House of the Dragon season 2 will have its own version of Melisandre, and could end up beating Game of Thrones with the character. House of the Dragon’s timeline is close to 200 years before Game of Thrones, but there are still clear similarities between the two: Great Houses, a political landscape on the edge of war, family feuds, dragons, murder, incest, and more. One element that hasn’t really been explored as much, though, is magic.
There are, of course, dragons in House of the Dragon, so magic does exist to a degree, but there’s nothing and no one quite like Melisandre, who was one of Game of Thrones’ most powerful characters, or the magical nature of the Three-Eyed Raven and White Walkers. Melisandre is so old in Game of Thrones that she could technically appear herself (she’s believed to be around 400-years-old), but that would be a radical departure from the book. Instead, House of the Dragon season 2 can include a character who fills a similar role, and could be just as powerful.
Who Alys Rivers Is: Her House Of The Dragon Story & Melisandre Similarities Explained
Alys Rivers will be the closest House of the Dragon gets to having a character like Melisandre. A bastard of House Strong – speculated to have been fathered by Lyonel Strong – she resides at Harrenhal, having served there as a wet nurse. Alys is believed to be in her 40s, at least, by the time of the Dance of the Dragons, but is also said to look a lot younger – something some sources attribute to magic. Fire & Blood gathers multiple historical accounts, and they differ on who Alys really was:
Alys’ story in the very early stages of the civil war is unremarkable, but she becomes a much more notable figure when Aemond Targaryen and the greens retake control of Harrenhal (with it having previously been lost to Daemon Targaryen and the blacks). Aemond has many at the castle killed, but not only spares Alys, he begins a sexual relationship with her. Indeed, Eustace later believes he has become “besotted” with her, while Mushroom claims she used potions to garner the affections of both Aemond and Criston Cole.
While much of the truth around Alys is shrouded in mystery – even by the standards of a historical account that often lacks detail anyway – it’s clearly accepted that she did deal with magic in some way. However, it’s words from Aemond, when confronting his uncle Daemon, that make her sound even more like Melisandre:
Alys Rivers, like Melisandre, is a powerful woman who can see things in the flames, and works alongside a strong, noble figure amid a war that ravages Westeros. She may hide her true age. She is even, later, said to be pregnant with Aemond’s child; Melisandre, of course, gave birth to Stannis Baratheon’s “child” too, the shadow that killed Renly Baratheon. After the Dance, she will be called the “witch queen” of Harrenhal, and even declare her son the rightful heir at one point, though it’s currently unknown what her ultimate fate is.
