House of the Dragon episode 4

A blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment in House of the Dragon points towards a looming plot point.

[Game of Thrones](https://www.gamesradar.com/game-of-thrones-season-8-review/) season 3, [Joffrey Baratheon inadvertently spoils](https://www.gamesradar.com/house-of-the-dragon-spoilers-game-of-thrones-rhaenyra-death/) the prequel show by telling his betrothed Margaery Tyrell exactly how Rhaenyra dies. Soon after she's finished speaking, we see one of those dragon heads breathing fire – and that's exactly how Rhaenyra meets her end in Fire and Blood. The episode saw the return of Daemon Targaryen to Westeros, the ongoing quest to find Rhaenyra Targaryen a husband, and, naturally, more plotting and planning from the main cast of characters – but one moment points towards a major event that's still to come. In As the Targaryens explore, a woman asks Rhaenyra, "Do you wish to know your death, child?" There, she'll be betrayed, and her younger half-brother Aegon – son of Rhaenyra's father Viserys and her former best friend Alicent Hightower – will order her death by dragon.

Episode 4 of House of the Dragon starts with Rhaenyra listening to a number of different suitors as they step forward and pitch their claim to be her ...

It’s a way of showing the difference between duty and pleasure, as well as how stifling and passionless some arranged marriages can be. Unlike something like Rings of Power, which repeats the same information repeatedly and sacrifices good storytelling for good visuals, HOTD is easily winning this “fantasy war”. Viserys is conflicted over what to do and eventually brings Rhaenyra in to see him so they can talk. Back inside, Alicent is summoned to see Viserys in the middle of the night, where he ends up having sex with her. He takes the title from the Hand, pointing out he can’t trust Otto’s judgment anymore, leaving the man shocked and incredulous. Viserys calls her his “political headache” and goes on to decide they should set up a wedding to Ser Laenor Velaryon. Viserys kicks him and demands the truth. In the aftermath of this, Daemon and Rhaenyra talk about their changed fates in this world, including the latter’s numerous suitor proposals. Lord Corlys has engaged in negotiations with the Sealord of Braavos. Speaking of power, Viserys gathers the small council in the throne room where they have bigger problems afoot. He drops one of his own, “Add it to the chair.” It’s unclear right now what sort of game he’s playing (if any), and you could cut the tension with a knife.

The rift between the Hightowers and Targaryens deepens when Otto Hightower is removed as Hand.

The Inverse Analysis— Will Otto Hightower make his way back into King Viserys’ good graces in House of the Dragon? In the books, Otto is removed because he keeps asking the king to declare Viserys’ son with Alicent the rightful heir to the Iron Throne, which would boot Rhaenyra from the running. He’s one of the puppeteers behind Alicent and Aegon II Targaryen’s ambitions, brainwashing them both into believing that not snatching the Iron Throne from Princess Rhaenyra would lead to their execution as potential threats to her rule. Believing his daughter, Viserys strips Otto of his title, a decision that makes his wife detest both him and Rhaenyra. Rhaenyra accuses Otto of lying, while simultaneously lying to Alicent about who she lost her virginity to and the state of her relationship with Daemon. Viserys’ father-in-law’s expulsion from the Red Keep can only mean more drama and deceit in King’s Landing, despite Princess Rhaenyra’s wish for stability.

Rhaenyra isn't the only Targaryen back in town, though. Daemon (Matt Smith) has also returned, and he's been crowned King of the Narrow Sea. You might expect ...

It belongs to the king, who finally demands she marry the son of Corlys Velaryon. I’ll say this about House of the Dragon, though: these scenes aren’t meant to be a titillating fantasy. It’s setting up the game pieces for a dramatic final act. It wasn’t to dishonour the future queen; it was to teach her a lesson that the dragon can take what it wants. It’s an uncomfortable scene to watch (Although not as awkward as the incest). She’s the one seducing Cole, and it’s clear during the ‘act’ that she holds all the cards. Unsurprisingly, episode 4, ‘King of the Narrow Sea,’ brings “copulation” to the fore and finally addresses the elephant in the room, the Targaryen’s fondness for ‘keeping it in the family’. This strange duality makes him easily the series’ most entertaining character, he’s a wildcard, and you never know what he’s going to do next. Daemon, however, seems to come to his senses and leaves Rhaenyra before he commits the greatest of sins. Specifically, it was about how important sex can be as a political tool in a society based on the inheritance of legitimate children and powerful familial houses. Smith plays the character with such reckless abandon it’s impossible to say for sure. You might expect Daemon, who’s finally got a crown of his own (although it’s made from driftwood rather than gold), to rub his success in Viserys’ (Paddy Considine) face, but he’s surprisingly submissive.

To sneak out of the Red Keep, though, Rhaenyra needs to use a secret passageway that she had no idea existed – Daemon draws her a diagram to reveal its location ...

and that seems too reminiscent of Cheese the rat catcher to be a simple coincidence. Blood and Cheese then escape King's Landing with Jaehaerys' head, and while Cheese vanishes without a trace, Blood is ultimately caught as he tries to deliver the grisly proof of death to Daemon. Helaena is married to her brother Aegon – the toddler seen in [House of the Dragon episode 2](https://www.gamesradar.com/house-of-the-dragon-episode-2-review-recap-game-of-thrones/) – and together they have two sons, the youngest named Maelor and the oldest (and heir to the throne) named Jaehaerys, along with a daughter. [Redditor](https://www.reddit.com/r/HouseOfTheDragon/comments/xbnckp/comment/io2podf/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) (opens in new tab) points out, this scene could be setting up a major event from Fire and Blood: Blood and Cheese. The hidden passage leads all the way to the outside of the Red Keep, and from there, the duo head down to the streets. [House of the Dragon episode 4](https://www.gamesradar.com/house-of-the-dragon-episode-4-review-recap-game-of-thrones/) sets up a particularly disturbing storyline from George R.R.

Later, Rhaenyra stands aboard a ship on her way back to King's Landing. Dialogue between the Princess and Criston Cole helpfully informs us that several months ...

Everyone deserves the throne, and everyone deserves not to have the throne. He wanted to put an heir on the throne and hitch his family to royalty for time and all eternity. Before Aegon’s death, his song was engraved in the steel: “From my blood come the Prince That was Promised and his will be the Song of Ice and Fire.” “The Queen wants to have a chat,” he states. Ever the coolheaded cat, Daemon replies, “Give me Rhaenyra to take to wife and we will return the House of the Dragon to its proper glory.” He doesn’t really care about Rhaenyra (or does he?), Daemon just wants the Iron Throne. Daemon doesn’t deny the claim that he “ruined” Rhaenyra — and if he did, so what? She cuts right to the chase: “Did you f**k Daemon in a pleasure house?” Rhaenyra freaks out and calls the vile accusation idle gossip. The next morning, he relays the boy’s info to the King. Well, he sailed home to Driftmark (sure) and left the Stepstones to the sea (uh-huh). He drops the Crabfeeder’s weapon and suggests adding it to the throne. Daemon is giving Rhaenyra a taste if the adult life, or maybe even the life of a commoner. Also, Viserys just told Rhaenyra to follow her heart and choose the suitor she feels will make her happy.

'House of the Dragon' Episode 4 was shocking for nearly everyone but the cast. Here's what star Milly Alcock had to say about it.

[Episode Four](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a41132598/house-of-the-dragon-episode-4-recap/), the young [Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a41040403/how-is-rhaenyra-targaryen-related-daenerys-house-of-the-dragon/) (Milly Alcock) and her uncle, Prince Daemon (Matt Smith), get hot and heavy in a brothel. Buckle up, boys and girls, because this was only Episode Four of House of the Dragon. I think that she understands that there’s a feeling here [with Daemon], but she’s not quite sure where it lands, and how to behave with it and navigate it." "So, that was our first time walking through the brothel, and he’s guiding her through the room with all of these other bodies. Well, for fans of the [sex scenes from Game of Thrones ](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a12223942/best-game-of-thrones-sex-scenes/)between siblings Cersei and Jaime Lannister, or aunt and nephew Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow, many are supporting Rhaenyra and Daemon's taboo affair. Otto Hightower informs the King of Daemon and Rhaenyra's "coupling," as he nervously calls it, and the prince is banished from the realm for the second time in just four episodes. "We all were judging the Lannisters for 8 seasons but now rooting for Rhaenyra and Daemon within 4 episodes," one Twitter user [wrote](https://twitter.com/starboisurg29/status/1569178386643419143). So, it was quite comfortable," Milly Alcock told the [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2022/09/11/house-of-the-dragons-milly-alcock-reflects-on-gnarly-incest-scene/). Martin](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a40966786/george-rr-martin-star-wars/)'s fantasy epic has also become synonymous with its controversial [sex scenes](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a12223942/best-game-of-thrones-sex-scenes/). Like the royal families of old, incest made up for some of the most important relationships in Game of Thrones—a tradition that the prequel series, [House of the Dragon](https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a40897130/house-of-the-dragon-hbo-release-schedule/), seems hellbent on carrying on. "Clare Kilner, our director, made sure that we hadn’t seen any of the brothel stuff until we were shooting," Alcock continued.