Otto Gets Fired in New ‘HOTD’, Regrets Life Choices
House of the Dragon S2 Ep 2 Review
From the first episode of House of the Dragon, I’ve made my disdain for Otto Hightower no secret. More than anyone, I consider him the main culprit for the Dance of the Dragons. He had his daughter marry King Viserys to give him a son and a new heir he could guide like a puppet. However, by doing so, he destroys the friendship between Alicent and Rhaenyra, splits the realm in two, and condemns the dragons to a long, slow death. And if the show follows the books well enough, then Otto’s efforts will end up being for nothing. And while plenty of others are equally responsible for what’s to come, it’s still satisfying to see Otto get his first dose of karma in this episode. Otto Hightower gets fired. Again!
As I said on Twitter: He should’ve stuck with Rhaenyra. And this episode was
Peace is Now Dead. Let the Carnage and Power Plays Begin
The end of the season premiere was disappointing, but its follow-up starts on the strongest note possible. The entire Red Keep is in chaos as guards start rounding up everyone, determined to find the assassins. Meanwhile, the Greens spiral as they each try to grasp what has happened. It’s through this that I think the episode truly shines, with the actors getting to display the full extent of their emotions.
Aegon demonstrates what happens when a Targaryen snaps when he lashes out at everything in sight, with disastrous consequences. You can practically see the flames bellowing from his mouth as he declares war on his half-sister while also destroying his father’s model of Old Valyria. Meanwhile, Aemond is left shaken at how narrowly he avoided death by being out at a brothel. Now his nephew is dead thanks to his actions. Some would say it wasn’t his fault, but I don’t think that. Vhagar may have gone AWOL, but Aemond created the circumstances that led to her killing Luke and Arrax. Silver lining? It gave us some good memes comparing a naked Aemond to Lord Voldemort.
The murder shakes Criston Cole because he failed to uphold his Kingsguard vows. Both by sleeping with Alicent, and failing to protect Helaena and her kids. As if to show just how far he’s fallen, instead of admitting his mistakes like he did in the past, he tries to deflect blame onto others. In this case, he berates Arryk Cargyle for getting his cloak dirty and for his brother choosing to join Rhaenyra. So he forces him to go to Dragonstone as part of an insane plan to kill Rhaenyra, which goes against what the Kingsguard stands for. Now the hate for Criston Cole has reached new highs.
Otto, What You Do is Messed Up
The Green who has the most unsettling reaction, though, has to be that of Otto Hightower. Whereas everyone around is visibly upset, Otto decides to milk this tragedy for all its worth. He has Jahaerys body displayed in a public funeral procession to gain sympathy from the smallfolk. And the whole time he has people proclaiming this to be the work of Rhaenyra, dubbing her ‘Rhaenyra the Cruel.”
Using the deaths of children for political purposes is not new, but watching this was just…wrong. Seeing the child’s body, its head sewn back on, paraded in front of everyone was wrong. Forcing the traumatized Helaena and guilt-ridden Alicent to take part was wrong. Otto is sad that his great-grandson is dead, but he doesn’t get how reprehensible this act is.
Plus, its rendered moot thanks to Aegon. But there’s also the reactions of the Blacks to consider.
I Think Rhaenyra and Daemon Just Broke Up
Contrary to the history books, Rhaenyra’s horrified by the death of Aegon’s son and the accusations that she ordered it. In truth, Daemon ordered the hit by Blood & Cheese without her knowledge or consent. And after figuring that part out almost +immediately, she’s livid at her husband.
That’s when HOTD starts to show the visible cracks in their relationship. Rhaenyra calls him out for going behind her back to do this, saying his impulsive decision destroyed any remaining chance at peace. She proceeds to pick him apart bit by bit, telling him that, despite claiming to support her claim to the Iron Throne, he doesn’t. Deep down, he’s still bitter and resentful at having what he thinks was his birthright passed over by his brother. While he does love Rhaenyra, he also sought to manipulate her, hoping to rule the Seven Kingdoms through her. In short, Daemon may be the biggest badass in Westeros, but on the inside, he remains a bitter, insecure man grasping for a station that’s not his. Nor is it it one that he deserves.
Daemon departs on Caraxes for Harrenhal afterwards, and I don’t remember if he returns at any point during the coming war. Even if he does, though, the damage is already done.
Not that the Greens fare any better, either.
Otto Has Zero Emotional Intelligence
When I say that I place most of the blame for the Dance of the Dragon on Otto Hightower, I mean it. He used his daughter to create a male heir to the Iron Throne that he could control. He thought that he could make Aegon into his puppet, through which his family could rule Westeros forever. But despite being an undeniably intelligent man, Otto was also a fool playing with fire.
Aegon proved utterly unworthy of being king, and everyone knows it; including Aegon! Case in point, after capturing Blood and learning it was a rat catcher who helped kill his son, he killed all the rat catchers in the Red Keep. Whatever sympathy the Greens won was lost thanks to this act, and Otto was livid. He yells at his grandson and wonders how he could be so foolish. And what does Aegon do, in response? He fires his grandfather.
And I relish the look on Otto’s face when that happens.
Otto is a smart man, and he’s great at thinking things through logically. That’s a useful trait in the royal court but also a weakness. He’s so lacking in empathy that he cannot understand why Aegon’s acting as he is. It just doesn’t compute to him! And while he’s right about Criston Cole’s plan being stupid, Aegon refuses to listen as he makes Criston the new Hand.
Otto, You Backed the Wrong Dragon
I loved this scene. Rhys Ifans gave an Emmy-worthy perfomance as Otto sees his plans blow up in his face. And he has no one to blame but himself. If he hadn’t pushed his daughter to marry Viserys and just accepted Rhaenyra as heir, none of this would have happened.
Reap what you sew, Otto. And when your death comes, may your last thoughts be “I wasted my life for nothing.”
The Dance of Dragons in Microcosm
The major highlight of the episode, though, was the battle between the brothers, Ser Arryk and Ser Erryk. As expected, the infiltration of Dragonstone fails when Arryk is spotted by a departing Mysaria. The fight between the two brothers, while not flashy or filled with cool effects, is still very emotional. In the end, neither brother walks away from this fight. Erryk kills his brother and overwhelmed with guilt; he proceeds to commit suicide.
The duel between the Kingsguard brothers is this entire conflict in microcosm. Two siblings are fighting for what they think is right (or something), and in the end, neither of them survives. The sheer waste of life is tragic. And soon, all of Westeros will repeat this battle. Families will be torn apart, lives destroyed, and a great house rent asunder.
This could have been a better episode, but I’m hoping for House of the Dragon to rally. Bring on the dragon fights, HBO!
I Give “Rhaenyra the Cruel” a 4/5
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