Warning: Contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 2, episode 5.

The head of Meleys, Rhaenys Targaryen’s dragon, is paraded through the streets of King’s Landing in House of the Dragon season 2, episode 5. Unfortunately for Alicent Hightower and the rest of Team Green, it’s a decision that seems to be a major mistake following on from the Battle at Rook’s Rest.

While King Aegon Targaryen is left almost dead after an attack by his brother, Aemond, the Greens are looking to spread propaganda and claim victory at Rook’s Rest. To that end, it makes sense why the dragon head is taken through the streets of Westeros’ capital, as it really hammers home the deaths of Meleys and Rhaenys. However, that doesn’t mean it’s a smart choice.

Parading Meleys’ Head Through King’s Landing Hurts The Targaryens’ Reputation

Dragons Are What Make The Targaryens Closer To Gods Than Men

House Targaryen often like to think of themselves as superior to the people of Westeros, even to other surviving houses of Old Valyria, like the Velaryons, because of their status as dragonriders. It’s a belief that has, in a way, spread through the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, at least because of fear. Aegon I conquered it with his dragons, after all, and with 130 years of their dynasty, Targaryen exceptionalism still prevails. But there’s a problem, as Rhaenyra said in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 1:

“Everyone says Targaryens are closer to gods than to men, but they say that because of our dragons. Without them, we’re just like everyone else.”

The family’s power doesn’t just lie with their dragons – if that were true, they wouldn’t have held on to the Iron Throne for over a century after the last Targaryen dragon had died – but it’s undeniably a major part of it. It’s dragons that truly make people both fearful and awed, and that’s why parading Meleys’ head through the streets is a real problem.

This isn’t a sign of some great Targaryen victory. If the Targaryens and their dragons are considered closer to gods, then the king has just effectively killed a god. Fallen dragons should be honored – such as the skulls placed in the Red Keep – rather than mocked, which, again, is akin to mocking the gods themselves. At best, they make themselves look fallible and cruel; at worst, they are risking the wrath of a higher power, or at least that’s how the people of King’s Landing will see it.

Meleys’ Head Makes The Problems In King’s Landing So Much Worse

The Capital Of Westeros Was Already Facing Struggles

When Meleys’ head is taken through the streets of King’s Landing in the book, it’s said the crowd was “awed… into silence.” However, it also prompted thousands of people to leave the city, until the gates were closed. Things play out similarly in the show, except the gates are closed even more quickly, and the people aren’t awed into silence. They’re fearful of what it means, calling it an “ill omen,” but they speak that out loud, which could spark a greater backlash.

There are riots in King’s Landing in the book, but these come later in the story. However, the problems in the city are even more stark in House of the Dragon, with food shortages and costs mentioned multiple times. That means that seeing Meleys could be the moment that pushes things over the edge. It shows the smallfolk that, if the Targaryens are going to kill dragons and show such disrespect, then their own problems cannot be solved by the crown. Trailers have seemingly shown riots in King’s Landing, and Meleys’ head is a big step towards that.

New episodes of House of the Dragon release Sundays at 9pm on HBO and Max.