The Red Sowing Was Even Worse than the Books Said!
House of the Dragon S2 Ep 7 Review
I’ve been waiting for three moments to happen in season two of House of the Dragon: Blood and Cheese, the Battle at Rook’s Rest, and the Red Sowing. AKA the moment when the Dragonseeds claim their dragons for the Blacks. Or rather, when the dragons claim their riders, because, as the last episode made all too clear, the idea that a rider can claim their dragon is a lie. The dragons choose their rider, regardless of who they are or where they come from. But while letting Valryian bastards claim dragons might seem like a good idea on Rhaenyra’s part, is it worth it? The events of the Red Sowing put that into question before it’s even done.
Firstly, though, let’s go over the other plots in the episode.
Oscar Tully Goes Full Gangsta on Daemon
Daemon Targaryen might be one of the best characters in House of the Dragon, but his time at Harrenhal has not done his character justice. For weeks now, Daemon’s time onscreen has either been about him trying to raise an army or being haunted by visions of his regrets and misdeeds. At first, it was interesting to see Harrenhal mess with Daemon like that, but it quickly got old. It feels like a waste of Matt Smith’s acting abilities; he was my second favorite Doctor!
Fortunately, it would seem that Daemon’s time at Harrenhal is coming to an end. Now that the old Tully lord is dead, his grandson, Oscar Tully, is Lord Paramount of the Riverlands. And, unlike his first appearance, Oscar has taken a level in badass. He’s much more willing to sass the adults in the room. Firstly, he takes jabs at Daemon for being just a Prince and for having the Blackwoods commit war crimes. Then, he throws shade at the Riverlords when they question him because he’s a child. Oscar’s less an Edmure and more like a young Brynden the Blackfish!
Oscar does agree to honor his oath to Rhaenyra, but there’s a catch: the Riverlords want justice for what the Blackwoods did. And, despite being the one who gave Willem Blackwood leave to commit said war crimes, Daemon doesn’t hesitate to turn his sword on him. It’s not made clear if Willem is dead, but I just looked it online, and he’s not a character from the books. Thus, he’s likely dead. I’m only bringing that up because the fact that Daemon was willing to betray someone who followed his orders could hurt him in the long.
Alicent’s Woes and Aegon’s Physical Therapy
On the Greens’ side of things, the episode focuses mainly on two characters, Alicent and Aegon. Both have endured great pain throughout the series thus far, each in their own ways, and it feels like the episode puts great emphasis on what they have to go through. And despite giving fans plenty of reasons to hate them, I still couldn’t help but feel pity for the mother and son.
Alicent has lost almost everything she had and is deeply depressed over it. That prompts her to leave the Red Keep with her sworn sword for the isolation of the Kingswood, and there’s one scene where she strips down to her undershirt and starts swimming in a lake as a bird flies overhead. Since they can fly, many people see birds as a symbol of freedom. For Alicent, they’re a symbol of the freedom that she’s never had. All her life, she tried to follow the rules and act like how the men expected a woman to act. Alicent has realized that she should’ve followed Rhaenyra’s example and played the game by her own rules, which is the most tragic aspect of her character.
Then we have Aegon. I’ve made it no secret that I think he’s a loser and a terrible excuse for a person. But even I can’t help but feel bad seeing him try to walk across his bedroom in excruciating pain. He knew he wasn’t worthy of the Throne, but he let himself buy into the hype, and now he’ll remain like this for the rest of his life. Aegon may be a sad excuse for a man, but no one should have to experience this.
How Can a Commoner Claim a Dragon?
Now we have the best part of the episode: watching the Dragonseeds claim their dragons in the Red Sowing. And long-time fans know that any event in the franchise that starts with the word “Red” is bad news, and the Red Sowing lived up to this. But before that, there’s the event that gives birth to the idea.
After Rhaenyra confronts Addam and Seasmoke and they pledge their loyalty to her, the Queen and Mysaria go on a recruitment spree. They invite dozens of lowborn Targaryen bastards to Dragonstone like it’s an audition for Westerosi Idol. But while Rhaenyra sees this as a great idea, others either scoff at it or flat out refuse to accept it. While the Dragonkeepers refuse to help her, Jace argues that letting commoners claim dragons breaks the myth that the Targaryens are these godlike people. He’s right, but his argument stems from him fearing letting others claim dragons robs him of his greatest claim to the Iron Throne since he’s also a bastard. He might be right, but for the wrong reasons.
The Red Sowing Was Worth the Wait
Then we have the Red Sowing itself. Rhaenyra has all the Dragonseeds audition for King Jahaerys’ dragon, Vermithor, at once. And I don’t understand that for the life of me. Rhaenyra saw what Seasmoke did to a smaller group of people, so imagine what the second-largest dragon in Westeros would do?
The Red Sowing is as horrific as you expect. The show does a good job of using camera’s and special affects to play up Vermithor’s slaughter of most of the Dragonseeds. All of that leads to Hugh Hammer, the blacksmith of King’s Landing, claiming Vermithor. I really liked this moment. The fact that Hugh chooses to stare down Vermithor while trying to save another Dragonseed speaks a lot about his character up to this point. And unlike the others, Hugh faces Vermithor without any fear or arrogance, neither of which the dragons seem to like. And it seems to seal the deal for Vermithor.
As for Ulf, he flees from Vermithor, only to run into the nest of his mate, Silverwing. Luckily for him, Silverwing chooses him as her new rider. Silverwing was also pretty friendly with other humans. The entire scene is pretty funny, as is the reveal of what Ulf does next. He proceeds to fly Silverwing to King’s Landing, scaring everyone below and likely impressing Ulf’s fellow barflies. And with the three dragons, Aemond is forced to retreat from Dragonstone when he tries to pursue Ulf.
There’s also more hints about the dragon in the Vale that Rhaena is looking for, but nothing comes of it…yet.
What’s in Store for the Finale
And thus, the Red Sowing comes to an end. And with how bloody it was, it seems like Rhaenrya starts to question whether or not this was worth it in the end. However, that doubt seems to have evaporated with the sight of Aemond and Vhagar. Or I might just be reading too much into her actions. Either way, Rhaenyra now has the advantage against the Greens in terms of dragons as we head into the season finale.
Yes, the show ends its second season, but the preview seems to be promising. I don’t want to spoil what might happen, but we might get a battle that’s on-par with the one we got at Rook’s Rest. Until then, though, I’m going to look back on the Red Sowing with morbid fondness. The one complaint that I might have, though, is the fact that a few dragons from the books have not been introduced. And I’m not just talking about the one in the Vale, but two other dragons.
I Give “The Red Sowing” a 4.5/5
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