House of the Dragon Season 3 is making a big change to the Game of Thrones formula, and it’s for an exciting reason. The sequel returns this month after a somewhat divisive sophomore outing, which saw author George R.R. Martin critique the show over its changes to his book, Fire & Blood. It was also criticized by viewers for its pacing and cliffhanger ending, but the third season promises to explode into fiery action on HBO this summer in a way that will hopefully prove the doubters wrong.
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To that end, House of the Dragon Season 3 is kicking off in style, with the Battle of the Gullet. The sea battle takes place between the Velaryon fleet, led by Corlys, and the Triarchy, led by Sharako Lohar, who is working with Tyland Lannister. It’s one of the biggest, bloodiest naval conflicts in Westeros history, and there’s an expectation of showing audiences exactly why when it’s brought to life. Showrunner Ryan Condal and everyone else involved haven’t been shy in hyping it up, with the creator describing it to EW as “arguably the craziest episode of TV ever made.”
House Of The Dragon Season 3 Is Coming Out Swinging Like Never Before
It isn’t being kept a secret that the Battle of the Gullet will take place in the first episode of Season 3, which means the show is coming out with all dragons blazing. The episode’s runtime is officially listed as 72 minutes on HBO’s schedule, though that does include the Inside the Episode segment, so it’s more likely it’ll be around 65 minutes, with Condal saying the Gullet is about 25 minutes of screen time. We’re getting the series’ biggest battle in its longest opening episode.
That’s not the typical approach for Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon. Normally, there is a gradual build to the epic battle episodes and other major events – in Thrones, this was typically the ninth episode of each season, though that obviously shifted as the storytelling condensed. “The Spoils of War” and “The Long Night” were huge set pieces that took place in the third episodes of their respective seasons, while HOTD Season 2 had The Battle at Rook’s Rest in its fourth episode, but this will be the first time we’ve seen the franchise going this big in a season premiere.
That will then continue with the second installment, which, given the focus of it in the marketing, will involve Rhaenyra Targaryen heading to take King’s Landing. That means it’s going to be flying out of the traps with a one-two punch that will leave viewers reeling, and certainly make up for the criticisms of the show’s pacing.
That is, in part, because at least some of this was intended to happen earlier: the Battle of the Gullet was originally planned for House of the Dragon Season 2, but HBO’s decision-making led to it being pushed back (and it’s likely the King’s Landing story was as well). That would’ve been a massive ending to the second season, but it’s Season 3’s gain instead.
House Of The Dragon Season 3 Is Finally Getting To The Real War
The first two episodes of House of the Dragon Season 3 will kick things off in epic fashion, and confirm that we’re now truly in the thick of the Targaryen civil war. The idea of “the real war begins now” was something we hoped for with Season 2, but it only happened in fits and starts. However, with the Gullet happening in the premiere, then there’s going to be an expectation of things continuing at that sort of level.
This effectively shifts the show into a new gear, a new era, and even a new genre in a way, as it is going to be all-out war. Condal has previously promised four major set pieces, one of which will obviously be the Gullet, and given there are eight episodes in the season, then that’s a lot of epic spectacle to fit in. We’re going to be getting more major battles and, given that the show will end with Season 4, saying goodbye to more characters than before as well.
Of course, it has to get the balance right with this, and ensure that it’s underpinned by strong character work to make us really invest in the action onscreen, which is the reason Game of Thrones‘ battles succeeded. But if it can pull off what’s being teased, then it’s going to be some of the most incredible Westeros TV we’ve seen yet.
House of the Dragon Season 3 premieres on June 21st on HBO and HBO Max.
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