House of The Dragon episode 9 review - Queen Alicent makes the first move as the War for the Iron Throne begins

The episode begins shortly after the death of the king, with the queen believing that his last wish was for his fist born son to take the throne instead of Rhaenyra.

This leads to her consulting with her father and hand of the king Ser Otto Hightower on how to proceed as they both want the prince to take the throne.

The ninth episode of the season titled "The Green Council" and directed by Claire Kilner does its job well as setting up for the final next week.

we see battle lines being drawn as soon as the queen and her father reveal their plans to the small circle, with some protesting openly and others playing it smart.

Otto and his men are quick to place lady Rhaenys in house arrest, unlike the majority of the season, this episode focus on the Hightowers and their plot to take the throne rather than the Targaryens.

Rather than focus on the blood and gore this one focus mostly on the drama, and does a great job focusing on different characters and their actual thoughts on the queen's plans despite following her orders.

We have Prince Aemond wanting the throne for himself believing that his brother is unfit to rule but still following his mother's orders, then there is Aegon who does want the throne and would rather live in exile.

Then we have Rhaenys who despite losing so much still holds on to her principles and by the end of the episode reminds everyone why they should not underestimate her in the slightest.

Finally, we have Ser Otto Hightower who has been pulling the strings throughout the years and who finally gets his ambition rewarded.

All in all this episode might not be the best one of the season but it remains engaging and does its part to hype you up for the upcoming civil war for the Iron Throne.

The first nine episodes of House of The Dragon are currently streaming on Hotstar, with new episodes every Monday.