The uneasy calm before the storm: House of the Dragon Episode 8 review
House of the Dragon Episode 8 review: As the Game of Thrones spin-off nears the end of its first season, it's finally getting more interesting and justifying its one-hour run-time.
The latest episode of House of the Dragon paves the way for the real hell that’s about to break loose as King Viserys I (Paddy Considine) has finally passed away. He hasn’t made one single sensible decision on the show, but ironically, he held the House of Targaryen and, well, the series somewhat together. We’ve seen his slow decline for the past few episodes, but we weren’t quite so ready to see him rotting away.
Nevertheless, Paddy Considine brought some gravitas to the character in one of the turning points of the show, where a feeble yet determined Viserys stumbles into the court, staggering and just about making his way to the Iron Throne. It’s the last time where we will see him exude any sort of power, or well, whatever it is that he tried. The episode ends with him making a prophecy about the Song of Ice and Fire—a hint at Jon Snow from Game of Thrones, but that’s a hundred years later. Well now, he’s gone. It’s time for a civil war to break out.
Nevertheless, the episode did explore moments of intrigue — a lot better than the last few, because it was getting exhausting with the numerous deliveries and complicated bloodlines. Daemon and Rhaenyra—uncle and niece—are now wedded (it’s canon, pick your battles). But Daemon isn’t the menacing, diabolic man we saw at the beginning of the series. In fact, he’s shown the most character development. It’s even baffling to admit considering he murdered his first wife. But ah, morality is a fickle game in anything related to Game of Thrones—after all, we did see Jaimie Lannister go through eight years of redemption after almost killing a child, amongst other terrible things, only to have it all undone at the end.
Daemon's still got a hot temper, and this show seems to revel in it (as do we, let’s be honest) — but now, it’s only for very specific occasions, like when his wife is slandered in court. It’s actually a tragically hilarious scene in the show. A doddering Viserys demands his tongue. Vaemond Corlys insults Rhaenyra and her children. Daemon coolly steps in and chops off his head, as nonchalantly as one cuts vegetables. "He can keep his tongue," he says. Matt Smith’s Daemon is a deliciously different character, and he brings something exciting to the show—there’s a definite lull when he isn’t around.
Another moment of levity was between Rhaenyra and Alicient, the two women who were once close friends and perhaps would have continued to be so had they not been thrown into the diabolic game of thrones. They’re both hard and steely in their missions and fixations, but just for a moment, there was a softness when Rhaenyra raised a toast to Alicent at the dinner with Viserys. It was a moment almost played to perfection, as the two women look as if they wonder what would have happened had things just been different... you know, had Alicent not married Rhaenyra’s father. Yet, Alicent is a far more gripping character than Rhaenyra. There’s a cold warmth that she emanates—she’s brutal and conniving, yet riveting. She's not Cersei Lannister yet, but she’s got the potential to be just as powerfully crazy.
The House of the Dragon is nearing its end, and it’s finally getting a lot more interesting. The King’s gone. What’s going to happen next?