House of the Dragon

After the less than spectacular conclusion of Game of Thrones, the arrival of the first season of House of the Dragon felt like a beacon of hope to fans of George R. R. Martin’s twisted, yet brilliant world of Westeros. A revival of Game of Thrones was in sight, and it must be said, the first season delivered on creating a worthy successor to the original show. The show would really be put to the test in its second season however, in an uphill battle to prove that the show’s initial success was not built on fan hype, and an ‘anything is an improvement’ mindset regarding Game of Thrones. So, did this season of House of the Dragon conquer that battle? 

In this review, we’ll be covering all the good and the bad that this stretch of episodes had to offer, and there’s a lot to discuss. We’ll be steering clear of spoilers for season two in this review, so feel free to read ahead before diving into the season for yourself – though this season is perhaps best experienced completely blind, to regulate expectations. Now, let’s talk about all the madness that Team Black and Team Green got up to this season!

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The Review

Image by HBO

House of the Dragon’s second season picks up right where the first season left off, and things are set into motion especially quickly for a season premiere. Without giving too much away, the first episode of the season highlights one of this season’s biggest strengths, that being evening the playing field between Team Black and Team Green in terms of fan favourability. Fans of the Fire & Blood book that House of the Dragon is based on have shared their criticisms of the show’s bias towards Team Black in the first season, while the book did a much better job of dividing its audience between both sides. Let’s just say that from the jump, season two seems to be more willing to represent the depravity that anyone can engage in when they find themselves a player in the world of Game of Thrones.

The season also draws some interesting parallels between the two sides. Though it was easy to forget in the wake of the conflict that kicked off in the closing episodes of season one, all of these characters did once co-operate under the banner of House Targaryen, and many of them are more similar than they would like to believe. In particular, the season presents some intriguing comparisons between Daemon and Alicent, two characters who could not be more opposed politically, yet seem to take up a similar role in their respective crowds. The season also allows some breathing room for some lesser represented characters to shine here. In particular, Rhaenys, Aegon, and Mysaria all come to the forefront as major players this season, and their enhanced roles, combined with excellent acting from all involved, make for a major plus for the series.

It’s not all good in the realm of character work though. While some of season one’s more subtle characters find their footing this season, season two also clumsily allows some of the show’s most intriguing characters to fade into the background themselves, a major misstep in such a dialogue-focused show. Namely, Lord Corlys really falls out of focus this season. This fall is particularly frustrating considering there are some events this season that should really place him at the centre of their aftermath, and yet, he’s given very little to do here. Larys Strong also nearly completely loses his status as a dangerous, potential successor to Game of Thrones’ Littlefinger, as we watch him fail to use chaos to manipulate many situations to his benefit, as Petyr Baelish would have done so elegantly. It’s a shame, as in particular, the second half of season one set Larys Strong up to be quite the silent villain, with no loyalties to anyone but himself. That really doesn’t pay off here, and his presence in the season is so understated, you may even forget he’s there.

Image by HBO

Some characters which were somewhat irritating before evolve into full-on unbearable this time around, namely Ser Criston Cole, who it’s so nearly impossible to enjoy at this point, that his scenes genuinely bring the mood of the show down each time he appears. Game of Thrones has had some despicable villains – Joffrey Baratheon made the blood boil at the mere sight of his face, and Ramsay Bolton was so evil that if Iwan Rheon hadn’t given such a stellar performance, he would have been almost comical to watch. Where these villains differ from Cole, however, is that they were eccentric, charismatic, and so entertaining to watch that ultimately, you loved to hate them. Cole drains the energy from each scene he appears in, through no fault of Fabien Frankel though, I must add. The character’s writing is just so full of blunt hypocrisy and failed bravado that he’s frustrating to watch, and honestly, a hindrance on the show’s pacing. Speaking of pacing, we now come to perhaps the biggest issue with season two there is.

‘The only thing that could tear down the House of the Dragon… was itself’. Those were the ominous words that opened the very first episode of the show two years ago, but now, it seems we can add poor pacing to the list of things that can, in fact, tear down the House of the Dragon. Before I explain my issues with this season’s pacing, I will say, I am no believer that any Game of Thrones story should move at breakneck speed. It’s important for stories like this to move slowly, patiently, and put political manipulation and character dynamics at the forefront. That’s the essence of Game of Thrones, so I wasn’t looking for more action this season. In fact, we got quite a fix of action in one of the best, if not the best, episodes of the season. Rather, I was looking for the show to move at all. Game of Thrones has always changed speed, often within its own episodes as it bounced between storylines. This season, however, not only changes speed – it slams so hard on the brakes following action-packed moments that viewers have to really cling on to not be flung off the ride.

Readers of Fire & Blood have commented online that each season of House of the Dragon is adapting a ridiculously low number of book pages as they go, and though I didn’t feel the lack of story movement in season one, to say I felt it here is an understatement. In particular, Daemon is responsible this season for one of the most boring storylines to not only curse House of the Dragon, but Game of Thrones in general, in what is largely a feckless, 1980s haunted house cameo fest, coupled with some horrendously bizarre visions that are more likely to disgust than intrigue. Each time an opportunity presented itself for this storyline to end, it didn’t, and we were forced to engage in another episode of ‘Daemon x Ghostbusters’ each week. The problem with this storyline is representative of a big challenge that faced House of the Dragon from the start. In Game of Thrones, there were so many storylines happening at once, featuring different locations and characters, that if you didn’t enjoy one storyline, you could rest assured that each episode would showcase at least five others that would entertain you. House of the Dragon is stuck with a much smaller cast of characters, and overall, a much more centred, smaller-scale story – so, when ‘Daemon’s Unsolved Mysteries’ comes on the screen, you feel its effect on the episode as a whole.

Image by HBO

There’s also the elephant in the room of the lower episode count than the last season. The story has now kicked into a much higher gear than the build-up we got in season one, so why this season is given two less episodes to work with than season one, which had ten, I will never know. What we do know is that the lower episode count was likely a decision on HBO’s part, and not that of the writers, which has me nervous that House of the Dragon may fall prey to the behind-the-scenes nonsense that Game of Thrones did in its final season. All the same, the lack of those extra two episodes are felt, particularly as the story moves towards the season finale, as viewers may find themselves resigning to the fact that they will, in fact, not get a satisfying conclusion to the season this time around. This mental resignation also negatively affects multiple storylines throughout the season, particularly that of the smallfolk, which had the potential to be a very interesting element of the show, but because it eats up the limited runtime we had, viewers turn against it and question its relevance to the show as a whole. Eight episodes was a very, very bad move, and hopefully next season will return to the ideal ten.

We’ve been on the negative for a while, so let’s get back to the good stuff, and close the review out on a high, as overall, I did enjoy the season, it just didn’t reach the heights I had hoped. As a namesake of the show, the dragons this season were excellently represented. Not only were they fearsome and terrifying, which was much helped by impressive cinematography, and intelligent use of light and dark environments, but they were filled with personality. It actually became easy to tell which dragon was which, not only by their visual appearance, but by how they act around humans. It’s a high praise for the season to say that they have managed to make these dragons feel like actual characters in this world, rather than just the mounts that characters sometimes ride into battle. The season also builds on a quote from season one – ‘the idea that we control the dragons is an illusion’. I won’t say much more on this to avoid spoilers, but let’s just say, the dragons are their own characters this season, which is a huge plus.

So what were my thoughts overall on the season? I think, ultimately, once we’ve had more seasons of the show to work with and enjoy, the season will be solid as a build-up season in hindsight. There were undeniable pacing issues, and some characters are unfortunately being mishandled, likely due to how little of the book is being adapted at a time, but the essence of Game of Thrones remains, and in episodes where the plot did move forward (you’ll know which episodes I mean when you see them), the show reaches the heights it needs to to maintain its solid reputation. So was this a bad season? Absolutely not. But, did this season make some fatal missteps that reduced its quality from the first season? Yes, and if the show is to recover and return to the prestige that Martin’s work should hold, the writers will need to take these errors into account and course correct for next season. Season three is rumoured to release in 2026, but we won’t have to wait that long to get our next Game of Thrones fix. A teaser trailer has been released for another spin-off in the world of Westeros, named A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and that show is set to release in 2025. The Game of Thrones revival seems to be upon us – let’s hope they don’t mess it up.

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Where to Watch House of the Dragon?

Image by HBO

House of the Dragon is a HBO original show, and is available to stream on HBO Max, alongside all eight seasons of Game of Thrones. For viewers outside of regions where Max is available, you can catch House of the Dragon on Now TV, and on demand in the Sky TV library – or, UK viewers can enjoy the show on HBO Max by referring to our guide on how to watch Max in the UK. No matter where you choose to watch, it’s a good time to get caught up on everything going on in Westeros in advance of House of the Dragon’s third season and the premiere of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms next year!

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