Despite the caution of Game of Thrones fans after the unpopular end to the hit series, House of the Dragon has received overall positive reviews. The series hits the mark with the excitement surrounding the Targaryen family and has established the exciting beginning to some of the conflicts fans hear briefly mentioned in the parent series. There is no doubt that season 2 will be eagerly awaited by audiences.
Still, no series can go without criticism, and despite the overall positive outlook on the show, fans on Reddit also have some unfavorable opinions to share. While these critiques don't infer a displeased viewership, they bring up some fair points that fans would like to see improved as the series continues, with hopes that House of the Dragon will even surpass its predecessor in success.
House Of The Dragon Still Doesn't Touch Game Of Thrones
Game of Thrones could well go down in the history books of television. Despite the controversial ending, it's impossible to deny that from the first season, audiences were completely hooked.
Redditors like Gigglemetinkles found that despite their interest in House of the Dragon, it doesn't quite live up to the hype established in Game of Thrones' first season. They added, "it can be its own thing and still be enjoyable," and House of the Dragon's even darker themes set up intrigue. Still, the hope is that future seasons will bring back the same buzzing anticipation that audiences felt about the parent series.
House Of The Dragon Values Spectacle Over Substance
Game of Thrones was known for tossing aside audience expectations and bringing shocking thrill to every season. Even despite the books, fans never quite knew what to expect next. So far, House of the Dragon seems to try to follow this trend, but Redditors like Butterweedstrover find that this has hindered the show.
"Miguel is known for spectacle over substance," this Redditor said, referring to season 1 showrunner Miguel Sapochnik. House of the Dragon has undoubtedly made a spectacle of dragons and bloody fights, and the substance of the episodes has seemed to run slow as the conflict between Viserys' children is established, but future seasons could certainly change this.
Criston Cole Is Difficult To Believe
Fans of George R. R. Martin's books knew that Criston Cole, introduced in House of the Dragon as Rhaenyra's sworn guard, would one day turn against her and play a significant part in the war surrounding her ascension. His first terrible deed? Murdering Joffrey Lonmouth.
While despicable in both the book and the series, Cole's attack on Lonmouth was far more calculated in the former. Comparatively, his sudden and out-of-control attack in House of the Dragon left fans confused about what had even happened. Redditor Key-Pomegranate-2086 said that they found Cole's motivation challenging to understand in the series, saying the show made him out to be a "pitiful loser."
The Story Is Moving Too Slow
So far, House of the Dragon has had to add a lot of details and backstories to characters that the books left out or simply hinted at. The first season has primarily focused on setting up the story for future seasons. Still enjoyable and exciting, but certainly not the center of the excitement.
This has led audiences like Redditor SpaghettiLove2 to find that the "actual story itself is moving pretty slowly," despite the time jumps and glossing over minor characters. This may just be something that could not be avoided in the premiere season, but only time will tell if the future of House of the Dragon will see a faster passed central plot.
The Deaths Are Difficult To Invest In
Season 1 of House of the Dragon has quickly seen the years come and go. Children have grown up, had more children, and then those children have grown up as well, all in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately, this means that audiences haven't had much time to connect with all of these characters.
This means that some of the deaths in the first season have been difficult for audiences to care about. One Reddit user noted that when Lyonel and Harwin Strong died, they found themselves asking, "who are these people again?"
Too Much Overt Foreshadowing
House of the Dragon has included several subtle hints about the future that often give a tip of the hat to the events from the books that fans know will come to pass. Some of this foreshadowing, such as Aegon's prophecy, even connect with the events of Game of Thrones.
While many of these are cleverly placed to build suspense, Redditor Heyy_duudee found some moments of foreshadowing to be unnecessarily over the top. For example, King Viserys' health begins rapidly deteriorating for several episodes, overtly telling audiences that he will die soon, "and then he ends up living 10+ years longer." Viserys must die for the conflict to really start. Making him collapse dramatically at least 15 years before his actual death might have been a little too much hinting at something audiences already knew.
It's Hard To Care About The Dragons
The Dragons in Game of Thrones were an instant hit for audiences, whose only grievance in that regard is that the magical creatures weren't more heavily featured. George R. R. Martin's lore describes profoundly intelligent beasts, but viewers never got to see this clearly.
So, when House of the Dragon was announced, it's no surprise that fans were eager to see more dragons than the parent show could offer. But, while many dragons have been shown on screen, Redditor Jrandyc was disappointed that they "don't care about any of these dragons." The bond between the dragon and rider in House of the Dragon is barely explored. Audiences don't even know Rhaenyra's dragon very well. Fans need more dragons.
The Same Old Game Of Thrones Tropes Are Wore Thin
Game of Thrones hooked audiences by killing off a central character, Ned Stark, in season 1. As Redditor Iggyank pointed out, it quickly became clear that the classic "hero's journey" trope had been thrown out the window, which resulted in viewers never really knowing what to expect next.
However, after eight seasons, audiences started recognizing the new tropes that Game of Thrones repeated, and the unpredictability was harder to achieve. Now, with House of the Dragon's tragic wedding scenes, it's clear that these tropes are being continued. As Redditor Iggyank explained, "once you get a reputation for breaking the rules, that becomes your norm."
House Of The Dragon Lacks Memorable Dialogue
House of the Dragon is tense with the brewing conflict between the Blacks and the Greens, which leaves very little room for comedy. However, Redditors like SeeGeeArtist are missing the snappy, often comical dialogue that made characters like Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones so fun to quote, especially with all his shady burns.
"Every new episode, I hope for some shred of interesting dialog," this Redditor says, noting that House of the Dragon seems to have "none of that." Witty comments may not be as easy to come by in Rhaenyra's Westeros, but perhaps the future war would change that.
The Time Jumps Hurt The Plot
The first season of House of the Dragon had a lot of Targaryen history to build up and not a lot of time to do it. In order to fully understand the decisions that went into Rhaenyra's claim to the throne and the conflict that her children and siblings were raised under, several time jumps were deemed necessary.
Still, Redditor Shoddy-Macaroon-1940 said that the "time jumps are terrible" and that it makes a lot of the drama seem forced and difficult to care about. While these leaps through time might be necessary to set up the series, it could significantly hurt the story if it continues on through future seasons.