‘House Of the Dragon’ Ep. Two: The Intro is Bad, Y’all

The second episode of House of the Dragon gives us intrigue, marriage, and an intro.

After a pretty strong start, House of the Dragon is back with a second episode. Overall, it’s another interesting episode with some great visuals. While it lacks some of the punch that the first episode brought, it also avoided some of the dumbest aspects of episode one.

***BEWARE, HERE BE SPOILERS***

Intro Time (It’s No GoT)

So let’s talk about that intro. The last episode didn’t contain one, but House Of the Dragon episode two brought back a classic GoT style intro. It’s probably the first thing people notice about the episode. Certainly, people complained about the lack of an intro in the first episode. Sadly, however, this new intro is just not very good.

Aping the original GoT intro this one is set to the main theme song, and shows a kind of clockwork scene, zooming around. This one seems to be a model of Old Valyria. Flowing through it are rivers of blood that seem to unlock clockwork seals. The seals seem to be a Targaryen family tree, noting at least some of the kings and queens. Maybe. The issue is that really nothing in the intro is super clear, especially to newcomers. The original Game of Thrones intro was not only visually catching but also informative. It showed people the world and gave a nice geography lesson.

This intro is just kind of confusing. I don’t think anyone who isn’t a super fan would learn a lot from it. Even most of the super fans I’ve seen are more confused than anything by the intro. By being in the same style as the GoT intro, it begs comparisons, and frankly, it’s lacking. It’s long, weird, and doesn’t tell you much. It just kind of sucks.

The Plot Thickens in House of the Dragon Episode Two

Episode two has two main plots it follows. The first is the need for King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine) to remarry after the death of his wife last episode. Throughout most of the episode, he is pushed to marry Laena Velaryon. Laena is his cushion and the daughter of the Sea Snake, making her a strong match from a political point of view. However, at 12 the King feels she is too young for him. In the background, Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans)  and his daughter Alicent (Emily Carey) are also making their moves. By the end of the second episode it pays off, Viserys rejects Laena and announces he will marry Alicent.

The other major plot thread is the brewing trouble in the Stepstones. From the start, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint) is pushing for the crown to do something about the region. Troops from the Triarchy have occupied the islands and are sinking ships from the Seven Kingdoms. Viserys keeps putting him off, however. After his daughter is rejected Corlys looks for an unlikely ally to take matters into his own hands: Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith). 

Family Matters are Big in Episode Two

via Ollie Upton/HBO

A couple of family threads run in the background through the episode. The main one deals with Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock in this episode) and Viserys. For the six months since the last episode, they haven’t really spoken. Greif seems to have driven them apart. Rhaenyra might be heir but she doesn’t feel secure in the position or that anyone takes her seriously.  She tries to take on some minor tasks, such as appointing Criston Cole to the Kingsguard. However, in a conversation with her cushion Rhaenys (Eve Best), she is told that men will never let her rule. Rhaenys’ should know, after all, that she was twice passed over for the throne.

Things come to head when Daemon, having seized Dragonstone, announces that he is going to take a second wife, and give her unborn child a dragon egg. Enraged the King sends Otto, his hand, to take back the egg and punish Daemon. It goes poorly, Daemon has more men and a dragon and doesn’t seem interested in giving up the egg. At this point, Rhaenyra shows up on her own dragon and challenges Daemon either give up or attack her directly. Daemon seems to have no heart to move against her, however. He gives up the egg and Dragonstone (the marriage and child turn out to be lies). Driven from Dragonstone Daemon joins up with the Sea Sanke to fight their own war.

The action finally gains Rhaenyra recognition and respect. However, the announcement of her father and Alicnet’s marriage at the end of House Of the Dragon episode two crushes her. She storms out of the small council room crying.

A Small Story So Far

Overall this was a slower, less impactful episode than the first. It focuses a lot more on characters and their development. With less time spent on a giant catch-up info dump, the show can breathe a little more and introduce some new factors. While this is nice, it’s also a major departure from the Game of Thrones we know. Whereas GoT had a massive sprawling story and wove together a ton of locations and plot lines, House of the Dragon goes the other way. So far the show has been very focused. Most of it has taken place in the Red Keep and nearby. The short jaunt to Dragonstone took us a bit more into the world, but it didn’t introduce any new characters. I’m sure things will start to sprawl out, but for now, the show is telling a tight, personal story.

Let us know what you thought of the episode, down in the comments! 

Author: Abe Apfel

Abe is that rare thing, an Austin local born and raised here. Though he keeps on moving around, DC, Japan, ETC., he always seems to find his way back eventually. Abe has decades of experience with a wide range of tabletop and RPG games, from historicals, to Star Wars to D&D and 40K. He has been contributing to BOLS since almost the start, back when he worked at and then owned a local gaming store. He used to be big into the competitive Warhammer tournament scene but age has mellowed him and he now appreciates a good casual match. He currently covers 40K tactics and lore, as well as all things Star Wars, with occasional dabbling in other topics. Abe remains in mourning over the loss of WFB to this day.