Spoilers follow game of Thrones and the novel 'Fire and Blood' by George RR Martin.
Dragon House Season 2 won't be filled with “big dragon-related events,” according to its showrunner.
Speaking to TechRadar, Ryan Condal admitted that the creative team behind the hit show Max didn't want to push the narrative needle too far in the “action spectacle” direction. After all, Dragon House – and its main program game of Thrones – have built their reputation on being television series filled with political intrigue, intra-familial stabbing, and mature melodrama set in the high fantasy setting of Westeros.
That doesn't mean that game of Thrones and its prequel series lack incredibly designed, stunt-filled and brutal sets. And with Dragon House Season 2 officially marks the start of the bloody, years-long Targaryen civil war, also known as The Dance of Dragons. There will be many barbaric battles to enjoy this season and in Dragon HouseThe recently announced third season.
Condal, however, is keen to emphasize that the second season of one of Max's best shows won't be an all-action affair. In fact, forcing audiences to sit through eight episodes of non-stop fighting would not only be exhausting, but exhausting. Find a balance between Dragon HouseThe fascinating Machiavellian drama and spectacular scenes (as described in 'Fire and Blood', Martin's book that summarizes the Targaryen dynasty), were key to keeping audiences interested during the second season.
“It's complicated,” Condal said when I asked him about the difficulties of not only doing justice to the massive battles of The Dance of Dragons, but also tying them in with the series' other compelling plot threads. “The characters 200 years in the future [in Game of Thrones] periodically refer to the events of this story. And not just the big events involving dragons: there are smaller conflicts and many betrayals that are part of the cultural heritage of Westeros.”
What leads to the world Daenarys inherits?
Ryan Condal
“Six years ago, when George told me this was what he wanted Thrones' successor to be, really excited me. Although no one survived this period, due to the time that passes between Dragon House and ThronesThe cultural relevance of this event to the original series is very strong.
“At the end of this brutal period, we come to The Death of Dragons. It doesn't happen all at once, but this is what leads to the world that Daenarys [Targaryen] inherits [in Game of Thrones], where there are no dragons left. Then there's the fact that winter is coming, the threat of the White Walkers, the only power that can stop them is fire, etc., and that's what attracted me to this story.”
'You want to make them feel the victories and the defeats'
Well then how Dragon House Is Season 2 going to bring The Dance of Dragons' big action sequences to life without overshadowing its deliciously tempestuous melodrama? On the one hand, you still have plenty of screen time for said scenes but, as Condal explained, the secret is to combine character-based elements, devious or not, into the action itself.
“You have to base those things on character,” he added. “If you're just telling the story, it can seem dry and objective. You want to immerse viewers in the subjective experience and make them feel all the victories and defeats. The way to do that is to create characters that people care about, telling that historical narrative through the point of view of a specific person, and seeing not only how it happens, but also how it influences them and their emotional state.
From what I've seen of the show's latest episode, it certainly does all of that, too. For more information, read my spoiler-free review of Dragon House The first four episodes of season 2. Then, see more in my chat with Condal, who defended the decision to tell Dragon House the season 2 story in eight episodes instead of 10.
House of the Dragon Season 2 premieres on Max (US) on Sunday, June 16. It will also air on Sky/Now TV (UK) and Foxtel/Binge (Australia) on Monday 17 June.
