- 7/30/2024
Enter the Dragonseeds. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re talking about callbacks, details, subtext and foreshadowing that you might not have caught in the latest episode of Season Two.
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00:00You stand before the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms!
00:04With a dragon of House Targaryen!
00:09Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're talking about callbacks, details, subtext, and foreshadowing
00:14that you might not have caught in Season 2, Episode 7 of House of the Dragon.
00:18If you don't know the drill by now, there will be spoilers.
00:22But I'm afraid you must work harder.
00:27Number 10. The Dragon Sign.
00:29Aemond and his council might be dangerously underestimating the power of the smallfolk.
00:34Makes you sick, doesn't it? Knowing they're banqueting every night at the castle.
00:39While we go without.
00:40Rhaenyra and Mysaria have been doing a good job rallying the commoners,
00:44and recent episodes have started to show the power of the people.
00:47There's the Queen of Fishes!
00:51Keep moving!
00:52Most recently, Elinda Massey marches through the streets of King's Landing,
00:56and she's intercut with a member of the Goldcloaks tearing a worn sign off a wooden door.
01:01Looking closely, you can see that the poster shows an inverted three-headed dragon with a red mark slashed through it.
01:08This is likely a symbol of protest against the sitting rulers,
01:11with the dragon's upside-down positioning possibly representing the falsity of Aegon's Claim.
01:16It's a cool detail that shows how Rhaenyra's influence in the capital is growing.
01:20Queen Rhaenyra!
01:24Don't leave Queen Rhaenyra!
01:29What do you want?
01:30Adam of Hull's ability to claim Seasmoke has big implications.
01:34So the episode starts with him and Rhaenyra meeting in a Wild West-type standoff.
01:38She attempts to gauge his uncertain motivations,
01:41though we know some of them from a conversation that he's already had with his brother.
01:45Later, as Adam is waiting to meet with Corlys Velaryon,
01:48he takes a moment to admire the room and some ornate table decorations.
01:52He might be thinking about the riches that he just told Alan they could have
01:56if Alan embraced the attention of Lord Corlys.
01:59My brother was ever restless, yearning for some sign of his worth.
02:05More personally, Adam also earns praise from the man he suspects to be his father,
02:10as Corlys ends the exchange with what might be a proud subtextual acknowledgement of his son.
02:15Well done.
02:19Daemon's having a hard time getting support from the Riverlands,
02:22and he turns to the young Oscar Tully to get it.
02:25Unfortunately, Oscar demands that Daemon execute Sir Willem Blackwood for despicable crimes.
02:30But Willem was only ever acting on Daemon's orders,
02:34and he pleads out a reminder of his devotion as Daemon carries out the sentence.
02:38Your Grace, command them. I've only served you.
02:46Command them!
02:47A similar cry came from one of Stannis Baratheon's allies back in Game of Thrones,
02:52who was burned at the stake as a sacrifice.
02:54Fire! I've served you well!
02:57The circumstances aren't exactly the same,
02:59but both cases show men in power choosing to disregard loyalty in favor of their ambition.
03:04That didn't turn out so well for Stannis.
03:06Do you have any last words?
03:18I won't do you duty.
03:20Daemon's choice could signify that his actions are already leading to a potential downfall.
03:28Each of you has left behind a life to answer this call.
03:35A life to which you might never return.
03:39No one knows for sure why dragons accept their riders,
03:42but it seems to have something to do with bloodlines.
03:46Even those with partial Targaryen ancestry are capable,
03:49and learning this causes Rhaenyra to cry out a rally for lowborns with potentially valuable family trees.
03:55The phrase sounds like the Battle of the Bastards title from Game of Thrones,
03:59which makes sense when you think about Jon Snow and his mixed Targaryen heritage.
04:03If you rewatch his first meeting with Drogon,
04:06it looks a lot like Rhaenyra's approach to Vermithor in this episode.
04:10Presumably, Jon Snow's fractional Targaryen lineage helped Drogon take a liking to him.
04:15The more that we learn about both of these shows,
04:17the more the word bastard sounds like less of an insult.
04:29Episode 7 gives viewers a glimpse of King Aegon's recovery process,
04:33and it does a great job of making us all feel his physical pain.
04:46But have you ever thought about why some Targaryens can be burnt while others cannot?
04:52Most notably, Daenerys Targaryen proved to be immune to fire on multiple Game of Thrones occasions.
04:58She even speaks a line that implies true dragons should not fear flames.
05:02That idea is flawed though, since others of Targaryen descent can be killed by fire.
05:07He was no dragon. Fire cannot kill a dragon.
05:13Notably, Dany's brother, Laena Velaryon, and Aegon II have all endured fiery suffering.
05:19Was Daenerys unaffected because she was the prince promised from the prophecy?
05:23Or is there another reason that House of the Dragon might yet teach us?
05:38Having been removed from Aemon's council,
05:41Alicent now contemplates the choices she's made and how they've left her without purpose.
05:52She appears to be in the Kingswood, the same location for a glorified hunt that occurred in season 1.
05:58That hunt honored Aegon's birthday,
06:00so Alicent's choice to swim here indicates that her fractured family is on her mind.
06:05Her submergence into the lake mirrors the way she typically sinks into her baths, almost like meditation.
06:11The most curious detail is the bird that she notices soaring above her.
06:15It could represent a desire to ascend past the mortal world,
06:19or perhaps something more hopeful that has yet to be revealed.
06:22Either way, the sequence is oddly dreamlike and feels provocatively open to interpretation.
06:29Puppets in Westeros?
06:33There are too many names to remember on the House of the Dragon roster,
06:37but here are a few fun ones that might stand out.
06:40It turns out that some of the Tullys share titles with characters from Sesame Street,
06:44including Lord Grover Tully and his grandson Oscar.
06:51The connection may not have a deep meaning,
06:53but George R.R. Martin's co-authors have tweeted that the writer was amused by the use of the famous puppets' names.
06:59During young Oscar's tense scene with Damon,
07:02Oscar assigns a very specific color to his conflicted feelings.
07:10Sesame Street's iconic garbage monster is also green,
07:13and it's a charming elbow nudge to those familiar with the backstory.
07:17Now we just need to meet a Burt and Ernie Lannister.
07:20Number 3. Rhaenyra's Speech
07:33Wrangling a dragon is terrifying business,
07:35but Queen Rhaenyra has some encouraging words for the contenders.
07:39She reminds them of the lives they're fighting for,
07:41and she elaborates that taming the dragons could mean victory and an end to suffering.
07:46It sounds a little like a speech that Rhaenyra's ancestor Daenerys Targaryen makes on the Game of Thrones finale.
08:00Dany perceives her goal as liberation,
08:02but others see how her choices have only bred more violence.
08:06Both Dany and Rhaenyra share the problematic viewpoint that winning a war is equivalent to peace and prosperity,
08:11so their messages are somewhat deceptive.
08:14But Rhaenyra is essentially sending her followers to their probable doom,
08:18and how else can you motivate people to accept that risk?
08:35Number 2. Daeron Targaryen
08:45During Aemond's council meeting,
08:47one of the members mentions a character who could potentially become important to the storyline's near future.
08:52We've not met him yet, but Daeron Targaryen is Viserys and Alicent's youngest son,
08:57and he's actually been referenced a couple of times before.
09:05We know he's grown up in Oldtown,
09:07and Aemond now learns that his dragon may be ready for battle soon.
09:11That news comes right before Aemond flies off to learn of Rhaenyra's new dragonriders,
09:16so this might be foreshadowing Daeron's appearance and participation in the fight.
09:21And should the Greens lose any of Alicent's children that we have met,
09:25Daeron could be the next adversary in line for the Blacks.
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09:53I have nothing more to tell you.
09:55It must be the dragon who speaks.
09:57Book readers have probably been waiting excitedly for the sowing of the dragon seeds,
10:01and season 2's penultimate episode got it started explosively.
10:05As Rhaenyra presents the potential riders before Vermithor,
10:08she ominously declares that the dragon must speak next.
10:12I'm ready.
10:17Many likely assume she's referring to the Bronze Fury behind her,
10:20but dragon has been used to describe both the animals and the Targaryens who ride them.
10:25Her words might thus have a double meaning.
10:28In fact, Hugh Hammer does speak to quell the mighty Vermithor.
10:32It's a sign that riders will go on and prove to be just as ferocious
10:36as the legendary beasts they command.
10:38Come on!
10:44Did you miss anything from our list?
10:46What other small details from this week's episode did you catch?
10:49Let us know in the comments.
10:51Perhaps this is one of those whispers best left to the wind.
10:54Did you enjoy this video?
10:56Let us know in the comments.
10:58Perhaps this is one of those whispers best left to the wind.
11:01Did you enjoy this video?
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