The third season of House of the Dragon has just started and MeinMMO editor Sophia Weiß is still processing episode one mentally. One thing she wants to make clear: The new dragon is not to blame.
First of all, without any spoilers: When the credits of House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 rolled on Monday night, I was sitting on the couch with tears in my eyes. Battles, dragons, incest – everything one would expect from a family drama about the Targaryens.
There’s even a new dragon causing quite a bit of mischief and primarily influencing the plot toward the end. I am a big fan of this new scaled family member
, because it clearly shows the limits of the Targaryens and their control over the beasts.
As King Viserys (may he rest in peace) said in season 1: The idea that we control the dragons is an illusion
.
A fire-breathing case for the orthodontist
The newcomer in the fire-breathing part of the House of the Dragon cast is the wild dragon Sheepstealer. He is the fulfillment of the dreams of Daemon’s daughter Rhaena, who until then was without a dragon. Even though Sheepstealer is quite scrappy:
He is mud-brown, has no manners at all, and his underbite is a dream for any orthodontist. As a wild dragon, he has never received any training. He probably can’t even speak Valyrian.
Accordingly, the two start their newfound relationship quite awkwardly. First, they fly to Rhaena’s home, to High Tide. However, something is brewing: Jason Lannister already managed to hire the Triarchy in season 2, and now the blockade of King’s Landing must finally be removed.
The battle starts with good cards for Team Black: Their fleet spots the Triarchy early, and thanks to a fast raven, Prince Jacaerys and his fiancée Baela are on their side with their dragons.
But then Rhaena and Sheepstealer reach High Tide. And everything goes wrong.
Rhaena orders her dragon, whom she might have known for just a few hours and who has absolutely no training, to intervene in the battle. Sheepstealer takes off, but he spreads his fire on both enemy and allied ships. An absolute disaster that plunges the battle into chaos.
Jace and Baela are, of course, initially confused. They go for an attack because: Who is this rider, who is this dragon and on whose side are they? Both quickly understand that Rhaena now has a dragon herself, and they veer off.
But Sheepstealer doesn’t understand that the two other fire breathers are friends. Vermax and Moon Dancer have attacked him. Sheepstealer does not like this at all. So he goes on the offensive.
In the ensuing battle chaos, a harpoon with an anchor hits Vermax. The young dragon tries to keep flying, but the wound and the weight of the anchor pull him down. He drowns in misery. His rider, Jacaerys, can still free himself from the saddle but is struck down by crossbow bolts.
This is how Team Black loses its crown prince and a dragon. Rhaenyra loses her eldest son. And all just because Sheepstealer has gone berserk.
But is it really Sheepstealer’s fault?
A dragon is just an animal
Sheepstealer is a wild dragon without any training. He probably has never really let humans close to him. Until the battle, he lives alone and without companions somewhere in High Hall.
If I suddenly get shot at with harpoons and fireballs after about 80 to 90 years of wonderful solitude, and then two fellow creatures come charging at me? Then I would probably also get really scared first. Accordingly, my reaction would not be so different from that of Sheepstealer.
A dragon is just an animal with its own mind, instincts, and experiences. These cannot simply be overwritten by a new connection like the one with Rhaena.
Can you blame a frightened creature that finds itself in a new, threatening situation?
Something very similar happened to Aemond with Vhagar. Judging by his shocked expression after the murder of Luke, it was never Aemond’s intention to kill his nephew. At that moment, Vhagar took over.
In the end, it doesn’t really matter who bears the blame here. Rhaena just wanted to help. Sheepstealer was afraid and reacted like a frightened animal. Despite all good intentions, Jace is now dead.
Many of the young Targaryens and Velaryons seem to have never heard the white saying of King Viserys:
The idea that we control the dragons is an illusion. They are a power with which man should never have played. A power that brought Valyria to ruin. If we ignore our own history, it will do the same to us.
If the younger generation someday understands this, they might live a little longer. Perhaps a bit more peacefully. Or maybe not – their story, unfortunately, is already written.
I still have quite a few feelings about episode 1 of House of the Dragon season 3. For example, I would love to have Larys Strong’s skin-care routine, who looks simply fabulous in this episode despite the long journey. Ulf the White is, by the way, the only one from the cast who would probably survive a horror movie. I’m looking forward to episode 2. When is it coming out? You can read in our article all the dates for the new season.
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