Alliances shift, factions form and hostilities deepen. Book readers, as usual, know where this is headed. However, “We Light the Way” offers its viewers an elegantly constructed recap to help keep everything straight as we move forward — whether they realize that’s what they’re seeing or not. One area where House of the Dragon excels is in creating a visual foundation that leads observant viewers to what’s to come. Queen Alicent’s (Emily Carey) green dress in this week’s episode is a great example of this visual storytelling, as are the rats that collect the blood on the dance floor at the end of the episode. (See “Blood and Cheese, Dance of the Dragons” if you’re curious.) These hints indicate where the story is going. But episode director Clare Kilner’s most elaborately constructed device reminds us where she was, setting up the throne room in King’s Landing, outfitted for a weeklong wedding feast, to have multiple lines of sight, each looking down or/ and across the hall to the main corridor where the ‘Dance of the Dragons’ is to be held. Photo: Ollie Upton/HBO Photo: Ollie Upton/HBO Kilner alternates between these perspectives, cutting between medium shots of different characters – Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) and Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eva Best), the groom’s parents. the bride’s father, King Viserys, and his second wife, Alicent. Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith), uncle of the bride and jealous suitor. and the provosts and sworn protectors of the bride and groom — all of whom have a stake in the outcome of this wedding. The happy (or at least content, with the understanding that his marriage is a political arrangement) remains in the center of the frame as the assembled lords and ladies rise to join the dance. Here, Kilner takes leave of Alicent’s uncle, Lord Hobert Hightower, who rises from his seat to tell a departing Alicent, “Know that the Old Town is beside you.” As the dance continues, the camera again cuts to Rhaenyra’s bodyguard and lover, Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) – a small preview of his final moments in the episode – and then cuts to Ser Gerold Royce of the Vale, who has deployed his own reasons for opposing Targaryen rule. More players have joined the dance, literally and figuratively. Although, for now, these knowing glances and unspoken conversations remain within the rarefied realm of courtly manners, these tensions will inevitably escalate into larger conflicts that will mean life and death for thousands of people in Westeros, noble and common. The characters understand the importance of such small, symbolic gestures. Alicent walking slowly into Rhaenyra’s wedding banquet isn’t just the end of their friendship. it is a declaration of war between them. And by blocking and editing this scene to allow for such a careful reading of posture, gestures, and lines of sight, the show also acknowledges their importance. Photo: Ollie Upton/HBO Even Viserys, who generally prefers to ignore the tensions in his court, cannot help but notice the ensuing confrontation between Ser Gerold and his arrogant brother Daemon. But then he looks back at the dance, focused on his daughter at the center of swirling fabrics and stretched limbs. This is Viserys’ fatal flaw: He only has eyes for Rhaenyra and his dream of keeping the Targaryens on the throne for the next hundred years, failing to see the rats running around the edges of his grand scheme. Laenor and his bodyguard/lover, Ser Joffrey Lonmouth, are more observant, however, noticing Ser Criston’s brooding expression and correctly assuming that this is why Rhaenyra is settling for an “arrangement” with her betrothed. Daemon, who is used to (and good at) sneaking under his brother’s nose, manages to slip in as his niece’s dance partner at one point as well. From here, the cutting becomes faster and the wide shots of a full dance floor more frequent, and Kilner returns the camera’s focus to the Targaryens and Velaryons, now completely distracted by their own internal dramas. We don’t see how the race starts on the track. all we hear is a scream, which finally draws the attention of the royal families to their guests. The view of the action is obscured by the high table – a powerful visual metaphor for the shortsightedness of the Targaryens – and Rhaenyra is pushed aside amid the jockeying of the crowd. The fight seems fragmented and we lose track of Rhaenyra and Laenor in the chaos. Once the body is dragged away, someone (probably Viserys) decides it would be best to get this wedding out of the way as soon as possible, before anyone else dies. The secret ceremony that follows takes place among the scraps of an abandoned feast, decaying and being nibbled by rats. For now, it is a symbolic loss and a temporary humiliation. But as personal grudges continue to escalate, the “Dance of Dragons” will turn from a literal dance into a symbolic one: The dance of swords and knights on the battlefield. Game of Thrones, and now House of the Dragon, tend to get attention and credit for their meticulously designed battle scenes. “We Light the Way” approaches the political aspect of the show with a similar cinematic sensibility, brilliantly highlighting the connection between the two. Today, a ruined party. tomorrow, a dilapidated house.
