Dragon House Episode 2 Review: Watching the complex plot build is, alas, a bit boring

So far, in any case, Dragon House (Atlantic Sky) it didn’t contain a huge amount of ticklish comedy. But this second episode, The Rogue Prince, contained one moment that was genuinely very funny. Even if it wasn’t strictly meant.

“I have decided to take a new wife,” King Viserys (Paddy Considine) announced to his council of advisers. “I intend to marry…”

Before revealing the name of his new queen, however, he let the biggest dramatic pause. It dragged on for so long that I actually hit rewind and timed it. It took 7.5 seconds. On paper, that might not sound like a long time. But on TV it felt like a fortnight.

“Lady Alicent Hightower!” he hummed.

Clearly, this was meant to be an important moment, a shocking twist with serious and far-reaching implications for the future of the kingdom. But the ridiculous, protracted length of the royal hiatus made him sound like Dermot O’Leary announcing who had won the telephone vote to make it to round three of The X Factor.

Anyway, thank goodness he did decide to marry Lady Alicent (Emily Carey) because the alternative was Lady Laena Velaryon (Nova Fouellis-Mose): a petite pre-pubescent, 12-year-old. Admittedly, Lady Alicent is quite young herself – her age wasn’t given in the dialogue, but she’s best friends with the king’s daughter, Princess Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock), who we know is 15. So probably Lady Alicent is something like that. And yet here she is, engaged to a tired, sickly, devastated widower with long white hair. Still, I guess a horrible wedding is at least better than a downright annoying one.

Of course, Westeros has never been a beacon of morality, and the story in the traditional Game of Thrones style, certainly provided a dash of dirty intrigue. The most interesting aspect of this, however, is the role of Ser Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), who is the king’s chief adviser – and, as it happens, the father of Lady Alicent. He always acts so noble, honest and principled. However, beneath this veneer of high ceremony, he is clearly as slippery and scheming as anyone on the show.

In the first episode, shrewdly tried to place his virginal teenage daughter with the grieving Viserys, encouraging her to “comfort” the king in his “chambers” (“She could wear one of her mother’s dresses”). Then, in this last episode, he was the only advisor to urge the king not to marry Lady Laena. Okay, that’s reasonable advice, given that she’s an actual child (“Lady Laena is . . . youngYour Grace”). But Ser Otto also had a rather strong interest in the king marrying a certain person instead.