Has HBO Learned Nothing From ‘Game of Thrones’?

Is House of the Dragon about to make the same mistake as Game of Thrones? House of the Dragon, the Game of Thrones prequel series, chronicles the events that led to the downfall of House Targaryen and the never-ending war for the Iron Throne. The critically acclaimed and much-loved first season has been one of HBO’s most successful shows in recent memory, with the season’s last episode being the network’s most-watched finale since its predecessor ended in 2019.

But we all remember what happened to Game of Thrones—what was arguably the biggest show of all time dismantled its legacy with a rushed and incoherent final season, and some are worried House of the Dragon is about to follow in its footsteps.

In an inteview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Clare Kilner confirmed that House of the Dragon season 2 will consist of only eight episodes. This is down two from the previous season, despite there being plenty of stories left to tell. When THR asked Kilner why a shorter season was developed this time around, Kilner responded,

“There are eight wonderful episodes with so much happening in every episode, and we have trouble, at times, bringing them down to one hour. Ryan’s decision was to give it a good opening and a good ending, and they’re jam-packed with emotional and visually exciting events.”

While “jam-packed with emotional and visually exciting events” certainly sounds promising, some may worry that there will simply be too much going on, story-wise, to deal with properly in eight episodes. Kilner even admits that the show has had trouble bringing some episodes down to a one-hour runtime, so why not just have 10 full episodes and tell the story you want to tell?

One of the strengths of both Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon is that the quieter scenes—the ones in which characters scheme and deliberate and discuss—are often just as compelling, if not even more so, than the action scenes. Those are the scenes that bind everything together, that make the show narratively consistent, and that allow the characters to grow and develop. They are also the scenes that allow the grander, more fantastical scenes to stand out and truly sing.

What happens to the atmosphere of the show if all that’s left is action? If characters start to inexplicably jump from one location to the next with barely any time to think because the season’s total runtime simply won’t allow it? Will we get a repeat of Danaerys suddenly becoming wantonly homicidal without any warning? I certainly hope not, but only time will tell.

While Daemon Targaryen’s (Matt Smith) battle against the Crabfeeder’s (Daniel Scott Smith) forces was certainly riveting, and Princess Rhaenys’ (Eve Best) destructive entrance during Aegon’s (Tom Glynn-Carney) coronation was undeniably explosive, it is King Viserys’ (Paddy Considine) slow, dutiful march towards the Iron Throne that has stuck with me the most, and I truly hope we get more deliberately calm yet powerful scenes like that in the upcoming sophomore season.

(via The Hollywood Reporter, featured image: HBO)