Prince Jaehaerys' death was almost overshadowed by Cheese kicking a dog in House of the Dragon Season 2, here's how

*Warning- This article consists of major spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 1.

The premiere of House of the Dragon Season 2 was surely a conversation starter with so much happening in the intensely political and thrilling episode. Of course, with the first season concluding with such a huge turn of events, fans were already expecting a lot from the second season. But the first episode, titled Son for a Son, served fans a nostalgic moment from the best days of Game of Thrones.

The ending of the second episode of House of the Dragon Season 2 premiere saw Daemon Targaryen's (played by Matt Smith) hired hands, Blood and Cheese, breaking into the Red Keep to kill Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) as revenge for the brutal murder of Lucerys in the Season 1 finale. However, they ended up finding queen Haelena and her young twins, out of which, they brutally decapacitated the boy, Jaehaerys Targaryen.

This scene should have stolen the thunder for House of the Dragon Season 2, yet what became the talking point was a relatively impactless scene of Cheese kicking a stray dog on his way into the tunnels of the Red Keep.

This scene drew the fury of fans, with many choosing the moment of the dog getting kicked as the more traumatizing one.

Of course, this scene was shot without hurting the dog, as depicted in the end credit scene, but fans were wildly sympathetic to this scene, almost overshadowing the brutal murder of young Prince Jaherys.

Read the full review of the premiere here.

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"He is now my most hated character in House of the Dragon" - The dog becomes a conversation starter in Season 2 premiere

While it can be widely assumed that the death of Jaeherys will not be overshadowed in the plot as it did in the episode, for fans, the moment of Cheese kicking a dog simply stood out as the conversation starter. This is perhaps also because fans of both sides of the war resonated equally when it came to the assault on the innocent dog.

This emotion was more evident on the social media platforms like X, where fans spoke at length about this particular scene. User @thcfastestma, for instance, said:

"This character just kicked the dog. He is now my most hated character in House of the Dragon!"

Other users also had similar things to say about the scene.

"Did y’all watch House of the Dragon? It was kinda drawn out to me and some scenes were so unnecessary like why did that man kick that dog 💀💀💀 and the end was just like….woah lmao"- another user wrote.

"House of the Dragon commentary rn is like "I understand murdering a child but KICKING A DOG??""- another user summed up.

Of course, the heinous crime at the end of House of the Dragon Season 2 is nothing short of horrifying, and it is perhaps only on social media platforms that it is getting less importance than the shocking scene involving the dog. Perhaps, this scene with Cheese and the dog was intentionally inserted to draw polarising reactions from fans by the creators. Either way, it worked out brilliantly.

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What happened to Prince Jaehaerys in House of the Dragon Season 2 premiere?

After Blood and Cheese broke into the Red Keep to kill Aemond Targaryen, they ended up reaching Queen Haelena. As Daemon did not indicate what they were to do if Aemond was not found, they literally took a "son for a son" by asking Haelena to tell them which was the boy.

Following the confirmation, Blood went on to decapacitate the sleeping child in a brutal scene that would have long-term consequences on the story.

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The second episode of House of the Dragon Season 2 will premiere on Sunday, June 23, 2024.