[WARNING: This story contains spoilers for Dragon House) , episode eight. ]
Dragon House just aired so to speak was the best episode yet: a game-changing moment that served as some sort of finale for the show’s first eight episodes, and a pilot for the rest of the series.
In “Lord of the Tides,” all the main characters (except the sick Collis Valerian) come together for what may be the last time The Red Keep petitions to determine Velaryon’s successor. But the real occasion is unspoken: the dying King Viserys (Paddy Considine) desperately makes a last-ditch effort to prevent a civil war between his feuding families. It also marked the first time that all young roles previously played by different actors were embodied by their “main” performers.
This episode was written by Eileen Shim and directed by Geeta Patel (Meet The Patels) Every scene carries the fear of the imminent Targaryen doomsday – just name the heirs Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) and the king’s wife Queen Allison Hightower (Austria). Livia Cooke), they can put aside their growing differences. Patel discusses the episode with The Hollywood Reporter in the interview below.
This episode feels like the second pilot for the rest of the series, does it feel that way to the creatives in some ways too ?
I have no idea. When I read it, I felt like it was the culmination of many of the storyline settings that Viserys has had from the very beginning. It feels like the end of a movie and getting ready for the next one. So I just remember being happy that I was able to direct it.
At the beginning of the episode, there is a scene with Diana, who is later told to be missing. Did she just recover or was she moved to another part of the Red Keep? When she didn’t come back, what should we assume happened to her?
I think we are all waiting for an answer to this. I know [showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik] are talking about Alice paying her and she’s going to disappear.
OK. But the tea is really just to prevent pregnancy, and Alice is sincere – she didn’t secretly, like, kill her or something .
Oh, this tea is definitely meant to prevent pregnancy – the same tea little Rhaenyla drinks. But after that, I’m curious where we’re going with that character. Did she show up again?
The Diana and Allison scene is a smart way to deal with a sensitive subject – focusing on her verbally conveying the horror of Aegon’s attack.
[Showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik] and [Executive Producer and Writer] Sara Hess while writing the story That choice was made. Some older actresses [not underage] would be easier to shoot because you can spend more time with them. And then when we saw that young actress [Maddie Evans] during the audition, we were all in tears. I said to Ryan, “This is going to screw up my schedule, but we have to have her.” She conveyed vulnerability, she conveyed tragedy.
Then Olivia stepped forward. Because the biggest challenge of this episode was that I really wanted to be the character of Alice. I don’t like her anymore. So going into this episode, we need to love her. We need to feel her point of view. My feeling is: let’s make this a day in the life of a working mom. You see everything she’s dealing with. You see her doing scandalous things, but you understand her vulnerability. You know she’s choosing between two evils. So that scene has always worried me because I really wanted us to get to know Allison, but the words she said and the actions she took were pretty jarring and fit the villain. So a lot of the prep for these scenes is like a movie, how do we get through the door with her?
Then Olivia brought so many dimensions. I remember after her first shoot, I was like, “Oh, thank God.” She brought everything, and a lot more than I thought. So it’s one of my favorite scenes because I feel like it has the dimension of Alice that we’re looking for.
Nor can you take your eyes off King Viserys in this matter. He’s like a horrible ticking bomb with every gasp, because we know all hell will crumble when he dies. His return to the throne was so touching, yet simple. Just: “Can one sit across a room?” And yet you’re on the edge of your seat.
That scene was really challenging. In filmmaking and TV, you just don’t have time because you have so much to do. We got to the point where Paddy walked down the aisle for the first time and we all looked at our watches and said, “Oh, we’re screwed. We’ll never make this schedule because it takes him a long time to walk.” Some people Approached me and said, “Maybe we should cut this down because this is going to eat up our day.” I thought about it and was like, no, because this is actually a story moment. It’s not those moments when someone just shows up at the door, so we can cut out the picture of them driving and parked outside. The whole story is the man’s efforts to achieve his goals, and it all happens while he’s walking. Everything we build from the pilot happens there. Paddy’s back was sore, and he pushed the cane hard.
Then when we were rehearsing, Rhaenyra came in talking. Suddenly, it popped into my head. I called Ryan and said, “Wait a minute. He’s not walking to the throne. He’s walking to his daughter. He’s doing it for her, and he’s finally choosing family.” So at the last minute, we figured out how to Get some shots of Rhaenyla looking at Viserys and Viserys looking at her. There are tears in my eyes because a father’s love for his daughter is so beautiful and raw. And it pays off in all the struggles, which is awesome.
For the dinner scene, it feels like reading a chapter from George RR Martin’s book. With all that happened, what subtleties might fans have missed?
There are so many, because every character on that table has a story to tell, a point of view, and A big transfer. So I hope we get a lot because we work really hard to get around this table for every interaction. I think one of the more subtle moments might be Aegon and his relationship with Viserys – the fact that he doesn’t really get the love he wants from his father. This is what causes a lot of his behavior and lack of self-esteem. He came across as a complete asshole. But he gave Viserys a little boyish look. The same is true in the Throne Room. [Actor] Tom Glynn-Carney has really learned about his character history and the humanity of his character.
My favorite point is probably Dimon looking at Aemond as they pass each other. Daemon seemed to find it a little funny that the guy stole his look, while they also admitted to each other that they were destined to clash at some point.
Actually, that was a note I got from Ryan. He pointed out what will happen in the future and how important that moment is. That’s what Matt Smith is all about, just make him a daemon in those moments. Getting to this point in the season is a bonus, everyone is very clear about what their character wants and what’s holding it back.
How sincere are Rhaenia and Allison at these toasts?
That was another moment! They are sincere, but they are still themselves. Our goal is to get to that scene and understand how lonely each of them is and how they miss each other in some way. Ryan and Miguel and I talked a year about how we had to win that moment. The idea is that when they all see Viserys being so vulnerable, we’ll feel it earlier in the Throne Room. Rhaenyra realizes that Allison wasn’t lying to her, she was saying that Viserys was suffering and that Allison really loved him.
So you got this father on his deathbed and his two fighting “daughters” sitting on either side of him mourning for him, and somehow they The chemistry of the two is combined. It’s hard because they never actually say [toasts] to each other. They had to somehow do it between all the lines where they said hurtful things. It’s one of the most challenging things I’ve been involved with as a director.
So in the death scene of Viserys ‘ , Allison is Wasn’t there a deliberate misunderstanding of what the king meant when he was talking about Aegon’s prophecy of ice and fire? Or at least accept it, albeit vaguely because that’s what she wants to hear? Or does she really think – when he’s delirious with poppy milk – that he thinks he’s made a complete mistake and wants her son Aegon on the Iron Throne?
It’s funny you say that because that’s my fear. The intention was that she really thought he was telling her her son was going to be the heir. The only way to come close to that is to feel the vulnerability and innocence of Alice. In the first episode, we had to feel less pampered and more of the girl we grew up with. The fact that you’re even confused makes me feel good because when Miguel hangs out with Larry in the last scene, I think it’s a high for us to come out of Miguel’s [episode seven] standard. The joke is, I called Miguel and I thought, “Can you do something at the end of the episode to help me a little bit with Alice?” No, you’re on your own!
What Viserys whispered as he died – no subtitles on the news filter, I’m not sure if it should be obvious or not Do not?
When he was dying, it was Paddy’s own world. We shouldn’t know what he’s talking about.
OK. I always wanted Lenila to pull Allison aside and say, “You know you and your kids are going to be safe, right? I’m not going to hurt them.” I think that’s Like one thing she needs to hear.
Yes. Of course, it’s all this pride that gets in the way. They are all proud of it.
