HBO dropped two trailers for House of the Dragon Season 2 this weekend, and fans wasted no time digging into the new content. The Game of Thrones spinoff now has an official premiere date – June 16, 2024 – and it will clearly open with a bang. Here’s a look at what fans have uncovered in about three minutes of new shots from the show.
The very fact that there are two separate trailers for House of the Dragon Season 2 is an Easter egg, in a sense. The series is about a civil war in Westeros between the “green faction” and the “black faction,” named for the traditional colors of House Hightower and House Targaryen. HBO drew battle lines by making one “black trailer” about Princess Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy), Prince Daemon (Matt Smith) and their allies, and another “green trailer” about Lady Alicent (Olivia Cooke), Prince Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) and those on their side.
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House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, which is not a novel but a “fictional history book” about the Targaryen dynasty in Westeros. The war between Rhaenyra and Aegon takes up nearly a third of that book, and it is a complete story which means it is easier to adapt for TV than Game of Thrones was. That also means fans can contrast and compare the adaptation and the original, searching for clues about what is to come on screen.
House of the Dragon Season 2 premieres on June 16, 2024 on HBO and Max. Season 1 is streaming on Max now, and Martin’s books are available in print, digital and audiobook formats. Here’s a look at what fans have found in the new trailers as they look forward to a summer in Westeros.
Release Date
Fans were quick to notice that House of the Dragon Season 2 premieres on Father’s Day, and that parenthood is a major theme in the story coming up.
Significant Dialogue
While Fire & Blood lays out the events of this war in detail, its historical format means there isn’t much direct dialogue or insight on the characters’ states of mind. Fans got right to work interpreting the dialogue in these trailers, looking for hints about what characters will be feeling when they do certain things or why characters make certain decisions.
Set Change
Changes to the set say a lot about this upcoming story, and fans noted that Aegon II wasted no time in overhauling the king’s chamber in the Red Keep. The model Valyrian city that King Viserys (Paddy Considine) was so fond of is gone in one scene from this trailer.
Identifying Battles
Because Fire & Blood tells us which dragons and dragon-riders were at which battles in this war, it’s possible for die-hard fans to identify events on the timeline – even if they only saw a second or two in the trailer. That means commenters have come up with a pretty clear idea of how far the story will go in Season 2 and what will be left to depict in future seasons.
Brief Glimpses
It took hours or even days for some of the more subtle elements of the trailer to come to light online, including this spoiler-filled screenshot on Reddit.
Changing Dynamics
Fans marveled at how much could be conveyed without words in these trailers – even the changing dynamics between characters and the way Aegon had become more regal.
Costume Glow-up
Lastly, fans were excited to see that Harry Collett seems to have a better hairstyle in store for his portrayal of Prince Jacaerys Velaryon this season. House of the Dragon Season 2 premieres on Sunday, June 16 on HBO and Max.