Words by Jumana

Warning! Minor spoilers for Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon

How will House of the Dragon deal with the sour taste left in the mouth of fans of Game of Thrones? What shocking scenes may be in store? Would we see any characters resembling those we knew?  These are just some of the questions we have regarding HBO’s new prequel to Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon.

“Dreams didn’t make us kings. Dragons did” Daemon Targaryen

Three years after Daenerys Targaryen burned Kings Landing to ashes, the only thing that was alright about the finale was Drogon letting out his frustrations and burning the Iron Throne to a crisp- much like how most fans felt about the final season. HBO has bravely taken on a testy return, with a rendition of Thrones author George R. R Martin’s spinoff book about the Targaryen Dynasty- Fire and Blood. With the book largely in the format of a history textbook and less like fiction, forgoing a lot of the dramatic details, fans who are already familiar with the book itself can expect a lot of new shocking twists and turns in the series.

Showrunners Ryan J. Condal and Miguel Sapochnik, are Thrones veterans, working with with series co-creator George R. R. Martin himself. Martin is doing his best not to appear as a university student putting off doing his thesis. He, after all, has yet to complete the last two books of the A Song of Ice and Fire saga. 

Aegon called this dream the Song of Ice and Fire.  ~ Viserys

The show depicts an era where the Targaryen dynasty was at its peak, and it wasn’t uncommon to see Dragons flying over King’s Landing -minus bells and dragon fire-. In new parallels, the show does well to remind fans of one of their favorite things from Game of Thrones, the dragons. As depicted in a scene on the legendary steps of Dragonstone, the new show would like to still tap into what remains of fan nostalgia. 

To elude a storm, you can either sail into it or around it, but you must never await its coming. – Lord Corlys

With an apparent male heir not in sight, and a raw depiction of what “The childbed is our battlefield” means, King Viserys I (Paddy Considine), names his daughter, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock) as his heir. The wheels of succession however twists as he remarries and produces an heir. We have yet to see how the events known in Thrones history as the Dance of Dragons resulted in the wiping out of dragons and whether the Throne leads to less tragedy within the Targaryen family. In the first episode we see Viserys tell his daughter of a dream Aegon the conquerer had, when he turned his dragon west. It wasn’t just for the desire to conquer, it was a dream that the lands of men will essentially have to face the “Winds of Winter” or the White Walkers. Targaryens have reigned throughout, with their extraordinary power to see dreams of cataclysmic events of history before they happen. This is also seen strongly worded by Viserys in episode 3 as well as in the story of the doom of Valyria when Daenys Targaryen saw the doom and fled the lands- leaving the Targaryens the only dragon riders to survive.

What we do know is that there are 17 dragons waiting in the VFX room of House of the Dragon and that at least nine of them will make an appearance in this season alone. If you don’t mind spoilers and can’t wait several seasons to see how this story unfolds, you may want to crack open Fire & Blood.

The idea that we control the dragons is an illusion.  ~ Viserys

One thing is for sure. House of the Dragon is just the franchise dipping its toes in the water. checking the temperature and contemplating how deep a dive to take. Rumors of a sequel to Game of Thrones in the form of a show starring our beloved character that “knows nothing”, Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) and depicting the adventures of our favorite former Lord Commander of the Knights Watch are appearing to be less rumor-like and more a reality. Goerge R. R. Martin himself confirmed that the show is in the works and writers and other team members of the show are slowly being revealed following the premiere of House of the Dragon. Coincidence?. There are also several other prequels reportedly in motion.. including a title called “Ten Thousand Ships” which tells the story of Princess Nymeria, who founded Dorne. There are several nodds to this new series in House of the Dragon with Rhaenyra reading aloud about her as well as making her courtier sing a song about Nymeria on repeat.