HOUSE OF THE DRAGON S02EP1

DISCLAIMER: Do not read this review unless you have seen the first episode of House of the Dragon, season 2, as it contains a lot of spoilers!

The new opening sequence with the iconic theme song plays right away, and it's stunning! Different from the more "modern" Game of Thrones start, it truly sets the tone for a story about historical events by having the plot sewn onto cloth.

With a voiceover from a Stark and a raven soaring over Winterfell, they truly know how to delight the audience. A fantasy world doesn't need a billion-dollar Disney princess color scheme to look amazing; Rings of Power could learn a lot from House of the Dragon. Everything about the movie, from the soundtrack to the set design to the broad panoramas over the landscape, is stunning.

Seeing Lord Cregan Stark on the Wall and Prince Jacaerys Velaryon asking for help in the upcoming Iron Throne battles was exciting. Although the lack of Cregan Stark may frustrate Fire & Blood viewers, this is a drama that thrives when it isn't spread out over a whole continent.

House of the Dragon is a well-crafted political fantasy story that is primarily recounted from the perspectives of the people in their individual thrones, and it works effectively that way. Of course we should occasionally go on adventures, but if we introduce too many new characters and force them to take up a lot of screen time in order to establish their identities and desires, we lose out on screen time with the primary Targaryen and Velaryon group.

After that, there is a scene in which Rhaenys Targaryen, exhausted from riding her dragon through the blockage, returns, and Daemon "orders" her to get back in the saddle so they can both search for Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. One of the scenes where House of the Dragon excels is this one! There's a lot of subtext, so you have to go past the obvious and pay attention to what their facial expressions reveal rather than what they say. This show is incredibly entertaining to watch, and its creators are incredibly brilliant!

It is necessary to discuss Tom Glynn-Carney's portrayal of King Aegon II Targaryen, as he is an excellent choice for the part! This figure has no notion how to rule; he is only King because he is ordered to be so. He's not inherently more evil or vicious than the society he rules over; rather, he's just trying to play a game he doesn't understand.

A wonderful illustration of this is provided by the show when King Aegon II is forced to hear requests from the "small folk," and he makes a few clear mistakes because he wants to please them and make them happy, but he is unable to be their friends and fulfill their wishes.

The reaction of Aegon II, upon receiving the foreboding hint from his spouse, Queen Helaena Targaryen, reveals how little he actually pays attention or seems concerned. Since he cannot find a solution for his wife, he leaves her in a room distance from where he is, to be cared for.

Every spectator will go crazy because Alicent Hightower and Ser Criston Cole are hitting it off! Were these not the same two who derided Rhaenyra Targaryen for identical deeds? The viewers now have even more reason to despise them—not that Criston Cole doesn't receive enough hate from the fan base—because it doesn't make sense to turn Rhaenyra away, shun her, and then do what she was doing!

This is a beautiful sequence that echoes the scenes at the end of the show, as it occurs directly after the one in which Helaena Targaryen confides in the King about her dread of rats. It's just wonderful to have gifted and experienced show creators! (unlike with The Acolyte, Rings of Power… and so many more).

We are now at King Aegon II's little council meeting, which is one of my favorite scenes in the entire episode. The Lannisters are still portrayed as timid, snivelling worms. For readers of the books and Game of Thrones, it's a fun portrayal!

Another instance of Aegon's unfitness for the throne is the council meeting, where he prefers to play games and have fun than consider hard choices. He appears sad but perhaps a little humiliated when he is gently reminded that decisions must be made. Perhaps one of the most intriguing characters in House of the Dragon, in my opinion, is King Aegon II.

After twenty-five minutes, Emma D'Arcy's outstanding portrayal of Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, who is mourning the death of one of her sons, is eventually revealed. Their portrayal of a bereaved mother is horrifying; when Queen Rhaenyra discovers what's left of her son and his dragon, she sobs, and Rhaenyra's dragon, the other mother, also sobs because her child was also slaughtered. I will always remember that scenario because it is so brilliant.

The connection between Otto and Alicent Hightower, father and daughter, is an interesting development. Alicent believes that her father is removing her authority over her son, King Aegon II, and undermining her in front of all the other men in the council. Otto says this was an accident and that their goals are the same, but I can never get over how creepy that guy is.

The characters in this episode are oddly honest with one another; this suggests that either they are lying to one other in an effort to outwit one another, or they are being sincere. We'll see.

Entering her much darker, candlelit council meeting, Rhaenyra Targaryen gives us the best delivery of the one phrase she gets to say in this episode before leaving once more. These modest, understated moments are what set House of the Dragon apart; it's amazing how these characters can be both fierce and badass in the same instant.

She therefore desires the death of one of Alicent's sons, ideally the well-liked Aemond Targaryen, the King's brother and the assassin of Rhaenyra's son. You can tell right away that won't work on that character, but who will die if someone is going to die?

The viewer is dealt a stomach punch by the response. Helaena Targaryen observes her son's murder at the hands of Prince Daemon Targaryen's "ratcatchers." After realizing her fear, she flees with her daughter in search of Alicent, only to discover the King's mother once more having an affair with Ser Criston Cole.

You can only image how much worse things will get for Rhaenyra and Alicent in this conflict. There might have been a slim but realistic hope of peace prior to this atrocity. There will be blood now.