‘Home of the Dragon’ Season 2, episode 6: Who’s Seasmoke’s new rider?

A brand new dragonrider has entered the fray on Home of the Dragon — and it is not anybody Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) anticipated.

Season 2, episode 6 of Home of the Dragon sees Rhaenyra put a daring dragonrider recruitment plan into motion. With the assistance of the Targaryen household information, she seeks out members of different homes with Targaryen ancestors. The hope is that their weaker Targaryen lineage will nonetheless be sufficient for them to assert the riderless dragons residing on Dragonstone: Vermithor, Silverwing, and Seasmoke, the previous dragon of Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan).

Nonetheless, that plan disappears in a puff of (Sea)smoke when the primary dragonriding try goes disastrously awry. Seems Seasmoke is solely extra thinking about barbecuing Ser Steffon Darklyn (Anthony Flanagan) than in bonding with him. Hey, that is simply the danger you’re taking if you attempt to declare a dragon.

Steffon’s dying forces Rhaenyra to desert her plan, but the episode ends on some intriguing information. Seasmoke has been noticed flying over Spicetown with a brand new, unknown rider. Whereas Rhaenyra suspects this new dragonrider to be a member of Workforce Inexperienced, episode 6 has already given us his identification — and it may very well be a sport changer for Workforce Black.

Who’s Seasmoke’s new rider?

Seasmoke’s new rider is none aside from Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty), the brother of Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim). The 2 are the bastard sons of Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint). However whereas Corlys acknowledges Alyn, elevating him to the standing of first mate, he has but to say something to Addam. You may guess that can change as soon as he learns that Addam claimed his trueborn son’s dragon.

Whereas we do not see Addam really getting on dragonback, we see every part else main as much as it. Seasmoke pursues Addam alongside the seashores of Driftmark, finally cornering him. Nonetheless, as a substitute of burning Addam to a crisp like he did Steffon, Seasmoke approaches him with a gentle curiosity. Home of the Dragon cuts away earlier than Addam can really seal the bond, however since we hear about Seasmoke’s new rider quickly after, you may think about these dragonriding dots related.

How can Addam of Hull be a dragonrider?

Addam being a dragonrider throws a little bit of a wrench in Rhaenyra’s preliminary plan, as he is not a Targaryen by blood. As an alternative, he is a Velaryon by means of Corlys.

Just like the Targaryens, the Velaryons are an ideal household from Outdated Valyria, that means Addam has Valyrian blood. In contrast to Targaryens, the Velaryons weren’t dragonlords, so based mostly on custom and historical past, Addam should not be a dragonrider both. Positive, there is a excessive likelihood Corlys Velaryon has a smidge of Targaryen blood resulting from some long-ago Targaryen-Velaryon marriage, or that Addam and Alyn’s mom has some Targaryen ancestry. However there are different, extra fascinating explanations for Addam’s new dragonrider standing.

First, Rhaenyra believes that Seasmoke misses his bond with Laenor. What higher means for him to copy that bond than with one other certainly one of Corlys’s sons? Bear in mind, we have already seen Seasmoke circling over Addam’s head in episode 2, so maybe he already sensed the similarities to Laenor. Possibly Steffon’s tried claiming was the final push Seasmoke wanted to hunt Addam out, a draconic “screw it, I’ll find my preferred rider myself” type of second.

Then, there’s the easy chance that Targaryen blood might not be the true key to driving a dragon. As Jacaerys (Harry Collett) tells Rhaenyra in episode 5, the Outdated Valyrian histories that spotlight the significance of dragonlord blood have been “written to gild [dragonlords] in glory.” If the “dragonlord blood” narrative is only a software to uphold Targaryen supremacy, may anybody attempt to be a dragonrider? May Rhaenyra widen her pool of recruit candidates? (Would possibly I counsel searching for out the Targaryen bastards we all know are on the market?)

Or, may it’s the Targaryens aren’t as highly effective as they thought?

New episodes of Home of the Dragon air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max.