House of the Dragon' episode 4

Rhaenyra and Daemon enjoy a wild night and harsh morning in King's Landing in the latest episode of the 'Game of Thrones' prequel series.

It continues, as Daemon brings Rhaenyra to one final stop on his tour through King’s Landing: a pleasure house on the Street of Silk, “where people come to take what they want.” Surrounded by dozens of individuals in varying stages of undress (not to mention varying positions and permutations while undressed), Daemon and Rhaenyra take what they want: each other. Alas, even now, the heir of it all hangs heavy in the air, as Rhaenyra and Daemon wind up watching a street performance that crudely conveys the King’s perceived dilemma of who will succeed him on the Iron Throne, his public and private promises regarding Rhaenyra’s ascension notwithstanding. Together, passing drinks back and forth, they go out for a night on the town, free from “the burdens of [their] inheritance,” if only temporarily. For the first time since her father announced his betrothal to her best friend, Rhaenyra sees much of her own plight reflected in Alicent. As Rhaenyra bemoans the proposal process, Alicent points out that not everyone in Westeros has the luxury of choosing their own spouse. But the crown comes off in no time at all, as the prince who breaks promises bends the knee to his brother, King Viserys (Paddy Considine), in a very public display of affection, followed by a celebration held in Daemon’s honor.

Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) has returned victorious from the Stepstones where he's defeated the corsair prince they called the Crabfeeder. He's gotten ...

I figure things will just continue to get more shocking and terrible as we continue, and a bit of uncle-niece making out in a pleasure house is the least of our concerns. I also continue to have a tough time really connecting with any of the characters outside of Rhaenyra, though Viserys is sympathetic in his own way, as is Alicent, and Daemon is certainly fascinating. Hightower is finished as Hand, but his grandson is the only male heir, and his daughter is queen. Ultimately, the king tells her that her choice in the matter is now once again out of her hands. Perhaps this is a subtle way of taking all that back, having Rhaenyra read the blade’s inscription and, as a fluent speaker of Valirian, find no such double meaning. Viserys is aghast at the thought and reminds his brother that he’s already married. Her intentions become clear quickly enough, and the knight tells her “no”—he’s sworn a vow of chastity as a Kingsguard, for one thing, but surely he also knows what kind of consequences such an act could carry. Rhaenyra calls off the rest of the tour a full two months early and heads back to King’s Landing. Here’s the thing about getting all hot and bothered like this and then being left unsatisfied—and also being a beautiful princess. The two make their way out into the lively nighttime streets of King’s Landing and into a fever dream of paupers and whores, eyeless fortune tellers and yellow-cloaked guards, firebreathers and drunkards. The note shows a secret passage in her room that leads out to a staircase behind the walls that she never knew about. First, we must hop onto the back of a dragon—Syrax, perhaps—and go find Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock).

A blonde girl and a blonde man in regal dress stand in a garden. Credit: HBO. > Entertainment ...

The boy gives Mysaria a handful of money, and just like that we know who our White Worm is. "I learned that the skin trade could only take me so far in this life." Later we get our answer courtesy of a hungover Daemon, who wakes up in a bed belonging to his former girlfriend, Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno). "Apologies for the late hour, my lord," a soldier says to Hightower. We won't go over all the grisly details from that night, but the sequence of events is still important. Crucially, though, after Daemon abruptly disappears, we see a young boy watching as Rhaenyra leaves the brothel looking for him.

'House of the Dragon' Episode 4: Sex! Deceit! We discuss what happens between Daemon and Rhaenyra in "King of the Narrow Sea."

According to co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik, in a featurette that aired after the episode: “Ultimately, his impotence in the scene is a reflection of the fact that he knows, deep down, that what he’s doing isn’t right.” It was how unaware she was that the act was all about her uncle messing with his brother, the king, and the line of succession for the Iron Throne. * Was Rhaenyra taking notes during her trip to the pillow house? (Again, not something I expected having to state for the record.) But as someone who covered Game of Thrones throughout its run and who has read plenty of Martins’ work, I’ve made my peace with the fact that It was about how she clearly has an attraction to Daemon, and how he played the long game with that, for his own gain. [House of the Dragon](https://tvline.com/tag/house-of-the-dragon/) depicted the scene that readers of George R.R.

Episode 4 of House of the Dragon starts with Rhaenyra listening to a number of different suitors as they step forward and pitch their claim to be her ...

It’s a way of showing the difference between duty and pleasure, as well as how stifling and passionless some arranged marriages can be. Unlike something like Rings of Power, which repeats the same information repeatedly and sacrifices good storytelling for good visuals, HOTD is easily winning this “fantasy war”. Viserys is conflicted over what to do and eventually brings Rhaenyra in to see him so they can talk. Back inside, Alicent is summoned to see Viserys in the middle of the night, where he ends up having sex with her. He takes the title from the Hand, pointing out he can’t trust Otto’s judgment anymore, leaving the man shocked and incredulous. Viserys calls her his “political headache” and goes on to decide they should set up a wedding to Ser Laenor Velaryon. Viserys kicks him and demands the truth. In the aftermath of this, Daemon and Rhaenyra talk about their changed fates in this world, including the latter’s numerous suitor proposals. Lord Corlys has engaged in negotiations with the Sealord of Braavos. Speaking of power, Viserys gathers the small council in the throne room where they have bigger problems afoot. He drops one of his own, “Add it to the chair.” It’s unclear right now what sort of game he’s playing (if any), and you could cut the tension with a knife.