The following contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 1, Episode 2, "The Rogue Prince," which debuted Aug. 28 on HBO.
HBO's House of the Dragon hasn't wasted time getting into the game of thrones that took place centuries before Daenerys Targaryen sought the Iron Throne. The show immediately positioned Viserys as a flawed king wary of violence in the Seven Kingdoms, including a civil dispute that could arise after he made his daughter, Rhaenyra, his successor. However, the regent was blind to the likes of the conniving Otto Hightower jockeying for power from within the king's inner circle.
Not to mention, Viserys' brother, Daemon, seemed to be eyeing the throne as well, lacking confidence in his older brother's ability to show strength, brute force and overall, intimidation. As all these moving parts began tightening their grip around Westeros, key players began making their moves in the shadows. And come the end of Episode 2, a sinister pact was set in motion that's poised to change the complexion of King's Landing.
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Earlier in the episode, Daemon angered Viserys by stealing a dragon's egg that belonged to the king's deceased son, Baelon. Sadly, the newborn had died, along with Queen Aemma, after a gruesome C-section six months prior, which forced Viserys' hand in picking Rhaenyra. Angered by how he was overlooked, Daemon also took the island of Dragonstone, leaving a message he was going to break tradition, marry his concubine Mysaria, and then give the egg to their baby -- a mark of blasphemy.
Thankfully, Rhaenyra flew into the hostile negotiations, deescalating things between her uncle and Otto's battalion, while letting Daemon know if he wanted the throne, he'd have to kill her. She got the egg back when he retreated, but at this point it became clear that Daemon needed some other means of snatching power as he might not be cutthroat enough to murder his kin, especially as he seems to have feelings for his niece. This built to a shocking finale where Corlys Velaryon, the Master of Ships, held a secret meeting with the prince at Driftmark.
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Corlys was basically backing Daemon as the real successor, urging him to wage war on the Stepstones and take out the medieval terrorist, the Crabfeeder, who was affecting their shipping lanes. The Crabfeeder's sabotage of Westerosi ships wouldn't only hurt House Velaryon -- the richest in the realm -- it'd affect trade routes for the kingdom. Thus, Corlys, as shady as he was, was couching this deadly alliance with some form of altruism. He affirmed that if Daemon took out the Crabfeeder, then the realm would view him as the proactive savior his brother isn't. It's all optics, and using the navy against the king's orders will benefit them both in big ways.
This betrayal on Corlys' part stemmed from him being upset Viserys refused to wed his 12-year-old daughter, Laena, and unite the last of the pure Valyrian houses. Instead, seeing Viserys choose Alicent (Otto's daughter) was a sign Corlys and his family wouldn't get a chance to sniff the throne that Corlys' wife, Rhaenys, was denied years ago when her cousin, Viserys, was chosen to rule. Corlys' politicking reached a fever pitch when he indicated to Daemon that to ascend as leader of the Driftwood, aka the Sea Snake, he had to cut his way through the world just like him.
Much to Daemon's shock, Corlys insinuated he even took out his own brother to take the throne of this clan of mariners. At this point, he urged Daemon to prove his worth, because as "second sons," they got passed over too much in this life. This seemed to be the main hook to finally convince Daemon to become a rogue prince and win over all his doubters by bringing the Crabfeeder to justice; a seditious act that will make Viserys look ineffectual.
House of the Dragon airs Sundays at 9:00 p.m. on HBO and streams on HBO Max.