House of the Dragon, season 2: the spectacular death of episode 4 explained
“This time I’m letting go, literally!” The last victim of Westeros tells us about the end of his character.
“I was really sad when I read that in the script. And yet, I didn’t think it would affect me to that extent because, let’s face it, I knew it was going to happen…“The Dance of the Dragons has claimed one more victim. Episode 4 of season 2 of House of the Dragonalready online on Max, hit hard with its first major battle, topped by an epic and fatal aerial combat.
Warning spoilers!
While Criston Cole leads King Aegon II’s army to Rook’s Rest, to besiege House Staunton (Rhaenyra’s support), Princess Rhaenys mounts Meleys to go defend her allies. Except that there, she comes across two other dragons: Sunfire, ridden by King Aegon II himself and especially Vaghar, ridden by the terrible Aemond.When she goes, Rhaenys knows it’s definitely a kamikaze mission,” the actress confided to Première Eve Bestquestioned in the wake of this episode 4. “The producers didn’t want it to be too obvious on screen, because they didn’t want us to suspect her imminent death. But she, deep down, knows she’s going to die. She knows she has to sacrifice herself for the cause.”
Because at the end of an incredible air battle, this new Dance of Dragons sees Vaghar bite Meleys in the jugular, in the middle of the clouds. The princess then falls to her death with her beast.
“I wanted to show this link that binds her to Meleys” continues Eve Best. “There’s a moment in this kamikaze mission where she’s totally vulnerable and the only one she seems able to confide in is Meleys. It’s only with her dragon that she shows herself to be vulnerable. It seemed important to me that we see this connection between them, this love between them, just before they launch into battle.”
When Vaghar catches Meleys and kills her, we understand that this is the end for Rhaenys. The camera slowly films her fall, while she stares at the sky, looking peaceful:
“When she falls. She feels a kind of peace. A kind of liberation and relief. This time she lets go, literally!”
Because Rhaenys has long suffered from being sidelined from the Iron Throne, she who, already could have claimed to ascend it, if her grandfather, Jaehaerys I Targaryen, had not excluded her from the succession, to prefer a male: her brother Baelon (uncle of Rhaenys), who then fathered Viserys I and his lineage. The one who marked the History of the 7 Kingdoms as “The Queen who Never Was” made peace with the Targaryens, before flying away towards this certain death.Before going to war, she makes peace with Rhaenyra“, continues the English actress.”She seems to be saying to him: ‘I forgive you.’ The two of them have such a complicated relationship linked to the succession to the Throne. Rhaenys had to digest all that so that she could go into this battle with peace of mind..” She thus dies freer than ever.
However, his disappearance will inevitably leave traces in Westeros. Because using a dragon to defend Rook’s Rest amounts to “press the “red” button on the nuclear weapon” confess Eve Bestwho tells us in the process that Team Black will be totally disoriented by the death of Rhaenys:
“Rhaenyra will be lost without her. All of Team Black will be lost. God help them… She wasn’t officially the Queen’s Hand – which she didn’t take well to that – but Rhaenyra needed Rhaenys. She was a rock in this sea of immature children. She was the only adult. She watched these bickerings from afar. She felt detached and saw it almost as the bickering of spoiled children.”
She left and thus left House of the Dragon. Season 2 will continue without her, next Monday, on Max.