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House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 premiered on August 4, 2024, bringing back the final chapter in this rather well-crafted season, which saw many big ups and downs. However, unlike the rest of the season, which was commendable, to say the least, the finale did not quite feel like a finale and left too much to be desired.
With careful character-building and a lot of attention to detail, the entire second season of House of the Dragon felt very deliberate. But fans were, by the last episode at least, hoping for some big shifts in the pieces. This did not happen at all. Instead, House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 set up a lot of big events but delved into none of them, resulting in an ultimately underwhelming finale.
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The more difficult part of this is that the show will not return for a long time yet again, adding to the disappointment of the finale, which, despite its developments, will appear inadequate to most fans of the show.
*Warning: The following parts contain major spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8.
House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 feels more like a great penultimate episode than a good finale
From the very beginning, the expectations for House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 were quite high. This is partly also because of the slow and deliberate nature of this season, which, despite having a lot of moving parts, never really started moving toward anything big.
Perhaps the only big battle worth looking back to in this entire season is the one from the fourth episode, which, was more like a finale than the finale itself. The repercussions of the fourth episode were so large that they were still relevant in the finale of the second season.
Unlike the action that actually took place in the fourth episode, the final was devoid of any big sequence, any screamer moments, or, for that matter, any death. This may be seen as a way of House of the Dragon separating itself from its predecessor Game of Thrones, which relished and rejuvenated itself in big moments. But it is simply not as interesting without them.
In essence, House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 feels more like a great penultimate episode than a good finale. It sets so much in motion but does very little to explore them or give them the platform that would make them stand out. Perhaps it will all come together, but that will be after an agonizing period of waiting.
The third season will perhaps see too much in its opening days
This finale of House of the Dragon Season 2 set almost everything in motion at once. Daemon (Matt Smith) reconciled with Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy), giving her a huge boost in the land battles with the armies he assembled while Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) flew out to aid Ser Criston Cole and co. in the battles to come.
Moreover, the battles in the skies and the seas also moved forward, with Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall) bringing help from Triarchy pirates (led by the adorable Sharako Lohar) and the three new Dragonriders on Rhaenyra's side also getting prepared for battle.
All this combined gives an impression that a series of separate battles are about to go off, where the sky, the sea, and the land will all see bloodshed and destruction. Again, however, this is something a penultimate episode should have done.
Perhaps, this is the build-up to the upcoming third season, which may be away for now but will likely see a lot in its opening days, considering the show does not divert elsewhere.
House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 still managed to remain delightful through its one-plus-hour runtime
It is difficult to stay focused on an episode that is not delivering the things we expect from it. But the expert writing and the many small additions spread throughout the episode make it more interesting than its story.
For instance, the clever little trick of recasting Sharako Lohar as a woman with many wives paid off very well. With Tyland and Lohar in the frame, there was not a dull second. Moreover, a more-than-jubilant Ulf White also, characteristically, continued with his humorous banter, adding some spark to the otherwise dead-serious story.
House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 also left behind some big developments like Aegon (Tom Glynn Carney) fleeing his Kingdom and Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), being locked up somewhere we don't yet know. Plenty of other interesting things like Daemon's vision and Haelena's stance, also add to the finale.
The biggest addition, for most fans, would be the small appearance of Danaerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), perhaps also hinting that she was promised ruler, after all.
All in all, however, this is hardly the most memorable episode of House of the Dragon, and it is unfortunate that the series decided to end with this one. Perhaps an episode or two more in this season would have not left behind this feeling, but this one will leave behind a hoard of angry fans.
House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 8 is now streaming on Max alongside the rest of the season.
