House of the Dragon's sixth episode of Season 1,tarzoom homo eroticic "The Princess and the Queen," kicks off on a harrowing note. Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy), all grown up after a ten-year time jump, is in the last stages of labor. Right after she gives birth to her third boy, an attendant informs her that Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) wishes to see the child. From there, it's a slow, painful tread through the palace for Rhaenyra, who is accompanied by her husband, Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan).

The sequence — from Rhaenyra's labor to the moment she and Laenor set foot in Alicent's chambers — lasts over five minutes and is made all the more engrossing by the fact that it's filmed in two long takes. There are likely some hidden cuts throughout the scene, but the illusion of continuous tracking shots keeps us locked in right from the start.

Both shots clock in at well over two and a half minutes long, making them the longest takes in any Game of Thronesshow. For reference, the longest tracking shots in Game of Thronesinclude a two minute, 15 second-long introduction to Mole Town in Season 4, episode 8, "The Mountain and the Viper;" two one and a half minute-long sequences following Arya Stark through a burning King's Landing in Season 8, episode 5, "The Bells;" and a one minute-long prelude to the Battle of Winterfell in Season 8, episode 3, "The Long Night." Many of these long takes happen in episodes directed by Miguel Sapochnik, who also directed "The Princess and the Queen."

Not only are the tracking shots in House of the Dragon technically impressive and of record-breaking length, they also have great thematic significance. In the visual language of the Game of Thrones universe, a long tracking shot typically means a fight. Most of Game of Thrones's longest one-take shots happen right before or during great battles, like the Battle of Castle Black or the Battle of the Bastards.

No swords are drawn during Rhaenyra's labor, but the opening sequence of "The Princess and the Queen" depicts a fight nonetheless. As Queen Aemma (Sian Brooke) says in episode 1, "The childbed is our battlefield." The unbroken take serves to emphasize that statement. Like her mother before her, Rhaenyra is soldiering through the agony of childbirth in order to serve the realm by bringing new Targaryen children into the world.

There is another conflict at play here, too. Already, we see the battle of wills playing out between Rhaenyra and Alicent. Already, we see how Alicent seeks to undermine Rhaenyra, and how Rhaenyra refuses to give Alicent the satisfaction of seeing her break. And while no one is dying a dramatic warrior's death in these scenes, pain is still being inflicted nonetheless. Rhaenyra literally leaves a trail of blood throughout the Red Keep. Good luck getting that haunting image out of your head.

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On top of the thematic undertones of these shots, there's so much to love about the opening to "The Princess and the Queen." The unbroken takes allow us to see the full expanse of the Red Keep in all its glory. Sapochnik also makes sure to keep the camera trained on Rhaenyra for the entire sequence so we can watch her pain, anger, and humiliation play out in real time. This is our introduction to D'Arcy's take on Rhaenyra, and their performance is already a commanding blend of intense emotion and royal restraint. When it comes to kicking off the second half of House of the Dragon's first season, the show couldn't have done much better than this.

New House of the Dragonepisodes are available every Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.