The Observer is a spoiler-free curated collection of television series and films.
What “House of the Dragon” was up against when it premiered in 2022 was nothing short of a “there be dragons” kind of warning. As in, oh, don’t watch that, because it’s bound to be profoundly disappointing in the shadow of “Game of Thrones.”
Which it was.
Before I definitely knew that, however, I watched S1 of “House of the Dragon” anyway, with a bit of hope that it might be, I don’t know, a lovely cousin, which was quickly dashed in the first couple of episodes.
The series did, in fact, have too much working against it trying to follow “Game of Thrones,” and no doubt that comparison colored a lot of perceptions, my own included.
I stuck with it, and the series slowly, and with some pain, went from poorly formed prequel that constantly felt like a funhouse mirror of the original, to a fledgling own-self, and eventually “HOD” became pretty good, which certainly sounds like faint praise on the page, but given how it started and where the bar was set, the assessment was more like a surprise achievement.
Not shockingly good. Just, in totality, pleasantly better than the first few episodes would suggest.
This is where I’ll tell you two obvious things: 1) I don’t care about the books. 2) The television series must stand on its own, as must all filmed versions of books.
Talking endlessly about the differences between the books and the series is a waste of time. They are different; each a story unto itself, even if the latter is a version of the former. Source material is forever changed from books to film or television and, while this might fuel comparative discussions between the people who are familiar with both, most viewers haven’t read the books, so it’s best to leave the niche argument in its side alley.
The television series is, in fact, a story that has improved each season.
Huzzah. And: Who would have thought?
(Yes, I just binged all of S2 and all seven of the eight in S3, so I’m caught up and waiting for next week just like everybody else.)
The jump in quality and storytelling (and acting, even) in S2, compared to S1, was enormous. “House of the Dragon” became, as a series, much more assured and thus compelling in S2. And all the time that was spent fortifying the creative work and building on it from each episode is the effort that elevated “pretty good” to “really good.”
It’s hard to overstate the difficulty of that jump, since so many series fail to make it. That creative leap was essential — had S2 stumbled and disappointed, who knows how deflated the franchise would become; I doubt very many people would be here, eager to talk about the third season, if so.
While I didn’t have to wonder, week to week, where S2 would go and how fast it would get there in real time, it’s helpful to remember that the wanting is part of any successful framework. When S2 set the stage for what has been an epic current season, it’s worth remembering there was a real sense of eagerness to find out whether the pay off would be there.
Oh, it’s been there. Consistently, and thrillingly so.
Going back, the difference that comes from binge watching all of S2 and rolling into S3 is that the payoff comes quicker, obviously, but I want to be clear that even watching with such speed, I sensed the building anticipation of culminating, clashing intrigue, especially in those last handful of episodes, that lent “House of the Dragon” an urgency and a must-watch quality that it failed to achieve in S1.
While there might have been some frustration back in 2024 about having to wait two years to see the climax of those pending conflicts — the very thing that is making S3 so gloriously entertaining — I would argue that there were plenty of rewarding dramatic arcs, with resolution, for the most part, in S2. I never felt cheated.
Instead, the story — the one that’s apparently now dividing readers from non-readers in some quarters — was more than satisfying in how it was constructed, how the crescendo leading into S3 was earned. “House of the Dragon” did what good television is supposed to do, which is keep viewers wanting more, balancing story arc payoffs for time invested with multiple others that bleed into the next season.
That’s how you do it. Keep viewers happy enough to keep them coming back in the seemingly interminable between years. Even in post-Peak TV, that’s a tall task.
So I credit “House of the Dragon” for having nearly every episode of S2 be complex and compelling, with assured pacing, an ever-deepening story that leaned forward and built tension into the finale.
Most important — equal credit for not delaying the pay-off on that tension immediately in S3.
The current season of “House of the Dragon” started fast, has stayed focused, and it has delivered.
Here we are, then, one week out from the season finale. This is the perfect time to have you reflect on the last two seasons (if you want, or just focus on the current one). Any topic/idea is fare game in the comments. And I’ll just add what should be obvious by now — anybody watching S3 was there for S2, so the lot of us don’t need 1,500 extra words about cast and characters. You’re here because you’re in the “HOD” club; no need to retrace plot-lines or paste up a character chart.
I’ll use the comments to get into specifics based on what people are talking about, as we expand the critical discussion there. I’ll just say quickly that, like in “Game of Thrones,” I’m always pleased with the willingness (and necessity) to kill off characters in service to the story. “House of the Dragon” roared into battle in S3 and we’re all the better for it (unless, of course, you’re hung up on the book vs. series story differences, an argument that will trap us in the mud and is best to avoid).
Onward (music rises, battle voices yell out), with an assurance that I’ll wrap up the season finale with a Spoilt installment next Monday.
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