House of the Dragon, episode 4, takes sibling rivalry to a new, crazy level

There are few things more terrible than a child king. At their worst, they are little tyrants driven only by impulses and desires, as Joffrey in game of ThronesAt best, they are mere figureheads, puppets passed around by people more cunning than he, who know how to operate the levers of power effectively and care little about the common good. House of the DragonKing Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) is somewhere in between: He is confident enough to be seen as a good and noble king, but also, importantly, extremely Teenager. He wants to feel like he has power, but he only feels that other people are taking advantage of that power.

This hasn’t stopped Aegon from enjoying the trappings of the crown, though. He loves gathering his mates around the Iron Throne to talk shit, going to a tavern and paying all the bills, and handing out cushy jobs in the Kingsguard to mates who’d probably rather run away before catching a stray for him. In last week’s episode “The Burning Mill,” we see what kind of king Aegon would rather be if he had no responsibilities, carousing in a brothel and cruelly flaunting his brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell).

However, in “A Dance of Dragons,” Aegon realizes that he is distracted. Completed. Military action has been taken without his consent, and Aemond knows the state of affairs better than he does. At a small council meeting, Aemond turns the tables and makes Aegon feel small, flaunting his cunning and mastery of High Valyrian in a scene where his royal brother stammers helplessly while the other council members avert their eyes uncomfortably.

So far in House of the DragonIn the second season, the inevitable war was treated with the gravity of impending tragedy, with the wheels of fate turning to crush the desires and ambitions of each character beneath its dispassi onate machinery. But this is a show about people in Performance

– vast, unfettered power, the kind that crushes innocent lives to preserve itself and advance its position. And this is what power looks like at its worst: squabbling siblings and scheming advisors condemning hundreds to death so they can win their vendetta. (Though they take up significantly less screen time, Rhaenyra’s contingent is just as prone to bickering and petty power struggles, while her small council is barely effective and Daemon is busy assuming miserable command of the flooded Harrenhold.)

A Dance of Dragons culminates in the Battle of Rook’s Rest, when Ser Criston Cole’s forces march on the fortress and Rhaenys and her dragon help defend it. Rhaenys’s fight is one of the few moments of grace and dignity to be found in this miserable business, and sadly it is her last. Between the surprise arrival of Aegon and his dragon and the ambush carefully planned by Aemond on Vhagar, Rhaenys is overwhelmed, and one of the House of the DragonOne of the most principled characters meets his end.

But so, it seems, is Aegon’s brief reign. The battle ends with the king’s fate uncertain, as Aemond holds back Vhagar so that his inexperienced brother can be torn to pieces by Rhaenys before rushing in to kill. For the Greens, this Pyrrhic victory is a symbol of their internal conflict: Aegon gained the crown with the help of a conspiracy of visionary men, and now that conspiracy is shattered. In Aegon’s court, there is no tomorrow, only today, and power is given to men like Criston Cole, who understand only conflict. Now one child king is tasked with replacing the other—but this one only has appetites and is smart enough to satisfy them. Westeros will suffer.