House of the Dragon Ep. 10 Finale Recap: Black Queen

“I wasn’t ready to be Queen of the Seven Kingdoms,” Rhaenyra tells her younger son Jacaerys, talking about when Viserys first named her his inheritor, all these years in the past. “But… it was my duty. And in time, I came to understand I had to earn my inheritance.” What Rhaenyra doesn’t know far more she’ll have to do to earn her crown—and the way a lot it should price her.

Much like “The Green Council” targeted on Alicent, Aegon, and their allies at King’s Landing final week, “The Black Queen,” the season one finale, stays targeted virtually solely on Rhaenyra, Daemon, and their prolonged household at Dragonstone as they study King Viserys’ demise. The information comes from Rhaenys, who got here immediately from her escape final week, the place she additionally informs everybody that Alicent and Otto Hightower had Aegon topped within the Dragonpit in entrance of a crowd of 1000’s, doing all the pieces potential to make his ascension look as authentic as potential. Daemon instantly asks Rhaenys the query House of the Dragon followers have been asking one another for the reason that finish of “The Green Council”: Why didn’t you burn all of them to loss of life? The Queen Who Never Was has the right reply: “That war is not mine to begin.”

Daemon focuses the sophisticated disappointment he feels at his brother’s passing into anger, and that anger is concentrated on defending Dragonstone from an assault by the Greens and making ready for battle. But the devastating information her father has died and her throne was stolen sends Rhaenyra into dangerously untimely labor that’s, for my cash, essentially the most heart-wrenchingly grotesque scene in a present that’s been filled with them. The baby is stillborn, and watching Rhaenyra put together it for the funeral pyre whereas nonetheless reeling from these different tragedies is devastating.

At the funeral, Ærryk #1—nicely, Erryk, particularly, the man who helped free Rhaenys final week—brings Viserys’ crown to Dragonstone and vows his allegiance to her as Daemon units it upon her forehead, and people assembled kneel earlier than the brand new Queen of Westeros… besides Rhaenys, who solely smiles her enigmatic little smile.

But Rhaenys just isn’t Rhaenyra’s drawback, or at the very least not but. It’s Daemon, who’s taken cost ever since she first went into labor, regardless of her orders in any other case. The hotheaded Daemon doesn’t have his spouse’s acuity, and extra importantly, he’s prepared for battle, one thing she’s not fairly certain she’s able to decide to… but. As Rhaenyra and her males collect round Dragonstone’s Westeros-shaped map/desk, and begin putting tokens on it to determine whose assist they’ll have, Daemon doesn’t even fake to ask his Queen for her enter when he proclaims his plan to take the Blacks’ 13 dragons (the Greens solely have 4) to King’s Landing and burn each traitor to ash.

Queen Rhaenyra doesn’t also have a likelihood to breathe earlier than a ship arrives—a ship bearing a flag of the Targaryen household sigil of a three-headed dragon, however in inexperienced. It’s carrying Otto Hightower with phrases of give up. In a much less improbable episode, this is able to have been a stand-out second, as both sides comically refuse to acknowledge the opposite’s ruler’s title, main Otto to ask, “Where s the Princess?” just for Rhaenyra to burst out of the sky on cue on the again of her dragon. It’s a near-perfect mirror to the scene on the identical Dragonstone bridge, when Otto tried to demand Daemon return the dragon egg he had stolen, just for younger Rhaenyra to fly in and take cost.

The phrases that Aegon, Second of His Name, has despatched “in his wisdom and desire for peace”—a line Rhys Ifans says and not using a trace of irony however with simply sufficient weariness that he’s mainly saying, “Yes, we all know Aegon is too stupid and horrible to be doing any of this, but custom must be observed”—are fairly good if you happen to’re not somebody lusting for battle. The provide is that Rhaenyra retains Dragonstone, Lucerys nonetheless turns into the inheritor of Driftmark, and her sons by Daemon get locations at court docket, however Rhaenyra should surrender her declare to the throne and swear obeisance to Aegon, natch.

Rhaenyra calls him a traitor, rips Otto’s Hand of the King badge off his tunic, and tosses it over the bridge. That’s when Otto arms her the web page from Alicent’s e-book that Rhaenyra ripped out again after they have been kids. “Queen Alicent has not forgotten the love you once had for each other. No blood need be spilled, so the realm can carry on in peace.” Rhaenyra does appear moved by the small—very small—gesture of friendship, however it’s the prospect for peace that has her inform Otto Alicent will obtain her reply tomorrow.

“When dragons went to war, everything burned,” she tells Daemon later that evening as she wonders what her true responsibility to the realm is. Is it to struggle for her proper to rule to maintain Aegon, Worst of His Name, off the throne? Is it to keep away from battle to maintain the peace? Or is it to meet the prophecy of the Song of Ice and Fire?

What follows is a really unusual however extremely compelling scene, as a result of when Daemon hears that phrase, he’s totally baffled by it. And when Rhaenyra begins to elucidate it, hoping to jog his reminiscence, Daemon grabs her by the throat. Angrily. How a lot does Daemon really hate mysticism? How a lot has he abruptly realized that his brother didn’t really feel he may belief him with this huge secret? How jealous is he of Rhaenyra that he should dismiss it so harshly and bodily? And why does Rhaenyra appear so chill about it?

Although Rhaenyra’s determined to take a day to reply, she’s not going to attend to search out out who will stand along with her if she decides to go to battle. The first, it seems, is House Velaryon. Rumors of the Sea Snake’s imminent demise have been exaggerated, and he’s able to declare the Velaryon fleet will probably be at her disposal—a fleet that has additionally, lastly utterly conquered the Stepstones, and can permit the Blacks to dam all sea commerce into King’s Landing. That leaves the Starks of Winterfell, the Arryns of the Eyrie, and the Baratheons of Storm’s End because the remaining massive Houses that swore their oaths to Rhaenyra, however, as Otto revealed, have been additionally in talks with the Greens. So not solely do their alliances must be confirmed, however maybe they need to be reminded of the Blacks’ energy, i.e., dragons.

It’s Jacaerys’ thought, truly. He volunteers to fly north on Vermax to go to the Starks and Arryns, whereas 14-year-old moppet Lucerys will head to the fairly close by Storm’s End on Arrax. Rhaenyra stresses that regardless of her reply tomorrow she won’t be the one to strike the primary blow and tells her kids to know they’re serving as messengers, not warriors.

Ah, that traditional Game of Thrones foreboding. Did you begin to really feel it when Rhaenyra went out of her solution to inform her sons to not struggle? Was it earlier, if you abruptly realized that Lucerys was getting an terrible lot of screentime this episode? Or was it the very starting, when he was silently operating his hand alongside the Dragonstone desk/battle map?

The present solely follows Luce as he flies within the rain to Storm End’s, solely to discover a dragon is already there. So is the dragonrider: It’s Aemond, who’s already made a suggestion to Lord Borros Baratheon, which included the wedding of considered one of his daughters. So Borros angrily sends the flustered Luce away, just for Aemond to ask “Lord Strong” for considered one of his eyes, simply as Alicent had these years in the past. Even Borros received’t consent to violence in his home, so he has his troopers escape Lucerys to Arrax they usually fly away. Or so they fight.

Because Aemond follows on Vhagar. Vhagar, as you’ll recall, is the largest dragon presently dwelling in Westeros, and it completely dwarfs Arrax. It’s like Arrax is Princess Leia’s spaceship from the start of Star Wars and Vhagar is the Star Destroyer, a picture House of the Dragon pointedly evokes when Vhagar sails over the youthful. Aemond doesn’t need blood. He simply desires to scare the shit out of the little twerp who price him an eye fixed, and Aemond does that marvelously nicely, coming at them from all instructions, by way of the pouring rain, terrifying the younger rider and dragon alike. Eventually, Luce can’t management Arrax, and Arrax can’t management himself; he spits fireplace at Vhagar, pondering he’s defending himself. Discovering himself underneath assault, the bigger dragon fights again regardless of Aemond’s instructions to cease. And, with out an iota of effort, Vhagar kills Arrax and Luce with a single, savage chunk.

You don’t have to see the horror and concern on Aemond’s face to know the way badly he’s messed issues up. All you could do is anticipate the silent closing scene as Daemon approaches Rhaenyra and leads her away from the desk. You don’t hear what’s mentioned, and also you don’t see her face. Instead, it’s all in Emma D’Arcy’s unbelievable physique language as Rhaenyra’s knees buckle, staggering on the information, and the way the Black Queen twists in rage and ache and anguish to face the digital camera, declaring battle higher than the phrase ever may.

“The Black Queen” is such episode of tv I’m questioning the need of my very own existence. So many instances whereas scripting this recap I simply needed to say, “Look, you guys just gotta go see this part.” The performing within the present from Emma D’Arcy and Matt Smith is so unbelievably good, similar to Olivia Cooke and Paddy Considine have been in current episodes, that my phrases can’t probably convey it. Watch Rhaenyra and Daemon after they hear Viserys has died, and the multitude of conflicting feelings and realizations ripple throughout their faces as they course of the information. Or go rewatch the unbelievable visible of the candles being put underneath the table-map, slowly illuminating it from inside like the hearth that may quickly burn throughout the seven kingdoms. Or simply keep in mind how the episode begins with Luce on the desk the place the sport of thrones is performed, having no concept that he could be the primary pawn taken out.

By itself, “The Black Queen” may not be the perfect episode of House of the Dragon’s first season, however as the ultimate episode of that extremely strong season? As the fruits of the story that’s been advised over the past two and a half months, that grew to become the tragic catharsis to the ever-building rigidity created by this glorious collection? It’s nearly excellent.

Assorted Musings:

• I’m going to offer the episode MVP to Rhaenys, who informs Rhaenyra and Daemon of what went down, explains it wasn’t her struggle, refuses to bow to Rhaenyra till Corlys arrives so she will be able to speak with him about it although she already is aware of she’s going to inform him to struggle for the Blacks as a result of if Rhaenyra’s children aren’t protected their Velaryon granddaughters received’t be both, since they’re betrothed. And in the meantime, she’s simply wildly amused at how the identical shit that saved her off her throne is occurring once more however method, method messier. The smile Eve Best provides when she’s clearing the room so Rhaenyra and Daemon can argue is excellent.
• If you’re questioning why Daemon went into the caves of the Dragonmont and sang a Valyrian lullaby to a dragon, that dragon was Vermithor. He’s one of many oldest and largest, second solely in dimension to Vhagar, and has been riderless since King Jaehaerys.
• Okay, other thing concerning the choke. Is it me or does it appear to get sexually charged there for a bit? And actually, Rhaenyra doesn’t appear shocked or upset or like she felt she was in actual hazard. I’m simply saying if you happen to requested me to guess their kinks, choking could be up there.
• Erryk (on the Blacks) is already itching to struggle Arryk (on the Greens). Ærryk Fight 2024 confirmed!

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