7 brutal House of the Dragon book moments we need in season 2

Season 8 fell short of what we’d come to expect from that series, and in doing so, raised a lot of questions about the potential success of House of the Dragon.

Then the spin-off became one of HBO’s most successful shows, dominating television, and clearly demonstrating that season 8 didn’t do the damage we all expected it might have done.

Adapted from George RR Martin’s anthology book Fire & Blood, House of the Dragon centres around the bloody Targaryen civil war, aptly named the Dance of the Dragons.

Much like its predecessor show, however, House of the Dragon has a lot of characters, events, battles and blood to cram into its run, and it’s likely we see some truncation to the timeline to make it a more streamlined show.

It’s unlikely the show will follow Fire & Blood beat-for-beat, so with that said, here are seven moments we need to see in House of the Dragon season 2…

Blood and Cheese

Given the announced episode title for season 2's opener, A Son for a Son, Blood and Cheese are an inevitability.

Fire & Blood readers will be familiar with what those two words signify, standing as one of the darkest moments within A Song of Ice and Fire. With Prince Lucerys’s death at the conclusion of season 1, Rhaenyra’s grief is understandably overwhelming, and Prince Daemon acts swiftly to avenge the loss of his stepson.

He enlists the help of two contacts in King’s Landing, a former City Watch officer named Blood and a rat-catcher named Cheese, who together use the Red Keep’s secret tunnels all the way to Queen Helaena’s bedchamber, where they offer her the choice of which of her sons will be killed.

It’s a barbaric moment, and it will be fascinating to see how it plays out on screen.

Ser Erryk and Ser Arryk die on each other's blades

Season 1 of House of the Dragon did an excellent job at showing just how divided the court was when it came to siding with Rhaenyra or Aegon, and that’s never more evident than with knights of the Kingsguard - Ser Erryk Cargyll and Ser Arryk Cargyll.

Erryk is fully aware of what Aegon II is, and defects from the Kingsguard to take his place in Rhaenyra’s Queensguard, while his twin stays true to his oath. Being something from the mind of George RR Martin, however, you already know where this is heading.

Lord commander of the Kingsguard, Ser Criston Cole, hatches an assassination plot for Rhaenyra Targaryen, dispatching Ser Arryk to Dragonstone to kill the queen, under the guise of his twin brother.

As fate would have it, the twins cross paths on the former Targaryen seat of power before Arryk can complete his mission, and duel each other to death, each delivering a mortal wound to their twin. It’s one of the more tragic stories within the Dance of the Dragons, and it feels nailed on to take place in season 2.

Rook's Rest and the death of Princess Rhaenys

It’s highly unlikely we wait until the climax of season 2 for a major action set-piece, so the events of Rook’s Rest and death of Princess Rhaenys seem like a perfect middle point for the season.

Unhappy with Otto Hightower’s effectiveness as Hand of the King, Aegon II removes him in favour of Ser Criston Cole, who swiftly launches a campaign against houses loyal to Rhaenyra’s claim.

Before Cole could take the castle of Rook’s Rest, its lord - Lord Staunton - would get a message out to Dragonstone, which Princess Rhaenys responds to atop her dragon, Meleys. Sadly for Rhaenys, she is killed by Cole’s army, along with the arriving Prince Aemond and King Aegon II, atop Vhagar and Sunfyre, respectively.

It’s not all good news for the Greens, though, as Aegon is severely injured and burned during the Battle at Rook’s Rest, his dragon Sunfyre loses a wing and is near-death, all the while the headstrong Prince Aemond assumes the mantle of Protector of the Realm.

Introduction of the Dragonseeds

In season 1, Daemon gives a speech to the assembled Blacks on Dragonstone about their martial power, including the dragons at their disposal – a number that far exceeds those available to the Greens. The catch is that a lot of those dragons don’t have any riders.

Enter the dragonseeds. Prince Jacaerys puts out a call that anyone capable of mastering one of their riderless dragons will receive a knighthood, wealth, and a valued place at court.

While there are quite a few failures (mastering a dragon is probably quite hard), the riderless dragons of the Blacks do find riders in Hugh Hammer, Ulf the White, Addam of Hull and a girl called Nettles. There’s a lot more to each of these characters that House of the Dragon will dive into, but it seems inevitable they’re introduced in season 2.

The Fall of King's Landing

This stretch of the Dance of the Dragons has a lot of battles, so unless moving forward House of the Dragon is going to be a battle per episode, there’s going to be a fair number of skirmishes that are squished together for the sake of the narrative.

Amalgamating the Battle of the Gullet and the Fall of King’s Landing seems like the smartest option for the climactic battle sequence of season 2.

The former is a naval battle between the Sea Snake’s forces and a fleet from across the Narrow Sea who have briefly sided with Aegon, which sees the death of Rhaenyra’s heir, Prince Jacaerys. The latter is Rhaenyra’s response to the Gullet, as she unleashes her dragons on King’s Landing and takes control of the Westerosi capital.

The Iron Throne rejects Rhaenyra

With the Fall of King’s Landing likely to close out season 2, there’s still one more twist that feels destined to close out the season within that whole sequence. We all know the Iron Throne is a perilous chair to covet, and even more dangerous place to sit – something which Rhaenyra discovers when she finally takes it.

Sitting upon the throne after taking King’s Landing, one of the blades cut hers, leading to rumour in court, and in the realm, that the Iron Throne has rejected her claim as Queen of Westeros.

There are more events to come that damage her standing in the eyes of highborn and common-born citizens of Westeros, but this moment is where it starts, and it would be a fascinating way to end season 2.

An Other/White Walker

A slightly out-there prediction, but one that has been seeded within the show. The biggest change in the story from source material to show has been Viserys's revelation to Rhaenyra about Aegon the Conqueror’s dream centred on the looming darkness in the North and the prophesied Song of Ice and Fire.

None of this is mentioned in Fire & Blood, so it provides a fresh canvas for House of the Dragon to paint something new and intriguing with the story.

We know that season 2 will take us to the North at some point, with Jacaerys and Cregan Stark. But while we’re in the North, it doesn’t feel like too much of a shocking prediction to suggest the show might give us a glimpse of the lands north of The Wall, and the gathering cold and darkness.

House of the Dragon season 2 will air on Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK from 17th June – find out more about how to sign up for Sky TV.

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