All the hidden details from the House of the Dragon season 2 trailer

HBO has dropped the first trailer for House of the Dragon season 2, and it is spectacular. Watch below:

This is our first official look at what’s to come in HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel show. There are plenty of images in here that will recognizable to fans who have read George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, some that are unique to the show, a few that are mysterious, and lots that are just plain awesome. Let’s break down the trailer shot by shot and see what we can find.

We begin with a shot of Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) standing on the shore, contemplating the war for the Iron Throne she’s waging against her half-brother Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney). She may be at Shipbreaker Bay near Storm’s End, where her son Lucerys died in the season 1 finale.

In season 1, D’Arcy left no doubt that they were the right choice to play the determined Rhaenyra. Could their performance in season 2 win them an Emmy?

As we shift to a shot of the Iron Throne room, we hear the voice of Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans): “Errors were made in the hours following King Viserys’ death.” Ya think?

And here’s King Aegon, the current occupant of the Iron Throne. But with Rhaenyra out there, he sits it unsteady.

You can’t wage a war without Rhaenya’s husband (and uncle, ew) Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith). Here he is grabbing his badass dragon helmet and heading out to crack some heads:

We didn’t have many battle scenes in the first season of House of the Dragon, but now that war has officially broken out between the blacks and the greens, expect that to change. Check out some shots of soldiers arrayed for battle below:

In King’s Landing, Otto Hightower and his daughter Alicent (Olivia Cooke) contemplate the war they’re about to wage.

“Many will die, and the victor will eventually ascend the throne,” Alicent says. Over her quote, we see images of our old friend Ser Criston Cole of the Kingsguard, now sporting a shorter new haircut:

Criston was a violent little freak even in peacetime in season 1. He’ll be right at home during war. Here he is executing someone, probably sliming on the inside:

Here we are in the Small Council room of the Red Keep as someone watches one of the little attendance balls from the first season spin around:

Rhaenyra and Alicent used to be best friends but now find themselves on opposite sides of a brutal conflict. The trailer underlines their connection with a pair of dynamic close-ups:

Naturally, Rhaenyra and her blacks will spend more time planning their war sitting around the Painted Table in season 2:

Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), one of Rhaenyra’s closest advisors, will be needed in the wars ahead:

Here’s Daemon about to bring the hammer down on someone. I’m guessing he’s in the castle of Harrenhal, where he spends a good amount of time in the book.

Here’s a pair of shots of Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) looking at his heart’s desire: the Iron Throne.

That shot of the Iron Throne lit by flickering lightning is in the running for the best shot of the trailer. Feel free to nominate your picks!

Next up, we have an intriguing pair of shots as Alicent looks over a lake. What could she be thinking?

There are a few shots in the trailer of some kind of procession through the streets of King’s Landing. It looks like it involves Alicent and it may turn into a riot:

Corlys’ wife Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) is another one of Rhaenyra’s councilors. She delivers the best line of the trailer to her queen: “There is no war so hateful to the gods as a war between kin, and no war so bloody as a war between dragons.”

And here is my personal favorite shot of the trailer: Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia) atop her dragon Moondancer, screaming with the thrill of battle. There’s something very energizing about it:

Let’s end this part of the breakdown with paired shots of Daemon and Rhaenyra atop their dragons Caraxes and Syrax:

There are a few other things from the trailer worth talking about, but I think they’re best cordoned off in their own sections. First, let’s take a close look at what will be a huge battle scene in House of the Dragon season 2. Click to see more of…