House of the Dragon Season 3 Finale Reaction: 'That Was an Awesome Episode'

I watched the House of the Dragon Season 3 finale for the first time on camera, and my verdict going in was simple: after a good season with a lower-key Season 2 ending, this one had to go big. It did.

For anyone who has been following along with our watch-through, this finale mattered because it was the moment everything either paid off or fell apart, and I went in genuinely unsure who to root for.

Aegon's Resurrection and Sunfire Flip the Board

The episode opens with the reveal that Aegon burned the mutinous host at Rook's Rest and survived, with Sunfire alive too. I pointed out that the smallfolk taking it as a sign from the gods that Aegon is ordained to rule immediately puts pressure on Rhaenyra, and from there I watched her spiral. By the time she is comparing herself to Aegon the Conqueror and declaring "I am Rhaenyra the chosen," I said flat out, "this is like Daenerys all over again," and Sam agreed it was "like Mad King" behavior, especially once she force feeds Helaena and casually threatens the High Septon.

The Mysterious Woman's Backstory Recontextualizes Harrenhal

One of my favorite specific beats was the reveal that the strange ageless woman tied to Harrenhal was the mother of the burned boy from Lord Harrin's line, cursed to serve every lord who came there for a hundred years. I called it "the most warped relationship" once her manipulative dynamic with Aemond became clear.

The Battle of Tumbleton Is the Highlight, Especially Ormund's Death

The Tumbleton battle was where I felt the episode really earned its ending. Ormund Hightower gets woken up hung over and forced onto his dragon, and once he starts smacking his men around I predicted out loud it wasn't going to end well for him. It didn't: he loses an arm, stabs an enemy, gets set on fire, and I called his last stand "one of the best in Game of Thrones history," with Sam agreeing, "I am satisfied with that."

My Overall Verdict

By the end I was genuinely thrown by Helaena's apparent death and the butterflies, and by Aegon and Aemond teaming back up, which I flagged as "dangerous." But my closing take was straightforward: "That was an awesome episode," and "great ending" to a season I called great overall, even knowing Season 4 is still years away.

Who do you think comes out on top once Aegon and Aemond reunite against Rhaenyra?