House of the Dragonaired its seventh episode, “Driftmark,” on October 2. As part of the proceedings, fans were met with classicGame of Thronesviolence, drama, and twists, one of which may have been spoiled long before the show ever even aired its first episode.
Episode 7 represents the final leg of the season before the last time jump. As such, it can be seen as the end of the prologue leading up to the main conflict inHouse of the Dragon. In “Driftmark,” audiences finally saw two factions properly coalesce around Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) andPrincess Rhaenyra Targaryen(Emma D’Arcy) - the Greens (named after the green dress Alicent wore to Rhaenyra’s wedding feast) and the Blacks (named after the traditional red and black of House Targaryen).
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Audiences were shocked when Rhaenyra and her uncle Daemon (Matt Smith) seemingly murdered Rhaenyra’s husband, Laenor (John MacMillan), so that the two could wed one another. In the closing moments of the episode, however, it was revealed that the two had actually conspired with Laenor and his lover, Ser Qarl Correy (Arty Froushan) so that the two could flee to the Free Cities and live out their lives together, avoiding death unlikemany characters onHouse of the Dragon. But according to aRedditpost, this pivotal scene was actually spoiled over a year ago.
The post features a picture provided by Getty Images. Dated August 05, 2025, the photo shows MacMillan and Froushan practicing their daring escape, clad in wetsuits rather than in costume. MacMillan even sports a shaved head in the image, just as Laenor does in the final episode (to hide his silver hair from prying eyes).
The episode’s big twist served several purposes. It was a major departure fromFire & Blood, where Rhaenyra and Laenor’s father Corlys (played by Steve Toussaint) discover Laenor’s body after Ser Qarl has killed him. The conspiracy to keep Laenor alive, however, shows a very complicated side to Rhaenyra’s character. She cares for Laenor and gives him a happier ending than he would have had otherwise, even noting that the way she chose to go about it would result in rumors and whispers against her character. But it also provides a darker undertone to her - while she does not do the deed herself, Daemon does murder a nameless Velaryon servant to use as a body double to complete the ruse, and Rhaenyra is fully aware of this.
The twist also served to avoid the problematic “bury your gays” trope. This trope has been codified as a worrying part of popular culture for some time. Whenever a character reveals their sexuality to the audience or is coded as LGBT+ if their sexuality is not censored, their sexuality eventually leads to a tragic demise, leading to a subtextual “punishment.” By having Laenor live rather than die at the hands of his male lover, the show subverted this trope, and instead spared the life of one ofits few LGBT+ characters.
House of the Dragonairs Sundays at 9 PM EST on HBO and HBO Max.
