House of the Dragon - Episode 2 Season 1 | a Review
originally published on 20/09/2022;
Hello everyone, I am the son who has made himself, G.E.M.Simov, in all my shoddily cobbled together glory, here to tell you all about the Second Episode of the First Season of the serial film: “House of the Dragon”.
Simple review details - I try to rank films on an out of 10 basis, granting up to 3 points in 3 categories, as well as a last, single point from my own self, depending on my experience with it. Due to the fact that this is a fundamentally unfinished work, both from a perspective of a beginning and an ending, I will have to slightly change up my criteria, and follow up the collection of episodic reviews with a review for the season, collectively, in which I will be able to present everything that needs to be said in as complete a manner as possible.
In addition, as a disclaimer, I might refer to this episode as ‘the movie’ or ‘the film’ (used interchangeably), by merit of the fact that it is an hour long. As a secondary disclaimer, I will abstract myself wholly from the idea of having read “A Song of Ice and Fire”, as well as the idea of having watched “Game of Thrones”, and will attempt to view and judge this based on its own merits, as its own thing.
Presentation
This episode of House of the Dragon (henceforth HOTD) starts off with something that was missing from the previous episode. This time there is an introductory sequence, which is somewhat similar to what was present in Game of Thrones, but the similarities are very lacking.
The first similarity is the music that accompanies the visuals. It is, simply put, the GOT theme. Again - that could be one of two things, though I feel as though it is probably the latter. The first thing that it could be is just a decision on saving time and making use of a good piece of music by recycling it, whilst also bringing up the ‘similarity’ or rather the ‘familiarity’ rating of the show.
The second, and far likelier option, is that the music track was used as a means of making the viewer associate HOTD with GOT in the best way possible, thus pushing the viewer over the edge of the precipice. That precipice is the one associated with experience, and, more importantly, the experience relating to a thing.
When HOTD makes use of the GOT music so haphazardly, HOTD makes a very conscious attempt of eliciting memories from GOT. The presence of these memories, which are almost always going to be good memories, as the point in time at which the GOT theme would have become remembered by viewers is definitely not the last few seasons (the sub-par ones), and thus the memories affect the experience in a certain way - in a positive way.
However, this effect on the experience is not earned by the show itself, due to the fact these memories are not created by the show. That’s like me having a great opinion of Dwayne the Rock Johnson for his work in WWE, but then me going on to watch him in one of his many movies and being very glad to see him. The experience of me seeing the movie would he improved, but it would be improved for reasons outside of the movie. I feel as though that’s a naughty move.
In any case, the music is not the only issue of this introduction. Whereas the GOT introduction features some coherency and understandability, as well as a sense of visual clarity, this one is a bit of a mess. Halfway through it I started thinking to myself that what was being depicted was not a river of blood, as in bloodshed, but more of a line of blood, as in a bloodline. However, I maintain that this is very incoherent.
The viewer figures out that the thing on display is an ancestry tree. That is, however, everything that they figure out, as it is all set in some kind of town, or city, and then there’s no indication of who the circles getting ‘activated’ by the bloodline are meant to represent (aside from, perhaps, the names flashing on the screen). It’s very wonky and I found it to be uninspiring, visually, which leaves it a waste of time, quite like the GOT introduction, but without the aspect of it being interesting to look at.
With that being said, the introductory sequence is a minor thing to complain about, and even if it has problems it always features the ability to simply be skipped, as it is incredibly unimportant. We can go onto something else - Sound Effects (SFX). In the previous episode, I was left impressed by the quality of the SFX. In this episode, I’ve no great things to point at and say: “that’s not right”, even if there is one example of something that left me bothered.
There’s a scene in which Alicent and the princess Rhaenyra (her name is so bothersome to write that I’ll refer to her as ‘the princess’) go to the church. In the church, Alicent lights a candle and there’s a very pronounced hissing sound when that occurs, but when the princess lights a candle of her own, there is no such hissing sound. Of course, I am no expert on candle noises - in fact, I suppose that candles ought not to make noises - but this appeared to be an inconsistency and it left me really confused, unreasonably so, as to why it was that Alicent’s candle hissed while Rhaenyra’s did not.
Was there meaning to it? Did it emphasize their devotion and willingness to turn to the Gods, with that of Alicent being far more fiery and expressive, as in powerful, than that of the princess, due to the approaches they exhibit in the face of, well, the gods? Or was it just something that happened? Or was it added in post? Or was it meant to symbolize the hiss of a snake, and mainly the perceived treasonous affiliation of the reptile in question?
I will be spoiling the episode, ladies, gentlemen and N-bees, but in the Story part of the review, so fear not for now.
Other than that, though, I’ve no great complaints in regards to the SFX. As previously stated, if the SFX are not too noticeable, if there’s nothing to point out, then they’ve been done very well.
Music, though, is another bug entirely. It came to my attention whilst I was watching the episode, far more than it did in the first episode. There was, I suppose, more room for music, and the music that was fit within that room was a bit more striking and impressive than its counterparts in episode 1.
Still, there were a few moments which left me thinking about the music being used and how empty it rung. As a result, the music is still just passable, even if there were some interesting tracks.
Now, onto scenes. Onto the real nitty and gritty of presentation.
I liked them. This episode had very little of what I’d characterize as an issue. In fact, there were some very interesting scenes, the visuals of which emphasized the point that was being made by the story, or, rather, the film itself.
When the King is walking side by side with the lady who’s courting him, with courting being placed in quotation marks, the shot is long. It is very, very long, allowing the audience to enjoy the juxtaposition of the two. One, an old, slightly tubby man in his forties, the other - a child. And the context of the scene is incredibly unnerving, even if the scene itself does not contain that much foul text.
The scene does something very neat, for me, and that’s the utilization of a long, long shot. It’s almost 2/3ds of a minute long, and it really emphasizes the differences between the two people in it. Makes one think to themselves of how absolutely ridiculous the concept is, and does it in a convincing manner, yet without truly forcing itself on the viewer… Even if it is heavy-handed.
One other thing that this episode did was make me both like Otto Hightower (hand of the King) a lot more, whilst also disliking him a fair bit, but that’s bound to the story. In fact, there’s a lot less I feel the need to say in relation to the presentation of the episode. Things were well done. Quite well done, but my gripes are still bothersome enough for me that I can’t give it as great a grade as it probably deserves. 2/3
Acting
In this episode, I was left far more impressed by the acting of the actors than I was in the previous one. Well, that is in relation to the performances provided by certain actors - mainly by Emily Alcock and Emily Carey, as in this episode there was none of the woodenness that I pointed at when talking about the previous one. In fact, this one featured some very decent stuff from them, with what I’d like to describe as very human performances.
Watching this episode, and then watching it again, I found it almost challenging to find some problem with the performances. Of course, I am no expert in this field, so I may lack the knowledge pertaining to what I need to be able to point out. The only issue, which issue I suppose is bound to the monstrously exaggerated accent, but I can’t, for the life of me, get behind the things Sonoya Mizuno’s character, Mysaria, is saying. Not because they’re nonsense, but because they almost sound like nonsense.
Do I need subtitles for them? Maybe, because I actually struggle with figuring out what she’s saying half the time. Is that a dig on her performance? I can’t tell. Maybe it’s a problem with the way she was instructed to play her character. It’s so… Strange, I’d like to call it, but then, again, it might not be the fault of the performer.
Even with that, I’ll say it’s a good show from everyone… Even the child actor, so that’s something. In relation to that, Laena’s actress gives a convincing performance. When she starts talking about Balerion, there’s excitement of the proper variety in her voice, and her stance is relaxed and natural, but when she starts saying what her father told her to say, it becomes a whole different beast. Very convincing. 3/3
Story
This episode was a lot more interesting than its predecessor. I suppose that comes from the fact that the first episode of HOTD was based entirely on introducing the characters and laying the foundations for the conflicts, whatever they may be. With an episode like that… Well, the writers apparently failed at doing something truly impressive and interesting.
Fortunately, the fact that it was competently written did something else - it allowed for that competent base to be utilized as what it was, a foundation, and thus be built upon in a satisfying fashion.
This episode introduces a lot of questions. Far, far more questions than the previous episode, or at least so it seems, due to the grandness of the questions. One of those would be: “What does Daemon want?” and another would be: “What’s with the Crab Feeder?”
These two questions are asked at a few points in the episode, and between these points the audience can find a number of other questions, which questions are a bit more minor than the aforementioned pair, but which questions are still well enough presented that they can be the root of conflict.
The episode was still doing a lot of introducing, though it was less of the ‘initial introduction’ and more of a ‘expansive introduction’, in the sense that the characters are not yet well enough known to get development, but the means through which they are being introduced are so devised that they can be mistaken for development.
Off of the first episode, the audience did not get to know every character. Off of this episode, the audience does not get to know every character either, but there is a lot more that gets shown to the viewer, and, thus, a lot more that’s found out about them. The repertoire of characters who have been properly introduced is, by now, growing at a very wonderful pace, and with that there is a lot of room for conflict now.
The episode does just that, of course - introduces conflict through the characters that the audience has gotten to know. In fact, it barely waits - half the conflicts that wind up being introduced in this episode happen off of 1 character that is well developed from the previous episode and then the other characters involved in the conflict are in the process of being developed.
When I say developed, I am visualizing the development of film, or of a picture - where at one point there is nothing, or just a black splotch, and then, over time, that black splotch becomes something.
One thing that DID bother me, however, are the decisions that get made by some of the characters. Some of them appear very, very strange, very unlike what the characters would do, even if they are being built up as reasonable… In half the cases of decisions that I find bothersome, at least.
With that being said, I will now spoil the story of this episode.
We open up with the Crab Feeder’s handiwork, very nasty, followed by a small council meeting, to which Corlys Velaryon shows up late and is explosively displeased by the fact that the Crab Feeder is doing his thing. There’s a tiny verbal conflict, Rhaenyra makes an offer appreciated by Corlys and disliked by everyone else, at which point she is sent to pick a knight to work as the King’s guard.
She isn’t that well versed in politics, as Otto Hightower gives her advice on what to say, and tries to correct her choice when she picks the only knight with battle experience (who happens to have no belonging to a noble house and also beat Daemon in that tournament that took place half a year ago [passage of time revealed in dialogue]). The princess doesn’t budge and Criston Cole becomes King’s guard.
Then we have a scene featuring Alicent and the King, the two of them talking about stuff - as has evidently become the norm for the pair - with a dragon statuette being dropped by the King and breaking. Following that, Alicent and the princess go to the church (whatever it was called) and have a nice moment showcasing their friendship, their closeness to one another and the emotional instability of the princess, as she appears to have been holding back her emotions and is still looking for a means of dealing with her mother’s passing (much like her father).
The King has a meeting with Corlys and his wife, Rhaenys Targaryen (what are these names). The King showcases that he is a good King (in the eyes of yours truly), but quite soft, as he goes on to have a conversation with them. They, on the other hand, are very blunt in their words towards him, but there is a sense of… I want to say familiarity and even friendship between them, even if that’s more applicable to the King and Rhaenys than to the King and Corlys.
The pair proposes that Viserys marries their daughter, Laena, and the King is a little flabbergasted. Following that, Viserys has a chat over dinner with the princess and it is evident that both of them are struggling to talk to one another - as has been getting revealed in the episode through their interactions with Alicent - but they make it work, even if it is awkward.
They have an interaction that goes by very interestingly, which is in relation to the princess’ proposition at the small council. The King, I feel, has no ill will as a result of that interjection, and his words are ones that come from a good place, but he interrupts the princess, and, judging by her facial expression, she takes it the wrong way. Teenager talking to her dad, that’s what it is, and it’s very believable.
More stuff gets shown - the finger that the King pricked on the Iron Throne when he banished Daemon in the previous episode, which was something that I did not consider to be too important, but in hindsight, when combined with the statement in relation to the wound he was dealing with caused FROM sitting on the Iron Throne, this could be a metaphor.
Err, yes, so the finger he pricked on the Iron Throne is rotting, and they’re trying to figure out what to do with it. This scene is quite neat because it features two things happening at the same time - the metaphor comes to the foreground, while the characters discuss the things from the episode. Otto and the King chat about Corlys’ proposal, and the grand maester chimes in. Then Otto says something that left an impression.
“You are the King, but I do not envy you.”
That was a very interesting line, because it mixes in with the metaphor quite well. Being seated on the Throne - the Iron Throne in this case - is not good for Viserys. Being King is slowly killing him, and I think that this is owed up to the fact that he is a good person. Being a good, worthy, even, person means that one would not want to be King. In the case of Viserys, it seems as though that was what actually happened, for the more I watch, the more evident it is that spending time at court is draining Viserys.
The funny thing here is that the system is the problem, not the fact that he is King. If he were King and the system operated differently, then there would have been no such issue. But, due to the fact that there are so many things that interfere with the humanity of the King, or at least the humane part of the King’s humanity, which things stem from the system, the act of being King is detrimental.
That’s quite neat, and it could also be considered one of the show’s themes. At least, it could be one of the show’s themes for as long as Viserys is King, but I’m not too certain that will be the case. I feel it in my bones - good characters get the knife in these settings… So when is Viserys going to get the knife?
Either way, the two present members of the small council confirm that Laena is a good choice, and then the King has a… A meeting with her? A walk? That walk exemplifies how crooked and horrible the system is. The King is a middle-aged man and Laena is 12 years old. And the fact that the system is in favor of him getting married to her bothers me to no ends, as it is meant to bother the viewer. It also bothers the King, and that just goes on to show just how good a person Viserys is.
While the King is being mentally tortured, the princess and the other princess (Rhaenys) have a chat about how things are. The system, of course. The order of things (the system). The conversation is a bit dreary and uninspiring, because it is drenched in rhetoric that I’ve heard so many times it has become painful to listen to (not because it is wrong, mind you). It faces the same issues, I suppose, as the concept of the woman’s place in the world did in the previous episode.
There’s this problem - women - but then all the other social issues aren’t really issues… Even if there are some flashes of other problems being touched on. Either way, what I found interesting about their conversation is the dynamic between them.
I feel as though Rhaenys has no ill will towards the princess. I like that, if it were true.
Either way, the film goes on. Viserys is having lunch and chatting with Alicent, when she presents him with a gift - that broken dragon statue but mended. Viserys is thankful, but then Otto knocks on the door and announces small council meeting, very important.
Turns out a dragon egg has been stolen - by Daemon - and the King’s approach is soft, but then the princess inquires which egg was stolen, and it turns out to be the one she had picked out for her brother’s crib. Then the King’s approach becomes very, VERY hard, but Otto manages to convince him to go in his stead, as it is dangerous.
Then… Well, then there’s a scene of Otto preparing himself and having a little moment with Alicent. This moment with Alicent confirms the suspicions I had from the first episode - when the hand of the king started sending his daughter to the King. Otto indirectly tells her to do the thing. The thing is, of course, left up to the audience to figure out, but it’s easy to tell what the thing is, especially in the context of the ‘eyes’ the two - Alicent and Viserys - have been throwing at one another in their televised encounters.
Otto sets off for Dragonstone, where Daemon is ‘squatting’, and they have an exclusively verbal (but barely) confrontation, in which I found myself liking Otto more and more. Now, of course, the fact that he is forcing his daughter to get close to the King (as a means of getting his own standing in the King’s eyes even higher and getting his bloodline to sit on the throne) makes me really dislike him.
In fact, the things he says during the confrontation with Daemon don’t make me like him as a person, but I just find myself liking the character. It’s an interesting character, in my eyes. Either way, stuff almost gets bloody, but SURPRISE (a bad one) the princess has appeared, riding her dragon.
How did she know that this was the appropriate time? Did she calculate how long it would take Otto and his men to get to Dragonstone on boat and at what point in time, exactly, they would meet with Daemon? Or did she follow them covertly throughout the entire thing? Very many unlikely things.
This was a very wonky appearance, but then if we ignore the wonkiness of the appearance, the following encounter was very, VERY interesting. It seems as though Daemon is putting on a show. That is further confirmed in the following scene, in which Daemon talks with Mysaria (his concubine), whom he had announced as his soon-to-be wife, also pregnant with his child.
The fact he has taken over (or rather occupied) Dragonstone seems to also be part of the big show he’s putting on, as does the theft of the dragon egg (which he returns) and the big bold claim that he is the rightful heir to the throne. When the princess arrives, she tells him to off her right there if she’s the object of his ire, but instead he has a long moment of contemplation and leaves without a word, handing her the egg.
Very neat encounter, very cool. I quite liked it for the characters - the fact that Daemon is becoming more and more enigmatic and developed, with his wants being so unknown to the viewers it’s incredible… And then also the princess’ audacity and boldness - very cool.
I’m still really, REALLY displeased by the ‘suddenly princess at the PERFECT moment in time’. That’s a big ex-machina, a big artificial save or solution to the trepidation.
The aforementioned following scene features Mysaria talking with Daemon and uncovering some very compelling questions that are in need of answers. It also propels Daemon further into being an interesting character who does not seem to be a wholly bad person. Makes him likable, frankly.
Then the King is having a one-on-one, unencumbered opinion delivered to him by one of the members of the small council - Lyonel Strong, whose name I only know because of IMDB. The opinion relates to Laena Velaryon, and sir Strong is in support of the King marrying her. When he says ‘good stock’ I cringed violently, but that’s, I suppose, an appropriate term to use - for the age and for the social situation in it.
Suddenly, though, the princess’ return from Dragonstone is announced, and Viserys is perplexed. There’s a conversation between the two, in which the king shows that he truly cares for her via his emotional outburst (which, notice, does not involve any violence of any kind - but then again when has that expressed care and affection?), and then they discuss the obligation he has, as King, to marry anew.
So, what do we, as the audience, expect? Everyone has told Viserys: “Get married, specifically to Laena Velaryon.” The grand maester, the hand of the king, the master of Ships, sir Strong, his favorite cousin (Rhaenys) - they’re all in support. Even the princess informs him that she understands that he needs to do it and supports him in doing so. And the King is shown as being very reasonable and VERY careful, right? Especially in his dealings with things that could potentially lead to big trouble.
So then there’s a small council meeting and he announces he is going to be marrying Alicent Hightower. Now, the scene is very good, as it shows a lot of things that are good to be shown. It shows us what the King is going to say before he says it. Even so, this… This is a bad call. It feels like a bad call. It feels as though it is a call that he should not have made, though it is a call that is slightly foreshadowed.
The eyes he was exchanging with Alicent, the six months he has spent interacting with her on a very regular basis, and the fact that he ponders the refusal of Lord Corlys’ offer when getting the unencumbered opinion from Lyonel Strong - those are indications that he would make that decision. Still, though, it is a very weird decision, whilst simultaneously being a bit of a compromise.
On the one hand, he is getting married. Is he getting married out of love? I can’t quite tell, but it could be that he has fallen in love with Alicent, so perhaps it is so. Then, there’s the fact she’s more of age than Laena, and she’s also very well acquainted with the King. In addition to that, it seems only Corlys is upset by that decision, and it appears as though everyone else might not be so against it.
On the other hand, though, there’s the fact that Lord Corlys is a very, very influential person… Bah, I don’t know. I’m not a politician, and I find politics, especially when mired in personal, selfish motivations, are not actually politics, or if they were, then they are the worst kind of politics. I just find this to be a very weird maneuver.
Lastly, the episode ends with Corlys having a conversation with Daemon, in which conversation he is trying to join forces with Daemon so that he can deal with the problem of the Crab Feeder. Daemon is shown to have some weird form of respect, perhaps care for his brother, when he reprimands Corlys for speaking ill of him.
It smells of rebellion… But it is interesting. It is well done, well delivered, engaging - it’s just good stuff.
Overall, though, this one was no flower to be smelled. It could’ve been a lot better, even if it was good. As a result of that, I’ll just point and say it is decent. It does a good job of giving the fire of curiosity food, provoking me into wanting to watch the following episodes… But it also has a few failings. 2/3
Legendary Point
Does this episode get the legendary point, so craved and wanted by all and none at the same time? Well, in short - NO, it does not get the point.
Going on about why at length feels as though it is going to be a pointless task, though, because I am simply not feeling it. I had a few moments in it that I liked, but there was not something that I particularly enjoyed, there was not something that stuck with me after I watched the episode. It was just a movie. 0/1
Conclusion
7/10. Fans of Game of Thrones, watch on and rejoice. It is good, although not breathtakingly spectacular. By comparison to what preceded it - the latter seasons of GOT - it’s a lot better. So I recommend it to those of you, dear readers, who like dark fantasy and Game of Thrones. Don’t watch it if you’re squeamish, though this is a bit better than the first episode.
I tuck it under my belt, another shining achievement that I proudly display. It could’ve been better, but alas.