Breaking Down The "House Of The Dragon" Episode 4 Trailer

Daemon is back in King's Landing! What will happen next?

House of the Dragon is heating up, with Episode 3 introducing new characters and covering a whole war. Episode 4 puts us right back into court intrigue. Here's the preview:

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Let's break it down!

The trailer opens with a bunch of servants of some kind walking through a dark hall with lanterns.

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Honestly no idea if anything significant is happening here! Great start, I know. 

Then we get to the good part: THE DAGGER. You know, the catspaw dagger, the one used to try to kill Bran in Season 1 of Game of Thrones, and then was actually used to kill the Night King in Season 8? The one Viserys has been carrying around in House of the Dragon? IT HAS VALYRIAN INSCRIPTIONS ON IT.

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It looks as though Viserys is showing Rhaenyra the writing on the dagger, which she reads aloud — it seems it describes Aegon's dream about the Prince that was Promised, which Viserys told Rhaenyra about in Episode 1.

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Rhaenyra reads, "From my blood come the Prince that was Promised, and his will be the song of ice and fire."

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This scene means they're really making a thing of the whole prophecy, and it wasn't just a throwaway moment in Episode 1. It seems they're turning it into a key motivator for both Viserys and Rhaenyra, which adds a different layer to Rhaenyra continuing as heir/maintaining her claim to the throne rather than it just being a simple quest for power. 

This prophecy was also a driving force for Rhaegar (Daenerys' brother and Jon Snow's father), so the centering of this prophecy here has implications for the story down the line. 

Of course, it was Arya who used the dagger to kill the Night King in Game of Thrones, and there wasn't a Targaryen on the Iron Throne at the time, but — at the risk of stirring up that mess again — it could be that George R. R. Martin is trying to course-correct somewhat and what we saw in Game of Thrones is, er, not his version of events (remember, he's a co-creator of House of the Dragon). Or it could be that the whole point is the Targaryens were driven by a prophecy that doesn't even come true and maybe it's part of their madness! Personally, I'm leaning more towards some retconning happening, especially if the Snow sequel about Jon Snow gets off the ground. 

Okay back to the trailer, we have Otto skulking in the Throne Room...

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(Very Littlefinger of him).

Daemon, who has had a haircut, hanging out in his nightshirt...

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And Alicent, also in her nightclothes — is she with Daemon? Or have they cut these shots together in a deceptive way?

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HMMMMM. 

Then there's a shot of Balerion's skull and it's hard to see here, but there's someone running in the shadows alongside it — sneaking around the Red Keep, it seems.

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We have Viserys putting on his crown in the Throne Room...

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And readying to meet someone, with quite a large crowd gathered.

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In a voiceover, we hear Viserys say, "The House of the Dragon will stand as one for a further generation," suggesting he wants to reconcile with Daemon as well as keep Rhaenyra and Alicent and his children with her happy. 

Rhaenyra appears to be in the Throne Room crowd, also waiting for someone — and look, she has the necklace Daemon gave to her on again!

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She stopped wearing it in Episode 2 after their confrontation on Dragonstone. 

Who are they waiting for? Daemon, of course! He's strolling in with his new haircut to match his brand new crown. It seems Viserys really is trying to make peace in his House.

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Daemon explains he was named King of the Narrow Sea following the War for the Stepstones

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Viserys doesn't look entirely pleased by that — will his attempt at peace, if that's what's happening, go awry?

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Rhaenyra, meanwhile, seems to be touring the country — or at least the Stormlands.

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It appears she's at Storm's End — the seat of House Baratheon. Could she be searching for appropriate suitors, since her father said she could pick one herself?

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(And in reality probably really just buying time with Ser Criston Cole, the hot Kingsguard knight?)

Then we cut to Rhaenyra arguing with Viserys again — he says, "Your courtship is at an end," and she responds with, "So I can be a remedy for your political headaches?!" This suggests maybe he's going back on the idea that she can pick her own husband, and wants her to make a match that's advantageous politically.

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He gets in the sick burn, "YOU are my political headache." Thanks, Dad.

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There's a shot of Rhaenyra closing her eyes.

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Is she frustrated? Sad? Determined? Just really, really tired?

There's a shot of a waterside city that COULD be King's Landing but doesn't look like it to me — it's possibly Old Town?

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We see Alicent is there — her family's seat is in Old Town, so maybe she's visiting home? She's still wearing Targaryen red and is holding a baby — probably the one she was pregnant with in Episode 2.

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We know at least a year has passed between episodes because we hear a voiceover talking about the succession saying, "Who will it be? The brother, the daughter, or the little princeling of three?"

The princeling in question is Aegon, who turned two in Episode 3. 

Then we have Otto telling Viserys, "I have discomforting news."

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Followed by an upset Rhaenyra saying, "This is a vile accusation."

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And then we have a larger hand caressing a smaller hand pressed up against the wall. From the ring, it looks like it could be Daemon's hand — could he be, er, making a move on Rhaenyra? Is this the "vile accusation" she's speaking of and the "discomforting news" Otto is spreading? That Daemon and Rhaenyra are...more than uncle/niece?

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There's a shot of a hooded figure walking past some guys in tall hats.

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Then we go back to Viserys and Otto, and Viserys demands, "Who is responsible for this gossip?"

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He adds, "I will take their eyes!" Yeah, he's pretty mad. Which reinforces the idea it's gossip about Rhaenyra and Daemon. Or Rhaenyra and SOMEONE, at least.

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Viserys's angry vibe is reinforced by this shot of him slamming down his sword.

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Then we hear Alicent saying, "It is not in Rhaenyra's nature to be deceitful. I cannot say the same for your brother." So perhaps the rumor really is about the two of them together.

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Alicent, meanwhile, is drinking wine and looking pretty damn unhappy. 

We see Daemon looking sneaky in a hood — so presumably it's him weaving through those pointy hat dudes earlier in the trailer, getting up to no good (possibly with Rhaenyra?).

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There's a shot of someone doing tricks (or actual magic?) with fire.

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We see Rhaneyra running while wearing peasant's clothes.

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So that must have been her sneaking through the Red Keep in the earlier shot — perhaps meeting up with a hooded Daemon?

There's another shot of Daemon in the hood — at least, I think it's him. This show is so goddamn dark, you guys.

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There's another shot from the Throne Room scene of Daemon being halted by someone's sword. Tense!

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Then we see Rhaenyra on a ship with Ser Criston — perhaps headed home from the Stormlands?

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Ser Criston is yelling "take cover" as Caraxes (presumably with Daemon on his back) swoops in and bumps the ship.

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Surely he's not attacking Rhaenyra? Maybe he's jealous she's been out searching for suitors? Ahem. 

What do you think of the trailer for House of the Dragon Episode 4? Share your predictions below!

(Book readers, no spoilers!)