After two years of long waiting, season 2 of ‘The House of the Dragon’ will return with eight new chapters to HBO (now Max). The prequel to the most iconic series of the 21st century is back with a bang after conquering us all with an exceptional first season in which we get closer to the so-called Dance with Dragons, a Targaryen Civil War that fans have been wanting to see adapted for years. This Monday, June 17, the first episode of this new season of ‘The House of the Dragon’ will arrive on HBO. But of course, after two years, you may need to refresh a little everything that has happened in Westeros and, above all, the relationships and family history of the main characters.
The previous story of the main characters of ‘The House of the Dragon’ season 2
Beyond what happens in ‘The House of the Dragon’, what may have left your mind the most are the family relationships (children, husbands, wives and cousins) of the main characters. In a game of inheritances, blood and marriages, taking them into account is essential. That is why we remind you of them here, always without going into spoilers for season 2.
- Rhaenyra Targaryen: Eldest daughter of King Viserys Targaryen and his first wife, Aemma Arryn. Her father named her heir to the throne after her mother’s death, and hundreds of her Westerosi lords swore allegiance to her. She married Ser Laenor Velaryon and had three children with him, Jacaerys, Lucerys and Joffrey. Of course, all three were actually children of Harwin Strong. The first of her husbands disappeared and the second died. She later married her uncle Daemon. They both had two sons, Aegon and Viserys.
- Alicent Hightower: Daughter of Otto Hightower, Hand of the King, Alicent Hightower became the second wife of King Viserys after being a childhood friend of his daughter Rhaenyra. She had four children with him, Aegon, Aemond, Helaena and Daeron. The first three remain in King’s Landing, while Daeron has lived in Oldtown, the residence of House Hightower.
- Daemon Targaryen: Younger brother of King Viserys, when he had no more children than Rhaenyra, he was next in the succession list. When his brother named his daughter as his heir, he took it as a personal affront, but the truth is that his hopes became even smaller when his brother had several baron sons with Alicent. He first married Rhea Royce, heir to the Runestone of the Vale of Arryn. But Daemon couldn’t stand her and ended her life by making it look like an accident. He also fell in love and promised marriage to the prostitute Mysaria, who would later become the White Worm and Master of Rumors. He remarried Laena Velaryon, rider of the dragon Vhagar, the greatest. They had twin daughters, Baela and Rhaena. Both were betrothed to the two eldest children of their niece, Rhaenyra, and Laena’s brother, Laenor. However, Laena died giving birth to a baron son, who also died. Daemon married Rhaenyra for the third time and they had two children.
- Aemond Targaryen: When Laena died and the family was reunited, Aemond lost his eye to Lucerys. But he took revenge on everyone by claiming Vhagar, the kingdom’s most giant dragon. Years later, Vhagar attacked and killed Lucerys and her dragon.
- Sir Criston Cole: Rhaenyra became infatuated with him as a teenager after seeing him defeat Daemon in a tournament and made him her personal guard. He broke her and her intimate vows with the princess, only to later feel spite toward her over her future relationships. So much so that he trained Aemond, who hated him, and went over to the green side along with Alicent.
- Rhaenys Targaryen: Daughter of the rightful heir to the Iron Throne, her father, Aemon, died before the death of Jaehaerys I. Still pregnant with a baron son, it was decided to name Baelon, younger brother of her deceased father, heir. Hence she is known as the Queen she never was. She is married to Lord Corlys Velaryon and had two children, Laena and Laenor.
- Aegon II Targaryen: First son of Alicent and Viserys, heir to the Iron throne according to the green side. He married her sister Helaena and had three children with her, the twins Jaehaerys and Jaehaera and the last, Maelor.
- Mysaria/White Worm: A Flea Bed prostitute who rose through the ranks thanks to her talent for secrets. When Daemon was still married to her first wife, he eloped with her and impregnated her. But she lost the son and Daemon ended up abandoning her promise.
What happened in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 1
The first season of ‘The House of the Dragon’ puts us in the context of an announced Civil War for the inheritance of the Iron Throne. King Viserys dies and many want the throne. On the one hand there are the blacks, led by Rhaenyra, eldest daughter of the King, official heir to the throne in her father’s life. Furthermore, she is married to Daemon, who was the heir to the throne for many years while her brother did not dare to name a woman heir. Now, in theory, she supports his wife’s legitimate claim.
The Greens, however, are of the opinion that the legitimate heir should be the first baron son of Viserys, Queen Alicent’s eldest son. Otto Hightower, Alicent’s father and Hand of the King, always believed that only a baron heir would be accepted by the kingdom, despite hundreds of Westerosi knights swearing allegiance to Rhaenyra.
The key to everything is that you both believe that your claim is legitimate. On the one hand, Rhaenyra was officially and publicly named heir. On the other hand, Alicent saw how Viserys on her deathbed spoke of Aegon, the name of her son. The problem is that Aegon was also the name of the King who conquered Westeros and whose story, ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’, could perfectly have been going through the mind of the dying man. With those cards on the table, the only thing left was for someone to light the fuse.
What happened at the end of season 1 of ‘House of the Dragon’
At the end of season 1 of ‘House of the Dragon’ we see an escalation of war in Cold War format. Both sides are formed, the green ones from King’s Landing and the black ones from Dragonstone. However, the two believe that a war between dragons could end the kingdom and they do not dare to cross the line into violence. Even Rhaenys appears with his dragon before the King and Alicent and, instead of killing them, decides to leave. However, that balance of diplomacy and threats is broken. All when Aemond and Lucerys coincide in the same place, the house of the Baratheon, with their dragons. Vhagar seems not to hold back and attacks Lucerys and her dragon, killing a son of Rhaenyra and unequivocally lighting the fuse of the war.
‘House of the Dragon’ season 2: where it starts from
Season 2 of ‘House of the Dragon’ begins immediately where season 1 ended, without any time jump. Basically, we start with Rhaenyra missing, mourning the death of her son, while her side is still trying to recruit support. Alicent, for her part, tries to apologize to Rhaneyra through messages. Both former friends are pressured by her advisors to unleash the violence and death of a war that seems inevitable after the death of Rhaenyra’s son.
Rafael is an expert in movies, series and video games. His thing is classic and auteur cinema, although he doesn’t miss a Marvel movie or the hit of the moment on Netflix due to professional deformation. He also has a geeky side to him, as proven by his specialization in anime, k-pop, and everything related to Asian culture.
By generation, sometimes he has to write about current musical hits, from Bizarrap to Blackpink. It even has its erotic side, but limited, unfortunately, to selecting the best erotic series and movies. But he doesn’t limit himself there, since he also likes to write about gastronomy, travel, humor and memes.
After 5 years writing for Fotogramas and Esquire, the truth is that he has already done a little bit of everything, from interviews with international stars to mobile phone presentations or tastings of oil, insects and, yes, if he’s lucky, wine.
He trained in Audiovisual Communication at the University of Murcia. She later continued at the Carlos III University of Madrid with a Master’s Degree in Research in Media. In addition to beginning a doctorate on sexual representation in arthouse cinema (which she never finished), she also studied a Master’s degree in film criticism, both at ECAM and at the Writers’ School. Before, he cut his teeth writing on the Cinealacarbonara blog, continued in media such as Amanecemetropolis, Culturamas or Magnolia Magazine, and dedicated all his efforts to Mutaciones Magazine since its foundation.
He arrived at Hearst in 2018 and managed to carve out a niche for himself in the editorial offices of Fotogramas and Esquire, with which he continues to write about everything he likes and what they send him (often coincides). His good or bad taste (depending on how you look at it) also led him to get into the world of gastronomy and video games. Come on, he likes to entertain himself.
