rewrite this title ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3, Episode 3 Recap: The Rat Banquet

… Is that good?

The final season of “Game of Thrones” was widely, vituperatively criticized for its perceived failure to appropriately telegraph the heel turn of its ostensible heroine, Daenerys Targaryen. (The observant reader may recall the character burning her enemies alive — as well as immuring them, crucifying them and dousing their noggins with molten gold — all the way back to Season 1, but many viewers apparently chalked this up to the price of doing hero business in the fake Middle Ages.)

Ending with Rhaenyra standing before a bonfire of her enemies’ banners, this episode gives the impression that if she is indeed headed down the mad queen route, the “House of the Dragon” co-creator and showrunner, Ryan Condal, is going to leave signposts you can’t help but see. Or hear, as it were.

Rhaenyra’s advent to power does not go off without a hitch. In fact, in the parlance of Cap’n Crunch cereal, her first few days on the throne are pretty much “Oops! All Hitches!” She starts at a disadvantage, abandoning her disloyal small council on Dragonstone for a skeleton crew of advisers: In addition to her husband, Daemon, and her mistress of whisperers, Mysaria (former lover to both), there is her master of ships, Lord Corlys Velaryon; Ser Luthor Largent (Tom Cullen), head of the City Watch and unofficial Queensguard until such time as a real bodyguard can be selected; Grand Maester Orwyle, previously a member of the Green council … and that’s it.

Her small council does little to counsel her. Daemon and Mysaria spar constantly over the restive small folk, for whom Mysaria is an outspoken champion. (Daemon thinks the little people should know their place.) Orwyle mostly scrambles to save his neck, protesting his innocence in various Green schemes. Alicent, the queen dowager, expresses similar ignorance when Rhaenyra grills her about her enemies’ plans after a fruitless council meeting. Has the queen forgotten the way men exclude wise advice if it comes from a woman?

Lord Corlys, licking his wounds from the loss of his wife and his home to Rhaenyra’s enemies, has surprisingly little to say in matters of governance — other than noting that her royal forebears would be appalled by her idea of opening up the royals’ own forest to starving peasant hunters and trappers. The trappings of legitimacy mean quite a lot to the Sea Snake. At an awkward dinner with Rhaenyra, Corlys asks her to officially declare his sons Alyn and Addam of Hull to be full Velaryons, legitimized and able to inherit his lands and titles.