House of the Dragon season 2, episode 7 recap: Rhaenyra finds out who rides Seasmoke

House of the Dragon season 2, episode 7 wastes no time in allowing Rhaenyra to build her offensive. It ends with Aemond realizing the threat he is now up against.

Caution: This post contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 7.

The episode picks up where you would expect. Rhaenyra finds out who is riding Seasmoke. From there, she can plan her offensive, figuring out a way to find dragonriders, but not all the Blacks are happy with the idea. Meanwhile, Daemon finally gains the Riverlords, and Alicent takes some time to figure out what is next for her. Aegon tries to walk again, and Jace is angry with his mother's call for Targaryen bastards.

Alicent takes a walk in the woods

Alicent isn’t sure what to do now. She spent her whole life serving her house and the realm, and look at where that's gotten her. Where is that? Well, she’s not sure. She’s not sure if all the sacrifices she’s made have been worth it.

So, she takes her trusted Kingsguard member and heads out for a walk in the woods. It’s time for her to reflect on life, and she’s not sure if she wants to head back to King’s Landing.

Daemon gains the support of the Riverlords

Meanwhile, young Lord Oscar Tully is taking over the Riverlands. This should be a good thing for Daemon as someone can now get the Riverlords under control. The problem is Daemon has done a lot of damage that he needs to repent for.

Oscar makes it clear that he will honor the oath of his family. The Tullys swore to follow Rhaenyra, and that’s what they will do. They will also work on getting the rest of the Riverlords behind them, but Daemon has made a big mess of the situation.

Oscar is dedicated to protecting the integrity of the Riverlands. People have to answer for their crimes, and Willem Blackwood, who attacked the Brackens, needs to face his punishment. The young Lord Tully wants to see Daemon prove that he will repent (in a way) for his barbaric orders by executing Blackwood. Of course, Daemon does just that, but surprisingly, he looks unsure about it.

I love the new Lord Tully. He makes it clear that Rhaenyra is the queen. Daemon is just the king consort, and that’s the way it will be.

Aegon tries to walk again in House of the Dragon

We know from the book that Aegon spends a year in his room with only a handful of people visiting him after his injury. Well, he’s not as incoherent in the series as the book makes him out to be. While only a few people are able to see him, Larys refuses to have Aegon just lie down to recover. He can't just wither away. That’s likely because Larys doesn’t want Aemond to remain the regent considering his plan to become Hand of the King didn’t work.

So, he needs to help Aegon heal. The moment of vulnerability in the previous episode might have been a ploy. He wants to gain Aegon’s trust and council. Now he’s making sure Aegon walks again, even if it means Aegon is in a lot of pain.

I actually felt a little for Aegon in this episode. It’s easy to forget what he’d gone to others when we see he weakened and in this state.

During the episode, Larys is informed about Seasmoke claiming a rider. That rider is apparently some Lowborn from the docks. As Larys hears this news has passed through multiple people, he decides that Aemond shouldn’t be told of it. Maybe he should have let Aemond know, though, considering the ending of the episode.

Rhaena rushes off to claim a dragon

After hearing that there is a dragon that flies around the Vale, Rhaena doesn’t really want to head to Pentos with her half-brothers. It’s clear that she wants to be a more important part of the Dance of the Dragons, and that means she needs to claim a dragon.

So, at her first chance, she rushes off into the wilds of the Vale to find the dragon. This is rather shortsighted considering she has no way of sustaining herself. She doesn’t know the first thing about survival. But how can she get a dragon if she heads off to Pentos?

I’m still not happy if the Nettles storyline is completely removed for Rhaena. And I won’t be happy if Rhaena doesn’t end up with Morning. However, I will keep my mind open to what’s coming with this storyline.

Rhaenyra finds her dragonriders in House of the Dragon

Finally, the big moment of the whole season we’ve been waiting for. Rhaenyra starts the episode facing off against the man who Seasmoke claimed. She’s even shocked to find out that Seasmoke claimed him and not the other way around. One thing she points out to Addam, who does bend the knee to her, is that he must have Valyrian blood. She wants to know his parentage, but Addam doesn’t tell her that Corlys is his father.

There is a moment at Dragonstone when Corlys finally shows some pride in Addam. It’s only because he has a dragon, but it’s something that Addam has always wanted. That childlike look on his face broke my heart for him.

Corlys later goes to see Alyn, suggesting that he go after a dragon, too. However, Alyn points out that he is of salt and sea. It’s clear that he could become Corlys’ heir.

Back to Rhaenyra, she realizes that Lowborns are able to ride dragons if they have Valyrian or Targaryen blood. That means sending a message to everyone in King’s Landing. She wants any of the smallfolk claiming to be Targaryen bastards to come to Dragonstone and attempt to claim a dragon.

Jacaerys is not happy about this. While he thought they could find dragonriders through the Highborns, he doesn’t want the Lowborn to attempt to ride a dragon. What does that say about dragon riding? It’s no longer for those just with titles. I’ve got to say that Jace is thinking too small at this point. They need dragonriders!

A lot of illegitimate Targaryens answer the call. Ulf doesn’t initially want to despite all his talk about being a Targaryen, but his friends encourage him to do it. Hugh Hammer shares that his mother had silver hair. She was a Targaryen, and she is why he is a dragonseed. As Hugh apologizes to his wife for never telling her the truth about who his mother was, she also makes it clear that he needs to stand up for his family. It sounds like his daughter has died between the last episode and this one, and he wants to do what he can for his wife. That means going to ride a dragon.

Well, Ulf and Hugh are the only two to survive the pit at Dragonstone. Vermithor is not happy about the idea of being ridden at first, and he goes out to kill everyone there. Then he comes across Hugh at the end. As Hugh stands up to Vermithor to protect a woman, Vermithor pays attention and bonds with him.

As for Ulf, he runs through the tunnels and comes across Silverwing, who is sleeping. At first, it looks like Silverwing is going to attack, but she also bonds with a rider. Ulf takes Silverwing over to King’s Landing to make sure his friends see him riding a dragon. This alerts everyone, including Aemond, who mounts Vhagar and flies after Ulf on Silverwing. As Aegon gets to Dragonstone and sees all the dragons now with dragonriders, he knows that it would be a losing battle to start. He also realizes that the Greens are now outnumbered in dragons in the war.

This is setting up for an exciting House of the Dragon season 2 finale.