It’s finished! After a nearly two-year hiatus, House of the Dragon is back. The Targaryens are once again weaving intrigues, flying on dragons and, most importantly, exterminating each other without mercy. The first episode gave me a couple of surprising moments and made me eagerly wait for the sequel. What’s so exciting about the beginning of the season and what exactly happened in it?
“The House of the Dragon”: information about the series
Name: Dragon House. Directors: Claire Kilner, Geeta Vasant Patel, Greg Yaitan and others. Actors: Matt Smith, Emma D’Arcy, Olivia Cooke and others. Season 2 Release Date: June 17, 2024. End of the second season: August 5, 2024. Gender: fantasy, theater. How many episodes: 8 episodes. A country: USA
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“The House of the Dragon”: where to watch?
The sequel premiered in the online cinema Max. There is no official Russian translation, but fan-created voiceovers and subtitles are already available online. In Russia, Amediateka legally showed the first season, but nothing is known about the release of the second season there.
The video is available on Kinoman’s YouTube channel. The video rights belong to HBO.
The start of the season is calm and crazy at the same time
In the first season, the writers spent a lot of time placing pieces on the board, creating conflict and slowly ending the hope for peace. Only in the end did civil war become inevitable.
Many spectators expected the continuation of the campaign, a sea of blood, the promised “explosion of a powder keg.” But in the first episode of the second season, all this is not there. Before us is still a viscous series that draws you in with its reverent elaboration of every small detail.
The characters have long conversations in the Small Council, whispering on the sidelines and paying closer attention to apparently trivial things. The nuance is that there is no nonsense in “The House of the Dragon.” Sooner or later, any nonsense becomes Chekhov’s gun and shoots, even if he is a madman talking about rats.
Daemon and Rhaenyra are still great
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
Combined with the explosive finale, this development is reminiscent of Game of Thrones at its finest. The viewer is prepared for something important for a long time and then is stunned by the outcome: ruthless, unfair, unpleasant. Then first you sprinkle ashes on your head and fall into depression, and then you understand: unlike most modern television series, “House of the Dragon” generates real emotions and encourages heated discussions. The dull Netflix and Disney series never dreamed of this.
The effect is further enhanced by acting. What is the face of Alicent, who lights candles for the dead? Every name mentioned reflects on her face, causing her eyes to water and her thoughts to become confused. The heroine does not share her experiences and she does not cry bitterly, but the viewer even without this feels the fullness of her inner pain. This applies to every character, from Rhaenyra to the puny Pale Leech. As a result, the “don’t tell, show” rule fully works.
Alicent is going through the war hard.
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
Maybe the first episode lacks dynamics, but it still gives me only one thought in my head: “Well, how can we now wait for the sequel?” Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait a whole week.
Summary of the events of the first season.
In last season’s finale, Rhaenyra sent her son Jacaerys to the North. The young man reaches the frozen edges and negotiates with Kreegan Stark. The young Warden of the North is very busy, but he looks warmly at Jackairys, tells him stories of the past, and agrees to support the blacks with two thousand warriors. The Arren also sign an alliance in exchange for a dragon that will protect the Valley. At the end of the negotiations, Jacaerys receives a letter from Dragonstone. From there, the boy learns of the death of his younger brother, Luceris, and returns to his mother.
Journey to the north
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
Damon seeks revenge and invites Rhaenys to attack Aemond together. In response, the wise woman restrains the rebel: he will go into battle only by order of the queen. But Rhaenyra turned away from his followers and sank into grief. Only when the waves drag the dragon’s wing and his son’s cloak to the shore do they decide to act. At the meeting, she says, “I need Aemond.”
Rhaenyra with her son
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
Right now, there is confusion in the ranks of the Greens, because King Aegon is either stupid or going crazy. At the Council he humiliates Tiland Lannister and at a meeting with the people he makes unrealistic promises. The Hand of Otto Hightower is holding the young man back for now, but everyone around him, including his friends and the cunning Larissa Strong, are pressuring Aegon to take decisive action.
The king’s wife, Helaine, is also restless. She is constantly afraid of something, but Aegon assures her: the Blacks will not fly to King’s Landing on dragons. Helaena replies that she is not afraid of dragons, but of rats.
Aegon made a not so passive king
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
The Black Fleet stops a ship carrying the famous trader of secrets, Pale Leech. Damon promises her freedom in exchange for a couple of secrets and the woman accepts. Soon, Damon sails incognito to King’s Landing and strikes a deal with a former comrade of the royal guard and the piper of the Red Keep. He asks them to sneak into the castle and kill Aemond or another of Alicent’s descendants.
The Pied Piper knows all the secret passages in the Red Keep, so the mercenaries sneak into Queen Helaine’s bedroom and see her two children. They force the queen to reveal which of the children is the son and then mercilessly kill young Maelor. But Aegon loved his son very much and even took him to the Small Council.
Aegon sneaks into King’s Landing
Photo: frame from the series The House of the Dragon
When in the second episode?
The new episode of the second season will premiere on June 24. It looks like we’ll see Maelor’s funeral and the Greens’ reaction to the murder. Obviously, King Aegon will be furious. If before Otto Hightower wanted to act carefully, now he will be forced to wage war decisively and bloodily.
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Video from the Max channel. The rights belong to HBO.
