House of the Dragon S2 Turned the Tables for Rhaenyra in the Cruelest Way Possible

House of the Dragon ’s second season is officially here, leaving the first episode enough time to grieve alongside its characters after the first installment’s horrendous finale.

The first season ending catches Viserys I and Alicent Hightower’s son Aemond unintentionally killing his nephew Lucerys Velaryon during a dragon race, a tragedy that soon brings mournful atmosphere not only to Dragonstone, but also to King’s Landing ruled by Rhaenyra Targaryen’s fiercest rivals.

Without even going further with its second season, Game of Thrones ’ prequel proved that it’s always been unfair towards the Blacks’ leader, and she in fact has major reasons not to let the Greens get away with it.

Though initially proclaimed the only heiress to the Iron Throne, Rhaenyra has actually been suffering from her royal status much more than enjoying the life it has afforded her. The first season’s episode 1 sees young Rhaenyra losing her mother, Queen Aemma, after the latter dies in labor aggravated by King Viserys I’s order to have the child removed by C-section.

The heiress’ life becomes even more miserable after her father chooses her best friend Alicent Hightower as his future wife and mother of his rightful heirs, thus making Rhaenyra lose yet another person she’s always been close to.

Having spent years plotting revenge against Alicent and all those responsible for her ruined childhood, Rhaenyra isn’t even too close to declaring an official full-scale war against the Greens when she finds out about her younger son Lucerys’ death while he was on a mission to get some support for the Blacks from other powerful houses in Westeros.

House of the Dragon season 2 episode 1 is no longer hiding Rhaenyra’s true feelings when she’s seen crying as she mourns her son and burns his remnants, as well as Lucerys’ belongings that could serve as a painful reminder of his tragic death.

The show thus seems to have chosen its constant victim who it’s been killing inside but not physically all along, initially turning Rhaenyra into a motherless child in season 1 and then into a childless mother in season 2.

Considering how much personal loss she’s survived through her father and his side of the family’s fault, there’s no bigger reason for Rhaenyra to go all in with the most ruthless war Westeros has ever seen.