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House of the Dragon: Season 2, Episode 1 - A Son for a Son - A great start to the season
House of the Dragon returns with a season premiere that makes it clear that anything can happen.
The first season finale of ‘House of Dragon’ left us with a heartbreaking moment. The death of Lucerys Velaryon at the hands of his uncle left us in shock, just like the season finales of Game of Thrones did a few years ago. The flame of the Dance of the Dragons is about to ignite and finally, after a long wait, the series continues with a spectacular start to a season that starts strong.
Warning: The following article contains spoilers for “A Son for a Son,” the first episode of House of the Dragon Season 2.
If there is one thing that can melt any Game of Thrones fan, it was the beginning of this episode. After spending a season in King’s Landing or Dragonstone, the ravens finally took us to the North, to The Wall. Hearing “Winter is coming” from a Stark is like hearing “May the Force be with you” from a Jedi. It’s powerful and evocative; and though the moment was brief, punctuated by terrible news, it only gives us hope that we may see more of Westeros this season.
However, not all that this episode brought was a sense of nostalgia for the past, as it was also a time of mourning and sadness. Rhaenyra Targaryen not only lost the throne, but also her son, and though her screen time is short, the way she shows that particular sadness is indescribable. While everyone is ready for war, battle, and even revenge, she is at a point where she knows her choices cannot be made lightly. The verbal confrontation between Rhaenys and Daemon is a great representation of this conflict, between action, duty, and all that this moment entails.
On the other hand, things are different in King’s Landing, at least at first. Aegon II as king is like his father, but more carefree. It was never his intention to be king, he doesn’t have the preparation and believes that everything can go well just because he commands it. For his grandfather and Hand, Otto Hightower, this begins to be a problem, although he knows that he can redirect his grandson’s noble and carefree decisions to make him a better king. On the other hand, the relationship between Alicent and Ser Criston Cole is spiraling out of control, which is a big problem if it is ever discovered. Ironic, considering this was a factor in the feud between Alicent and Rhaenys a few years ago. For his part, Aemond shows his concern for the war, and one could even say that he bears some of the blame for any reprisals that may result from his actions. On the other hand, Helena and her fear of rats is just a nod to the greater troubles to come.
Finally, we have the Blood & Cheese moment. This whole part of the story works like a movie written and directed by Guy Ritchie. The main characters have a plan (or, in this case, are getting ready to execute it) when someone else has the bright idea (in this case, that role falls to the ever-impulsive Prince Daemon) to come up with their own strategy. While the lesson of “a son for a son” is the basis for this revenge, all the trouble that this former member of the Gold Cloaks and the rat-catcher go through shows that they had every reason to fail, but hopefully they were able to accomplish their goal in some way.
We can not fail to mention the new introduction to the series. Far away are the cards, the movements, the gears, and we go to a demonstration of how it would be illustrated this great battle that is coming in the universe of Westeros. The conflicts, the events and what we will see in the next episodes take a very original way to see the work.