Review Of “House Of The Dragon” Season 2

Though it might be overly talky at times, HBO’s expansive “Game of Thrones” prequel excels when it moves into action. As the first episode of HBO’s massive prequel series to Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, unfolds, many viewers may find themselves playing intensive catch-up on Google as it has been over a year and a half since the first season. Once more, who are all these quarreling nobles? Whose heir, uncle, and/or lover is it, exactly? Why are blond wigs so unpleasant looking?

Story Of House Of The Dragon

In Westeros, competitors who each think they are the legitimate heirs to the Iron Throne plot in their strongholds, raising the drumbeats of oncoming conflict. In King’s Landing, the immature young King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) plays around with his newfound ability. Still, his parents, Ser Otto (Rhys Ifans) and Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) would much rather make more considered choices for themselves. In Dragonstone, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) is the wife of her cruel uncle Daemon (Matt Smith), who would stop at nothing to regain the throne for her—or, more likely, for himself.

While the males are lured to fame, gore, and dubious decisions, the women, for the most part, cling to a sliver of humanity amid their ambition in the hopes of averting huge slaughter. (“Soon they will never remember what started the war in the first place,” observes Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys, Rhaenyra’s seasoned ally.) Indeed, dragons exist; they represent the nuclear option with fire and smoke, and the war councils are debating how best to use them.

In fact, far too many scenes still include people bickering in what is essentially the medieval version of conference rooms. The best parts of House of the Dragon are when it goes into action, from cunning assassinations to epic battles to the occasional irate dragon. However, the characters aren’t as memorable as those on Game of Thrones

On Sunday, June 16 at 9 p.m., HBO will debut House of the Dragon season 2, which will also be streamed on Max.

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