Power-grabbing tips from “House of the Dragon” and “Shogun”

Both are big-budget sagas about the ruthless pursuit of power. Both combine exquisite production values with immense popularity. “House of the Dragon”—which started airing its second season on hbo in June—is the third-most “in-demand” television series in the world, according to Parrot Analytics, a data firm. (“Game of Thrones”, its antecedent, still tops the charts despite finishing in 2019.) “Shogun”, released in February and streaming on Hulu and Disney+, is in the top 0.2%. The tens of millions of people who have watched these shows undoubtedly include plenty of politicians, from Washington to Warsaw. This raises an intriguing question: might they learn something? And if so, which of the swords-and-scheming blockbusters offers a better guide to seeking power in real life?