Warning: this article contains spoilers for episode two of House Of The Dragon.

After one hell of a premiere, it was always going to be interesting to see how episode two of House Of The Dragon would unfold. We’ve already had a grotesque childbirth scene, a King’s Landing massacre and other powerful talking points, but episode two picks up six months after the drama of episode one.

With a King and Princess not quite knowing how to communicate their grief to one another, all eyes are on King Viserys (Paddy Considine) to name a new wife. His personal meetings and meals with Alicent (Emily Carey) have grown more frequent, so it comes as little surprise when he eventually names her as his next wife at the end of the episode, much to the surprise of Princess Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) and Lord Corlys (Steve Toussaint). 

Otto Hightower goading his daughter to spend more time with the King grows more unashamed throughout this episode, but that’s not the only thing that may turn your stomach. It seems as though the King’s marriage options revolve around his second cousin, 12-year-old Laena Velaryon (Nova Foueillis-Mosé). Not only did their daytime walk ‘date’ scene make us wince, but general talk of child marriage and childbearing ages were enough to leave us (and many other viewers) uncomfortable throughout this episode.

But really, episode two was all about Rhaenyra. Her handling of an increasingly defiant Daemon (Matt Smith), her impressive arrival on the back of a dragon and a thought-provoking exchange with Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) really underlined Alcock’s stellar performance as Princess Rhaenyra.  

And we’re not just gushing for the sake of it – this second episode drew in 10.2 million viewers across HBO and HBO Max following its Sunday airing, according to Warner Bros. Discovery. This marks a 2% increase from the premiere episode, which was viewed by nearly 10 million people, according to WBD’s initial count the day after it aired.

Of course, we now know that House Of The Dragon is returning for a second season after it was given an early renewal last week. At the time of the announcement, HBO said that viewing figures for the premiere had risen to 20 million. Now, the network says that the number is approaching 25 million.

As for the second episode itself, though, many fans were surprised (and ecstatic) that the Game Of Thrones theme music made an appearance. 

It’s only two episodes in but our faith in King Viserys to make the right decision is dwindling rapidly.

Let’s not even talk about his scene with Laena because we’re still processing it.

Like we’ve said already, this episode was full of poignant Princess Rhaenyra moments.

Daemon is still as unhinged as ever, but at least his niece manages to keep him in line.

And we relish any takedowns of Daemon, including the hilarious exchange between him and Ser Criston.

Princess Rhaenyra is certainly being tested and it’s only episode two, people.

Even her exchange with Princess Rhaenys was giving us major Game Of Thrones’ Olenna Tyrell energy.

And having to accept that your best friend is marrying your father? We may have to keep an eye on Alicent, after all.

Otto Hightower is certainly on our growing list of series villains.

And while we didn’t agree with Lord Corlys presenting his daughter as a marriage option, we can’t help but agree with him.

As the drama of House Targaryen only gets messier, we can’t wait to see how it’ll unfold and how Princess Rhaenyra will handle it all.

Because she is most certainly the moment.

Episodes of House Of The Dragon will be released weekly every Monday at 2am and 9pm on Sky Atlantic, and they will also be available to stream on Now with an entertainment membership. 

Images: Sky