Dracarys!
With that wild wedding now in the past, we take a ten-year leap into the future of House Targaryen
House of the Dragon is about to take its biggest risk yet. After spending five episodes getting to know and love this Targaryen clan, the HBO series will jump forward by a decade in Episode 6, introducing older versions of its main characters, some played by entirely new actors. Will the gambit pay off or leave fans confused and frustrated? We’re about to find out.
But in the meantime, there are some important questions that can be answered right now. What time are new episodes of House of the Dragon released? What’s the plot of Episode 6? Is there a trailer? And who’s in the cast now that some fan favorites are gone? Let’s dive in.
What’s a wedding in Westeros without a little bloodshed before the blessed vows are exchanged? Last week fulfilled its promise of murder and mayhem during the King’s Landing marriage feast for Rhaenyra Targaryen and Laenor Valeryon.
With Alicent slipping into her bold green gown signifying that it’s go-time for the Hightower clan, Laenor’s lover pummeled into red mush by the steel gauntlets of a lovesick Ser Cristen Cole, King Viserys collapsing, and Prince Daemon smugly watching it all unfold, it’s been an excellent first half of the season for House of the Dragon.
So as we march towards the inevitable Targaryen-versus-Targaryen conflict known as the Dance of the Dragons, let’s fire up this week’s preview of upcoming clashes in Episode 6, “The Princess and the Queen.”
House of the Dragon Episode 5 thunders into your home exclusively on HBO and HBO Max on September 25.
HBO presents each weekly episode of House of the Dragon at 9 p.m Eastern.
House of the Dragon Season 1 is capped at ten episodes as we charge into the season’s second half. Following this week’s new installment, there will be four episodes remaining.
It’s all about the offspring! After a chaotic wedding in Episode 5, fans were treated to a first look at “The Princess and the Queen” that featured trouble bubbling up at the Stepstones again, a hop ahead in the timeline to reveal Emma D’Arcy (Rhaenyra Targaryen) and Olivia Cooke (Alicent Hightower) in mature iterations of their at-odds characters, shots of a teenage Prince Aegon in combat training, Ser Criston back in sword-swinging action, an older pregnant Laena Valeryon, high-flying dragons, and King Viserys looking pretty feeble.
You can expect House of the Dragon Episode 6 to dive headfirst into the growing conflict between Rhaenyra and Alicent, while also taking some time to catch us up on everything that’s happened in the last 10 years — does anyone know what Daemon has been up to?
With any Game of Thrones spinoff, its casting choices will be under intense fan scrutiny and House of the Dragon certainly lives up to that challenge. Here’s the updated cast after Episode 6’s time jump.
Its confident cast includes Paddy Considine (King Viserys Targaryen), Matt Smith (Prince Daemon Targaryen), Emma D’Arcy (Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen), Tom Glynn-Carney (Prince Aegon Targaryen), Rhys Ifans (Otto Hightower), Olivia Cooke (Alicent Hightower), Steve Toussaint (Corlys Velaryon), Eve Best (Princess Rhaenys Velaryon), Nanna Blondell (Laena Valeryon), Theo Nate (Laenor Valeryon) and Fabien Frankel (Ser Cristen Cole).
Yes, HBO delivered a new official teaser for “The Princess and the Queen” that’s a generational shift spotlighting aged versions of the main characters, many more children from Rhaenyra, Alicent, and Laena (both legitimate and illegitimate), a cocky Prince Aegon egging on an opponent, a decrepit King Viserys agonizing over his heir, and a flock of fearsome airborne firebreathers!
Yes, and then some. According to series creators Ryan Condal and George R.R. Martin, House of the Dragon is planned as an epic saga spanning roughly three to four seasons, with many tales of this dragon-riding dynasty yet to come. HBO gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up for Season 2 in August.