House of the Dragon: S2 E6
More foreshadowing and set-up scenes stoke our curiosity -- but sometimes test our patience -- as the fantasy series cruises toward the wrap-up of a (so far) standout season.
For last week’s episode review, click here.
If the first few episodes of season 2 of “House of the Dragon” was the deep breath before the plunge, and episode 4 was most definitely the momentous centerpiece, then episode 5 was the pause to catch our collective breath.
Now episode 6 is more of the same, while also moving ahead with more foreshadowing and set-up scenes as we head toward the wrap-up of a (so far) standout season.
Our curiosity is further stoked, though I’ll admit my patience was at times tested. A few dialogue scenes felt repetitive of other events seen in earlier episodes, mostly centered around Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) slapping back against her mansplaining small council of all-male advisors.
Indeed, she continues to get her best advice from Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno), an outcast from King’s Landing who shows surprisingly good instincts for subterfuge and counterintelligence. Together they launch an initiative aimed at the starving smallfolk of the capital city that proves far more effective than anything they’ve achieved militarily.
Her estranged husband, Daemon (Matt Smith), continues to have strange visions while having effectively claimed the fortress of Harrenhal as his own, including a visitation from his dead brother, King Viserys (Paddy Considine). This propels him toward some rare self-reflection, with the assist of healer Alys (Gayle Rankin), who suggests the former king had good reason for not naming his power-hungry sibling as heir.
“Perhaps those who strive for (the crown) are the least suited to wear it,” she taunts.
The other big news with the faction on Dragonstone is the queen’s plan to find some nobles with Targaryen blood in their veins so they can be trained as dragonriders, to make up for their clear disadvantage in the skies. Ser Steffan Darklyn, a stout knight played by Anthony Flanagan, presents himself as a promising prospect.
But other low-born characters we’ve been following on the fringes of the story continue to hint at forthcoming importance.
On the side of the Greens, malicious Prince Aemond (Ewan Mitchell), named regent in the last episode after the crippling of his brother, King Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney), works quickly to consolidate his power as he maneuvers to take the throne for himself. His own mother, Queen Dowager Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), finds herself increasing shunted aside in the power play.
Aegon, revealed to have survived the dragon duel at Rooks’ Rest, awakens though does not yet share with anyone that he was nearly killed at the hands of Aemond himself. It’s yet to be seen how much of a role he’ll play the rest of the season.
(Bit of a plot hole here — if Aegon can speak, even just a little, why doesn’t he order the Kingsguard to have Aemond imprisoned or executed?)
In terms of action, there’s not very much, though a tense confrontation outside the King’s Landing abbey provides a picture of how the Greens could potentially fall — not from without, but within.
Episode 6 is a largely satisfying turn, though I’d say it could have used some snipping from its 67-minute runtime. It’s clear the show is playing for the long haul, with at least two more seasons of “HotD” planned. This one has clearly improved on the first outing.