RIP King Viserys! You were a real one.
See episodes one, two, three, four, five, six and seven power rankings before digging in.
1. Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen
After spending six years in Dragonstone with her second husband, Prince Daemon, Princess Rhaenyra finally ventures back to King’s Landing. The reason for her journey back home is to argue in favor of her son, Prince Lucerys’, claim to the Driftmark throne, which has come into question with the Sea Snake getting hurt on the battlefield. To help strengthen this claim, Princess Rhaenyra makes the decision to betroth her sons, Jacaerys and Lucerys, to Rhaena and Baela — the daughters of Lady Laena Velaryon and Prince Daemon. This way, Velaryon blood will still eventually end up sitting on the Driftmark throne. This deal appeases Princess Rhaenys, the wife of the Sea Snake, which shows that Princess Rhaenyra is getting pretty good at politicking.
2. Queen Alicent Hightower
Queen Alicent tries to get Princess Rhaenyra’s son removed as heir to Driftmark to no avail. After her failed plot, it’s almost heartwarming to see her bond with Princess Rhaenyra at dinner. They are finally able to have a nice meal together as a family like King Viserys always wanted. However, the happiness is quickly extinguished when Prince Aemond starts calling out Princess Rhaenyra’s kids as bastards.
Familiarize yourself with this fiery cast of characters in our House of the Dragonguide.
3. Prince Daemon Targaryen
Man, that beheading of Ser Vaemond was gruesome!
4. Otto Hightower
As the Hand of the King for a king who is barely alive, Otto Hightower is almost functioning as the king at this point. While King Viserys lays in bed, Otto Hightower is running Small Council meetings and sitting on the Iron Throne, presiding over kingdom-changing decisions. He’s come a long way from getting fired as Hand of the King more than a decade ago.
5. King Viserys
King Viserys is essentially a puppet for the Hightower family at the beginning of the episode. He can hardly get out of bed, and Otto Hightower is keeping him drugged with milk of the poppy to keep the pain away. It’s awesome to see him get out of bed to go to court and defend his grandson, Prince Lucerys’, claim to the Driftmark throne. Before he dies, King Viserys finally gets to have one moment of happiness with his family as they all sit around the dinner table laughing. We’re so happy for Viserys! Unfortunately, his last words are confusing and are misunderstood by Queen Alicent. Now the whole kingdom is going to war because Queen Alicent thinks Viserys is saying their son, Prince Aegon, should be king, but that’s not the Aegon the king is talking about!
Get an exclusive insider look at House of the Dragon from the cast who are living it.
6. Prince Aemond
Prince Aemond has really grown a lot over the last six years. He’s reminiscent of Prince Daemon, another second son in the Targaryen family. Both guys are a little crazy, and they’re talented on the battlefield. When Prince Daemon stops Prince Aemond from threatening Princess Rhaenyra’s kids, you can see the mutual respect and understanding in their eyes.
7. Prince Lucerys
Prince Lucerys’ older brother, Prince Jacaerys, may be the one in line for the Iron Throne, but this episode belongs to Prince Lucerys. This episode is all about the Driftmark throne, and Prince Lucerys is able to solidify his claim as the future King of Driftmark.
8. Princess Rhaenys
Princess Rhaenys is stuck between a rock and a hard place. Apparently, her husband, the Sea Snake, has been hurt badly during battle, and this immediately strikes up a great debate in Driftmark. Who is the rightful successor to the Sea Snake’s throne? She literally becomes a kingmaker in this episode when she stands up for Prince Lucerys’ claim.
9. Prince Aegon
This week, we see what a terrible person Prince Aegon is. He may not be going around killing people without regard, like Prince Daemon (yet), but he’s raping his servants. We hope he doesn’t become king.
10. Ser Vaemond Velaryon
Basically, everyone in the Seven Kingdoms knows that Prince Lucerys is not the Sea Snake’s real grandson. Prince Lucerys may be his grandson in name only (as he took on the Velaryon family name), but he is not a Velaryon by blood, as he was born out of wedlock. As a result, Ser Vaemond Velaryon understandably believes that he should be the heir to Driftmark because he actually has Velaryon blood running through his veins. To this end, he allies with Queen Alicent and Otto Hightower to argue against Prince Lucerys’ claim as heir to the Driftmark throne. However, Ser Vaemond’s long trip to King’s Landing to stake his claim as the rightful heir to the Driftmark ends terribly for him. After he calls out King Viserys in front of everyone and claims that Princess Rhaenyra’s kids are bastards, Ser Vaemond is swiftly beheaded by Prince Daemon. … And that’s the end of that for Ser Vaemond.
Stay tuned for more House of the Dragonpower rankings right here.
