The ‘House of the Dragon’ season 2 premiere just subtly introduced a pivotal new character — but you might have missed him

One of these petitioners, however, is more important than the others: Hugh the blacksmith (Kieran Bew), who asks Aegon for an advance on the smiths’ payment for weapons.

If you couldn’t tell by the lingering, close-up shot of Hugh’s face during his introduction, here’s your PSA: You should remember his face. Assuming he’s the same Hugh from “Fire and Blood,” the book on which “House of the Dragon” is based, we’ll see much more of him down the line.

In ‘Fire and Blood,’ Hugh is a dragonrider

During the Dance of the Dragons, as recounted in “Fire and Blood,” Rhaenyra’s son Jacaerys decides to recruit potential dragonriders from the breadth of Targaryen bastards. He puts out a call for recruits, promising rewards like knighthood, lands, and glory to those who are able to successfully mount a dragon.

Not everyone was able to do so. According to “Fire and Blood,” Grand Maester Munkun (one historical source) recounted that 16 men died during the trials, while tens of them were injured. Hugh, a “blacksmith’s bastard” with incredible physical strength, mounted the dragon Vermithor. Others also succeeded, mounting the dragons Silverwing, Seasmoke, and Sheepstealer.

Vermithor — we know him, right?

That you do. “House of the Dragons” viewers encountered Vermithor in season one. The previous mount of King Jaehaerys, Viserys’ predecessor, and was riderless after his death.

Daemon Targaryen very briefly encounters Vermithor in the season one finale when he seeks him out underneath Dragonstone. Singing a song in High Valyrian, Daemon doesn’t seem to get very far with Vermithor — but he doesn’t get burnt to a crisp, which is still a net win.

Vermithor isn’t the biggest dragon that we’ve seen in “House of the Dragon” — that honor goes to Aemond’s big, beautiful girl Vhagar — but he’s still pretty big.

Now, if you want potential major spoilers for the show…

What happens to Hugh in the books?

The fictional history of Westeros recounts how Hugh fought in the war as a dragonrider. In one battle, Rhaenyra’s forces clashed with a naval fleet from the Triarchy, with whom Otto Hightower had engineered an alliance. During the battle, Hugh and Vermithor fought alongside the dragons Silverwing, Sheepstealer, Seasmoke, their riders, Jacaerys, and his dragon Vermax.

However, Hugh and Ulf White, Silverwing’s rider, defected later in the war, though their motivations were disputed in the historical record. Later in the war, he made a play for the throne himself, but was killed during a battle.

“House of the Dragon” season two airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and is streaming on Max.