House of the Dragon
IIncludes SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 2 ’s close .
Summary
After a stellar first time of year , House of the Dragonseason 2 ’s reviews have been more of a sundry bag from audiences , and it ’s worth breaking down the show ’s pros and yard bird . The serial is free-base onFire & Blood , a companion Bible toGeorge R.R. Martin’sA Song of Ice & Fireseriesthat examines the sovereignty of the Targaryen dynasty from a zoomed - out , fictional historical text edition . Because of this , HBO ’s version has to take frequent creative liberties to develop the events of the Dance of the Dragonsas a telly series .
House of the Dragonseason 2 ’s endingsees another verbal confrontation between childhood booster Rhaenyra Targaryen and Alicent Hightower before cutting to a end montage of USA and navies mobilizing . While the collage doubtlessly gets the heart racing , it was n’t the action - packed conclusion many viewers were hoping for , and it later ended up with one of the broken IMDb scores in the serial . There ’s plenty to analyze here regarding what worked and what did n’t .
10House Of The Dragon Takes Time To Set Up Conflict (In A Good Way)
Rushing The Action Would’ve Been A Massive Mistake
The melodic theme that " nothing happen " inHouse of the Dragonseason 2 is absurd . There is a notable shift in Westeros from the start of the time of year to the end , with Rhaenyra having forgather massive Army and several dragonriders , while Aegon is forced to fly the capital and Aemond is lose his travelling bag . The show would not be enjoyable if it only jump from battle to battle without any character narration in between , asit ’s the interpersonal dynamics that make great battles like Rook ’s sleep or the Blackwater inGame of Thronesso engaging .
Speaking ofGame of Thrones , the original TV show ’s best time of year are widely considered to be the early ones , where action was minimal , and the narrative focus on government and character moral force . House of the Dragoncarefully lays seeds for various battle like the Gullet , the Butcher ’s Ball , and more , so they will finally feel more rewarding . Oppositely , Game of Thronesseasons 7 & 8 jumped from conflict to conflict in practically every episode and leave in incessant logistic complaints and nearly nonmeaningful action . That ’s not what HOTD should be .
9HOTD Season 2 Had Too Many Repetitive Scenes
Season 2’s Character Dynamics Weren’t As Strong
While the ailment aboutHouse of the Dragon’slack of action is slightly misdirect , complaints about the time of year in ecumenical are n’t unfounded . The tv set serial should focus on politicking and character kinetics , but those scenes just are n’t as compelling as they were inGame of Thrones . The show relied on original , non - book dynamics to pad out its time , and many felt uninteresting and repetitious . For example , Lord Corlys receive Alyn of Hull at the same location and has some variation of the same conversationin almost every episode .
These are both interesting character , but their scenes started to lack participation as clip went on . Another example is Rhaenyra and Mysaria , with their conniption in the conclusion being the perfect example of just feeling like a rehash of all their previous material . Comparing them to common view partners inGame of Thrones , like Tyrion and Varys or Cersei and Margaery , there ’s a celebrated absence of that immeasurable , soak up flare that made protracted dialogue scenes in the original HBO show so worthwhile .
8House Of The Dragon Adds Depth To Flat Book Characters
HOTD Improves Upon Character Perception From Fire & Blood
While these dynamics are n’t quite where they require to be for engaging television , House of the Dragon’scharacters are a stone’s throw up fromFire & Blood . It ’s vital to remember the nature of the source material textual matter . It ’s not a novel ; it ’s a fictional historical account . Many of these characters do n’t have explored personalities or intimate conflicts , it ’s all primarily imply by their action and , in many cases , there are characters of significant political military position who do n’t have many notable actions .
The elemental object lesson would be King Viserys , who , play by Paddy Considine in season 1 , was praised by George R.R. Martin for being a good edition than his book character . In season 2,House of the Dragonintroduced figure like Hugh and Addam , who are far more enchanting and complex than the text edition would make them seem . Similarly , the show continues to explore the psychological science of season 1 character like Alicent , Jacaerys , and Criston Cole , who are all more interesting than their book counterparts .
7House Of The Dragon’s Best Characters Were Too Spread Out
Season 1’s Best Dynamics Were Barely In Season 2
To no fault of the TV serial publication , House of the Dragonseason 2 sustain from some of its good characters being too scatter out . After the Dance of the Dragons begin in the book , characters rapidly start to move around the single-valued function to fulfill their purposes in the war . It makes sensory faculty strategically , but it does n’t necessarily make for slap-up goggle box . Considering some of time of year 1 ’s most effective character moral force , there are a handful that did catch the aforementionedGame of Thronesflare , and time of year 2 lacked all of them .
Daemon ’s time of year 1 kinetics with Viserys and Otto were always undischarged , as were Rhaenyra and Alicent ’s panorama together .
Daemon , Alicent , and Rhaenyra have prove to be among the most systematically engaging character reference in theHouse of the Dragoncast . Daemon ’s time of year 1 dynamics with Viserys and Otto were always outstanding , as were Rhaenyra and Alicent ’s scenes together . One character who surface as have an incredibly enjoyable panorama presence was Aegon , and the show suffered without his sense of humor and arrogance after he was injure at Rook ’s respite .
6HOTD’s Major Action Set Pieces Are Top-Notch Television
The Dragon Action Is Unrivaled
Something that ’s carried over fromGame of Thronesis the quality of medieval phantasy action inHouse of the Dragon . The Battle of Rook ’s Rest was one of thebest battles in theGame of Thronesfranchise , with the production value and narrative impact that made the Battle of the Bastards and Hardhome unforgettable . Not to mention , it wasthe first time audiences really got to see live Dragon scrap , which made for a beautiful visual spectacle .
If that was n’t enough on its own , audiences also got the Sowing of the Seeds , allowing for even more great dragon moment . It did n’t include as many character as the book version , but it did n’t weaken the loudness between Hugh , Ulf , and the dragons . While so many other fantasy shows suffer from rickety CGI , House of the Dragonis still at the top of its game in bring Martin ’s world to life in a believable manner .
5House Of The Dragon’s Cast Is Unbelievably Good
Every Character Is Cast Perfectly
Even when their character are n’t at their most interesting , theHouse of the Dragoncastis phenomenal and improbably fun to watch . Matt Smith was arguably underutilized with so many of Daemon ’s scene at Harrenhal , but he ’s still one of the show ’s most gratifying natural endowment . Rhys Ifans had some of his best scenes in the series as Otto in the earlier episodes , whilePhia Saban and Tom Glynn - Carney were systematically striking as Helaena and Aegon .
In terms of the neophyte , Tom Taylor left audience wanting more with Cregan Stark . All the dragonseeds were played terrifically , withClinton Liberty ’s Addam of Hull standing out as particularly especial in the final few episodes . Gayle Rankin and Sir Simon Russell Beale were also terrific , land Harrenhal to spirit . HBO ’s casting rarely misses the mark , especially in theGame of Thronesuniverse .
4House Of The Dragon Season 2 Needed More Episodes
8 Episodes Leaves Audiences Wanting More
House of the Dragon’sseason 2 finale was prominent television , but it was n’t on par with theGame of Thronesfranchise ’s other stopping point . There ’s a specific connotation and expectation that denotes the finale and next-to-last episodes in this franchisethat time of year 2 , episode 8 , did n’t meet . In an interview withTHR , author Ryan Condal explain some of what went into the think process for the cut episode enumeration , and it seems like price were a significant reason for push certain events back . Read his full quote below :
" When you ’re as a showrunner , you ’re always in the position of let to poise storytelling and the resources that you have available to tell that narrative . One of the things that came into caper in season two is : What is the last name and address of the serial and where are we cash in one’s chips ? It was a compounding of factors that led us to rebalance the time of year have intercourse now where we ’re go bad . We wanted to rebalance the story in such a way that we had three great seasons of television system [ after season one ] to round out and distinguish this story . When you ’re trying to climb on the show , which require a terrible amount of resources , expression , armour , costumes , ocular consequence … we are trying to give The Gullet — which is arguably the second most anticipated activity event of Fire & Blood — try on to give it the sentence and the space that it deserves . "
So , the Battle of the Gullet was the original plan for a season 2 conclusion point , which is instead being push back to time of year 3 . If they ’d had the resources for two more installment , including the Gullet in episode 9 or 10 , the season as a whole might ’ve felt more fulfilling and better - paced by audience standards . The WGA strike in 2023 could ’ve also contribute , as it seems the piece of writing plan change at the last second , according to Executive Producer Sara Hess when speaking withEW .
Custom image by Yailin Chacon
3Some Of HOTD’s Best Scenes Felt Contrived
House Of The Dragon Forces Characters Into Dangerous Situations For Drama
In an effort to meliorate the length between the main fictitious character , House of the Dragonfound ways to get characters together . The twoprimary object lesson are the scenes partake in by Rhaenyra and Alicent , which do n’t occur in the books . These are fantastic scenes with leading writing and performances that enforce the show ’s chief themes , ideas , and overarching narratives . However , due to the nature of the war , they seem freaky .
needlessly pose the principal characters in perilous situation for dramatic purposes willalwaysreceive extra criticism .
The episode 3 scene where Rhaenyra pussyfoot into King ’s landing place is far - fetched . It ’s the kind of material interchangeable to the Rhaenys dragonpit prospect in time of year 1 , where a record book alteration is made that just raises so many questions about practicality that it almost does n’t seem worth it . Game of Thronesis held to a higher touchstone of realism than other fantasy show because of the subversive activity that the main eccentric could dieat any moment . Therefore , needlessly putting the primary eccentric in perilous situations for dramatic intent willalwaysreceive extra criticism .
2House Of The Dragon’s Season 2 Ending Sets Up Season 3 Perfectly
Season 3 Has To Fulfill Desires From Season 2
The terminus " countersink - up " has become a tip of thwarting surroundingHouse of the Dragon , peculiarly after time of year 1 ’s closing moments control Rhaenyra would be back for blood in season 2 . Now , another time of year 2 closing curtain that " sets up " the come up state of war is clearly frustrating . However , it ’s important to mention thatonly two seasons rest , and many battles and decisive events are spread out between them .
All the Westerosi armies surround the Crownlands and Riverlands now , and they have no choice but to clash .
For audiences who wanted more natural process , consider it this way : US Army take time to mobilize in Westeros , and season 2 significantly show the difficulties and hesitancy that go into amass forces for warfare . It ’s like a chess gameboard , where all the pieces ask to be set up and move toward the center of the board . Thepieces demand to be put in their proper places organically , but once that ’s been done , the pace quickens , and they start captivate each other . All the Westerosi armies surround the Crownlands and Riverlands now , and they have no choice but to collide .
1HOTD’s Use Of Aegon’s Dream Is A Mixed Bag, But There’s Thematic Importance To It
The Use Of Aegon’s Dream Is About Targaryen Elitism Leading To War
The incorporation of Aegon ’s Dream intoHouse of the Dragonhas get mixed reception . There ’s a thwarting that naturally descend with it , as though it allows some connectivity between the two shows ; it ’s also just a reminder that the terminate ofGame of Throneswas horrible . The time of year 2 finale even went as far as to show the dream , with Daemon ’s arc shifting because of it . There was some dismay about what the vision implies , but that seems to miss the point of it .
As showrunner Ryan Condal toldEW:“We are not trying to make any kind of specific interpretation of a divination that has yet to be revealed by its writer . " Showing Daenerys in the vision does n’t imply that she was the Prince That Was Promised inGame of Thrones;it implies that the Targaryen family , specifically Aegon the Conqueror , envisions itself as the the Nazarene that need to govern . This sorting of prophetic ego - grandness then becomes a major proponent ofHouse of the Dragon’swars , leading to thousands of innocents dying . That ’s worthwhile thematic value .
Sources : THR , EW , EW
take away place about 172 geezerhood before the events ofGame of Thrones , House of the Dragontells the fib of the rise of the Targaryens , the only family of dragonlords to survive the Doom of Valyria . The popular HBO spinoff show first starred Milly Alcock and Emily Carey as Rhaenyra Targaryen and Alicent Hightower before they were replaced by Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke , who play the older versions of the character . Also starring in the series is Matt Smith ( Prince Daemon Targaryen ) and Paddy Considine as Rhaenyra ’s male parent , King Viserys Targaryen .
