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House of the Dragon already planned to recast some of the main roles – Alicent and Rhaenyra – midseason but it might be a little premature.
Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 1!Prior to the release of House of the Dragon, it’s been a well-known fact that the main roles of Alicent and Rhaenyra were set for a midseason recast due to a 10-year time jump embedded in the narrative. Throughout the first five episodes of the show, Emily Carey and Milly Alcock have exclusively played the younger versions of Alicent Hightower (a high-born lady turned into the realm’s Queen consort) and Rhaenyra Targaryen (Princess of Dragonstone and heir to the Iron Throne) respectively. While it’s understandable for the showrunners to change actors in establishing the passing of time, the quick age up seems like the show is sprinting towards the bitter end.
House of the Dragon episode 5 draws the line for any future reconciliation between former friends, Alicent and Rhaenyra. With Alicent clad in Hightower green subtly waging war against the Princess of Dragonstone, the conflict of the Dance of the Dragons is imminent. The episode “We Light the Way” marks the last appearance for Emily Carey’s Alicent and Milly Alcock’s Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon season 1, bidding them farewell with a Game of Thrones-esque wedding murder courtesy of Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel.) House of the Dragon episode 6 recasts the actors for their older iterations, Olivia Cooke as the Green Queen and Emma D’Arcy as the Black Queen.
Throughout their short stint, Carey and Alcock have portrayed their roles phenomenally, so much so, that audiences and critics alike have expelled mixed reactions to the upcoming recasts. House of the Dragon’s time jumps is an effective plot device that benefits the overall succession war storyline. However, its manner of execution sacrifices the characterization of its leads – Alicent and Rhaenyra – and other key characters (particularly the rest of the remaining teens), making the switch to Cooke and D’Arcy seem hasty.
House Of The Dragon Could Have Had A Full Season With Milly Alcock & Emily Carey
House of the Dragon misses the opportunity to explore the dynamics of the younger versions of the characters. In episode 5 “We Light The Way”, a lot of small moments were included to set the tone for episode 6 but completely skirt over its implications in the grander narrative. For one, Laena Velaryon (Savannah Steyn) and Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) share a significant, short exchange foreshadowing their later relationship as husband and wife. And since Daemon has had a longstanding borderline obsession toward Rhaenyra, fleshing out Daemon Targaryen’s romance with Rhaenyra’s sister-in-law would have provided more depth to their second marriage to each other. On the other hand, Alicent’s dramatic entrance silently calling the Hightower banners to her cause falls flat as the show rushes her story arc. With Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) being portrayed as the master orchestrator in Alicent’s rise to power; rather than making Alicent into a political player in her own right, Otto’s scheming makes her look more like a pawn instead. Considering that some small yet important events disappear as a casualty of the time jumps, some of the characters won’t have the layers of complexity needed for a justifiable and satisfying storyline.
While House of the Dragon‘s showrunners have their reasons to further the Dance of the Dragons conflict within the season, they could have at least held off the recast for season 2 which would have allowed the younger actors, especially Emily Carey and Milly Alcock, more time to work on their characters. As one body of work, a full season dedicated to developing the dispositions of the Targaryen Civil war’s key players would have been a great advantage in the long run. Despite apprehensions surrounding Olivia Cooke and Emma D’Arcy assuming the roles of Alicent and Rhaenyra, House of the Dragon has thus far lived up to the Game of Thrones legacy, and it surely won’t disappoint now.
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