House of the Dragon episode 7

A man with long blonde hair stands against a wall with his arms folded. What did you do, Daemon? Credit: HBO ...

He isn't hiring Ser Quarl to kill Laenor; he's paying him to be part of his and Rhaenyra's plan to fake Laenor's death so that a) he can marry Rhaenyra, and b) Laenor can live the life he wants with Ser Quarl across the Narrow Sea. As Rhaenyra says earlier in the episode, "The sea is an escape." Did Ser Quarl double-cross Daemon and Rhaenyra after all so he could smuggle Laenor across the Narrow Sea with him? Rhaenyra and Daemon getting married in front of their children just like they'd planned, while Ser Quarl flees to board a boat alongside none other than — twist! An unspecified time later Ser Quarl enters Lord Corlys Velaryon's (Steve Toussaint) home, waits for Laenor, and then loudly confronts him in front of the fireplace. Rhaenyra knows that when King Viserys (Paddy Considine) is out of the picture, her claim to the Iron Throne will likely be threatened by Alicent's children.

Laura Miller: Nadira! Have you ever been to a family reunion more tense and dismal than the funeral and wake of Laena Velaryon? It seems like the whole first 15 ...

One of the most upsetting things about Alicent to me is that she had such potential to be an iconic Big Bad, but I find her to be mostly … She should have had the tact to not call for the mutilation of an 8-year-old, especially since she’s smart enough to know that it truly is her sons who are the antagonizing asshats that start all of the messes she blames Rhaenyra’s sons for. She gets absolutely nothing out of trying to harm Luke, just the reputation for being a madwoman. I do want to note that there is a crazy amount of sitting-on-a-guy-and-beating-his-face-in going on in this show, and now even the kids are doing it! In a way, this world is the hardest on people like Alicent, Criston Cole, and Laenor, those who have a code of morality or honor. Still, he’s a child, and acting out of a sense that everyone is against him and everything he wants in life will have to be taken by force. And I fully understand his longing for a dragon, both because it would give him stature in a world where he is obviously disregarded and because who wouldn’t want to fly? On the other hand, Rhaenyra is doing what she has to do to protect herself and her children. Most people seem to blame him for the disasters that have befallen his reign because he’s “weak.” But if we’re going to blame Viserys for not being “strong” enough, we can’t also condemn a character like Aemond for fulfilling what constitutes strength in his world. Once the accusations of Rhaenyra’s sons’ bastard parentage were launched by and in front of the highest-ranked successors to the crown, the cat was officially out of the bag. Lots of bad behavior, from Aegon boozing it up and leering at the serving wenches, to Aemond’s dragon-stealing and assault on his cousins, to Alicent’s dreadful reaction in the castle, to Rhaenyra’s extremely cold-hearted ordering of the assassination of the husband who’s just pledged his devotion to her and her reign. Literally no one in this bunch is getting what they want, least of all poor old Viserys, who just wants them to stop all the infighting, even though his own actions are at the root of it all.

Taking place after a 10-year time jump, it saw the first blood of the inevitable Targaryen civil war being spilled. That was thanks to Lorys Strong who, in a ...

We always knew House of the Dragon would build to a Targaryen civil war. Laenor had been who-knows-where during the chaos, and says regretfully that he "should have been there." As the montage ends, we see the hastily organized wedding of Rhaenyra and Daemon. The Hand of the King goes to see his daughter in her chambers. "I love Laenor," we hear Rhaenyra say over the montage. "I promise you, in time you and I will prevail," he says. The king yells for Alicent to stop, and even Otto Hightower tells his daughter to release the blade. There were a lot of important happenings in that episode, but a lot of the viewing experience was just acclimating to the time jump. "There is a debt to be paid," she says. A confused Lucerys exclaims that his father is still alive, and Aemond tells Jacaerys to tell his younger brother the truth about their father. That was thanks to Lorys Strong who, in a mix of devotion to the queen and blackmail , organized a hit on his brother Harwin and father, Lyonel. She then flies in the air and does a cool loop.

To be sure, Daemon is a complex character; to believe he finds actual amusement in the death of Laena Velaryon, his companion for the past 10 years, would be to ...

She sees, finally, the rot within her own household, and so she seeks to strengthen it with a union of—forgive me—fire and blood. Of course an uncle and a niece falling in love would be the wish of the gods. In one of the show’s most stunning sequences of the season, Aemond conquers the chip on his shoulder and claims Vhagar as his mount, taking to the sky upon the back of the last surviving witness of Aegon’s Conquest. Rhaenyra throws herself in front of her sons, finally giving Alicent the opportunity to confront her former best friend with a few choice words: While she, the Queen, has sacrificed everything in the name of duty, Rhaenyra has spat in its face. The Daemon girlies will be dancing in the streets tonight, and I’m sure to be one of them. On the shores of Driftmark, Daemon and Rhaenyra take a romantic moonlit stroll, during which niece tells uncle of the fruitlessness of her sexual exploits with her husband. She proposes that she and Daemon marry, which of course would require Laenor’s death. Rhaenyra and Daemon’s tryst is one of pleasure, but also one infused with a palpable sense of relief. She rolls her eyes, retorting, “It is not justice for your wife that drives you; it is your own ambition.” Corlys, flipping the script of Larys Strong’s children-are-a-weakness speech from episode 6, leans forward and whispers, “What is this brief mortal life, if not the pursuit of legacy?” After Laena’s coffin is released into the sea surrounding Driftmark, Daemon and Rhaenyra exchange a few loaded glances—oh, boy, do we know what’s coming—while Viserys asks that Daemon return with his daughters to King’s Landing, where he will want for nothing. Rhaenys and Corlys work out the kinks of their pain with an old-fashioned marital row: Rhaenys blames Daemon for dragging Laena to Pentos, but she also blames her husband for his “insatiable pride.” Corlys, surprised to hear his normally steadfast wife criticize him, argues his pursuit of power is only to restore the crown to Rhaenys’ own deserving head. His eyes sweep over Jace and Luke’s brunette bowl cuts, then over the scornful eyes of his fellow funeral guests, and he can’t help but laugh at the open secrets swirling in the air around him.

The end of this week's 'House of the Dragon' raises major questions about the fate of Laenor, Rhaenyra, Daemon, and Qarl. Here's an explanation.

But either way, the fact that he's alive is a big departure from the book, and it gives the show an option to bring him back in the future to mess with other characters, which is fun. And the narrators recount it three different ways, one of which is that Princess Rhaenyra and Prince Daemon paid to have Qarl kill Laenor so [that they could get married](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/tv/a41093912/rhaenyra-daemon-spoilers-house-of-the-dragon/). [this is pretty different from what happens in the book](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/tv/a41020247/house-of-the-dragon-got-prequel-vs-book/). He says that he needs a murder with a lot of witnesses, but, and this is important, he doesn't actually specify that the body needs to be Laenor's. There's a body literally burning in the fire place, and it's assumed that it's Laenor's. [House of the Dragon](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/tv/a41020096/house-of-the-dragon-hbo-season-2-date-cast-episodes/) is, to put it lightly, a doozy.

On the 7th episode of HBO's Game of Thrones spin-off, guests at a funeral express their grief through sex and violence. Fantasy royals: they're just like ...

In a surprising departure from the book, Laenor and Qarl catch a break! - This show has a nagging tendency to kill off characters it introduces in the same episode: Lady Rhea, Ser Joffrey, Ser Harwin, Lady Laena. The voiceover we get is Daemon and Rhaenyra. The show doesn't want to give away that Laenor is in on the ruse quite yet, so what it shows us instead is Daemon killing the page. Rhaenyra pivots by calling the king's attention to the fact that Aemond treasonously questioned the parentage of Jayce, the heir to the throne. (Reader, watching this the first time, I really thought that she signed his death warrant with those words; "RIP LAENOR," I wrote in my notes.) They share a moment of sincere mutual affection; he resolves to let Ser Qarl go and re-dedicate himself to her as a true companion, if nothing else. She takes off and tests his dragonriding skillz, but he's up to the task. Corlys and Rhaenys get a nice scene in which the show re-establishes something it's already established — namely, that Rhaenys has her head on straight, and would have made a great queen. Which makes for a nice moment to step back and note how differently the show is presenting its two sets of royal twerps. There is a fireworks factory in our future, reader, and our bus is just now pulling out of the school parking lot. The king, the queen and their kids Aegon, Aemond and Helaena. That said, this episode kicks off by giving every freaking character listed above a long moment to gaze meaningfully at another character, and with a cast this huge, this process takes a hell of a long time.

This week's episode wove an enormous amount of objectively bonkers goings-on into a mostly credible hour of drama, with one big exception.

I wonder how many royal genealogists the Targaryens have driven to early retirement and/or madness. As Viserys fades, his desperation to keep his family somewhat intact is both pitiable — any semblance of unity will surely die with him — and poignant, a kind of raging against the dying of the light for a ruler who senses that his efforts will be futile and his legacy a wash, at best. As for where that intensity came from, I guess we’re supposed to take it on faith that the 10 years we didn’t see instilled a murderous rage within her. I rarely bring up things from the book because I assume most people who watch “Dragon” haven’t read it, so the show needs to stand on its own. Speaking of Aemond, Leo Ashton, the young actor who plays him, deserves credit for making him so convincingly unnerving from the beginning, with his disquieting dead-eyed stare. I suppose the confrontation was designed to once again foreshadow the conflict to come between these women. So I’m slightly concerned about what “Dragon” becomes when he and Viserys inevitably shuffle off the stage. Most of us, I suspect, have been party to family secrets or some other inconvenient truth that people close to us have held at bay by the sheer force of their own denial. But “he’s got a strange moral compass of his own,” the actor said. Alicent was apoplectic about her husband’s continued indulgence of Rhaenyra and understandably undone by Aemond’s injury. Along the way, we saw the dropping of several narrative shoes. Make your apologies and show good will to one another.”

The seventh episode of House of the Dragon sees House Velaryon face multiple losses as Prince Aemond Targaryen loses an eye but gains a dragon.

House of the Dragon war explained](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/house-dragon-dance-dragons-war-explained/) [Where was House of the Dragon filmed?](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/house-dragon-filming-locations-sets/) [What is Dark Sister in House of the Dragon?](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/house-dragon-dark-sister-explained/) [What book is House of the Dragon based on? Fire and Blood book changes](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/house-dragon-fire-blood-book-changes/) [Your guide to the dragons of House of the Dragon](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/dragon-guide-house-of-the-dragon/) [What is Old Valyria, the Doom and High Valyrian in House of the Dragon?](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/old-valyria-doom-valyrian-house-dragon-explained/) [Game of Thrones books in order: A Song of Ice and Fire and more](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/game-of-thrones-books-order/) Another scenario is that Ser Qarl grew jealous after Ser Laenor found a new lover, prompting them to quarrel and Ser Qarl killing Ser Laenor and fleeing. The sailor of the lifeboat is seen to be Ser Laenor himself with his hair sheared off. [Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/princess-rhaenyra-targaryen-house-dragon-explained/) ( [Emma D'Arcy](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/emma-darcy-house-dragon-age-instagram-profile/)) has now lost the biological father of her sons in Ser Harwin, but will she suspect that her rival, former friend and stepmother [Queen Alicent Hightower](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/alicent-hightower-house-dragon-explained/) ( [Olivia Cooke](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/house-dragon-olivia-cooke-age-instagram-profile/)) is aware of what happened? Laenor notes that despite the conflict in the Stepstones, he will devote himself to Rhaenyra and being her husband and helping her prepare for the throne. Larys suggests that they balance the scales and will devote himself to her as his servant. In the aftermath the next morning, Ser Otto visits the chambers of Alicent who asks him to say what he has to say, the Queen speculating that she has disgraced herself with conduct and ensured that Rhaenyra will forever have Viserys’s favour. In response, Alicent swears to serve the Queen’s Justice and orders Ser Criston to bring her an eye from Lucerys, but he notes he is only sworn to protect her. [Ser Otto Hightower](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/otto-hightower-house-dragon-explained/) (Rhys Ifans) is present and wearing the pin of the Hand of the King. Rhaenyra accuses Daemon of abandoning her to a tragic life and he responds that his life has been tragic too before she asks if he loved Laena. [Ser Laenor Velaryon](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/fantasy/laenor-velaryon-house-dragon-actor-explained/) (John Macmillan) stands in the sea.

In a House of the Dragon episode with Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) and Alicent's (Olivia Cooke) coming Dance of the Dragons, and exploring how Laenor ...

[the royal children](https://www.polygon.com/23368925/house-of-the-dragon-kids-who-rhaenyra-alicent-daemon-jace-joffrey-aegon) that goes from bad to worse in — ahem — the blink of an eye. It’s enough to make [Viserys’ (Paddy Considine)](https://www.polygon.com/23328660/house-dragon-viserys-iron-throne-cut) plea for a return to the family’s status quo seem almost comically out of touch, a referee trying to stop World War II with a whistle. Again the episode chooses a ritual — the most elementally basic, the literally Biblical tradition of an eye for an eye — as the focus of its conflict. Through the ritualistic demand we get a glimpse of the real Alicent, a confused and frightened woman left in a permanent state of panic by her father’s abuse. Rhaenyra’s secret marriage to her [uncle Daemon (Matt Smith)](https://www.polygon.com/e/23144854) serves to inflate her reputation as a ruthless power player, and sir Laenor’s duel with his lover Qarl (Arty Froushan) provides cover for their bittersweet escape from the bloody power games of the royal court. The scene is lit and shot like something out of Neil Marshall’s [The Descent](https://www.polygon.com/hulu/2020/4/18/21224924/best-horror-movies-on-hulu), torchlight flickering over the faces of the young heirs to the Targaryen dynasty as their childish squabble rapidly turns bloody, fists and feet giving way to rocks and knives. While [House of the Dragon](https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516586&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hbomax.com%2Fseries%2Fhouse-of-the-dragon%3Foffer_id%3D5%26transaction_id%3D102c87c7%255B%25E2%2580%25A6%255D4ed39326beedc6012ca%26utm_source%3DVox%2BMedia%26utm_medium%3Daffiliate&referrer=polygon.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.polygon.com%2F23383650%2Fhouse-dragon-episode-7-review-laenor)’s seventh episode does a great deal to show Westeros sliding uncontrollably toward what will surely prove a calamitously bloody war, its own body count is comparatively modest by [the series](https://www.polygon.com/house-of-the-dragon)’ standards. From the somber but politically charged opening funeral scene to the darkly majestic and disturbing claiming of [the dragon Vhagar](https://www.polygon.com/e/23145224) by the young prince Aemond (Leo Ashton), “Driftmark” moves at an effortless clip. [Miguel Sapochnik](https://www.polygon.com/23331775/house-of-the-dragon-miguel-sapochnik-leaving-showrunner-alan-taylor) and writer Sara Hess pull it off with aplomb. His delight at her evident unwellness is perhaps the episode’s most sickening sight, a further deception concealed behind his somber façade and the arcane traditions of the royal court. [fake Ser Laenor’s (John Macmillan) death](https://www.polygon.com/e/23144583), is a case study in the episode’s preoccupation with social rituals as a means of concealing and revealing truth. Laena’s funeral provides her uncle with a chance to launch a veiled barb at Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) over the parentage of her sons.

छठे एपिसोड में हमने देखा था कि डेमॉन की पत्नी और लार्ड कॉर्लिस की बेटी ने ख़ुद को ड्रैगन ...

ये एपिसोड पिछले एपिसोड से ज़रूर अच्छा है. हां, ये ख़ुद को चौथे एपिसोड की तरह आगे बढ़ाए, तो कुछ कहा भी जा सकता है. फिर आंख के बदले आंख लेने की बारी आती है. जो इस एपिसोड के बाद प्रूव भी हो जाता है. ये राइड आगे की कहानी में भी अहम भूमिका निभाने वाली है. कई मौक़ों पर उस एपिसोड में महसूस किए गए युद्ध के भय को छूकर ज़रूर आता है. एलिसेंट के अंदर की आग और अधिक भड़कती है. इस एपिसोड का बड़ा हिस्सा बच्चों की कहानी बयान करता है. फिर भी, ये एपिसोड अगले सीज़न के लिए अभी से माहौल सेट कर रहा है. पिछले एपिसोड में ही ये समझ आ गया था कि एलिसेंट का बड़ा बेटा बिगड़ैल स्वभाव का है. जब कोई सीरीज़ देखते हैं, तो पाते हैं हर एपिसोड अगले एपिसोड के लिए समां बांध रहा है. सातवां एपिसोड उसी के दाह संस्कार से शुरू होता है.

The 7th episode of "House of the Dragon," titled "Driftmark," gives us a glimpse of the conflict that was going to engulf Kings Landing sooner than later.

Firstly, she loved him, and secondly, she knew that she had to strengthen her claim to the Iron Throne. He resumed his duties and knew that he was closer to his goal than ever. It was also symbolic of the fact that a blood bath was soon going to follow. She needed somebody to protect her, and she knew that Laenor wasn’t up to the challenge. They had Vhagar by their side and they knew that the inclusion of another dragon in their team had somewhat tilted the balance in their favor. He was aware of the harsh realities and that is why the desire to live long was slowly dwindling as he didn’t want to witness whatever this conflict entailed. Rhaenyra wanted Aemon to be apologetic for the fact that he questioned the legitimacy of her sons. He went close to Vhagar, the dragon that was ridden by Laena Velaryon and was once the pride of Driftmark. The young boy was well aware of the fact that he was an illegitimate offspring of a union that nobody was ready to recognize. She had said that though Aemond would one day ride a dragon, he would have to sacrifice one of his eyes. He mounted the beast and held the reins to tilt the odds in his favor. He had told Aemond, during the funeral ceremony, that he was unwilling to marry her because they didn’t have anything in common, and a lot of times, he didn’t understand the gibberish she spoke.

Kathryn VanArendonk is a critic who writes about TV and comedy. She gets mad when people say TV is a ten-hour movie. The night scenes in “Driftmark” were shot ...

It was the kids' time to shine in the latest episode of 'House of the Dragon' and it's clear familial conflict and drama has already taken hold of this ...

After gasp-inducing violence and an unearthly consummation, there's now a dangerous union you really don't want to mess with. This mean all-out war.

Taking place after a 10-year time jump, it saw the first blood of the inevitable Targaryen civil war spilled. That was thanks to Larys Strong, who in a mix of ...