House of the Dragon season 3 might finally redeem itself with the Battle of the Gullet

Perhaps the single biggest battle in Westeros history is finally about to begin.

When House of the Dragon returns for its third season on June 21, HBO will finally bring the Battle of the Gullet to the screen. Originally depicted in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, the massive naval battle is one of the most important moments in the Dance of the Dragons. There are vast fleets of ships and more dragons than we’ve ever seen on-screen before. It’s the big battle that House of the Dragon has been building toward since the show began. So it’s a bit frustrating that it’s taken us almost two years to get here — and a reminder that season 2 was a total letdown in the end. Thankfully, House of the Dragon is about to make things right.

Why House of the Dragon season 2 was a letdown

The problem with House of the Dragon season 2 wasn’t that nothing happened. In fact, the war itself really started to heat up, albeit in a messy way. The problem was that the season built toward an epic showdown in the finale that never happened.

After Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) killed Prince Lucerys Velaryon (Elliot Grihault) in the season 1 finale, the cold war between the two major Targaryen factions officially heated up. Assassination plots abounded as everybody began mustering their forces for war, but there was also plenty of infighting as the real war began.

King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) did such a poor job as ruler that his younger brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) tried to kill him during the Battle of Rook’s Rest. Crippled, Aegon II eventually flees King’s Landing with his Master of Whispers, Larys Strong (Matthew Needham). That leaves Aemond as the Prince Regent and Protector of the Realm, governing on his brother’s behalf.

Meanwhile, in one of the season’s more frustrating plotlines, Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) was sent to the very haunted Harrenhal to recruit armies from the Riverlands. While there, he contemplated making his own claim for the Iron Throne but ultimately experienced a vision about the Song of Ice and Fire (the future war against the Night King) that convinced him not to pursue that claim. He ends season 2 with renewed allegiance to his wife/niece/queen.

House of the Dragon ended its second season with armies marching and dragons taking flight for the next big battle. Then the credits rolled. Talk about anticlimactic.

What to expect from the Battle of the Gullet

Image: HBO

For book readers, the Battle of the Gullet has long been viewed as one of the defining moments of the Dance of the Dragons, and it’s widely known as the bloodiest naval battle in the history of Westeros. Lord Corlys Velaryon’s naval fleet faces the Triarchy armada recruited by the Greens. We’ve seen dragons involved in naval battles before, but not on a scale like this.

In many ways, the Battle of the Gullet follows through on everything season 2 spent so much time setting up. Rhaenyra’s newly recruited dragon riders are expected to play a significant role. Corlys’ naval blockade of King’s Landing is finally getting challenged. Aemond’s formalized leadership of the Greens faces its first major test. Previous battles were little more than tight skirmishes compared to the scale of what’s happening here. In many ways, this is the real war that House of the Dragon has been building toward since its very first episode.

If HBO delivers on the scale promised by trailers and early reactions, the Battle of the Gullet could easily become one of the franchise’s biggest action set pieces ever. More importantly, it represents something House of the Dragon desperately needs after its anticlimactic season 2 finale: payoff.

How to watch House of the Dragon season 3

House of the Dragon season 3 premieres at 9 p.m. EDT on Sunday, June 21. New episodes will be released weekly through Aug. 9 for a total of eight new episodes. The new season will be available to stream on HBO Max. A basic subscription with ads costs $10.99 per month, while the ad-free tier costs $18.49 per month. You can also bundle HBO Max with Disney Plus and Hulu for $19.99 per month with ads or $32.99 per month ad-free.