House of the Dragon: Brynden Rivers’ Season 2 Cameo, Explained

Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 2, Episode 8, “The Queen Who Ever Was.”

House of the Dragon Season 2’s finale “The Queen Who Ever Was,” features a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance by a character casual fans may not recognize: Brynden Rivers. So, what’s the deal with Brynden Rivers’ House of the Dragon cameo, and how is he connected to Daemon Targaryen?

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Brynden Rivers’ House of the Dragon Season 2 Cameo, Explained

Brynden Rivers is Westeros’ last living greenseer – someone who can (among other things) see the past and future. He’s also known as the Three-Eyed Raven, as he regularly assumes the form of a bird with an extra peeper during vision sequences. Brynden’s older self appears in Game of Thrones, portrayed by Struan Rodger (Season 4) and Max von Sydow (Season 6); Joshua Ben-Tovim plays the young Brynden in House of the Dragon.

In keeping with a running trend, Ben-Tovim’s Brynden Rivers looks different than Rodger and Von Sydow’s incarnations (who don’t resemble each other much, either). Notably, House of the Dragon Season 2 marks the first time that Brynden has sported his distinctive birthmark in live-action. In George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books, this blemish earns him the nickname “Bloodraven.” Why Game of Thrones left Brynden’s birthmark remains a mystery to this day.

Okay, that’s Brynden Rivers’ basic deal – so, why is he in the House of the Dragon Season 2 finale? Well, what happens to Daemon Targaryen in Episode 8 after touching Harrenhal’s heart tree is essentially a cosmic crash course in upcoming Westerosi history. Given Brynden is essentially the living embodiment of that history – and just generally a major player in the show’s mystical space – it makes sense for him to show up.

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How Are Brynden Rivers and Daemon Targaryen Connected?

They’re family, even if Daemon doesn’t know it. As confirmed by House of the Dragon‘s source text, Fire & Blood (and other A Song of Ice and Fire works) Brynden Rivers is Daemon’s great-grandson. His father is King Aegon IV Targaryen, one of the grandchildren Daemon shares with his third wife, Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. Why doesn’t Daemon know about Brynden? Because the Three-Eyed Raven hasn’t even been born yet at this point in Westeros’ timeline!

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So, how come Daemon can see Brynden, then? There are two possibilities. One, he’s seeing his great-grandkid in the future, as part of his wider heart tree vision quest. Two, Brynden is actually taking part in Daemon’s vision, using his greenseer powers to interact with (from his perspective) past events. Or the truth could lie somewhere in the middle (who knows, with magic?).

House of the Dragon Season 2 is currently streaming on HBO and Max.