Will House of the Dragon Adding More Humor Ruin the Show Completely?
The promise to bring more humor in House of the Dragon season 2 has received mixed reactions from the show's fans. Some wouldn't mind clever moments of levity, others worry cheesy humor could ruin the show.
Ryan Condal, showrunner of House Of The Dragon, told The Times in London (via Deadline) that the creators strive to show more war and also bring in some Game of Thrones signature humor in season 2 of House of the Dragon.
Now that the introduction of the main characters is over and the background for the Dance of the Dragons is set, the showrunner pledged to level up the rhythm of the show in the next season. Condal said the pace of season 2 will be comparable to "the middle run of Game of Thrones."
House of the Dragon fans mostly welcomed such plans for the HBO show's development. The only thing they had doubts about was adding more humor to the show. Of course, everyone remembers the signature humor Game of Thrones brought to the table.
But House of the Dragon doesn't have hilarious Tyrion Lannister who is constantly making jokes or Tormund Giantsbane who's always had blue eyes. Will the creators be able to insert more humor seamlessly? That is exactly what worries fans.
House of the Dragon is less funny than Game of Thrones for a reason. It adds to the splendor of the past feel the show aims for. And forced humor could do more harm than good, just like it did for the deterioration of GOT's quality towards the end.
However, Condal's further words seem to reassure fans. The showrunner assured that there won't be forced humor, but rather "natural pathways into moments of levity" in the drama. As for the character who could translate such humor, he bet on Daemon played by Matt Smith, praising his comedy talent. And fans seem to agree.
"I much prefer character moments where I can't help but laugh, but not because of a punchline, such as Matt Smith's fantastic body language during the final dinner scene, when he stops the fighting with a single pointed finger and has that phenomenal standoff with Aemond. There's so much going on in that brief exchange, and yet I laugh just because of how well the moment is handled," one fan commented on Reddit.
All in all, fans feel that season 1 of House of the Dragon has proved that the creators can be trusted, and some subtle humor won't spoil the show unless it is too forced and exists just for the sake of getting a cheap laugh out of the audience.