This article contains spoilers.
After watching the comedic, heartfelt treat that was A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, I admit I thought it would be difficult to get back into House of the Dragon (HOTD), which, very much like Game of Thrones, is a lot darker in tone and color-grading. But after watching Episode 1 of Season 3 in an exclusive screening with other fans, courtesy of HBO Max Philippines, I can say it’s good to be back.
To recap, Season 2 started with a revenge plot after Vhagar, the dragon ridden by Aemond (Ewan Mitchell), killed Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) youngest son, Lucerys, in Season 1. Daemon (Matt Smith), Rhaenyra’s husband (and uncle, but let’s not get into that now), orders the death of Aemond, but the assassination attempt goes sideways when Jaehaerys, grandson of Alicent (Olivia Cooke) through her daughter Helaena (Phia Saban), is killed instead.
More plotting happens amid a brewing war between the Black and Green factions of the Targaryen family. Rhaenyra asserts her right to the Iron Throne as the eldest child of the late Viserys (Paddy Considine), but others believe that Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney), his first son (through Alicent), is the rightful heir.
As with any political drama, it isn’t just these two vying for power. Daemon, Viserys’ brother, feels he’s been sidestepped in the succession dispute. Aemond thinks he’s much more suited to rule than his brother, Aegon. At the end of Season 2, Aegon has been incapacitated after Vhagar, under Aemond’s command, burned him. While Aemond takes charge as self-declared regent, Aegon and Lord Larys (Matthew Needham) run away. Team Black, led by Rhaenyra, claims Harrenhal, the biggest but also most decrepit castle in all of Westeros, and finds new dragonriders in Targaryen bastards (because only Targs can bond with dragons). Team Green wins allies in the Triarchy, a group of three free cities in Essos, which gives them an advantage in the oncoming war.
Where Does Season 3 Start?
Episode 1, entitled “Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood,” starts with Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) finding the wild dragon Sheepstealer in the Vale. She tries to bond with him, even though he has a reputation for being untameable, and succeeds when she mounts him.
Aegon and Larys seek passage out of King’s Landing in an animal carriage. They’re found by guards loyal to Rhaenyra, but Larys manages to convince the guards to spare them by saying they’re more valuable if they’re taken to Rhaenyra alive.
At King’s Landing, Alicent finds that Aegon has fled, with Aemond sitting on the Iron Throne. She confides in her younger son, saying that she fought to put Aegon on the throne but didn’t prepare him to rule. She tries to convince Aemond to go to Harrenhal, where, unbeknownst to him, Targaryen bastards Addam (Clinton Liberty), Hugh (Kieran Bew), and Ulf (Tom Bennett) wait to ambush him with their dragons. Aemond kisses his mom — much to Alicent’s and the audience’s collective horror — but agrees to go to Harrenhal.
What Happens in the Battle of the Gullet?
Meanwhile, a naval battle has ensued between the Black-allied fleet of Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) and the Green-allied fleet of the Triarch, led by Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn, also known on YouTube as Philosophy Tube). Lohar has a grudge against Corlys, who’s dominated the seas between Westeros and Essos and interfered with the Triarch’s merchant shipments throughout the years.
Rhaenyra receives word of the battle and prepares to ride out on her dragon Syrax, but her son Jacaerys or Jace (Harry Collett) locks her away to keep her safe. He and his step-sibling-cousin-betrothed Baela (Bethany Antonia) take their dragons Vermax and Moondancer out to sea, burning Triarch ships.
Rhaena also rides in on Sheepstealer’s back, but she quickly loses control of the dragon as it breathes fire on Corlys’ ships and becomes hostile with the other dragons. A chase takes place between the dragons.
At sea, Corlys’ ship manages to evade Lohar’s by steering the vessel through a narrow, rocky pass. But Lohar catches up, and a bloody fight breaks out between their men. Corlys falls off the ship, nowhere to be seen, but his bastard son Alyn (Abubakar Salim) manages to drown and kill Lohar in a fistfight.
On the other side of the Gullet, the fight between the dragons gets Vermax shot down by an enemy’s harpoon. As the dragon sinks, Jace manages to unsaddle himself and swim up, but gets shot three times by Triarch crossbowmen. He succumbs to his injuries immediately and bleeds out in the sea.
House of the Dragon Season 3 is available to watch on HBO Max.
Frequently Asked Questions
House of the Dragon Season 3, Episode 1 was released on Monday, June 22, at 9 a.m. in the Philippines. It’s available on HBO Max.
In House of the Dragon, the Battle of the Gullet is a major naval battle between Corlys Velaryon’s Black-allied fleet and the Triarchy’s Green-allied fleet, led by Sharako Lohar. It ends with Lohar being killed by Corlys’ illegitimate son, Alyn.
Viserys had Rhaenyra through his first wife, Aemma Arryn, who died in childbirth. Through Alicent Hightower, he had Aegon, Aemond, and Helaena. Rhaenyra claims the Iron Throne as his eldest child, while others, led by the Hightowers, back Aegon as the rightful heir, being Viserys’ firstborn son.
Rhaenyra secretly had Jace and Luke with Ser Harwin Strong. The boys inherited their biological father’s dark hair instead of the Targaryens’ blonde, causing intrigue in the court. Rhaenyra’s husband and relative, Ser Laenor Velaryon, knew of the affair but treated Jace and Luke as his own.
The Blacks are led by Rhaenyra, who asserts her right to the Iron Throne. The Greens back Aegon, Alicent’s son. The conflict between them drives the House of the Dragon’s central war, called the Dance of the Dragons.
