In this week’s episode of Bingeworthy, our TV and streaming podcast host Mike DeAngelo rides his dragon back to Westeros for “House of the Dragon.” The show premiered the first episode of season two on Max this past weekend and follows the internal war within House Targaryen 172 years before the birth of Daenerys Targaryen. The show stars Matt Smith, Emma D’Arcy, Olivia Cooke, Rhys Ifans, Fabien Frankel, Eve Best, Steve Toussaint, Ewan Mitchell, and more.
READ MORE: ‘House Of The Dragon’ Season 2 Review: ‘Game Of Thrones’-Level Intrigue
Joining Bingeworthy to discuss the hit Game of Thrones prequel series is showrunner Ryan Condal (“Colony,” “Rampage”). During the interview, Condal openly discussed the bleak ending to the season 2 opener, which treated many fans unfamiliar with the “Fire and Blood” book to a dark, bloody conclusion. But was it too dark? Did they not go far enough?
“I think it’s a walking of a line,” Condal said. “I think it’s very important to me to render ‘Fire and Blood’ as accurately as we possibly can—understanding that it’s moving it from one medium, a history book, into a dramatized television show. There’s some really bleak moments in this war that they’re fighting, and particularly with the premiere episode, but then there’s other stuff to come, and I think it’s less individual moments, and it’s more of like, ‘what’s the gross tonnage of bleakness that an audience can bear in a show like this?’ And that, I think, remains to be seen. But I think that’s where it’s on us to serve that stuff up, render the history faithfully, but also give you hope and characters to root for and hang your hat on and try to understand how this is going to, maybe not impact the characters in the media, but how this history that we’re seeing unfold before us is going to be taken into the future of this world, and maybe it will be a lesson to those who follow not to repeat it.”
The series has already been renewed for a third season, surprising no one. This begged the question, do the creators know where this particular story ends, or are they taking it season by season? Condal had a pretty definitive answer about what they will and will not adapt.
“We have a pretty good plan now. And we know where this ends,” Condal shared. “The Targaryen history doesn’t end. It marches on for 150 years until the Mad King is in power, and that’s where the Targaryen dynasty ends—when Robert Baratheon seizes the throne and takes it for his own. That’s the end of the Targaryen dynasty. We’re certainly not going to get there, but I think the thing that’s great about this story is that it’s such a key important moment in the story of the Targaryen dynasty that, wherever we finish it, another creator can come in and tell a story behind it or ahead of it, maybe even the Mad King story. There are just so many rich periods of this history to be told that I don’t think you need to do the literal, linear version all the way through it. I think you can pick key moments that dramatize something important about the nature of Targaryens.”
Any fan of “Game of Thrones” or “House of the Dragon” would be quick to point out epic battle episodes as benchmarks of great large-scale storytelling on TV. Condal was asked if the fans can expect anything big this season that will have people buzzing like, perhaps, a “Battle of the Bastards” or “Blackwater.” The showrunner was happy to tease something coming soon.
“There is something in the middle-ish of our [season] that I’m very excited for people to see that certainly the biggest thing that we’ve pulled off yet to date in this show. Yeah, I think people are going to love it.”
After the success of “House of the Dragon” season one, HBO is currently developing multiple “Game of Thrones” spin-offs. One that fans were particularly excited about was the “Jon Snow” spin-off that Kit Harington recently shared was “not being developed” anymore after the team couldn’t land on a story that was compelling enough to warrant a series. Condal, while not officially working on another show in any way, had a morsel of an idea that would require time to pull off.
“I think that story is actually more interesting maybe like twenty years from now – doing a legacy equal or whatever you call that thing to when many, many years have passed,” Condal said. “I think [the original idea] was probably something that was, ‘Jon immediately returning to the wall.’ Well, you know, the threat is vanquished. I mean, you could tell a great character story up there, but I think in twenty or twenty-five years, there’s a very interesting story to be told there.”
Bingeworthy is part of The Playlist Podcast Network, which includes The Playlist Podcast, Deep Focus, The Discourse and more. We can be heard on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, and most places where podcasts are found. You can stream the podcast via the embed within the article or click on the lead image at the top page. Be sure to subscribe and drop us a comment or a rating, as we greatly appreciate it. Thank you for listening.
The Playlist Presents – Ryan Condal’s Film & TV Playlist:
1.) “Ripley” (2024) – Created By Steve Zaillian
2.) “Alien” (1979) – Directed By Ridley Scott
3.) “Conan the Barbarian” (1982) – Directed By John Milius
4.) “The King” (2019) – Directed By David Michod
Listen to the entire interview below: