After “House of the Dragon” finale
Series maker Ryan Condal still has a lot planned
Emma D’Arcy and Matt Smith as Rhaenyra and Daemon Targaryen.
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The series creator has revealed what the season finale of “House of the Dragon” means and where it will continue from there. Spoilers ahead!
The first season finale of the “Game of Thrones” offshoot “House of the Dragon” has been available in this country via Sky/Wow since October 24th. In conversation with “The Hollywood Reporter” series creator Ryan Condal, who will act as the sole showrunner from the coming season, answered questions about the dramatic and tragic conclusion of season one. But Condal also talked about possible improvements and the plans for season two. Warning: Spoilers follow for the season finale of “House of the Dragon”!
A triple loss – final spoiler alert!
Condal leaves no doubt that with the end of season one came the beginning of the Targaryen Civil War known as the “Dance of the Dragons”. Three losses within the family, which Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy, 30) has to deal with in the episode, do not allow for any other consequence: First, she learns that her father Viserys I. (Paddy Considine, 49) died and the Opposite has used the moment to put her half-brother Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney, 27) on the throne.
The betrayal triggers such a violent reaction in her that she suffers a miscarriage. But it gets even worse for her: Her son Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) is also killed in the season finale – he is killed in a skirmish he fought with Aemond (Ewan Mitchell, 25) on their respective dragons. Although Condal emphasizes that it was probably not the intention of the impetuous Aemond – “it was more of a power play than an attempt to murder a relative.” He is not a “psychopath without the ability to think logically”. But it is also clear that his role in the death of Lucerys is the final impetus for “Dance of the Dragons”.
It is interesting to note the dilemma the grieving Rhaenyra finds herself in, according to Condal: “Her father entrusted her with the task of keeping the kingdom united and at peace.” At the same time, this task was taken away from her by the stolen throne. “So what do I do? How do I serve both ends? The answer is a kind of contradiction.” Indeed, Rhaenyra ultimately sees it as her duty to go to war to ensure peace. A realization that promises a suspenseful second season lined with numerous prominent deaths.
Many things become easier
For the new episodes, Condal and Co. have made a lot. The good thing is that season one has done the heavy groundwork and established the universe and the many characters. “It makes the writing so much easier because now you’re writing for this amazing cast and characters that we know now. They’re three-dimensional characters and that makes telling their story a lot easier.”
But he also takes criticism of season one to heart for the coming episodes. There were increasing complaints that “House of the Dragon” was recorded far too dark. Although he confirms his plan to rely on “visual continuity”. But he promises: “It’s our job to take that into account. […] The feedback has definitely been heard. We get it and we want the show to be a great viewing experience for everyone.” This is just a lot harder with a show than it is with a movie that’s going to be released in theaters: “With TV, you put it out on millions of different TV screens with different Settings around the world.”
How long is House of the Dragon?
Condal also comments on statements by author George RR Martin (74), who provided the template for the series with “Fire and Blood”. Martin had leaked supposed internals that the series was designed for four seasons. “It’s a story about a Targaryen dynasty that reigned 150 years after the events of season one. So the question is not so much where the story ends as when the curtain falls.”
Theoretically, far more than “just” four seasons are possible if you want to interpret Condal’s statements in this direction. Anyone familiar with the template knows that “House of the Dragon” has so far only scratched the surface of the novel – although there were already two major leaps in time (ten and six years). “So the honest answer is, ‘I don’t know,'” the showrunner said.