Warning: This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon season one.
On June 16, the second season of House of the Dragon is set to land on HBO, with trailers teasing more blood, dragons and morally dubious characters making questionable decisions.
Set almost 200 years before the events in Game of Thrones, the 10-episode first season of the prequel series aired in 2022 to rave reviews—holding a 93 percent critics score on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
The second season of the fantasy epic picks up days after the first season's finale, which saw the death of a key character amid the beginning of a civil war.
But with four time jumps and several cast changes in season one, you may need a recap to keep the details straight, so Newsweek has put together a handy summary to help you out.
The Beginning and Key Players
House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, a story collection about the Targaryen dynasty. In the Game of Thrones universe, the dragon riders ruled over the Seven Kingdoms for almost 300 years until they were overthrown by House Baratheon, with the rebellion a significant plot point in the original series.
Set two centuries before Game of Thrones, the prequel's first season shows House Targaryen still going strong—though there are concerns about who will inherit the Iron Throne after King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine) dies.
Viserys and his wife, Aemma Targaryen (Sian Brooke), have one surviving child, teenage Princess Rhaenyra (Milly Alco*ck).
Aemma dies in the series premiere, and Viserys soon marries Rhaenyra's best friend, Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey).
Alicent is the daughter of Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), the Hand of the King—Viserys' most trusted adviser. Unsurprisingly, Rhaenyra is not thrilled by the idea of her father marrying her best friend.
Tensions Brew in Westeros
After Viserys weds Alicent, the show jumps ahead three years. Now queen, Alicent is the mother of two toddlers, and her relationship with Rhaenyra is strained.
Against tradition, Viserys has named Rhaenyra as his successor, meaning his eldest son and first child with Alicent, Aegon II (Ty Tennant)—named after the first Targaryen king—isn't set to inherit the Iron Throne, much to Otto's chagrin.
While everyone urges Rhaenyra to get married, she instead has affairs with the knight Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) and her uncle, Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith).
In the end, she marries her cousin Laenor Velaryon (Theo Nate). As Laenor is gay, she proposes that they marry to satisfy their parents while secretly keeping separate partners.
A Childish Squabble Has Big Repercussions
After Rhaenyra weds Laenor, the show jumps ahead 10 years. Rhaenyra (now played by Emma D'Arcy) gives birth to her third child with her lover Ser Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr)—though publicly claiming the children belong to Laenor (now played by John MacMillan).
When Aemond (Leo Ashton), the second child of Viserys and Alicent (now portrayed by Olivia Cooke), suggests Rhaenyra's sons Lucerys and Jacaerys Velaryon (played by Elliot Grihault and Harry Collett, respectively, later in the season) are bastards, Lucerys attacks Aemond with a dagger, permanently damaging his left eye. The children's squabble has significant repercussions down the line.
After Rhaenyra and Daemon rekindle their romance, they persuade Laenor to fake his death so they can get married, while he starts a new life in Pentos with his boyfriend.
Princess Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best), Laenor's mother and Viserys' cousin, believes Rhaenyra and Daemon killed her son, causing another rift in the family.
King Viserys Dies in House of the Dragon's Final Time Jump
In the first season's final time skip, House of the Dragon jumps ahead by about six years. Rhaenyra and Daemon are happily married and have two sons together, Aegon III and Viserys II.
Aegon II (now portrayed by Tom Glynn-Carney) is also a father himself, having married his sister Helaena Targaryen (Phia Saban).
Though Viserys is in his 50s, his body is quite literally falling apart from various ailments. Delusional from the final stages of what may have been a form of leprosy, he mistakes Alicent for Rhaenyra and resumes a conversation he previously had with his eldest child about Aegon the Conqueror's dream.
"You're the one. You must do this," Viserys tells Alicent on his deathbed, which she takes to mean that he wants their son Aegon II to inherit the Iron Throne.
Civil War Breaks Out
After Viserys' death is announced, Alicent and Otto name Aegon II as king of the Seven Kingdoms. Their plan divides loyalties throughout the realm, with some families backing the Hightowers and others supporting Rhaenyra and Daemon.
When a pregnant Rhaenyra learns of the Hightowers' treachery, she goes into labor early and gives birth to a stillborn baby.
Otto tries to convince Rhaenyra to renounce her claim to the throne, but she refuses. In the season finale, Lucerys, her second-oldest son, is accidentally killed in a dragon fight with Aemond (now played by Ewan Mitchell)—who still holds a grudge against Lucerys over the loss of his eye. His death devastates Rhaenyra and sets the stage for an all-out civil war.
How Many Seasons Will House of the Dragon Have?
According to Mitchell, who plays the older version of Aemond, the show's future is currently "up in the air."
He told Esquire on June 5, "I highly doubt they'll do what they did with Game of Thrones and carry on after the book finishes."
However, Martin is reportedly hopeful for a four-season run. In March, Deadline reported that the author and executive producer cut the second season down to eight episodes—two less than season one—to focus on the overarching narrative and better pace the story.
On Thursday, HBO officially announced that House of the Dragon would return for a third season.
Watch House of the Dragon season two on June 16 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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