Foreshadowing in House of the Dragon: Targaryen Gods

Things are starting to really heat up on House of the Dragon. As we approach the midpoint of this first season, many of the seeds that have been planted are beginning to bear fruit, but there’s still a lot of growing to do.

Episode 3 featured Daemon Targaryen turning the page on a new chapter in his life. Up to this point, we’ve only seen Daemon fighting (and losing) in tournaments and castrating common folk on the streets of Kings Landing. Until now, one could easily have assumed that he was all bark and no bite. It’s now clear that this is far from the truth. Daemon managed to survive an assault from the Stepstones’ most brutal pirates and eviscerated the Crabfeeder. He couldn’t have won this war alone, but he may have contributed more than any other one person.

In the series premiere, Rhaenyra Targaryen says that “people say Targaryens are closer to Gods than men. But, they only say that because of our dragons.” Watching Daemon, it’s easy to believe she might be underselling her family. Daemon cut down several soldiers on his own and survived rains of arrows from up on the cliffs. That kind of thing can go to a guy’s head. Daemon’s belief in his own superiority will lead to even more reckless behavior on his behalf. Juxtaposing his arc with Rhaenrya’s in Episode 3 foreshadows the changes to come that will ultimately lead to war.

Targaryen hubris on the rise

It’s hard to make Rhaenyra Targaryen do anything she doesn’t want to do. She is desperate to be seen as the king’s true heir and insulted by the idea of needing to take a husband for position, even though this is common among nobles of all stripes. While Viserys says that even he is not above tradition and duty, Rhaenyra sees herself as a Targaryen, a dragon, someone who will do and say whatever she wants, consequences be damned. This foreshadows some of the destructive choices she makes down the line.

Some of those choices involve courtship. The men that Rhaenyra seems to actually want, she cannot have. Episode 3 hints at some chemistry between her and Ser Criston Cole, but Criston is a sworn knight of the Kingsguard, a slave to duty forbidden from marrying. The one person who might understand her, who might share her belief that being a dragon means more being just another human being, is her uncle Daemon.

George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, on which House of the Dragon is based, leaves a lot of room for interpretation when it comes to the relationship between Daemon and Rhaenyra at this point in their lives. Based on the teaser trailer for this Sunday’s new episode, House of the Dragon will get into specifics. Be prepared for some incest. The belief that Targaryens are above the laws of gods and men — some of which forbid incest — is what lets members of this family think that coupling with each other is alright, even if doing so rips their family (or their country) apart.

But the truth is that Targaryens are just as vulnerable as anyone else, to heartache, loneliness, lust and death. Many will find that out over the course of this show.

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