TELEVISION
Learn the secrets of House of the Dragon season 2 intro and the differences with season 1
Without giving too much away, the Targaryens fight each other in a civil war and the trigger of it is explained in the introductory credits.
If you’re like me, you watch the opening credits of a new series once. The first time. After that, you use the handy ‘skip credits’ option and get straight into the action. Sometimes, however, there can be rather nuanced information held within those, often animated, openings, and the introduction scene of the new House of the Dragon season is one such example, as it has changed somewhat from the first.
Music and blood consistent in House of the Dragon
While it retains the same music, the iconic main theme composed by Ramin Djawadi for Game of Thrones, everything else has been revamped. In the original, a bloodline traced through Viserys’ model of Old Valyria, but season 2 sees the narrative shift to recount the dynasty’s history from its origins in the cursed city. The concept of blood, integral to the royal succession, remains embedded in the opening. The main difference is that the creators have chosen to illustrate the story through a tapestry that becomes increasingly stained with blood.
Don’t read on if you want to identify the key messages for yourself.
What the new opening of House of the Dragon tells us
The sequence begins with a depiction of Ancient Valyria, the ancestral home of the Targaryens and the Velaryons. In those times, thousands of dragons soared across the sky until a cataclysm wiped everything out. The two families managed to escape their dire fate, still possessing a few dragons.
The Targaryens retreated to Dragonstone, the birthplace of Aegon the Conqueror. This character is portrayed in the tapestry as a pivotal figure in Westeros’s history. Riding Balerion the Black Dread, Aegon I Targaryen subdued the Seven Kingdoms and crowned himself King of the Andals and the First Men. The dragons Balerion, Meraxes, and Vhagar – with Vhagar still alive during the events of House of the Dragon – are embroidered in the tapestry as symbols of House Targaryen’s might.
The kings succeeded one another until the long reign of Jaehaerys Targaryen, whose succession was determined at a great council. Rhaenys, the Queen Who Never Was, was passed over in favor of her cousin Viserys the Peaceful. The tapestry ultimately sketches the scene that ignites the conflict of the Dance of the Dragons: the murder of Prince Lucerys Velaryon, son of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, by his uncle Aemond and his dragon Vhagar. The first episode of the second season of House of the Dragon is now available on Max.