See characters new and old in gorgeous new photos from House of the Dragon season 2

Two weeks out from the premiere of House of the Dragon season 2, we have several shiny new images to share courtesy of HBO. Let's start with Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) standing forlorn on a bluff above (we think) Shipbreaker Bay, where her son Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) was killed by her half-brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) in the season 1 finale. There's no turning back after that event: Rhaenyra will go to war with her other half-brother Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) for the Iron Throne. I imagine she's thinking some heavy thoughts here:

One of Rhaenyra's most important allies is her husband/uncle Daemon (Matt Smith), a dragon-rider and seasoned warrior. Here the two are talking on Rhaenyra's stronghold of Dragonstone:

Here Rhaenyra confers with her cousin Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best), another important ally and dragon-rider. The guy on the right is Ser Alfred Broome, played by Jamie Kenna. Ser Alfred is the most senior knight on Dragonstone, but in the book Fire & Blood by George R.R. Martin, Rhaenyra passes him over for a promotion on account of him being a sullen grouch that no one particularly likes. She may come to regret that decision.

Below we have Rhaenyra's eldest son Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett) with his fiance Baela Targaryen (Bethany Antonia), Daemon's daughter from a previous marriage. Yes, this means they're blood-related, and no, that's not really an impediment so far as noble Targaryen marriages go. In any case, Jace and Baela are both dragon-riders who support Rhaenyra's claim to the throne.

Abubakar Salim is one of several new actors joining the cast of House of the Dragon in season 2. He'll play Alyn of Hull, who has a close relationship with Rhaenyra's advisor Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint). We'll leave the details for the show to reveal.

The Greens

And those are all the characters who support Rhaenyra, known as the Blacks. Now let's look at the characters who support King Aegon's claim to the throne, starting with Aegon himself:

I like how pointy and dangerous the Iron Throne looks in that shot. You can also see it in the background below, with Aegon's grandfather Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) in the foreground:

King Aegon's mother Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) is at a crossroads in season 2; even if she doesn't want to go to war with her former best friend Rhaenyra, with her son Aegon on the Iron Throne, it's looking less and less like she has a choice. Below, she lights candles like she and Rhaenyra used to, which is a way of honoring the gods of the Seven.

Below, Alicent meets with her master of whisperers Larys Strong (Matthew Needham), the go-to guy if you need a dirty job done;

Larys gets a solo shot. What is he thinking? You probably don't want to know.

Finally, here's Rhaenyra's former lover and the Lord Commander of King Aegon's Kingsguard, Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel):

The second season of House of the Dragon premieres on HBO and Max on Sunday, June 16.

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