After a wait of almost two years, the ‘Game of Thrones’ prequel series that brought us back to Westeros returned on June 16 with chapter 2×01 of ‘The House of the Dragon’, in which it was adapted (with some controversial licenses) the infamous Blood and Cheese story. Daemon hires two hitmen to avenge Lucerys’ death, and they murder Aegon and Helaena’s six-year-old son, Jaehaerys..
Spoilers for ‘House of the Dragon’ 2×02 below!
In this week’s chapter, 2×02 of ‘The House of the Dragon’, we have seen how King Aegon, understandably, becomes so enraged that officially declares an all-out war against those loyal to Rhaenyra, while she is upset by Daemon’s actions, disapproving of them, thinking that they will play against her when it comes to strengthening alliances.
Shortly after the broadcast of the second episode of the season, Max launched, as usual, the preview of the next chapter, 2×03, and this is what it shows us:
Episode 2×02 of ‘House of the Dragon’ addresses the direct consequences of the Blood and Cheese crime, beginning with a funeral procession in honor of Jaehaerys through the streets of King’s Landing, in which the Greens publicly blame Rhaenyra for killing the six-year-old boy. When Blood reveals that the other assassin is a rat catcher, Aegon hangs all the royal rat catchers from the city walls. That’s when Otto disgraces his grandson Aegon for his impulsive actions, and he responds by deposing him as Hand of the King and installing Ser Criston Cole as his replacement..
Criston’s plan is to send Ser Arryk Cargyll to Dragonstone to impersonate his twin brother, Ser Erryk, and kill Rhaenyra. Arryk reaches Rhaenyra’s room, but Erryk intervenes at the last moment. After a fratricidal battle, Erryk kills Arryk, but commits suicide immediately afterwards. since he cannot bear having ended the life of his twin brother.
The trailer for episode 3 offers a brief glimpse of the Cargyll twins’ burial together, but we also get a glimpse of Daemon setting out alone to secure Harrenhal., an important strategic stronghold in the coming war due to its proximity to King’s Landing. Criston also recognizes its importance and convinces Aegon to send an army. Meanwhile, one of Rhaenyra’s council members advocates that they take advantage of their 6 to 4 dragon advantage. However, Rhaenyra, ever moderate, maintains that “If dragons start fighting dragons, we invite our own destruction.” Rhaenys shares similar thoughts, stating that “it would be incomparable madness.” However, both sides continue to inch closer to the all-out ‘Dance of Dragons’ war.
Episode 2×03 of ‘The House of the Dragon’ will premiere on Max (HBO) Spain next Monday, July 1, 2024.
Fran Chico is an expert in cinema and series, specialized in cultural dissemination and film criticism. He is a recognized critic on Rotten Tomatoes and Filmaffinity. Although his favorite genre is horror, the same thing speaks to you about Marvel’s new MCU blockbuster as it does about an auteur film to claim from the festival circuit. There is no series from Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video or Disney+ that escapes its radar, delving into the catalog of each platform to recommend and analyze its best content.
Fran has been writing in Fotogramas for more than a year, but his beginnings date back almost two decades ago in film forums and blogs such as Planeta Claqueta or Moviementarios. He was founder and part of the board of directors of the digital publication of film criticism and analysis Revista Mutaciones and a member of the Association of Cinematographic Informants of Spain (AICE), the organization that awards the Feroz Awards, as well as a voter for the Blogos de Oro al indie movies. After completing the Master of Film Criticism at the Madrid Film School (ECAM) taught by Caimán Cuadernos de Cine, he has collaborated and/or covered film festivals such as San Sebastián, Sitges and Filmadrid as a specialized press for more than 10 years, along the way interviewing relevant directors, actors and actresses from the national industry such as Penélope Cruz, Carlos Saura, Ana de Armas, José Luis Cuerda or José Sacristán and internationally such as James Wan, Edgar Wright or Dario Argento.
His knowledge and experience have led him to be a film video blogger for Fnac Spain and director and host of the podcast Holocausto Zinéfago, with more than 150 programs broadcast and available in which cinema and humor are mixed from a unique and original.
