House of the Dragon struggles to reconcile itself in “We Light The Way”

If I had to quickly summarize the perceived failings of the final few seasons of Game of Thrones, I’d say that while the show enthusiastically executed on big, dramatic moments, it wasn’t careful enough in building to them, which meant they didn’t land as powerfully as they should. For instance, while Arya’s execution of Littlefinger is a fun scene, in order for it to work, we have to just accept that the Stark siblings quickly patched up their differences offscreen and that a careful manipulator like Littlefinger didn’t see anything like this coming. And then there’s Daenerys Targaryen’s infamous firebombing of King’s Landing. It’s not the event itself many fans had problems with, but rather that the show didn’t set up such a horrifying turn to their satisfaction.

I felt a little of that energy from the newest episode of House of the Dragon, “We Light The Way.” The big moments landed. When I tell you that I gasped — gasped — when Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey) glided into Rhaenyra’s wedding feast bedecked in vibrant green, signaling to all and sundry that she was ready to step up as the face of House Hightower and intended to protect her rights and the rights of her children, I do not lie. Swelling strings buoyed the emotion. It was a spine-tingling moment.

But I’m not sure I understand exactly why Alicent thought this kind of ostentatious break with her friend was necessary (and to be fair, she didn’t outright announce her intentions, except maybe to us at home). Yes, she learns from Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) that Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) lied by omission about not having sex the night Daemon Targaryen returned to King’s Landing; Rhaenyra did lose her virginity that night, just not to the man she was accused of being with. That must hurt Alicent — remember, Rhaenyra swore on her dead mother — but why this public display of rebuke?

Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) gives Alicent more motivation, telling his daughter upon their parting that if Rhaenyra succeeds her father King Viserys (Paddy Considine) on the Iron Throne, she will have to kill Alicent’s children and maybe Alicent herself to secure her rule. That’s a good enough argument — there are examples of this sort of thing happening in real-life history  — and the scene itself is powerful; Otto seems sincere, and the hug he gives Alicent is the most open expression of emotion we’ve seen from either of these characters.

The problem is that we haven’t had any indication that Rhaenrya would be willing to kill Alicent’s children, much less Alicent herself, or that Alicent suspects her of being so willing. In fact, if Alicent and Rhaenyra are on good terms, you’d figure regicide would be easily avoided if Alicent continued to support Rhaenyra’s ascension, as she’s done without fail so far. I think the missing piece of setup here is a scene in the past couple episodes where we see that Rhaenrya has at least contemplated the idea of eliminating her rivals for the Iron Throne, and more importantly, that Alicent knows it, even if she doesn’t want to admit it to herself just yet.

The sudden depth of Ser Criston Cole

I also took issue with some of Criston Cole’s actions. He gets a long scene with Rhaenyra after she has pledged to wed Laenor Velaryon (Theo Nate), something she agreed to purely because it will help her father shore up his political alliances; Rhaenrya has no intention of getting romantically involved with the guy. In fact, she knows Laenor is gay and is perfectly happy to let him enjoy his relationship with the knight Joffrey Lonmouth (Solly McLeod), so long as he is content to let her have a paramour of her own. I don’t know how I feel about the extended duck-and-goose metaphor they use, but their scene on the beach is rather sweet; they’re two people trying to do their duty by their fathers without sacrificing their personal happiness. Everybody wins.

But Criston doesn’t see it that way. During the sea voyage back to King’s Landing from the Velaryon seat of Driftmark, Criston makes his gallant offer: he asks Rhaenyra to run away with him to Essos, where he can make a living as a soldier and make an honest woman of her through marriage, something he cannot do with she a princess of the realm and he a Kingsguard knight sworn to chastity.

Rhaenyra, operating on the advice of her uncle Daemon that marriage is merely a political arrangement, tells him that she must marry Laenor because she wants to sit the Iron Throne, which represents a responsibility bigger than either of them (I like how we can tell she’s thinking about the Prophecy of Ice and Fire here even if she doesn’t mention it). That said, she still wants to have a romantic relationship with Criston. While Joffrey is perfectly chill about the arrangement, pointing out that in a society that shuns queer people it’s the best he and Laenor could hope for, Criston flips out. Apparently he takes his Kingsguard vows very seriously and would rather die than be Rhaenyra’s “whore.”

All of this works, but I think it would land better if we knew more about Criston beforehand. Quite simply, I had no idea he put so much stock in his vows, or that he was the kind of person unwilling or unable to see the nuance of Rhaenyra’s situation. (When he was reluctant to have sex with Rhaenrya last week, I figured it was because he was afraid he would get in trouble for sleeping with his boss, not because he considered it a personal moral failing.) A scene or two before this establishing these points could have helped sell the drama. We would be involved with Criston’s conflict instead of seeing him as a sudden obstacle to Rhaenyra’s happiness.

Just another terrible wedding in Westeros

The climax of the episode comes at a feast dedicated to the union of Rhaenrya and Laenor, which goes down in the Iron Throne room. After Alicent interrupts King Viserys’ speech with her iconic fashion moment, Rhaenrya and Laenor share their first dance, which is a lot of fun. This well-directed sequence effectively keeps track of the many currents flowing throughout the room. Viserys, in pain, is just trying to get through it. His new Hand Lyonel Strong is concerned for him. Alicent is being cold and Rhaenrya isn’t sure why. Daemon, who obviously arrives late, spars with a cousin of his late wife Rhea Royce, and Joffrey Lonmouth decides to approach Criston about the love rectangle they’re about to be involved in together.

As established, Criston believes himself too pure to be involved in an arrangement so practical and helpful. In fact, so offended is he by the suggestion that he pops all the way off and beats Joffrey to death with his bare hands in a moment of shocking violence. It’s brutal; Criston pounds Joffrey’s face to a pulp. And again, the scene works on its own — the big moments land — but I don’t like that we learn about Criston Cole’s hair trigger at the same time as everyone else, or that it results in the death of a queer character introduced just earlier that episode; way to bury your gays, House of the Dragon. Dumping so much new information about Criston on us just as he becomes crucial to the plot feels like a cheat.

Also, how can a man murder a guy at a royal wedding and be allowed to keep his job? In Fire & Blood, Criston kills Joffrey during a tourney, which is still bad but a little more socially acceptable among these types. Whatever. The episode ends with Alicent interrupting an irrevocably tarnished Criston just as he’s about to commit suicide, but we don’t see how that resolves. Meanwhile, a tearful Laenor marries a chagrinned Rhaenyra in a downbeat ceremony. It feels like the board has been upended. There’s no going back to the way things were.

“We Light The Way” into the back half of the season

As usual, there’s a lot to talk about with House of the Dragon. I didn’t even mention the opener where Daemon appears in the Vale and kills his wife Rhea Royce, whom he’d talked of in less than glowing terms a few times before now. She cuts a memorable figure for the few minutes she’s onscreen. RIP.

I also really enjoyed the returns of Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) and Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best), the Queen Who Never Was. Their first solo scene has the kind of familiar intimacy you want to root for. And the episode fills out Corlys’ character nicely; he’s the kind of guy who’s proud and ambitious enough to haggle with a king over the surnames of grandchildren yet unborn, but not so far gone up his own ass that he doesn’t wonder to his wife if he pushed things too far.

And then there’s Viserys, who spends a lot of the episode in pain from the sickness that’s been eating away at him since the premiere. There’s a real sense here that what little control Viserys still had over his own court is slipping away from him. During the brawl at the feast he can only sway back and forth exhausted, he collapses during his daughter’s nuptials, and he muses about his legacy to Ser Lyonel. Viserys may still be alive, but he’s gone. This court now belongs to whoever can take it.

“We Light The Way” is a good episode, whatever misgivings I have about its structure. But with more careful planning, it could have been the midseason climax of the year, not just the week.

House of the Bullet Points

• “We Light The Way” are the words of House Hightower.
• I have really come around to the ye olde timey dialog on this show. Otto’s advice to Alicent stuck out: “Either prepare Aegon to rule or cleave to Rhaenyra and pray she shows you mercy.” It’s easier to immerse myself in the story when all of the dialog feels of a piece.
• Larys Strong, the son of the new Hand of the King Lord Lyonel, shows up again, sowing seeds of doubt in Alicent’s mind in the godswood. Any idea why he’s telling her about Rhaenyra’s moon tea? Just for kicks? I’m not sure about his angle, although I’m enjoying Matthew Needham’s low-key performance.
• I didn’t like that Criston’s big scene with Rhaenrya happened on a boat while they were both fully clothed in their maritime best. I mean, it was fine, but the scene felt constrained given the powerful emotions at play. This should have gone down in private, maybe in Rhaenyra’s bedroom.
• Laena Velaryon, last seen walking through the gardens with the king as a 12-year-old, shows up here as a teenager…and catches the eye of Daemon Targaryen at the wedding. Uh oh.
• This is the last episode where Milly Alcock and Emily Carey play Rhaenyra and Alicent. Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke take over next week.

Episode Grade: C+

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