The Targaryen civil war rages on in House of the Dragon Season 3, premiering this Sunday, June 21, on HBO. It’s been two years since the Season 2 finale came out and set Team Black and Team Green down the path of no return leading straight into the Gullet, a strip of water between King’s Landing and Dragonstone that will be the setting of the most action-packed scenes the series has delivered to date.
There’s a lot to remember about Season 2, and it’s been a long time since the episodes came out in summer 2024. With that in mind, we’ve compiled the most important details to remember about House of the Dragon Season 2 to refresh your memory before the Game of Thrones spinoff returns.
How did House of the Dragon Season 2 start?
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House of the Dragon Season 2 started with a brutal murder. In Episode 1, “A Son for a Son,” a butcher and a rat catcher snuck into the Red Keep under orders from Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) to kill King Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney), Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) younger half-brother who was placed on the Iron Throne instead of her in Season 1. Queen Dowager Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) thought she was following late husband King Viserys’ (Paddy Considine) wishes when taking the throne from Rhaenyra, her childhood best friend turned stepdaughter, in favor of her eldest son.
Prince Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) accidentally killed Lucerys Velaryon (Elliot Grihault), Rhaenyra’s second-oldest son, when he lost control of his massive dragon, Vhagar, at the end of Season 1. Daemon acted in retaliation when sending “Blood and Cheese,” as they’re referred to in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, to kill Aegon. They couldn’t find Aegon, so they killed his young son, Prince Jaehaerys Targaryen, instead. Aegon’s sister and wife, Queen Helaena (Phia Saban), was forced to choose which of her twins would be murdered between son Jaehaerys and daughter Jaehaera.
Jaehaerys’ murder was another point of no return in the Targaryen civil war. The conflicts that followed resulted in the deaths of Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) and her dragon in the Battle of Rook’s Rest, at which Aemond also attacked brother Aegon with the intent to kill. Aegon survived, but he was covered in severe burns that left his entire body scarred. His dragon, Sunfyre, is presumed dead after this. Aemond wants the throne for himself, convinced that he’s better for the job than his irresponsible older brother. Jaehaerys’ murder made Aegon take being king more seriously.
How did House of the Dragon Season 2 end?
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At Team Black headquarters, Dragonstone, Rhaenyra tried to build an army to rival Team Green. Daemon went to Harrenhal after Blood and Cheese to recruit more soldiers, where he met the witch Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), who gave him visions of the Song of Ice and Fire that Viserys told to Rhaenyra when she was young. The experience made Daemon realize he should never be king, that it has to be his wife, Rhaenyra, on the throne if there’s any chance for the Targaryen dynasty to survive.
Daemon got Rhaenyra her foot soldiers, while Rhaenyra found Targaryen bastards to be dragon riders for their cause. Those riders are Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), son of Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) and brother of Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim); Ulf (Tom Bennett), half-brother of Daemon and Viserys; and Hugh (Kieran Bew), son of Princess Saera Targaryen, the aunt of Daemon and Viserys. With the dragon riders and their dragons on her side, plus Daemon’s army, Rhaenyra’s forces were stronger than ever.
War was on the horizon when Alicent came to Dragonstone in secret to offer Rhaenyra the keys to the kingdom. She wanted to end the bloodshed at whatever cost, even if it meant her own son’s life. Alicent asked Rhaenyra to leave King’s Landing with her and Helaena first, to leave their lives in Westeros behind and let the others fight to their deaths while they lived in peace. But they both knew it could never happen. Instead, Alicent gave Rhaenyra a path to reclaiming the throne. Alicent would arrange for Aemond to leave King’s Landing, and with Aegon incapacitated by his injuries, Rhaenyra could come to the Red Keep with her dragons and stage a coup. Despite Alicent’s efforts, another battle was still forming.
The House of the Dragon Season 2 finale was famously lacking action. It set up the fight ahead instead. Rhaenyra set a naval blockade of King’s Landing that was enforced by House Velaryon’s fleet. The Green council devised a plan to align with Corlys’ enemy, Triarchy ruler Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn), in response to destroy the blockade and free up the trade route.
Corlys and Sharako are on a course bound for collision in the Battle of the Gullet in the House of the Dragon Season 3 premiere, and there will be dragons involved as well. Fire & Blood cites this as the deadliest naval battle in all of Westeros history, so prepare for the most action you’ve ever seen in this series when the show returns on June 21.
House of the Dragon, Season 3 Premiere, Sunday, June 21, 9/8c, HBO, Streaming on HBO Max