Major plot points for the most recent episode of House of the Dragon Season 2, Episode 5 “Regent” can be found throughout this story. A lot’s happened every episode this season, and this article is dark and full of spoilers.
It’s been a bleak few episodes since House of the Dragon premiered on the 2024 TV schedule. We already lost a fan-favorite character in Rhaenys with foreshadowing regarding more deaths to come. While Aegon is inexplicably burned over most of his body but not dead, Aemond is taking control of King’s Landing in his stead, which led to one moment that really struck a chord with me during House of the Dragon’s most recent “Regent” episode. But to explain why the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment was so emotional we need to backtrack a bit.
The Saga Of The Ratcatcher And The Dog
A few weeks ago, you may remember that Daemon sent Blood and Cheese, a guard and ratcatcher, to murder Aegon’s son. During that episode, we were shown Cheese had a loyal canine companion – and one he didn’t treat particularly well. In fact, the episode took great pains to show Cheese mistreating his pupper, and he kicked the dog during the episode.
This actually got to the point where it garnered some ill will online, and the actor who played Cheese, Mark Stobbart set the record straight, and actually came out and ask people to “chill” about the dog’s mistreatment during the episode proper.
He had a great time on set, so much so that the show purposefully brought him back again in Season 2.
The Moment That Left Me Emotionally Torn During House Of The Dragon This Week
After Aemond began making decisions for The Greens, one of the first things he noted was that the ratcatchers his brother had murdered should be cut down. Among them was the actual traitor Cheese. There’s a quick moment during the episode in which we see the tough task getting done and the ratcatchers getting carted away. We also see Cheese’s little dog, loyal to the end, following the cart of dead bodies as they are being taken away.
Honestly, it’s a quick shot and really relegated to the background of what’s going on at the time, so I’m not sure how many viewers really latched onto what was happening. However, I found it to be positively heart-wrenching that this poor little guy, who didn’t even have a good owner, was loyal until the very end.
As it turns out, this was a very calculated and thoughtful decision the showrunners made to pull on our heartstrings a bit. In an interview with USA Today, director Claire Kilner said the dog's return was an idea she'd planned.
I thought, 'Oh my God, we must have him at Cheese's feet.' Because dogs are so loyal. He's sort of a metaphor for how hard life can be. Besides, that dog is so damn cute.
George R.R. Martin had previously commented about how much he loved the addition of the dog in the HBO series. He mentioned Cheese’s pupper absolutely “broke” his “heart” while watching the episode and that it’s the rare change to his works that he was totally fine the series took creative license with. (In fact, there are more examples of issues Martin has taken with HOTD choices.) He hasn’t commented yet on the dog returning in Sunday’s episode, but that small plot within the larger world of chaos and revenge has been really emotional for me.
There’s no way the House of the Dragon creators could have known that adding a dog would resonate so deeply with fans –or Martin – while they were filming the popular fantasy drama months and months ago, but it’s an example of the awesome attention to detail that pays off for this series in spades later. As Cheese’s arc is really kind of done, this may be the end of the road for the dog, but it’s a storyline that will stick with me and reminds me that it’s the little things that often stand out most.
