This article contains major spoilers for "House of the Dragon" season 2.
Need the "House of the Dragon" season 2 finale ending explained? The hit Max show wrapped up with a surprisingly action-light eighth episode that focused primarily on setting up the next phase of the Targaryen civil war.
I'l admit to feeling somewhat cheated by the "House of the Dragon" season 2 finale precisely because it was an anticlimactic end to an already truncated second season. Rather than deliver another epic "Thrones"-style battle, we instead capped the season off with a different episode entirely.
The focus was on emotional moments like Alicent challenging her increasingly volatile son, Aemond, or said unruly ruler learning of his downfall at the God's Eye while trying to convince Helaena to ride Dreamfyre to battle. And of course, we can't forget Alys showing Daemon a vision of the future — which included glimpses of Daenerys and the Night King — and his subsequent realization that he must pledge his support and his forces to support his wife in the conflict to come.
Even though we didn't witness another dragon fight, it was still an important episode. It positions the Seven Kingdoms on a knife-edge and makes it clear that "House of the Dragon" season 3 will engulf the realm in all-out war.
How did 'House of the Dragon' season 2 end?
The episode concluded with a callback to Rhaenyra’s clandestine visit to King’s Landing, except this time, Alicent Hightower is the one making a secret journey over to Dragonstone.
There, Alicent presents her former friend with a tempting offer. With Aemond away from the Red Keep on Vhagar, Helaena is the de facto ruler of Westeros. Alicent asks Rhaenyra to allow her to be free of the war and asks to be allowed to leave the Red Keep with Helaena and granddaughter Jaehaera in tow.
Alicent promises that this would mean Rhaenyra could effectively stroll into King's Landing and claim the Iron Throne in a matter of days, without any further bloodshed. Not long ago, Rhaenyra might have taken this bargain. Even in the finale, she insists she'd hoped having more dragons would have been a sufficient deterrent for war.
Alas, this emotional scene concludes with Rhaenyra acknowledging that she must take part in the war to come. Because of how things have played out, she must quash any opposition to her claim on the Seven Kingdoms.
Once Alicent leaves the building, we see Rhaenyra's new dragonriders — Addam of Hull, Ulf, and Hugh Hammer — dressing for war. This is the beginning of an epic montage that shows various armies on the move. Importantly, the blue dragon that soars over the troops from Oldtown banners is Tessarion, Daeron Targaryen's mount.
At Harrenhal, Daemon looks out over his massive army from the Riverlands. Our gaze then turns out to sea: Tyland Lannister sets sail for the Gullet alongside Admiral Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn), having secured an alliance with the Triarchy's vast fleet. Likewise, Corlys and Addam of Hull row out towards a large boat.
That montage also shows Rhaena finally tracking down Sheepstealer somewhere in the Vale, Men from the North marching through the Twins to support Rhaenyra, a glimpse at Otto Hightower who has been locked away in a cage, and the reveal that Larys Strong has successfully convinced Aegon to flee King's Landing after all.
The scene concludes with matching cuts of Alicent and Rhaenyra staring off into the distance, perhaps thinking over what's to come to Westeros very soon. So yes, it is a somewhat action-light finale, but it's still one that puts the pieces in place for the Dance of the Dragons to truly take flight.
