We’ve finally reached the end of another shocking—and curiously divisive—season of HBO’s House of the Dragon. Even though the first season set the stage for eight weeks of all-out war, season 2 was surprisingly tame for a show about draconian warfare. In fact, a few fans are calling these eight episodes a very long teaser for House Of The Dragon season 3.
Reestablish, Resume, Continue, Repeat
A handful of characters are back to square one after the events of House of the Dragon‘s last season. Rhaenyra continued her non-stop plotting, while Daemon spent the best part of this season meandering around Harrenhal. As much as the character development was on point for Aegon and Aemond, there’s a notable absence of the spectacle that fans have come to expect from A Song of Ice and Fire.
The ghost of Game of Thrones‘ later seasons still lingers for long-time franchise fans. Season 2 scored lower across the board than the show’s refreshing first season. It took Game of Thrones at least five seasons to reach that point, which isn’t reassuring for fans looking to House of the Dragon as some form of Westeros revival.
Another Game of Thrones?
In Game of Thrones‘ case, the series’ dwindling quality came about when the showrunners ran out of material written by George R.R. Martin. It makes perfect sense: Martin brought those characters to life first in the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss translating the source material into film. That’s not the same case at all for Fire & Blood.
Die-hard Martin fans know the chronicle of the Targaryen civil war reads more like a history book than your average novel. Fire & Blood, the basis for House of the Dragon, lacks the same in-depth character development the A Song of Ice and Fire books had. Most of the characterization and quirks we see on the show are completely made up by the showrunners to invest the audience further into this gripping conflict.
As much as Ryan Condal did an outstanding job this season, the lack of Miguel Sapochnik’s penchant for visual storytelling is almost palpable. As it stands, House Of The Dragon season 3 risks being a breaking point for fans who just want to see an epic war between dragonriders.
House Of The Dragon Season 3 Has To Up The Ante
The lore behind the Dance of the Dragons is fascinating, no doubt about it. That being said, the way House of the Dragons has balanced the political and familiar intrigue with the sparse action scenes leaves the show feeling more like a soap opera than a fantasy epic.
No one’s asking for a Michael Bay-style series where there are only dragons roasting people alive and castles exploding for no discernible reason. What fans want is a show that reminds them of why they loved Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon in the first place.
For a show like House of the Dragon, it’s all about the characters and their interactions. If the following seasons need to stray a bit further from Martin’s lore to become a more watchable experience, so be it. After all, it’s not like the whole “The Prince That Was Promised” prophecy at the core of House of the Dragon‘s dispute meant anything in Game of Thrones.
Tell us, do you think season 3 of House of the Dragon should stick the books or do its own thing?
House Of The Dragon |
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An internal succession war within House Targaryen at the height of its power, 172 years before the birth of Daenerys Targaryen. |
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| Creator: Ryan J. Condal, George R.R. Martin |
| Cast: Matt Smith, Emma D'Arcy, Olivia Cooke, Rhys Ifans, Graham McTavish, Fabien Frankel, Steve Toussaint, Eve Best, Ewan Mitchell, Paddy Considine, Milly Alcock, Emily Carey |
| Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama |
| Number of Seasons: 2 |
| Streaming Service: HBO Max |
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