Aemond Taming Vhagar (and Losing an Eye) is a Turning Point for ‘House of the Dragon’

From the minute I saw one of Daemon Targaryen’s (Matt Smith) little girls whisper, “Somebody stole Vhagar!” in the House of the Dragon Episode 7 preview, I knew it was fucking on. House of the Dragon Episode 7 “Driftmark” was going to feature one of the most iconic moments in George R.R. Martin‘s Fire & Blood: Aemond (Leo Ashton) claiming Vhagar in the dark of night and then losing an eye for it. What I didn’t realize is how director Miguel Sapochnik would turn the claiming of Vhagar into a heart-pounding sequence of anxiety and wonder. Never before — on both House of the Dragon and HBO’s original Game of Thrones — has a dragon ride seemed so thrilling or so absolutely dangerous. Aemond and Vhagar’s night-time ride is instantly iconic and its aftermath changes everything on the show.

House of the Dragon Episode 7 “Driftmark” opens with the funeral of Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell). In Episode 6, we saw that Laena was struggling in childbirth. When the birth became stalled, the surgeon suggested to her husband Daemon that they might perform a Cesarian section to potentially save the baby. Laena would die, however. Daemon refuses to make the call, hoping that Laena would survive naturally. However Laena, feeling her doom, decided to sneak out of her room to her dragon, Vhagar. After begging Vhagar, the she-dragon bathed her rider in flames to give Laena the dragonrider death she told Daemon she dreamed of.

That means that when House of the Dragon Episode 7 starts, Vhagar is a dragon without a rider. In the Game of Thrones books, we are told that while a dragonrider can only ever claim one dragon in their lifetime, dragons can bond with multiple riders over the course of their long lives. Vhagar was originally ridden by Visenya, Aegon the Conqueror’s older sister, a formidable warrior and alleged sorceress. After Visenya died, Vhagar was riderless for a time until Prince Baelon the Brave claimed her. Baelon was Viserys (Paddy Considine) and Daemon’s father. Baelon died suddenly, forcing his father King Jaehaerys to call upon the Great Council of 101 to figure out who would succeed him: Viserys or Rhaenys (Eve Best). Laena would eventually claim the “lonely” Vhagar as a teen and would ride the dragon for over a decade before her death.

There are only two Targaryens alive at this point who haven’t bonded with a dragon: Laena’s daughter Rhaena (Eva Ossei-Gernin) and Aemond. It’s a sore spot for both kids, but while Rhaena assumes she’ll have a chance to eventually mount Vhagar after mourning her mother, Aemond is desperate enough to sneak up on the dragon in the dark of night.

Even though I knew, as a book reader, how this sequence would shake out, I couldn’t help but feel my pulse quicken as Aemond scurried along dunes and tentatively approached Vhagar. Miguel Sapochnik focuses first on the boy’s small hand reaching for the rope ladder that will enable him to climb the monstrously huge dragon. Before he can grab the robe, Vhagar wakes up. Surviving this brief encounter, Aemond tries again. This time, Vhagar yawns open her mouth and we see fire sparking in the back of her throat. Aemond is about to die.

But then something magical happens. Aemond summons more confidence than we’ve ever seen from him. “Dohaeris, Vhagar!” he yells, echoing the lessons of the dragonpit masters in King’s Landing. Vhagar heels at Aemond’s command, letting the boy make the long trek up to the saddle. When Vhagar takes flight, Aemond soon finds himself literally hanging on for dear life. He’s terrified. He once again is facing death. But then he holds on and soon his screams turn to laughs. The end of this sequence is like the Westerosi version of Bastian atop Falkor in The Never-ending Story. You want to fist pump in triumph… and then Aemond lands and meets a quartet of very angry nephews and cousins.

I think this sequence is so compelling because up until now, we’ve never really seen a whole lot of struggle to tame a dragon. Okay, Jon Snow (Kit Harington) was a little awkward when he mounted Rhaegal, but he took to it pretty fast. Aemond’s first ride was simultaneously terrifying and terrific. It underscored how dangerous these dragons really are and fickle they can be to humans. And how much riding a dragon can change a human being.

When Aemond dismounts from Vhagar, he is a wholly new child. Where he was once sullen and quiet and meek, he is and bold and mean and fierce. He nearly chokes his nephew Jace (Leo Hart), prompting Jace’s little brother Luke (Harvey Sadler) to pick up a dagger tossed in the chaos of the fight. Luke slashes at Aemond, taking the boy’s left eye. Aemond’s mother Alicent (Olivia Cooke) is apoplectic over this, but Aemond chillingly calls it a fair exchange: an eye for a dragon.

Vhagar is the oldest and biggest dragon in Westeros at this point and Aemond has been transformed into the cruelest and most loyal of Alicent’s children. In claiming Vhagar, Aemond has overcome his own fears and insecurities. More importantly, he’s ushered in a new era in Alicent and Rhaenyra’s enmity. The time for truces is over. It’s all going to be fire and blood going forward.