20 Best Moments in House of the Dragon Season 2

During a moment of startling honesty, Mysaria opens up about her past and reveals a traumatic incident that shaped her life. Rhaenyra moves in to hug her and the pair end up sharing a passionate kiss, only to be interrupted by one of Rhaenyra’s helpers. 

When Rhaenyra sends food-filled ships to King’s Landing as aid, it prompts a wave of fury from citizens discontent with the current regime who left them hungry. Alicent and Helaena bare the brunt of the fallout, nearly dying during the ensuing riot. 

Dragons are notoriously picky about who gets to ride them. We see that days before when Seasmoke fries Ser Steffon Darklyn. Vermithor’s reaction to a profession of riders trying their luck is even worse, however, killing scores of Targaryen descendants before settling on Hugh the Hammer as its rider. 

Rhaenyra isn’t short on dragons; dragon riders, however, are few and far between. Thus begins her search through a mountain of genealogical records for Targaryen descendants to tame and ride the creatures. 

OK, Viserys isn’t really back. It’s another one of Daemon’s dreams. Still, it’s good to see Paddy Considine’s long-dead king again, even if it is through the prism of Daemon’s own subconscious. Viserys reflects on what type of ruler he was and warns Daemon there’s a big price for pole position. Heavy lies the head. 

We get our first good look at Aegon’s damage in the episode immediately following his life-threatening attack. He’s not dead, but he wishes he was as the medical men pry off his armor and his mother Alicent watches in horror. With serious scars on his face, burns on his body, and broken limbs, it’ll be a long road to recovery. 

What do you do in a world without birth control? In Alicent’s case, when she falls unexpectedly pregnant, her option is to either give birth and complicate everything, or drink a herbal tea to destroy the fetus. As if she needed more to worry about while her sons cavort around King’s Landing. 

Visions torment Daemon during his time at Harrenhal. The first one is among the most surprising, involving a younger Rhaenyra sewing Jaehaerys head back on. The cameo from Maddie Allcock is hauntingly delivered, and has a big effect on Daemon. 

Corlys does indeed have a son, but the way he treats him you wouldn’t think so. In episode four, the Sea Snake refuses to show him any affection, and blocks his rise up the ranks, simply because he was born out of wedlock. Rhaenys, Corly’s wife, barely gets to bond with him before dying that same episode. 

The head of dragon Meleys’ is paraded through Kings Landing following the fearsome battle in episode 4. What initially seems like a show of strength, however, is soon revealed to be a very bad idea. The act shows dragons to be killable, which means the same fate could easily befall the dragons protecting King’s Landing. Surprise surprise, another awful call by Criston Cole.

Seeking to avert all-out war, Rhaenyra hatches a plan to meet Alicent in secret and hash it out diplomatically. They discuss the impending catastrophe in a quiet corner of a church, but even Rhaenyra revealing Viserys’ last words on his death bed aren’t enough to change Alicent’s mind. After all, her son is king.

In a battle involving dragons, there are always going to be casualties. Still, it seems like suspiciously good timing when Aemond uses his dragon to fry Rhaneys right when his brother, Aegon, is in the crossfire. Don’t forget, in the previous episode Aegon seriously embarrasses Aemond in a brothel. Afterwards, Aemond looks to finish the job with his sword, but is interrupted by Ser Criston Cole.

Aegon makes a decision that will come back to bite him. In episode three, The Burning Mill, the king surprises his brother Aemond in a brothel. He barges in while Aemond is completely naked and currently occupied with a member of staff, then ridicules him in front of his guards. Aemond storms off, and gets revenge on Aegon in the very next episode.

What an opening scene. It starts with two feuding factions stumbling into one another out in an open field. At first they exchange heated words, with both supporting different sides in the brewing war. Soon, however, it descends into violence. Time passes, and the camera sweeps over hundreds of thousands of dead bodies.

Ser Criston Cole might be Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, but he doesn’t always make the best decisions. One of his worst is sending Kingsguard member Arryk to Dragonstone alone to assassinate Rhaenyra. There, Arryk runs into twin brother Erryk in Rhaenyra’s bedchamber. The pair fight, with both losing their lives in pointless bloodshed.

After years of service as the King’s Hand, Otto Hightower is dismissed from King’s Landing - and by his own grandson too. Aegon doesn’t appreciate Otto calling him out on his actions (such as killing all the city’s ratcatchers), and orders him to give his badge to Criston. Just to make it slightly more complicated, Criston is sleeping with Aegon’s mother.

Aegon does not let the death of Jaehaerys go unpunished. When one half of the murderous duo, Blood, tells Aegon his accomplice is a ratcatcher, Aegon orders every single ratcatcher in King's Landing to be hung up and displayed in the streets. The overly brutal move isn’t received well by the public.

As well as the Blood and Cheese escapade, episode two, Rhaenyra the Cruel, is also known for the prince Jaehaerys street processional. It involves Jaehaerys’ body being paraded through the streets in a carriage. This was a political move by Otto Hightower, who used Jaehaerys’ death to frame Rhaenyra, and drum up sympathy.

After Rhaenyra rejects Ser Criston Cole years prior, he gets revenge by hooking up with her nemesis Alicent. This is a shocking moment not just because it came out of nowhere, but it shows just how salty and vindictive Cole still is.

The murder of young Jaehaerys Targaryen by the reprobate duo known as Blood and Cheese is an awful moment given Jaehaerys’ mother Helaena is forced to watch. It’s not a quick act either: Blood and Cheese take a good ten seconds to saw off the boy’s head and collect it in a bag.