House of the Dragon” for its second season is set to premiere on June 16th. As fans gear up for the new instalment, a refresher on the key events and characters from the first season is essential. For those who don’t have time to binge-watch the entire first season, here’s a comprehensive guide to everything you need to know before diving into Season 2.

House of the Dragon: Episode One

The Line of Succession

The first episode of House of the Dragon starts with an epilogue describing the line of succession in the Targaryen dynasty up to the time that the show is set. We see Viserys I (Paddy Considine) and Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) disputing who the rightful heir to the throne is. King Jaehaerys I had no male heirs. Despite Rhaenys being his firstborn, Viserys (nephew of King Jaehaerys) becomes the heir to the throne. This shifted the line of succession. 

Cut forward, King Viserys I is leading a happy and successful reign. He is married to Aemma Arryn, who is heavily pregnant with their second child after several failed pregnancies. Viserys’ eldest child is a girl, Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock), so he hopes for a boy who will be his successor. 

Rhaenyra is not desperate to be her father’s heir, as her uncle Daemon is currently Viserys’s heir (if Viserys has a son, the son will outrank Daemon). She’s happy flying her dragon, Syrax, and spending time with her close friend, Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey). 

Succession in House of the Dragon

The main motif of the first episode is the uncertain line of succession, depending on the upcoming birth. We also get to meet Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith), the roguish brother of King Viserys. Queen Aemma goes into labour in the latter half of the episode, but both she and the baby die. Ser Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) then encourages his daughter, Alicent, to comfort the King while he is grieving in her mother’s old clothes. 

The death of his baby (Baelon would’ve been his name) means that Viserys has no future heir. So, the King must decide who will take the throne after him. The choice is between his brother, Daemon, and his daughter. 

After some poor behaviour, the King refuses Daemon as the heir and instead makes his daughter the successor. This is the first instance where the Song of Ice and Fire prophecy appears, which we’ll return to later. The episode ends with a ceremony making Rhaenyra the heir to the throne. 

House of the Dragon: Episode Two

Daemon’s Antics

Six months later, Viserys and Rhaenyra are still grieving the loss of Aemma and the baby. Meanwhile, Daemon resides at Dragonstone, with the City Watch as his personal guard. While the King is debating what to do about this, Rhaenyra chooses Ser Criston Cole as the newest member of the Kingsguard.

Daemon steals a dragon egg, and with Mysaria (Sonya Mizuno) in tow, a lady from the brothel who is “pregnant” with Daemon’s illegitimate child, he takes his mistress and the egg back to Dragonstone. Daemon actually has a wife back in the Vale, but that doesn’t seem to phase him. The King is rightfully irritated by Daemon’s shenanigans. So, he sends Ser Otto Hightower to get the egg back, and Rhaenyra follows on her dragon. Seeing that Daemon isn’t giving the egg back, Rhaenyra manages to talk him into handing the egg over to her. 

Meanwhile, the main dilemma of the episode is King Viserys’ council urging him to remarry. In fact, he needs to continue to make male heirs who can take Rhaenyra’s place as successor. He is urged to marry the twelve-year-old Laena Velaryon (Nova Fouillis-Mosé). But, in a shocking twist, which leaves Rhaenyra and Lord Corlys Velaryon – Laena’s father and Rhaenys’ husband – King Viserys actually picks Alicent Hightower instead. This sparks Lord Corlys to ally with Daemon, who intends to fight the Crabfeeder in the Stepstones. 

House of the Dragon: Episode Three

The New Son’s Birthday

In the third episode of House of the Dragon, we see King Viserys three years after he married Alicent Hightower. They have already had their first child, a son called Aegon. To celebrate Aegon’s second birthday, the King throws a royal hunt. The invited lords rightfully assume this means Aegon will be made the new heir, disposing of Rhaenyra, but apparently, that hasn’t crossed the King’s mind. Viserys shouts at his daughter in front of the entire court, berating her for not trying to find a husband. Rhaenyra, rightfully annoyed, runs into the forest out of frustration, leaving Ser Criston to come find her.

While the pair are out in the woods, they get attacked by a boa. Rhaenyra sees a white hart – a sign of who should reign – Rhaenyra decides to let it live. She returns to the camp covered in the boar’s blood, much to Ser Harwin Strong’s amusement.

We also see Daemon in this episode, fighting alongside Lord Corlys in the war at the Stepstones. Eventually, Daemon receives word that the King intends to send reinforcements. However, as most rogue brothers do, Daemon decides he doesn’t need help. Luring the Crabfeeder out of hiding by pretending to surrender, Daemon enters a dramatic battle with the Crabfeeder, kills him, and claims victory.

House of the Dragon: Episode Four

Daemon and Rhaenyra

The fourth episode of the House of the Dragon begins with another smaller time jump. This episode sees Daemon returning to King’s Landing and proclaiming himself the King of the Stepstones. He even arrives wearing a crown and sporting a new haircut. After a brief altercation, Daemon hands the crown over to King Viserys.  

Rhaenyra has been on a tour looking for a husband but returns empty-handed. With both of them back at King’s Landing, Daemon convinces Rhaenyra to sneak out with him, leading to a night of debauchery and a pretty steamy kiss between them. 

When Rhaenyra returns to her room, she sleeps with Ser Criston. A spy finds out about Rhaenyra’s night out with Daemon and tells Ser Otto that they had sex. Viserys is furious, and confronts Daemon, Daemon tells his brother that the rumour is true and that he wishes to marry Rhaenyra. As a result of this, Viserys banishes Daemon to the Vale.

Alicent pleads with Viserys, defending Rhaenyra’s virtue. As a result, Viserys sacks Otto as Hand of the King and orders Rhaenyra to marry her cousin, Ser Laenor Velaryon (Theo Nate). 

House of the Dragon: Episode Five

The Party

At the beginning of episode five of the House of the Dragon, Daemon kills his wife, Lady Rhea Royce (Rachel Redford), and intends to return to King’s Landing. Rhaenyra and Laenor agree to marry; they both agree that Rhaenyra can have all of the affairs she wants, and so will Laenor, who is gay.

Meanwhile, tension begins to boil as Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) tells Alicent that Rhaenyra had lied to Alicent about that night with Daemon. When she questions Ser Criston, he confesses that it was he who slept with Rhaenyra. 

At the feast for the wedding, Alicent arrives wearing a green dress, which is taken as a declaration of her allegiance to House Hightower. Rhaenyra and Daemon reunite on the dance floor. The episode ends after Ser Criston beats Ser Joffrey to death, and Rhaenyra marries Laenor in a small ceremony. 

House of the Dragon: Episode Six

Ten Years Later

This House of the Dragons episode starts with Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) giving birth to her third child, Joffrey. It is evident to everyone at court that none of the children share any resemblance to Laenor (John Macmillan)  but rather look like Rhaenyra’s guard, Ser Harwin (Ryan Corr), who is the real father, allegedly.  

Alicent (Olivia Cooke) has grown to resent Rhaenyra’s obviously illegitimate children, and she broods in anger with her closest ally, the ever-bitter Ser Criston. Meanwhile, Alicent’s kids fall out with Rhaenyra’s kids, leading to Ser Criston defending Alicent’s sons, Aegon (Ty Tennant) and Aemond (Leo Ashton), while Ser Harwin defends Rhaenyra’s kids, Jacaerys (“Jace”), played by Leo Hart and Lucerys (“Luke”), played by Harvey Sadler. Harwin fights a little too hard on behalf of Rhaenyra’s sons, which leads to Harwin being exiled to Harrenhal. To make amends, Rhaenyra wants to marry one of her sons to Alicent’s daughter, Helaena (Evie Allen), but Alicent refuses. 

When Harwin and Lyonel return, there is a fire that kills them both. Larys Strong (Matthew Needham) claims he set the fire, which he did for Alicent. 

Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell) is married to Daemon at some point, and the pair have twin daughters. Laena then goes into labour with their third child at the end of the episode. After complications with the birth, Laena orders her dragon, Vhagar, to kill her with fire. 

House of the Dragon: Episode Seven

Eye For An Eye

The seventh episode of House of the Dragon opens with Laena’s funeral. Daemon and his children grieve their dead mother, while Rhaenyra and her kids grieve the death of Ser Harwin. That night, Aemond makes a bold move to claim Vhagar. However, this is thwarted by Jace, Luke, Baela (Shani Shethurst), and Rhaena (Eva Ossei-Gerning), which incites a fight between the kids. This ends with Lucerys inflicting a grievous wound on Aemond’s eye.

Naturally, Alicent wants retribution for her son’s injury, demanding Luke’s eye in exchange. Luke and Jace defend their actions, and Viserys sides with Rhaenyra.

Prince Rhaenys and her husband, Lord Corlys, decide whether Driftmark should go to the next legitimate heir or the next heir holding the Velaryon name. Ultimately, Corlys favours Luke as the heir to Driftmark.

Daemon tries to convince Rhaenyra that they should marry. However, Rhaenyra’s husband is very much alive. This sparks a scheme to feign Laenor’s death. Laenor leaves King’s Landing with Ser Qarl (Arty Froushan), feigning his death.

Rhaenyra and Daemon marry in a Valyrian ceremony, and their marriage and their children are now legitimised. Rhaenyra and Daemon secure their allegiance.

House of the Dragon: Episode Eight

The Prophecy

The eighth episode of House of the Dragon starts eight years later. At the time, discourse sparks Luke and Ser Vaemond on who the rightful heir of Driftmark should be. Alicent has an interaction with a servant, who claims to have been assaulted by Aegon, and despite saying she believes her, Alicent does not seem inclined to punish her son and encourages said servant to take moon tea. 

Rhaenyra, Daemon and their children head to King’s Landing, where Rhaenyra pleads with her father to fortify her position as heir. Despite accusations as to who the rightful successor should be, Viserys asserts Rhaenyra’s children’s legitimacy while also cementing Luke’s claim to Driftmark. 

After Viserys ends the discourse, Daemon executes Vaemond in front of the whole court due to him calling Rhaenyra a whore and her children bastards in front of everyone. The King is still insistent on familial harmony once the execution is complete. Alicent and Rhaenyra reconcile. However, the children get into an argument at dinner, which leads to Rhaenyra leaving King’s Landing with everyone except Rhaenys. Rhaenys was in Kings Landing as she is married to Lord Corlys, leader of Driftmark whose throne was being disputed earlier.

Viserys’ health worsens at the end of the episode, and he becomes delirious. Viserys mumbles cryptic lines from the Song of Ice and Fire prophecy and mutters “Aegon”, which leads Alicent to misunderstand Viserys’ intention for the line of succession. 

House of the Dragon: Episode Nine

The King is Dead

In episode nine of House of the Dragon, Viserys dies. Alicent swiftly informs her father of Viserys’s purported last wishes. The small council convenes in secrecy to orchestrate Aegon’s ascension to the throne, driven by Otto and Lord Tyland Lannister. 

Aegon goes missing, and Alicent dispatches Ser Criston and Prince Aemond while Otto sends Ser Arryk and Ser Erryk Cargill to find him. As Criston and Aemond scour brothels, Arryk and Erryk stumble upon Aegon’s illegitimate offspring. 

Aemond and Criston return Aegon to the Red Keep under Alicent’s custody. Alicent reassures Aegon of his rightful claim to the throne. His coronation at the Dragonpit seals their victory until Princess Rhaenys, aided by Ser Erryk, disrupts the ceremony astride her dragon, Meleys, both ruining the coronation ceremony and the ceiling.

House of the Dragon: Episode Ten

The War Begins

In the last episode of House of the Dragon, Princess Rhaenys’s arrival at Dragonstone brings the news of King Viserys’s death and Aegon’s ascension to the throne, plunging a pregnant Rhaenyra into premature labour that results in a stillborn daughter.

In the midst of Rhaenyra’s grieving post-birth, Otto presents terms of surrender to Rhaenyra, but she pretends to think about the terms and instead plots on her own.

Rhaenyra dispatches Jace to the Vale, Winterfell, and Luke to Storm’s End, seeking additional support when she eventually marches to take the Iron Throne from Aegon. However, once Luke reaches Storm’s End, he is confronted by his uncle Aemond, which results in Luke’s death and ensures the escalation of tension. At the end of the episode, Daemon informs Rhaenyra, who is so aggrieved and angry, that war becomes inevitable.