This story contains spoilers for the first two seasons of HBO’s House of the Dragon.
What do you remember about House of the Dragon?
The third season of HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel hits screens in just a few weeks, on June 21, roughly two years after season two concluded way back in 2024. It’s been so long the entire first season of a completely different Game of Thrones spin-off happened in the gap between seasons! The civil war between the warring sides of the titular House of the Dragon is already a decidedly complicated affair, but that long layoff between installments hasn’t made it easier.
During the first two seasons, a sibling squabble between two factions of the Targaryen clan has gradually expanded to draw in all of Westeros, as the opposing sides head toward a point of no return. Based on the trailers for House of the Dragon season three, that breaking point is finally here, with all-out war arriving after two seasons of table-setting and throat-clearing.
But if your recollections of what House of the Dragon have faded over time like some long-forgotten and ancient prophecy, we’re here to help. Ahead of the season three premiere, here’s a quick guide to what’s at stake and what’s (likely) to come.
First, a Quick Reminder of Where We’re Currently At
House of the Dragon is set about 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, when the Targaryen family is at its most powerful. At the show’s beginning, King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine), looking to ensure a clear line of succession in the future, declares that his daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), is next in line to sit on the Iron Throne as ruler of Westeros.
Years later, however, King Viserys seemingly changes his mind years later. On his deathbed, when Viserys is faded off that milk of the poppy, his wife, Alicent (Olivia Cooke), hears him repeating the name “Aegon” over and over again. It just so happens that he and Alicent have a son named Aegon (albeit Aegon II, played by Tom Glynn-Carney). In actuality, Viserys is talking about King Aegon the Conqueror, who had a prophetic vision he dubbed “The Song of Ice and Fire.” The crux of that belief comes down to the notion that unless a Targaryen sits on the throne, Westeros will enter into a dark and endless winter. This should ring some bells, as it’s predictive of the whole plot of Game of Thrones!
The punchline to this Westerosian version of Who’s On First?, concludes with Alicent misunderstanding the King’s death knell as a last-second change of heart. The next bit happens quickly, as Alicent and her House, the Hightowers, pull a coup to install Aegon II as the king.
Most of season two is about the “Blacks” (aka Team Rhaenyra and her supporters) and the “Greens” (Team Alicent and hers) building alliances and shoring up their respective claims. As the season unfolds, things start to spill out into the wilder world to grand effect with notable consequences. Oh, and just about everyone involved in the conflict has a dragon of their own.
The first major domino falls at the battle of Rook’s Rest, when Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) sees an opportunity in the midst of all the conflict and attacks his older brother Aegon II and injures him considerably. With Aegon II out of commission, Aemond asserts himself as the ruler of the land, bringing with him a much more cutthroat approach to doing business.