What Happened With Rhaena & Sheepstealer in House of the Dragon S3’s Premiere Explained (& the Major Character It Cut)

House of the Dragon Season 3, Episode 1 begins with a lot of incredible dragon-filled action, including some major developments with Rhaena Targaryen and Sheepstealer. Two years ago, one of the key moments in House of the Dragon Season 2’s finale was Rhaena coming across the wild dragon that was living in the Vale of Arryn, but it simply ended with her getting roared at by the beast. Fast forward to the Game of Thrones prequel’s third season, and things change significantly, with some major repercussions. Warning: SPOILERS ahead for the Season 3 premiere.

Rhaena successfully claims Sheepstealer, being taken for a ride on the dragon – without a saddle, because he’s a real wild one. That’s just setup for what’s to come later, though. Rhaena flies him back to Dragonstone, but as the near the island she sees the Battle of the Gullet, and directs him there instead. However, rather than assisting the Velaryon fleet, things go terribly wrong. Rhaena is unable to control Sheepstealer, who attacks members of their own side, including Rhaena’s sister, Baela, and her dragon Moondancer, and Jacaerys Velaryon and his dragon, Vermax, leading to the latter’s death.

How Rhaena Claimed Sheepstealer & How She Replaces A Cut Book Character

Rhaena claiming a dragon has long been her arc in the TV series, because her own egg had never hatched, something that led to her being ignored by her father, Daemon. Indeed, back in Season 1, Episode 6, “The Princess and the Queen,” after Aemond – who had been similarly dragonless – claimed Vhagar, he told her: “If you wish to be a rider, you must claim that right. Your father would tell you the same.”

We don’t get to see what happened with Rhaena and Sheepstealer between Seasons 2 and 3, and though little time has passed, we can assume she spent it gaining his trust, most likely by feeding him sheep (which is what happens in the book, albeit with a different character, as the quickest way to a dragon’s heart is apparently through their stomach). Very little is truly known about dragon bonds and why they do things, but there might also be something in Rhaena feeling like an outcast, and wanting to prove herself, that Sheepstealer, a wild dragon who has left Dragonstone behind, is able to recognize.

In George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, it is not Rhaena who claims Sheepstealer, but rather a girl named Nettles. A 16-year-old bastard, she is one of the dragonseeds like Hugh and Ulf, and left a freshly-killed sheep out for the dragon every morning to get him used to her presence and earn his trust, until finally he let her mount him. Nettles has been cut from the show completely, seemingly as a means of streamlining things and giving Rhaena an increased role in events (in the book, she remains at the Vale for most of the civil war). Nettles go on to form a strong bond with Daemon, which plays a key role in later events, so it remains to be seen how that translates to Rhaena.

Why Rhaena Couldn’t Control Sheepstealer & Why He Attacked Jacaerys

Although Rhaena is able to bond with Sheepstealer, she can’t control him when it matters, as he goes wild – or rather, wilder – during the Battle of the Gullet, where he burns Velaryon ships and tries to attack both Moondancer and Vermax. In terms of character arc, it’s a devastating twist for Rhaena: she’s got the one thing she has always wanted, but it’s come at the most extreme cost imaginable, not only with Jacaerys dying because of her, but creating a perhaps immovable bridge between her and Baela after that, and setting her up for punishment from Rhaenyra, as well, if her identity is discovered.

Controlling a dragon is not an exact science and, again, there is much we don’t know about the creatures, but what we do know is that they are ferocious, protective, and territorial, and even more dangerous if they’re wild and thus not used to having a rider. If Sheepstealer saw Moondancer and Vermax as a threat, or perhaps even as prey, then it makes sense he would attack them (in the book, there is a wild dragon named the Cannibal who attacks and eats smaller dragons).

Unfortunately, Rhaena had no chance of stopping him. She’s an extremely inexperienced rider, after all, and while Sheepstealer has allowed her to ride him, that doesn’t mean she is the one in charge, something that will only come with time, as much as it ever truly can. This also connects back to the words of King Viserys, which is one of the most prominent messages of the show and a theme it keeps coming back to:

“The idea that we control the dragons is an illusion. They’re a power man should never have trifled with. One that brings ruin to both who seek to wield it and the world itself.”

Viserys was correct, and Rhaena just learned that in the most shocking way possible. Now, the question will be what comes next for both her and Sheepstealer, since Jace was the one who recognized her and is now dead. She cannot take the dragon to Dragonstone, and it remains to be seen if the Blacks will discover it was her, and just what they’ll do if and when that happens.

New episodes of House of the Dragon Season 3 release at 9 pm ET on Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.

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