There’s a flurry of problems as Rhaenyra assumes the throne. Unpaid dragonseed riders clamor for their dues while the once bountiful treasury lies mysteriously emptied. Food shortages grip King’s Landing, leaving granaries empty and citizens starving. The list of grievances is long: candles extinguished for lack of tallow, a vacant Queensguard, and continuous contests for royal resources. Amidst this chaos, Rhaenyra, visibly anxious and frustrated, spots a rat scurrying by the Iron Throne. It’s as if the rodent too seeks an audience with Her Grace.
But the rat is just one of many roaming the Red Keep. Thanks to Aegon II, there are no ratcatchers left—he hung them all. Now, new ones must be hired. These rats are a grim reminder of the turbulent journey across Westeros. While Team Black has seized King’s Landing, Rhaenyra’s reign remains fiercely challenged. She finds peace neither in the streets nor within her own castle walls. Overwhelmed, Rhaenyra turns to the Keep’s house arrest wing in search of guidance.
She confides in Alicent, who poignantly advises, “You may not rule and remain yourself. There is a door within you that must shut.” Their conversation, awash with years of shared history, reveals Alicent as the sole voice who can candidly call out Rhaenyra’s idealism. Rhaenyra’s desire to rule as her father, Viserys I, might have wished overlooks the reality of his reign—a life of seclusion from the realm’s harsh truths.
Rhaenyra faces a significant decision: embrace the more ruthless approach that Daemon suggests or maintain her vision. Daemon has already secured the allegiance of Lord Ormund Hightower and his formidable Greens faction. Ormund has even handed over a young Daeron Targaryen, Alicent’s son, as a ward. Daemon proposes that Rhaenyra execute Daeron to eliminate a potential rival and secure her rule. “You’ve come so far, yet you still don’t know who you are,” Daemon chides, reminding her of her powerful position with an unmatched dragon fleet, surpassing even Aegon the Conqueror’s era.
Despite being unaware of Rhaena Targaryen’s involvement in the Battle of the Gullet, Rhaenyra sends Daemon to the Vale, tasked with seeking Sheepstealer and its rider. Plus, Daemon is to collect monetary tribute from Lady Jeyne Arryn, a mission bound with intrigue. Meanwhile, Rhaenyra hosts a banquet in King’s Landing, inviting a mix of wealthy merchants, lesser nobility, and the talkative Ser Torrhen Manderly (played by Dan Fogler). The attendees, however, receive a rude awakening as they are served unappetizing fare—rancid rats and horsehair beans—the same meager sustenance the Smallfolk endured during the blockade while the affluent guests hoarded the city’s food supplies. “What the crown demands of you,” she declares, “is not plunder but a duty.” Rhaenyra garners much-needed goodwill by orchestrating the public redistribution of fresh produce and bread among her subjects.
Rhaenyra admits these are small measures in service of her larger remit to rule the realm, but what she will not admit is just how in her head she has truly gotten. Rhaenyra has fallen on black days. She sees the slain Jacaerys Velaryon walking through Red Keep corridors. She cannot sleep in the royal bed chamber; too many ghosts in the room. And when Lord Corlys asks his queen to bless Alyn and Addam as his issue — “Let them now be Velaryons” — she balks. Rhaenyra has grown obsessed with proving the legitimacy of her rule, but it’s registering as paranoia. Corlys calls this out; like Alicent, he has earned the right. “You’re ashamed!” the Sea Snake declares. His sons, a mix of noble and common blood, are bastards unworthy of title? Well, Rhaenyra’s sons — the two dead ones plus little Joffrey Valaryon, now her declared heir — are bastards, too.
The queen is wanted at the gates. A bloodied dragontender has appeared. He is a survivor of a furious attack on Tumbleton, a merchant city in the nearby Reach. Wait, what army attacked? And with what dragon? And in real time, Rhaenyra learns the scant peace her victory secured was itself bullshit. Ormund Hightower’s surrender was a lie. His host sacked Tumbleton and the city is now Greens-occupied. Worse, Ormund’s surrender of “Daeron Targaryen” was also a lie. The silver-haired boy currently in Team Black custody is an imposter forced into the role, while the real Daeron is apparently still fighting for Team Green on Tessarion, his blue-winged dragon. Your Grace! What will you do now?
Hot D’s for House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 3:
- To Daemon, the very dawn could be theirs to rule. Check out the geographic reach and George RR Martin lore of his imperialism. Using their dragons, Team Black would conquer Essos and the Free Cities. Take Yi Ti, thousands of miles away, and its riches. “They say there is a city at the edge of the world where men have wings.” Daemon would have these legends also serve Rhaenyra’s rule.
- In her consultation with Alicent, Rhaenyra accepted her advice. Declare Aegon dead. It’s easier than locating the scarred, near-unrecognizable usurper, and if he does resurface, she can claim him an imposter.
- Rhaenyra’s subordinate dragonriders are also officially knighted. Ulf the White, Hugh Hammer, and Addam of Hull. (not Velaryon, natch.) But some of those guys still haven’t been paid, and they’ve got gripes.
- And another dude not on board with Rhaenyra’s rule is the high septon, Balman (Simon Chandler). His refusal to anoint her within the faith is an indictment of how she got there, her entire ruling project. “My gods do not deal in dragons. They are a profane magic created in darkness and pride and lust for power, for impunity. They destroy, but they do not create. There is no good that can come of them.”
Johnny Loftus (@johnnyloftus.bsky.social) is a Chicago-based writer. A veteran of the alternative weekly trenches, his work has also appeared in Entertainment Weekly, Pitchfork, The All Music Guide, and The Village Voice.