House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 2 - "Rhaenyra the Cruel"

[CaptainWagner]

It's interesting that he wasn't even mentioned in the first season at all. It's a fairly big detail to leave out.

I feel like there almost certainly had to be some debate behind the scenes about his inclusion when they were making Season 1. It really doesn't make any sense otherwise that this is the first we're hearing of him. But gosh I'm so excited to see Tessarion.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[Drizzle]

 

[CaptainWagner]

I love the small moment of Addam being drawn to Seasmoke. Overall, the Dragonseed intros have been great. I can't wait to meet Nettles. I am very interested to see if they make it official who the others are descended from, since Alyn and Addam seem to already know who their dad is. I've always been very curious about Hugh and Ulf's ancestry.

 

[Deck Rickard]

I wasn’t crazy about season one but I’ve been really enjoying this season so far. I think maybe because so many of the characters were so loathsome early on but now I find myself sympathizing with both Rhaenyra and Alicent more. And while I absolutely hate Otto, I LOVED that scene where he chewed out Aegon. That should be the clip of Rhys Ifans that they send to the Emmys.

Also, it’s probably just coincidence and the fact that I have Elden Ring on the brain right now but I swear they’re dropping references to it in this show. In episode one when Blood and Cheese sneak through the sewers, it looks almost exactly like an area in Leyndell. And in this episode, there was a line about the twins sharing one soul in two bodies, which is how the D brothers are described. Probably not intentional references, but GRRM worked on Elden Ring, so who knows?

 

[Drizzle]

I'm glad there's a week between episodes to properly digest it all, this show would be a terrible binge.

I agree. Ironically I'd say the exact opposite about the first season since that really took its time, especially in the first half. In just the first two episodes of season two there's so much happening that I'd even recommend rewatching each episode leading up to the next because they're throwing so much at us. With this episode I was so swept up in the Green drama going on at King's Landing that I needed a rewatch to digest what was going on with the new characters like Hugh, Alyn and Addam.

 

[flickchick85]

Much better episode than the premiere. Did not appreciate how they made me want to root for Otto for a hot minute there, though! Rhys Ifans has been brilliant in this role, imo. Never seen him as this kind of character before.

All the acting was so great here. I got shockingly invested in that Arryk/Erryk fight.

Criston needs to die ASAP.

Next week looks awesome.

 

[Deck Rickard]

This week's episode was really good, better than the premiere. The acting is phenomenal, and it's so nice to see new key players standing out, like Aegon. I'm glad there's a week between episodes to properly digest it all, this show would be a terrible binge. Gorgeous cinematography too, this episode in particular was just lovely, as grotesque as the show can be.



It's probably not intentional, but I also thought of Elden Ring several times during the episode. Maybe HBO should develop an Elden Ring show, after all, there won't be more games, and most of the lore and storytelling is presented in such a cryptic way that it could be adapted in a very natural way into something new and fresh.

I’d be down for it! I think Miyazaki said something a little while back about being open to ER being adapted to other media. It could be amazing if it’s done as well as The Last of Us and Fallout.

 

[Iceman]

Even though last week had some heavy hitting emotional scenes with Rhaenyra, a nice visit back North and the controversial Blood and Cheese, I think this might have been a stronger episode overall.

I felt so heartbroken for Helaena. She's too pure for all of this.

Speaking of heartbreak, did they have to show the dog mourning Cheese? He's another one who deserves better!

Good on the show for giving Baela more things to do.

I thought both Tom Glynn-Carney and Rhys Ifans knocked it out of the park this episode. Ifans is so good that he almost makes you feel sorry for Otto even though he's the one responsible for all of this.

I thought that they'd finish off the episode with Daemon at Harrenhal and the Ser Arryk vs. Ser Erryk fight would happen next week but it was still a brutal fight. Almost turned into a version of this when the other Queensguard came into the room:

Yeah, Tom has been great and Rhys spectacular. As others have said, he’s so good you almost start rooting for Otto.

I haven’t read to wherever this is so it’s all new to me. The twin stuff was intriguing, you really wouldn’t know which one to kill!

 

[Iceman]

For sure! An animated movie would also make perfect sense to realize the scale of the world properly. The possibilities are endless, and I hope they capitalize on it, Elden Ring is still at the height of its popularity.

Imagine a game on the scale/quality of Skyrim/Elden Ring where you could visit all the GoT locations and interact with all the characters!

 

[Drizzle]

It's a little bit odd that there still isn't a truly great, big-budget game set in this world. There was the Telltale story game that wasn't bad, but it was riddled with technical issues and came with limited gameplay and exploration. There's also the 2012 RPG, but I've never heard anything good about it.

I think it stems from developers and studios shying away from movie and tv game adaptations for the last decade or so. An open world Westeros game would be insane, especially if given the option to fly dragons in it.