'House of the Dragon' gets back to the backstabbing we loved in 'Thrones'

[The following contains spoilers for the premiere episode of HBO’s “House of the Dragon” and the former series “Game of Thrones]

Last time we spent our Sunday nights in Westeros, toward the end of the final season, there was one episode I truly enjoyed, just after the forces of good had conquered the Night King and the White Walkers.

It was in the uncertain period afterward, when bombastic battles and roaring dragons took a backseat to the exact sort of palace intrigue, petty jealousy and political double-dealing that helped make “Game of Thrones” such a widely acclaimed show in the first place.

There’s no doubt that good will was squandered as the freight train of storyline wobbled, then went off the rails in the series’ massively panned final two episodes.

It’s been several years now, and the bar for “House of the Dragon” is not really that high. The show doesn’t have to be great. It just has to be good.

Based on the Sunday’s premiere, the backstabbing is back.

It was great just to see a meeting of the Small Council. Do I know the Grand Maester’s name? Nope. Do I care who the Master of Coin is? Not particularly, at least not yet.

What I care about is the sort of political maneuvering undertaken by Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), Hand of the King and, in the words of his chief rival, “a second son who stands to inherit nothing he does not take for himself.”

“Song of Ice and Fire” author George R.R. Martin has not been shy when it comes to critiquing the path taken by the TV version of his epic medieval magnum opus. And he reportedly took a keen interest in “House of the Dragon,” whose storyline comes from his “Fire & Blood” companion book which chronicles the family at the center of the story.

On the grand scale of time in modern Westeros, the Targaryens — last seen in the form of Daenarys Targaryen roasting innocent people alive in “Thrones” much-reviled “The Bells” episode — are the big wigs. “House of the Dragon” takes place more than 170 years before the last Targaryen king is killed and “Game of Thrones” begins, and they’re in charge the whole time.

But like most families in which absolute power is always just a poisoning or an accident away, a lot of the important members hate one another. The king, Viserys Targaryen, played with an aloof nobility by Paddy Considine, seems like a nice guy, but he cares a lot more about an upcoming jousting tournament than he does about ships raiding off the coast of his country.

The king’s brother Daemon has just been put in charge of the City Watch, not exactly a well-loved bunch in the original series. Daemon appears to have set them on that path, as he whips them into shape during a night featuring the type of wanton violence and nudity that characterized some of “Game of Thrones” early seasons.

The king’s daughter Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) and her best friend Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey) seem to be well-adjusted to life among the kingdom’s royalty. But the king wants a male heir, and his pursuit puts him to an impossible decision that turns disastrous for his wife and his newborn son.

Is it gross that Otto Hightower sends his clearly-barely-a-teenage daughter to “comfort the king,” with obvious aspirations to become the king’s new father-in-law? Absolutely. Is there a scene that has already gotten the show mired in controversy? There sure is.

But it’s this type of underhanded behavior, by powerful people lusting for more power, that fired the engine driving great story payoffs and high drama in some of “Thrones” best stretches.

The king’s episode-ending decision to name his daughter Rhaenyra as his heir — over brother Daemon, whom he sends away — is just the type of choice that can lead to a bloody story resolution at any time.

Readers of “Fire & Blood” know where this story goes. Rhaenyra and Alicent’s friendship is torn apart, and their two factions, the Blacks and Greens, fight the Dance of the Dragons, the Targaryen civil war that resulted in the near-destruction of the family’s one big trump card: dragons.

We’re still a long way from there, but all of the raven-sending, palace-whispering and potential dragon-riding has got me more excited than I thought I’d be to make a return trip to the Seven Kingdoms.

It just has to be good. So far, it is.

“House of the Dragon” airs Sunday nights on HBO Max.