Like Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon boasts an ensemble cast, and season 2 is giving us a deeper look into some of the secondary characters, including Daemon Targaryen’s daughters, Baela and Rhaena. In the recent episode titled “The Burning Mill,” Rhaena is sent to the Vale with dragon eggs, while Baela scouts for enemy troops on her dragon, Moondancer. Although these characters haven’t yet captured the audience’s imagination as strongly as Arya and Sansa did in Game of Thrones, this episode marked a significant step forward in their development.
Director Geeta Patel, who spoke to Screenrant, played a crucial role in fleshing out these characters. Patel emphasized the importance of making the audience care about Baela, especially in the scene where she encounters Criston Cole while riding her dragon. “We needed to introduce Baela here, but as usual, we had to do it without words. That’s what we do on this show; we don’t do exposition, so the bar is very high,” Patel explained.
To achieve this, Patel engaged in an improvisation exercise with the actors playing Baela and Rhaena. They delved into their characters’ childhoods, exploring their personalities and backstories. Patel pitched the idea that Rhaena always excelled academically but never got a dragon, while Baela, who was more of an iconoclast, did. This dynamic helped shape their characters and added depth to their interactions.
Baela and Rhaena began to come alive in this episode, thanks to the collaborative efforts of Patel, Campbell, and Antonia. “We started really crafting with the writers and the producers, and it was a wonderful war room of all of us crafting the layers of Baela and Rhaena that we needed to make them human and to have them each have this pivotal dramatic pain in their childhood,” Patel said. This collaborative process allowed the actors to contribute their own ideas, further enriching their characters.
Baela’s standout scene in the episode occurs when she reports back to Rhaenyra on Criston’s movements, admitting that she got up close to him despite Rhaenyra’s instructions not to engage. This moment highlights Baela’s boundary-pushing nature. “We tried to drive that home, so when she gets close and breaks the rules, she’s Maverick,” Patel noted.
Baela and Rhaena will continue to play significant roles in the second season of House of the Dragon, which airs new episodes on Sunday nights on HBO and Max. For those familiar with George R.R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, these characters have a long journey ahead, and the hope is that the cast and crew will continue to collaborate to make them as compelling as possible.
In the first season of House of the Dragon, the focus was primarily on characters like Viserys, Rhaenyra, Daemon Targaryen, and Alicent Hightower. Secondary characters such as Otto Hightower, Corlys, Rhaenys, and Jacaerys Velaryon also had their moments. However, there were many other characters on the board, and Baela and Rhaena Targaryen were among those who deserved more screen time.
Baela, played by Shani Smethurst as a child and Bethany Antonia as a young adult, and Rhaena, portrayed by Eva Ossei-Gerning as a child and Phoebe Campbell as a young woman, had some memorable moments as kids. Baela had a dragon, while Rhaena longed for one. Both sisters joined in on beating young Aemond Targaryen after he “stole” their mother’s dragon, Vhagar. However, after the time jump in Episode 8, “The Lord of the Tides,” they mostly faded into the background.
In George R.R. Martin’s book, Baela and Rhaena have distinct personalities. Baela is passionate, somewhat hot-headed, and loves riding horses and her dragon. She even cuts her hair short to avoid it getting in the way while riding. Rhaena, on the other hand, is more reserved and thoughtful, enjoying dancing and wearing her hair long. These distinctions were subtly hinted at in the show, such as during the dinner scene in Episode 8, where Baela tries to rush into a fight, and Rhaena holds her back.
While these moments were small, they indicated that the writers were aware of the characters’ personalities. With season 2 underway, there’s hope that Baela and Rhaena will continue to develop and become more prominent figures in the story.
Source: Screenrant, HBO
