House of the Dragon season 2 is falling into a bit of a routine. Episode 6, as with several of the previous episodes, spends a great deal of its runtime bouncing between the council tables at King’s Landing and Dragonstone as the greens and the blacks try to secure an advantage. Meanwhile, Daemon is still having some intense visions at Harrenhal and the residents of King’s Landing are growing more discontent with their lot. Sounds familiar, right?

Yet, thanks to some intriguing character choices, the latest episode is probably the most adept yet at infusing these somewhat stale scenes with new intrigue. More dragons and great performances from the core cast help the matter too, as some tantalizing threads are set up for the final two episodes.

Big brother

The action begins almost immediately after the last episode, once again around the war table in King’s Landing as new regent Aemond plots the way forward with the Lannister’s approach on Harrenhal. Meanwhile, in Dragonstone, Rhaenyra and Jace are trying to get more riders on dragons and come up with the solution of giving a Darklyn knight a shot thanks to their links to the Targaryens. No side has the advantage in this war… yet.

Meanwhile, Daemon is still navigating the dark and twisted corridors of Harrenhal – with more visions in store. This time around, it’s Viserys who returns in a flashback to haunt his little brother. We first see him sitting on the Iron Throne, taunting Daemon over not naming him as his heir, before he appears later in a sequence sobbing over Aemma. Not only is it wonderful to have Paddy Considine back, but there’s no one who affects Daemon as much as his brother.

Matt Smith has got more shades of his frustrated prince to navigate this season too as he slowly loses his grip on reality. It’s a breath of fresh air to watch him interact with Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), as the pair get another great set of scenes in episode 6. “You are not the player, but a piece on the board,” she tells him at one point, getting a dagger right where it hurts him – his insignificance. Yet, he can’t help but also have grudging respect for her as she helps do away with one of his obstacles to power, Lord Grover.

Intriguing set-up

It’s not just Smith and Rankin who excel either, with most of the major players given meaty emotions to chew through. Ewan Mitchell, in particular, is having so much fun with his role as the scheming one-eyed brother. From the moment he kicks Alicent off the council, right through to his evisceration of Larys Strong about becoming Hand of the King, he’s a joy to watch.

Although, probably the highlight is his interaction with Aegon. “What do you remember?” he asks his brother when he wakes up crying in pain about their exchange at Rook’s Rest. It’s a chilling moment and it feels Aemond could either kill him right there or give him a hug as he pushes his council sphere into his brother’s wounds. Once again, it feels like there’s really no telling where he’ll go next.

However, the standout of the episode for me is Rhaenyra, who I’ve struggled with throughout this season. The early characterization of her character in season one was as an ambitious and feisty young woman, and it feels like as the years have gone by, she’s crumpled and become smaller. Earlier this season, she cowered when the fight between the Cargyll twins broke out in her rooms, and she’s not had any strength in the war room either.

Yet, episode 6 gives us the first glimpse of the fire returning to her eyes. From the moment she’s holding a sword in her hands, it feels like this is a turning point for the queen, moving beyond Daemon as her crutch. It’s particularly intriguing too then to see a new relationship building for her with Mysaria, sealed with a passionate kiss shared between equals. I cannot wait to see how this develops going forward.

Lingering frustration

The moments in between are the only points that really struggle in the latest episode. There are a lot of plot details to get through, but with only a tiny amount dedicated to them in each outing, the set-up feels quite unsatisfying. In particular, even though the growing discontent in King’s Landing grows more fraught with Rhaenyra’s manipulation, that storyline still feels tagged on.

Similarly, Driftmark brothers Alyn and Addam barely get a look-in. By the final few minutes, their storyline seems to be heating up at least, as Seasmoke chases Addam (and seemingly claims him as his rider). There’s clearly more to come here, but with only breadcrumbs dropped, it feels like their story may have been better served by an extended, stand-alone sequence.

While the slower pacing takes some adjusting, it feels like the ingredients are all there as we head into the final two episodes of season 2 for an epic finish. And as it’s teased more dragons will soon take to the sky, it feels like a soaring double-hander may be in the works. At the very least, no one can doubt that this is a cast that’ll do justice to anything that their characters are handed.