The House of the Dragon – Episode 6 Review – IGN

Laena’s new death is far more spectacular but feels less emotionally clear.

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Meanwhile, Daemon and his wife Laena (now played by Nanna Blondell) have settled in Pentos with their twin daughters. They are introduced as a couple through spectacular dragon stunt flying, loop de-looping and flying around each other, and – in Daemon’s case – fly through bursts of flame in a dizzying scene that showcases the sheer joy of flying and a memory of House of the Dragon does have quite a budget for special effects. Everything seems idyllic, but Laena is not yet ready to give up Westeros and settle for good. Then Laena’s recent pregnancy ends in a difficult birth, and Daemon is faced with the same choice Viserys once had: should he risk his wife for the child?

This is a departure from George RR Martin’s Fire And Blood, which is obviously intended to draw a direct parallel between the brothers. Daemon makes no choice, and it’s not clear if he’s holding back out of respect for his wife – he appears to have some – or out of horror at the decision itself, a weakness in the face of an unimaginable crisis.

Laena’s own answer is also difficult to understand: it might be understandable to choose to be burned by dragon fire instead of a painful death (she has previously stated that she wants “the death of a dragon rider”), but at this point it isn’t clear that she knows that the baby is also not viable. In the novel, the baby is born deformed and Laena simply dies in childbirth. Her new death is far more spectacular but feels less emotionally clear. If her own death is certain and she accepts that, wouldn’t she let her try to save the child? It’s a strange ending for a seemingly devoted mother of two young girls.

The final thread in this tangled web involves Lord Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), son of the Hand and less physically imposing brother of Ser Harwin. Since we last saw him, he has become an advisor to Alicent, who secretly bemoans her lack of allies at court. Lord Lyonel Strong (Gavin Spokes) has offered to step down as Hand of the King after Harwin’s brawl, but Viserys doesn’t want to hear it – so Lyonel has asked to at least accompany his son home to their (notoriously hapless) fortress of Harrenhal. That gives Larys room to maneuver.

Larys defines “helping” Alicent as finding some condemned men, cutting out their tongues (while watching with interest), and sending them to murder his brother and father, Lord Lyonel. This achieves several things at once. Hand’s office is now open for the return of Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans). Rhaenyra and her sons are deprived of a vital ally. And Alicent is terrified of her own ally after seeing what the calm, gentle Larys is capable of. Anyone looking for a Littlefinger on this show has ended their search.

We end with Daemon widowed again – it’s becoming a habit – and Rhaenyra leaving King’s Landing to abandon her ancestral stronghold on Dragonstone and leave the court and its machinations to her rival. Will relinquishing the power of the court to Alicent prove a mistake? Almost certainly, but Rhaenyra’s desire to escape the endless attacks on herself and her children is understandable. A rat walking across Visery’s mantelpiece and his empty sleeve aren’t the only signs his power is waning and something is about to go.