House of the Dragon season 3 made me feel physically sick

This is a spoiler-free review of the first four episodes of House of the Dragon season 3.

Last week, as I sat down at the House of the Dragon world premiere in Leicester Square, ready to dig into my popcorn, I could barely contain my excitement.

For two years, we’d waited for season 3 of the Game of Thrones spin-off. We’d been desperate to see if the Battle of the Gullet would be as spectacular as we hoped, and to find out if the secret pact between Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) and Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) would actually lead to peace within the warring family.

The atmosphere in the auditorium was electrifying as the HBO title card crackled on the big screen. You could hear a pin drop as hundreds of eyes locked onto the sight of warriors fighting to the death across an ocean while dragons flew overhead, ready to scorch their enemies.

I felt exhilarated and devastated as certain major events that I will not divulge (never fear – you won’t find any spoilers here) transpired on screen – the mixture of emotions that you hope to feel when you watch any Thrones tale.

There was also one disturbing moment that sickened me and made the hundreds of people watching with me gasp in unison. House of the Dragon has never been afraid to push the boundaries – the opening episode of season one included a tragic birth scene that’s truly one of the most horrifying sequences I’ve ever watched on TV. In season two, Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) had sex with his own mother in a bizarre Harrenhall-induced dream sequence. But this latest vomit-inducing moment might take the biscuit.

After watching the first episode on the big screen at the world premiere, I then had the chance to see four out of the eight episodes in advance. From what I’ve witnessed so far, fans who felt that the show suffered a dip will be relieved by this thrilling return to form.

For anyone out there who decided to boycott this epic series after the dissatisfying end to season two, there’s no shame in changing your mind. We’ll happily welcome you back.

‘Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in,’ YouTube user TheMegamanpr commented when the final trailer was released two weeks ago. ‘This might be the season we’ve waited for and thought that season two would be,’ another fan called Nick predicted. Nick, you’ve hit the nail on the head.

It will come as little surprise where the third season picks up, given that the Battle of the Gullet was supposed to be included at the end of season two, but then was shifted to ‘give it the time and the space that it deserves’.

For the uninitiated, this is a historic naval battle that takes place in George RR Martin’s Fire & Blood, the book on which the show is based. Forces led by the Sea Snake, Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), come to blows against the Triarchy following the Velaryon sea blockade that’s been plaguing the people of King’s Landing. 

The jaw-dropping end of episode one will make you feel like you’ve been punched in the stomach (more audible gasps resounded across the cinema audience when the credits began rolling). And that’s only the start.

Rhaenyra has three new dragonriders in her ranks, three men from humble backgrounds who all boast Targaryen ancestry: Ulf (Tom Bennett), Hugh (Kieran Bew) and Addam (Clinton Liberty), who’s one of Corlys’s illegitimate sons. 

The claiming of their dragons was one of my favourite moments of season two. In a story where the majority of the main characters have been born into nobility, it thrills me that anyone in this world could hold far more power and influence than they realise.

But while the new dragonriders are already making a splash in Westeros, newcomer James Norton could create a tidal wave of disruption.

The Happy Valley and House of Guinness star joins the cast as Ormund Hightower, Alicent’s cousin, who boasts enough bravado to rival Matt Smith’s Daemon Targaryen. There aren’t many who could go toe-to-toe with the Rogue Prince, but Ormund manages to do so with a grin that’s as smug as it is menacing.

It’s a relief to see Daemon away from Harrenhall and back with Rhaenyra, despite not being as disgruntled as others by his peculiar dream sequences last season, given the character development that they inspired (I could have done without the mother-son incest scene, though).

I’ve done what I can to avoid spoilers for what’s to come (a difficult feat, given the history of House Targaryen is spelt out in Fire & Blood and mentioned in passing on Game of Thrones). There are plot twists in the first four episodes that left me genuinely surprised, just when I might have thought that the story was becoming predictable.

As we inch past the halfway mark of House of the Dragon – given that we know the show is going to end with its fourth season – I feel confident that dedicated fans won’t be disappointed.

House of the Dragon season 3 premieres on HBO Max, Sky Atlantic and NOW on Monday June 22.

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