Look, I would never, ever outright complain about my job, but one of the actual cons when it comes to writing about movies and television is that I am oft-spoiled. I learned about Inception’s ending before I saw the movie and I know most of the beats of Sons of Anarchy’s big deaths despite having never watched the show. House of the Dragon is one arena in which we have enough people who cover that I can usually keep blinders on, but now that Season 2 reviews have dropped I just learned one little spoiler and I’m not even mad about it.
That’s right, ahead of House of the Dragon’s Season 2 premiere, reviews are dropping. One in particular over at Variety mentioned the new set of episodes open at Winterfell -- Winterfell, home of the Starks, and the same location where early scenes in Game of Thrones are also set. Per the review from Alison Herman:
We open not in King’s Landing or on Dragonstone, but at Winterfell, the seat of the Stark family whose own dissolution formed the spine of Game of Thrones. The point of the excursion north isn’t just to highlight historical parallels; it’s to indicate that House of the Dragon is shifting its focus from the intimate dynamics of the Targaryens to their disastrous, continent-spanning consequences.
Other reviews get a little more spoiler-y about what exactly to expect when new episodes finally hit the 2024 TV schedule, but suffice it to say this Stark injection is very exciting stuff. While it was, of course, very cool to see the Targaryens face off and it was even more invigorating to see the Team Green and Team Black trailers for Season 2, peppering the series with other familiar faces and families has been a real highlight for me.
Rickon Stark did pledge loyalty to Rhaenyra in Season 1, but the Starks haven't been a big component of the series so far. Given they often feel like the moral backbone in Westeros (for better or worse), I'm obsessed with seeing a bit more from them this season, particularly given how a lot of people keep commenting on this series being bleaker than the other show in the same universe.
What Is Everyone Else Saying About House Of The Dragon Season 2?
Looks like we are in for a real rollercoaster. First looks at Season 2 have been dropping over the last few days, and while people are a bit all over the place when it comes to whether or not they love the series, I think it’s safe to say there’s one thing they agree on: It’s “bolder” and “nastier.” The Atlantic’s Shirly Li admitted as much, echoing the previously mentioned Variety review in which the series was described as “bigger” but “bleaker,” and in which “grim spectacles” seem to be the highlight.
While some people are higher on this series compared to its predecessor than others, the general consensus seems to be that House of the Dragon Season 2 pulls no punches when it comes to the brutal world it inhabits. The San Francisco Chronicle’s Bob Strauss wrote it “thrives on blood.”
Like its predecessor, this prequel to HBO’s fantasy warhorse thrives on blood. … Cooler heads among the vast ensemble strive to prevent widespread destruction, an effort that proves as futile as trying to stop winter snow from falling.
Some critics have noted House of the Dragon Season 2 is an improvement on the first season of the hit show, which you can catch starting Sunday, June 13th with a Max subscription. A review at JoBlo from Alex Maidy says much the same, while hinting at a brutal moment that is yet to come.
I am confident in the improved pacing and structure of House of the Dragon. By having everything set in one time period, we have more time to invest in the characters, all more ingrained than last season. The premiere episode also boasts one of the most shocking moments to date and something that has repercussions throughout the first half of the season.
If that’s not enough of a tease, over at The Daily News, Dustin Chase pulls no punches with his own tease, revealing we won’t have to wait long to experience some wild stuff.
Episode 1 will have you tearing up, hairs on your arm raised, and certainly one, if not two, moments of hands covering your mouth in shock.
This all seems to come down to the war that has been brewing since the HBO drama first hit the airwaves and that is close to escalating during early episodes of the season. Mashable’s Belen Edwards calls the new episodes “beautiful” and “terrible to behold” given the scale of the series, and the pace in which it is heading into major “bloodshed.”
Dragon dogfights are officially on the table, after all! More often, though, the season lingers on the characters' grief in the face of atrocities, and their fear of escalating the conflict to even greater heights. It's these intimate moments of hesitation that make House of the Dragon Season 2 such a brutal, affecting watch, as members of Team Black and Team Green move inexorably towards bloodshed.
Critics have only seen the first four episodes of the series, of course, and there may be a shift in course or direction as the dragon-centric story wears on, as happened during Season 1 when the time shift occurred. But if the early looks are any indication, fans will be in for much of the same, but on a slower timeline. Given House of the Dragon has already been renewed for Season 3, that’s a good thing.
