REVIEW: ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 2 Episode 3 — “The Burning Mill”

House of the Dragon Season 2 has been slow to start. That said, the last episode of the season had a gutting (pun intended) finale that shifted the sands beneath the dueling royals. While Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) grieves his son and his mother, Alicent Hightower, has lost control of the court, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) has been branded a child slayer, and all of her work to secure support is crumbling. In House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3, “The Burning Mill,” the narrative continues to set up the path it will walk throughout the season.

One thing that has been clear throughout House of the Dragon is that women are the focus. However, as everything gives way to the proverbial sh–storm, the men circle like vultures. Driven by their emotions and thirst for power, which they hope will absolve them of their guilt, Aegon and Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) have only violence on their mind. They need to puff out their chest to show that they have not been beaten back despite losing their strongest man of the King’s Guard, thanks to an idiotic plan to assassinate Rhaenyra.

For her part, Alicent is grieving, but it’s for watching her home collapse around her. The reason is that her father, Otto Hightower, led with is gone, and the Targaryen civil war for the throne transforms into a true war between kin. She tries to stay afloat in chaos, but the men around her pull her down with each choice. This is realized most when Criston’s scheme to take Harenhall becomes a reality, and instead of praying with hope, she meets him with measured distaste. It’s interesting to watch Alicent write about the reality around her. However, it keeps House of the Dragon moving into a boring territory. Angry men take angry action, begetting violence until fire consumes them.

At Dragonstone, Rhaenyra hasn’t escaped the men of her small council either. The only difference is that when Alicent is alone, Rhaenyra has Rhaenys (Eve Best). A commanding presence in the halls of Dragonstone, Rhaenys is the grounding force for the Blacks. She keeps the men steady and offers Rhaenyra advice to move her hand, keeping it steady but never forgetting the reality that they’ve been thrust into by Otto Hightower’s (Rhys Ifans) propagandistic wake through King’s Landing.

The men in House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3 are all husks at this point. Sometimes, it is portrayed with nuance, like with Daemon (Matt Smith), but other times, ignorance is all we get. For Aegon, he’s a fraud of a king playing dress up in armor. Criston is now the Hand of the King and woefully out of his depth. The only man worth his salt is Corlys (Steve Toussaint), but this season has yet to give us more time with the character.

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3 still drags its feet. But even with its sleepwalking-like pace, it remains interesting when we peek into the relationships that women in the series are keeping, nurturing, and reckoning with. In King’s Landings, as the Greens ready for war, Alicent’s exchange with her daughter offers the most depth for their side in this episode.

While Alicent is grieving the loss of her grandson, she is more pained by the fact that she cannot protect her daughter from the loss of a child. In a small scene, the two women discuss grief. Helaena (Phia Saban) comments that she has no more right to grieve than the smallfolk of King’s Landing, who lose their children more frequently than those with money and access to doctors. However, Alicent comments that sadness is a condition of motherhood and gives her daughter permission to feel the sadness. That permission is met with a cutting line, delivered by Helaena: “I forgive you.”

Helaena knows that Criston, the man who should have protected her children, was in her mother’s bed. In offering forgiveness for the selfish act, Alicent begins to break under the knowledge that her daughter held her somewhat accountable. It’s a scene that unpacks grief but also situates the cascading choices that have happened throughout the series and how they have stacked against Alicent’s children. But it’s not external. Alicent and her children are ushering in their own destruction, and the meekest among them bear the weight.

For Rhaenyra, the emotional moments come from the Queen’s decision to split her household. She sends her youngest ones away to protect them with Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell), her niece, to mother them in her stead. Rhaena, who was Vhagar’s intended rider, has been struggling since that moment. She is without dragon or skill to make her beneficial to Dragonstone, but it’s not through any fault of her own. It was taken from her.

All that is displayed here is how Rhaena responds to Rhaenyra and her sister Baela. She wants to remain in Dragonstone. She wants to be useful, but it’s heartbreaking to see her relegated to a figure of motherhood instead. However, Rhaena’s role isn’t just to mother Rhaenyra’s children while the war rages. It is also to protect the Targaryen’s future. Rhaena is now holding the future. She leaves with the heirs to the throne, two hatchling dragons, and eggs to protect. When this is realized, Rhaena’s demeanor changes.

But with Criston close to their lands, Daemon has to worry. In House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 2, Daemon has taken Harenhall. Well, he walked in and was handed it without a fight. Now in control of the largest keep on the continent, he should be at ease. Instead, he’s haunted.

Where the Greens remain petty and self-centered, the storyline set for the Blacks, Daemon included, is centered on their relationships with others. Daemon is interesting because of his ability to manipulate others. In the last few episodes, it was because of his callous disregard for life that is not directly connected to him that Daemon was interesting. Now, it’s his guilt for slaying a child that makes him interesting.

By the end of House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3, the story is back to where it began: Alicent and Rhaenyra together. It’s a meeting rife with emotion and frustration, but more importantly, it highlights Rhaenyra’s dedication to peace. Some kind of peace that will keep the realm from burning. But when Alicent rebukes her, we have the final building block for the season. There is no path to peace when the most measured voice has turned her eyes to war.

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3 is a lot of exposition, but at least here, it feels like it’s building up to something large. This episode doesn’t have an impactful last moment that hits like the last two. That said, the quiet focus on Rhaenyra’s solemn face is enough. We know what’s coming, but the realm will change once the dragons are loosed. At this point, there is no forgiveness between the two arms of House Targaryan, and now, they will meet each other as such.

House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 3 is streaming now on MAX (previously HBO Max), with new episodes every Sunday.