Warning: Contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 1, "A Son for a Son."

Summary

• The ending of House of the Dragon season 2, episode 1 is dramatic, setting the stage for future episodes' conflicts.
• The murder of Prince Jaehaerys will have a major impact on all the major characters.
• With this ending, there is absolutely no turning back from the Dance of the Dragons.

House of the Dragon season 1’s ending, it is, like many a Game of Thrones episode 1 before it, about setting the table for the events that will gradually unfold across the coming episodes.

That holds true for much of its runtime until, well, it all changes. The ending sees Daemon Targaryen arranging with a pair of men who work at the Red Keep - their names aren’t spoken, but they are called Blood and Cheese in the book - to kill Prince Aemond Targaryen. Except, of course, they get the wrong Targaryen prince, murdering Aegon and Helaena’s son, Jaehaerys, in brutal fashion, and ensuring there’s no stopping the Dance of the Dragons.

Prince Jaehaerys' Death In House Of The Dragon Season 2, Episode 1 Ending

Blood & Cheese Kill King Aegon's Heir

Blood and Cheese sneak into the Red Keep - and even past King Aegon himself - but are unable to find Aemond (not that they tried THAT hard, really). In the end, it’s Prince Jaehaerys they kill, while holding Helaena at knifepoint, and they escape with the child’s head while his mother takes his sister, Jaehaera, to safety. It’s a harrowing moment, and leaves behind some big questions.

Did Daemon Order Blood & Cheese To Kill Jaehaerys?

Daemon was very clear in his order to Blood and Cheese: kill Aemond Targaryen. However, there’s one question the show fascinatingly refuses to answer: what if they can’t find him? The show cuts away from Daemon when he’s asked this, and while Cheese does say their orders were to make it "a son for a son," it leaves plenty of doubt and wiggle room over what his intentions were, and whether the murder of Jaehaerys was at his command or not.

In the book, Daemon doesn’t go to King’s Landing, and it’s Mysaria (on his instruction) who arranges things; it’s also set up to kill one of Aegon’s sons, rather than Aemond. That means the source material isn’t much help here, and viewers can instead make up their own mind - which is, seemingly, the point.

Daemon is a rogue, he’s cruel, vicious, and rash, with no qualms about killing, and he’s desperate for some kind of action after Lucerys’ death.

It’s easy to talk yourself into an answer for either option. Daemon is a rogue, he’s cruel, vicious, and rash, with no qualms about killing, and he’s desperate for some kind of action after Lucerys’ death. If Aemond can’t be killed, then it’s not difficult to imagine Daemon believing that killing one of Aegon’s sons is the next best thing. It isn’t retaliation on Lucerys’ killer, but it is a direct mirror of that death: the ruler losing one of their children.

On the other hand, would even Daemon do that? Not from him lacking the cruelty, but more the potential stupidity of it: surely he would know how bad that would look for Rhaenyra, and the kind of fury it would provoke in response from the greens. But, then again, that may be exactly what he wants.

Round and round it can go: Blood and Cheese certainly botch it enough to make the desperation move of their own accord, and the scene itself - with Blood’s initial uncertainty - could be used to argue they weren’t explicitly told by Daemon to do it. But there’s no clear answer, so it’s open to whichever interpretation the viewer wants.

Why Helaena Chose Jaehaerys To Die Rather Than Her Daughter

In Fire & Blood, Helaena is forced into choosing which of her sons is killed by Blood and Cheese, and she opts for the youngest, Prince Maelor. He doesn’t appear to exist (yet) in the TV show, but Helaena does still get to make a choice when pointing to which of the twins is the boy. And, it’s later revealed, she was telling the truth as Cheese thought: “they killed the boy.”

Helaena is, by design, a mystifying, somewhat unknowable character, meaning there could be factors behind her decision that are difficult to surmise from just this episode. One thing that stands out, though, is Aegon’s interest in Jaehaerys earlier in the premiere: he wants his son to start properly acting like his heir and attending Small Council meetings, to which Helaena counters by questioning what if he doesn’t want to be king.

Simply by virtue of being Aegon’s firstborn son, [Jaehaerys] is destined to inherit the Iron Throne... and all that comes with it, which, from Helaena’s point-of-view, isn’t anything to be happy about.

The truth is that Jaehaerys won’t have a choice. Simply by virtue of being Aegon’s firstborn son, he is destined to inherit the Iron Throne (ignoring Rhaenyra’s claim, anyway), and all that comes with it, which, from Helaena’s point-of-view, isn’t anything to be happy about. She’s seen how that power changes people, how it can lead to suffering for either the person who wears the crown or all who sit under them (or both). Knowing there’s no way of avoiding one of her children dying, she makes the choice to avoid that future.

It’s also, perhaps, a telling choice that she chose to save the girl, which is likely the opposite of what Aegon himself would do in that situation. It’s a horrible choice, but Helaena makes the one she feels best, not the one that Aegon would; she refuses to have yet another female sacrificed so that a male can succeed. There’s no getting away from the horror of it, but that does feel more in line with House of the Dragon’s themes, and may be why the show made it a straight choice between boy and girl unlike the book.

Alicent Hightower & Criston Cole Are In Bed Together When Blood & Cheese Happens

While Blood and Cheese are killing Jaehaerys, Helaena takes Jaehaera into the bedchamber of Alicent… only to find she’s not alone, but is actually having sex with Criston Cole. Alicent and Criston’s relationship is one of the more surprising developments in the premiere, and that they were together while Jaehaerys was being murdered should be of particular importance.

There’s a sense of self-loathing on both sides in their relationship, and knowing what they were doing while Blood and Cheese was happening will only make that worse.

There’s a sense of self-loathing on both sides in their relationship, and knowing what they were doing while Blood and Cheese was happening will only make that worse. Both characters should now be feeling a lot of guilt and shame, perhaps wondering if they could have prevented it if they weren’t together (Cole in particular), which is also a question others may be asking of them too. It’ll be interesting to see how that influences their arcs and decisions going forward.

What Prince Jaehaerys' Death Means

In one sense, Jaehaerys’ death is not that of a major character in his own right; it’s not like a key player has been taken out. But, like with Lucerys’ death, it’s about what his murder really symbolizes: there is no turning back from the Dance of the Dragons now, no way civil war can be avoided.

That was already true in some eyes, but this removes any and all doubt. Aegon will need to retaliate, hitting harder than ever before, and Rhaenyra will have to then do the same. Both sides will be left with no choice but to unleash their dragons and burn everything in their path.

There will be an impact on those directly involved, too. Aegon has not been a serious king so far, that is likely to change now he will so desperately want revenge. Helaena will, if it follows the book, be consumed by grief. Alicent should, as mentioned, be wracked by guilt. Rhaenyra will, of course, find out too and it may drive a wedge between her and Daemon. Loyalties could be divided even further, and the war is only just beginning.

Rhaenyra's Revenge Plan & How Blood & Cheese Will Change It

Rhaenyra Will Be Appalled At Prince Jaehaerys' Death

Rhaenyra herself uttered the words that pushed Daemon into action: “I want Aemond Targaryen.” But she had no idea just what he would do to try and deliver that, or the mess it would cause. He may have been trying to deliver a victory, but this will likely be seen as defeat; Rhaenyra will be blamed for Jaehaerys’ death, a big setback for her wanting to win over the of people in Westeros.

Following on from Aemond killing Lucerys, Rhaenyra had seemed ready to burn the world down. But now, she may need to try and have cooler heads prevail, to prevent things spiraling further. That, ultimately, will be a fruitless task, and not something even she will be able to sustain. But expect at least an effort from Rhaenyra to try and find a different solution that can end the war without dragons, because no one will understand better than her just how despicable a crime has just been committed.

Aegon In House Of The Dragon Season 2, Episode 1’s Ending Is A Stark Contrast To Rhaenyra

Aegon Is A Very Different Kind Of King - For Now

One person who is less present in all of this is the king himself. Towards the end of House of the Dragon season 2, episode 1, he is in a very different kind of scene: laughing and joking with his friends, getting drunk while sitting on the Iron Throne. It’s not only a contrast to what’s going on around him, creating a juxtaposition with the murder that’s about to happen, but also to Rhaenyra’s story.

There should be a new side to Aegon after this, one of more decisive action, one driven by anger and vengeance, and that is going to cause a lot more bloodshed.

She begins episode 1 consumed by pain and grief over losing her son. He ends it laughing on the Iron Throne, unaware he’s about to lose his. It’s a smart parallel in showing just how unsuited to ruling Aegon was, and how he’s going to be forced into change by Blood and Cheese. There should be a new side to Aegon after this, one of more decisive action, one driven by anger and vengeance, and that is going to cause a lot more bloodshed.

The Importance Of Alicent Lighting A Candle For Alerie Florent & Lucerys Velaryon

House Of The Dragon Reveals Alicent's Mother

One smaller moment that’s particularly interesting, before all the chaos, is Alicent Hightower lighting candles to those close to her she has lost. She names three people: Alerie Florent, her mother; Viserys Targaryen, her husband; and Lucerys Velaryon, her grandson-in-law. The Viserys part is pretty clear-cut, but the other two names are a lot more interesting.

This is the first in-universe confirmation of Alicent’s mother’s name and house, and aside from simply being a neat reveal, there is interesting context to it. House Florent’s sigil is a fox within a circle of blue flowers. This fits with how Alicent dressed in House of the Dragon season 1’s early episodes - she wore blue dresses, and her auburn hair meant she fully represented the house’s colors. That meant she was more Florent than Hightower, shifting to the green of the latter's flame (for war) in dramatic fashion in episode 5, which is when the divisions were truly sown.

Naming Lucerys, meanwhile, is a sense of how Alicent feels regret over his death. There was no sense of her being close to the boy himself, but it’s likely what Alicent is really mourning here is the death of her friendship with Rhaenyra. That shows there’s still a part of her that cares for her old friend, but whether it can be reached - or if she’ll allow it to be - in House of the Dragon’s future is another matter entirely.

House of the Dragon season 2 releases new episodes Sundays at 9pm ET on HBO and Max.