House of the Dragon

House of the Dragon,” the “Game of Thrones” author's preferred spinoff, premieres on Sunday night. “It had everything that I thought we needed for a ...

And even some of the things I told them are changing as I do the writing. Let’s say “House of the Dragon” is a hit. I always knew once the show got beyond my books — which honestly I did not anticipate — they would start going in directions that the books are not going to go in. The Long Night is mentioned in my books here and there, but it’s an ancient event that people tell stories about — it’s like the Garden of Eden or a biblical flood. As you know, “The Winds of Winter” is very, very late — the last book was 11 years ago, and people are very angry about that. I do like what Marvel is doing because I like the variety of the shows. And the one that really excited me was “Lou Grant.” They took this character from a sitcom and they made him the hero of a serious journalism show. “Game of Thrones” and my book version of it, “A Song of Ice and Fire,” is, in some ways, a classic high fantasy in the mode of Tolkien and many, many writers who followed. [“House of the Dragon”](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/10/arts/television/house-of-the-dragon-hbo-got.html) was ordered straight to series in late 2019. It had dragons — a lot of dragons — and battles and betrayals. And [the “Game of Thrones” creators David Benioff and Dan Weiss] for years were saying they wanted to wrap it up in seven seasons. Martin kept pushing: his rise-and-fall tale of the dragon-riding Targaryen family, set nearly 200 years before the events of “Game of Thrones.”

When is episode 1 of House of the Dragon Season 1 airing? Where can you watch this fantasy drama? Here's everything we know:

House of the Dragon is available to watch on the HBO channel and HBO Max. House of the Dragon is the long-awaited prequel to Game of Thrones, taking place 200 years before the War of the Five Kings. What do you hope to see as the series progresses?

Which characters matter? Which Houses are a factor? Why are their names so hard to spell? We have viewers of the 'Game of Thrones' prequel covered.

The influential family is a key ally of House Targaryen, so their prosperity — and family trees — are intertwined. The Hightowers are known for their wealth and are affiliated with the Tyrells, a house “Game of Thrones” fans are likely more familiar with. A close friend of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and Ser Otto Hightower’s daughter, Alicent grew up in the Red Keep. King Jaehaerys Targaryen’s grandchild who, as his oldest living descendant, had a claim to the Iron Throne. A formidable warrior, Prince Daemon serves as the commander of the City Watch of King’s Landing. The clan of dragon-riders became the first ruling house of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros thanks to a successful conquest led by King Aegon Targaryen; the family ruled over Westeros for almost 300 years.

The “Game of Thrones” spinoff tries to recapture the magic through nostalgic detail, family fights, and grisly scenes of childbirth.

Rhaenyra’s voice-over tells us that the old king knew that “the only thing that could tear down the House of the Dragon was itself.” Ain’t that the truth, king. Like the infamous final season of “Thrones,” “Dragon” doesn’t always make the most of its story’s assets. There’s funny dialogue, but mostly of the unintentional variety: “Laughing with your whores and your lickspittles!” the king yells to a relative, in a rage. Will “House of the Dragon” have us obsessing about the Crabfeeder? “Game of Thrones,” for all its flaws, was a Sunday-night treasure for a reason: its wild inventiveness and beauty, its overstuffed intrigue and action, its humor, its characters. (Did they always sound so Wookiee-like?) And it’s hard not to love a show in which hundreds of flickering votive candles surround not rose petals and a proposal but a dragon skull the size of a Humvee. The Daemon-Rhaenyra dynamic, and Daemon’s flaxen wig and eyes narrowed in constant scheming, recalls the Targaryens we know best: Daenerys and her brother, also named Viserys, whose death in “Thrones” involved our rejoicing while he encountered a faceful of molten gold. “Dragon” swiftly provides some of the old “Thrones” pleasures. Inside the palace, Rhaenyra and her friend Alicent Hightower visit the hugely pregnant queen (“This discomfort is how we serve the realm,” she says, proud and grim), and then Rhaenyra zips off to a meeting of the king and his advisers, where, as she pours water for them, undercover-Arya style, she listens to the proceedings: reports that begin “We’ve all been poring over the moon charts”; a discussion of a pirate-punishing madman called the Crabfeeder. Martin’s “ [Fire and Blood](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0593598008),” tells the story of House Targaryen in an era well before our old friends showed up—a hundred and seventy-two years before the death of the Mad King, the opening titles inform us, and the birth of his daughter Daenerys Targaryen. Like Rhaenyra, he’s a dragon rider—not just anybody can pilot those things—and, also like her, he’s a possible contender for the Iron Throne. The show opens not with a grim ice-monster sequence, as “Thrones” did—hat tip to that—but with the announcement, in a grand hall, of Prince Viserys (Paddy Considine) as the next king.

Plus: FIFA Records marks its 100th release; a world of short film at the Crawford.

A live performance from the band follows. We got the chance to interview some of our musical heroes for this and we can't wait to share it with you The Crawford's screening room plays host to an international selection of shorts from the 2022 AFI project, playing on a loop, with new films added every few weeks - check the link below for current screenings.

The Australian actress Milly Alcock plays a young Princess Rhaenyra in the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon. Here, everything you need to know ...

Her bio reads, "Extremely underwhelming in real life 🙇🏼♀️" and she writes her name is "Mils," a nickname for Milly. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at [Hey Alma](https://www.heyalma.com/), a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on [Twitter ](https://twitter.com/emburack)and "It was a big change but I just told myself, 'Okay for whatever reason they believe in me, so I have to believe in myself,'" she told Wonderland. [the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon](https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a39612186/house-of-the-dragon-game-of-thrones-prequel/), which will tell the story of the Targaryen civil war, and is based on [George R.R. (No word on what restaurant she was working in.) So every time I go in for an audition, I think 'I either get this and things will change or I don’t and things stay the same. I was like: ‘No, this is what I’ve been working towards and I’ve been given this amazing opportunity with this amazing cast, with this beautiful script.’ I couldn’t say no and I couldn’t let the fear and anxiety of not finishing school haunt me, because that would have defeated the whole purpose of leaving." "I never doubted it for a second," she said of leaving Newton High School. Her first role was "Teen Girl 1" in Wonderland, an Australian romcom TV show. However, her breakout role was in Upright as Meg, a runaway teenager. Alcock and Carey are sure to be two of the breakout stars of House of the Dragon.

Who are the new stars? The lead role of King Viserys is played by Paddy Considine in his biggest role to date. Dr Who's Matt Smith plays his brother, the ...

While Game of Thrones was filmed in far-flung exotic locations such as Croatia and Malta, alongside Northern Ireland, House of the Dragon has more UK locations, including Cornwall and Devon. “So we, unfortunately, decided to pull the plug on it. Game of Thrones is not exactly family viewing; packed with gratuitous sex scenes. The Spanish town was famously used to depict the streets leading to the Red Keep when Euron brought his captives as an offering to Cersei in season seven. And of course, the series is again based on George RR Martin’s books. You have the determination to win it.” “She’s terrified of getting locked into motherhood and is aware of how her position would be different if she were male.” And just like Cersei, Alicent gets her ruthlessness from her father, the King’s Hand Ser Otto. The lead role of King Viserys is played by Paddy Considine in his biggest role to date. “He’s sort of an outsider; he’s not black and white; there are shades of grey with him which is what interested me,” Matt said about his character. “It was tragic to see that decline, and I put that plus her kindness and love into Viserys,” he said. “I love that comparison because Cersei was my favourite character,” said Olivia, speaking of Thrones’ terrifying queen.

Join House Perk as we raise our banner to celebrate the premiere of House of the Dragon. Streaming tonight at 9PM on @HBOMax.

[@hbomax]. [August 21, 2022] [@HBOMax]. Thus, they’ve enlisted the shows under the WBD purview to create banners for their “houses” to help drive awareness of tonight’s debut. [House of the Dragon](https://deadline.com/tag/house-of-the-dragon/) bows tonight on the cable channel and its streaming companion, [HBO Max](https://deadline.com/tag/hbo-max/). But even with a purported [$100 million marketing campaign](https://deadline.com/2022/08/house-of-the-dragon-hbo-biggest-marketing-campaign-1235096571/) behind tonight’s launch of the Game of Thrones prequel, the Warner Bros.

Viserys succeeded King Jaehaerys Targaryen, his grandfather, when he was chosen by the Lords of Westeros for the Iron Throne. When he ascended the throne, he ...

Daemon is not only a threat to Rhaenyra, he's also a threat to his own brother and Otto will do anything to protect Viserys. The incredibly loyal Otto Hightower is the Hand of the King. Alicent is the daughter of Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King, and the second wife to Viserys. Rhaenyra is the first-born child of Viserys and his first wife Aemma Arryn. Later called “The Dance of the Dragons,” the war concerns who will be ascending the Iron Throne and, once again, gender is at the heart of the issue. Martin’s two volumes that cover the history of the Targaryens and their wild dragonriding ways.

The 'Game of Thrones' prequel 'House of the Dragon' premiered on HBO Max with some hiccups for some subscribers reporting the site crashed.

Please try closing the app and restarting to see if this helps. House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. We’re aware of a small portion of users attempting to connect via Fire TV devices that are having issues and are in the process of resolving for those impacted users.” [HBO Max](https://deadline.com/tag/hbo-max/) support team would later acknowledge issues of the site crashing and replied to a user saying: “We’re aware some users may be encountering issues at the moment. However, the @HBOMaxHelp Twitter account was experiencing a lot of traffic as subscribers tried to stream House of Dragon. As the first episode was launched online, some users reported the app crashing which prompted them to seek help.

Here's where King Viserys and Princess Rhaenyra fit into the Targaryen timeline and when House of the Dragon is set in relation to Game of Thrones.

In particular, the series will follow events detailed in the latter half of Martin’s book, which includes the civil war “ [Dance of the Dragons](https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Dance_of_the_Dragons).” The war is a war of succession involving Princess Rhaenyra. Martin’s Fire and Blood (2018), which outlines the history of House Targaryen. The events of House of Dragon take place in AC, though some characters will speak of BC times, including events like the Doom of Valyria, a Pompeii-like event that almost killed all the dragons. The series is The Westeros timeline is broken into two periods—Before Conquest (BC) and After Conquest (AC). [Game of Thrones](https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a40323737/game-of-thrones-sequel-series-jon-snow/) left King’s Landing in a smoldering heap of rubble and seared flesh.

House of the Dragon, now released on HBO and HBO Max, is playing its hand a little slower than Game of Thrones, as its pilot focuses on setting up the whole ...

Extending the show a bit of benefit of the doubt, House of the Dragon’s first episode is designed to be one part of a complete story, built to live in HBO Max’s content library forever as a brief snapshot of a fictional universe’s history. By the time the show reached its cultural apex, even fans who had never touched Martin’s original novels had crafted elaborate theories and could tell you all about the [prophecy of Azor Ahai](https://www.polygon.com/2019/4/9/18302196/game-of-thrones-azor-ahai-prophecy-jon-snow-daenerys). But even with all that in its favor, it’s purposefully not as quick or instantly enthralling as Game of Thrones’ debut episode was more than a decade ago. House of the Dragon’s pilot is still entertaining and intriguing. Game of Thrones opens with an ice zombie, then slowly, step by step, introduces you to all of its main characters — some who are only around for a season and some who last the entire series. And it appears to be taking its time and getting there carefully — in fact, the pilot is basically a prequel to the prequel, set over a decade before the major fighting in the Dance of the Dragons will occur and featuring its two most important characters as teenagers rather than adults. In the beginning of the original series, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. The series throws you into a sea of laws, plots, blond wigs, and complicated names, assuming that you’ll figure most of it out eventually. But with half a book coming before we get to all that, House of the Dragon has a whole lot of table setting to do before things really get going. [the book Fire & Blood](https://www.polygon.com/23057740/read-fire-blood-house-of-the-dragon) by A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. The series will tell the story of an event known as the Dance of the Dragons, essentially a Targaryen civil war over the succession of the Iron Throne, which turned all of Westeros against itself. But that’s not the case with HBO’s new successor show [House of the Dragon](https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516586&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hbomax.com%2Fseries%2Fhouse-of-the-dragon%3Foffer_id%3D5%26transaction_id%3D102c87c7%255B%25E2%2580%25A6%255D4ed39326beedc6012ca%26utm_source%3DVox%2BMedia%26utm_medium%3Daffiliate&referrer=polygon.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.polygon.com%2F23287745%2Fhouse-of-the-dragon-pilot-game-of-thrones-hbo-fire-and-blood).

We recap the debut episode of the Game of Thrones prequel, in which tragedy strikes the Seven Kingdoms, and a new heir is named for the Iron Throne ... for ...

You may click on “Your Choices” below to learn about and use cookie management tools to limit use of cookies when you visit NPR’s sites. If you click “Agree and Continue” below, you acknowledge that your cookie choices in those tools will be respected and that you otherwise agree to the use of cookies on NPR’s sites. This information is shared with social media, sponsorship, analytics, and other vendors or service providers.

George R.R. Martin and Ryan J. Condal know it's horrific and disturbing. Here's why they say it was necessary.

It’s kicked off by him believing that he’s going to have a new male son after trying for years and years, and stillbirths and miscarriages, and all the hell that [his wife Queen Aemma] has been through as a mother. “A lot of people had things to say about the birth of Baelon, Prince Baelon,” Those two sentence have been expanded into a forced C-section, with Aemma screaming in anguish as she is held down and cut open by doctors and midwives who hope to save the breech baby even at the expense of her life. The death of the baby, and of the king's wife, Queen Aemma (Sian Brooke), during the botched birth, creates a void that other family members rush to fill, brandishing swords and fire-breathing monsters to gain the upper hand. [Fire & Blood](https://georgerrmartin.com/grrm_book/fire-and-blood/), which inspired the Game of Thrones prequel. The House of the Dragon pilot’s graphic birth scene caused a visceral response even at the show's gala premiere.

Spoiler alert! The world of "Game of Thrones" returned to TV with HBO's "House of the Dragon" spinoff all about the Targaryens.

Otto chooses a meeting of the King's small council afterward to bring up the topic of succession, voicing his concerns about Daemon's temperament (and general hatred for the king's little brother). He also tells her about a prophecy their ancestor Aegon saw a hundred years ago, about the end of mankind starting with a great and terrible winter. Rhaenyra can fly on her dragon with her best friend Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey); Daemon can turn the City Watch into a murder brigade and creepily give his niece gifts; and Viserys can throw a jousting tournament in honor of his unborn sure-to-be son. He sends Alicent, his 15-year-old daughter, into the bedroom of the king, just to offer him some company, he says. He chooses the baby, and holds Aemma's hand while the medical "maesters" butcher her in a violent, bloody Caesarean section that leaves her bloody and dead on the bed. He has no time to discuss affairs of state with his Hand of the King, Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) or potential war in the borderlands known as the Stepstones with Master of Ships Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint). So to set the scene for "Dragon" we start with a prologue: The good Targaryen King Jaehaerys ruled over Westeros during a half century of peace, but he has no sons to succeed him on the Iron Throne. It's a slice of the "Thrones" world, mostly within the walls of the Red Keep in King's Landing (that's the palace in the fictional nation's capital, if you've forgotten since [ "Thrones" ended in 2019](https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2019/05/21/game-of-thrones-tarnished-legacy-fan-anger-series-finale-iron-throne/3692682002/)). So he calls a great council to choose his heir, picking between his oldest descendent, Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best) and his oldest male descendent, Prince Viserys (Paddy Considine). So what to think of "Dragon" after the first hour? It is not, perhaps, as bombastic as many fans would hope and, worse, does little to establish the characters as sympathetic or even intriguing (a [weakness that doesn't go away](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2022/08/19/house-of-the-dragon-review-game-of-thrones-spinoff-disappointment/10331489002/), at least not in the first six episodes made available for review). It doesn't quite grab you the way its predecessor did, but perhaps all the dragon flying, nudity and dismemberment the pilot delivers will be enough to bring fans back for Episode 2.

Viserys and Aegon aren't the first Targaryens to have visions—and they won't be the last. Here's what you need to know about Targaryen prophecies.

[Jon, of course, kills Daenerys](https://time.com/5590729/game-of-thrones-finale-daenerys/) shortly after she sees the throne in real life. And, indeed, we do see that vision of the Iron Throne come to life in the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones. [House of the Dragon Is, Against All Odds, Pretty Decent](https://time.com/6207254/house-of-the-dragon-review/) [George R.R. And perhaps the sounds of hooves and shields and swords refer to the tournament that’s ongoing when the queen goes into labor. Another shows what she believes to be the future, the Iron Throne sitting in the open air with what looks to be snow falling upon it. And I placed our son upon the Iron Throne as the bells of Grand Sept tolled, and all the dragons roared as one.” Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books](https://time.com/4791258/game-of-thrones-george-r-r-martin-interview/), upon which Game of Thrones was based, place a great emphasis on prophecies. Volcanoes erupted, and an earthquake swallowed up all the people and dragons of Valyria. Martin’s version of Cassandra, Daenys had dream that the powerful kingdom of Valyria where her family lived would meet a cataclysmic end. [recent trailer for House of the Dragon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DotnJ7tTA34) declared that Targaryens would be “just like everyone else” without their dragons. The line of the Targaryens can be traced back to Daenys the Dreamer. Later, he reveals that Aegon the Conquerer—the Targaryen who united the Seven Kingdoms—had a vision of a threat from the North that would imperil the lives of everyone in Westeros.

We wanted it to be difficult to watch”: Co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik and actor Sian Brooke break down the series premiere's most brutal sequence.

Taken together, “the scene is meant to be a distillation of the experience of men and the experience of women during this time.” The director had two midwives on set during filming “to talk us through the reality of a Caesarean without anesthesia or modern instruments and medicine,” he said. Prior to filming, the actors also had a day-long rehearsal to make sure they were comfortable working with the prosthetics and other special effects that made the labor so viscerally lifelike. “It is the story’s inciting incident and needed to be strong and unflinching.” King Viserys and the Grand Maester never think to consult her, and so she is powerless over a decision about her own body.” Wade in June, “It feels more timely and impactful than ever,” said Sapochnik. And then within that, you’ve got this woman who’s at the mercy of a man’s decision.” Confused, then terrified, Aemma is pinned to the bed by a team of midwives as the Grand Maester makes an incision to her abdomen and removes the infant. The Grand Maester (David Horovitch) explains the predicament to Viserys: “During a difficult birth, it sometimes becomes necessary for the father to make an impossible choice: to sacrifice one, or to lose them both.” [the long-awaited spinoff “House of the Dragon”](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2022-08-19/house-of-the-dragon-review-hbo-game-of-thrones) opens with a death — two, actually — as memorable as they are poignant. The theme of this birth scene was ‘torture,’” co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik wrote in an email to The Times. “Each birth in this show has a theme, just as the battles I’ve filmed in the past have a central concept.

In the lavish Game of Thrones prequel, no one is immune to the toxic dynamics of the Targaryen family.

The dynamic between the adult Daemon and the 15-year-old Rhaenyra is immediately, grotesquely charged; they converse, intimately, in High Valyrian, and he looks at her with the loaded interest of a cat eyeing a bird. That seems to mean that, at least in the first six episodes made available to critics, virtually every plotline and motivation feels the same, and there may be no heroes, ultimately, to root for. By the end of the first episode, the grieving Viserys is also being comforted by Rhaenyra’s best friend, the teenaged Lady Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey), who has been compelled by her morose father (Rhys Ifans) to attend to the monarch despite her obvious reservations. On House of the Dragon, no primary relationship seems to be truly insulated from erotic desire, which is itself inextricable from the quest for power. An acknowledgment of the physically brutal and life-threatening reality of bearing children!) The show, based on a prequel history of the Targaryen family (which George R. It was present—most centrally in the sexual relationship between Jaime and Cersei Lannister, which Cersei justified by invoking the Targaryen tradition of marrying brothers and sisters—but not predominant until the final season, when Jon Snow and his aunt Daenerys made unfortunately literal the union of ice and fire. Or I will be”), and issue savage clapbacks (“And how have you served the realm, Lady Redwyne? Female characters school one another on patriarchal constraints (“Men would sooner put the realm to the torch than see a woman ascend to the Iron Throne”), affirm their authority (“I am the crown, Ser Criston. What was striking was the bifurcated way the person described the show’s framing for a post-#MeToo moment: conceding that there was “way less sex” in House of the Dragon than there could be in the good old tits-and-trebuchets days of yore, but also boasting that producers had cleverly adapted to the times by replacing sexual violence with barbaric renderings of childbirth. Martin published as Fire & Blood in 2018), begins 172 years before the birth of Daenerys Stormborn, the platinum-haired dragon queen in Thrones, and is in large part about the obstacles that stand in the way of women achieving and exerting power. But it also seems to strain at times with the possibly cynical effort of countering Game of Thrones’s Such “discomfort,” she explains, “is how [women] serve the realm.”) Think about this statement for a moment—that sexual violence is so fundamental to a franchise’s ethos that it has to be replaced with some other portrayal of primal female pain and suffering lest viewers lose interest—and your head might spin.

The Game Of Thrones prequel brings us back to King's Landing in “The Heirs Of The Dragon”

The lords of Westeros pledge fealty to their future queen, looking so young and lost in her royal raiment, over Viserys delivering the rest of his message to his daughter and heir. Viserys begins with a warning: The control their family holds over the dragons is an illusion that led to the infamous Doom of Valyria, and if they forget their history, they’re doomed to repeat it. - Aemma tells Rhaenyra that the way women serve the realm is by bearing children, but her headstrong daughter would rather be a knight. If this first episode is anything to go on, House Of The Dragon will be a more staid affair than Game Of Thrones, for better or worse. Still, the princess steps forward and utters the first “Dracarys!” of the series, and the king’s dragon sets the bodies aflame. The subject of the day is planning a jousting tournament in honor of the maybe-prince’s maybe-birth, and it seems like these guys are really playing dice with the Old Gods and the New. The gore gets so intense, in fact, that a young squire on the sidelines vomits in the dirt—and I almost did too. In any case, it was all for nothing: It’s only minutes after the prince is born (and named Baelon by his stricken father) that he starts struggling for breath. Then everything goes fine and Aemma has a healthy baby boy, and the rest of the show is just the royal fam being happy-go-lucky sweethearts. Jaehaerys did this to prevent a civil war, because, as a voiceover warns us, “the only thing that could tear down the House Of The Dragon was itself.” The kingdom goes to the dude. Martin, is set 172 years before the overthrow of the centuries-long Targaryen reign that kicked off the events of Game Of Thrones.

Sunday's long-awaited premiere aimed to create investment in a new royal power struggle while assuring viewers that this was still “Game of Thrones.”

[an interview](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/19/arts/television/house-of-the-dragon-ryan-condal-miguel-sapochnik.html)before the season, Sapochnik discussed the importance of making the dragons feel like real, organic parts of the world. “And the day grows ugly …” Rhaenys deadpanned as the crowd delighted in the brutality, which was one way to put it. That poor mid-coital couple frozen on the floor of the brothel. The scene was a somber counterpoint to the chaos and violent agony that had come before it, and Sapochnik wisely let the quietness build. But based on his unhealing lesions and their evidence that the throne doesn’t like him — as well as the fact that this is a succession story, and that monarchs need to die for games of thrones to go on — he seems unlikely to occupy it for long. Sapochnik, the director of “Thrones” spectacles like Martin](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/21/arts/television/george-rr-martin-house-of-the-dragon.html), the “Thrones” godhead, wanted to go with all along, which is what we got on Sunday, complete with the more hulking Iron Throne. Second: The patriarchal leaders of the realm will resist attempts to put a woman on the Iron Throne. [HBO’s efforts](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/10/arts/television/house-of-the-dragon-hbo-got.html), after the polarizing end of its biggest-ever hit, to keep the “Thrones” loot train going. “The childbed is our battlefield,” she said, and we saw how that turned out. (Though I admit that even in a more pensive register, the “duh-nuh-NUH-nuh” motif is very satisfying.) But it is fundamentally still the same ugly chair inspiring the same ugly feelings — anxiety, envy, power-lust, a willingness to betray friends and relatives.

The 10-part Game of Thrones prequel takes us back 172 years to tell the story of Daenerys Targaryen's ancestors. Plus, Disability & Abortion.

Zuu is at his best here, opening his foodie world to Big Narstie – who has a new restaurant in Tenerife, so spicy, wrinkled potatoes are the dish of the day. And how do governing bodies tackle the matter in a meaningful way? In this complex documentary, actors Ruth Madeley and Ruben Reuter – who both live with a disability – listen to a range of perspectives.

Westeros is back, and with it, a slew of new contenders for the Iron Throne. The Seven Kingdoms' highest seat of power stays firmly within House Targaryen ...

It’s an act of kindness that flies not just in the face of Criston’s future as a knight of Westeros, but the entire series’ attitude toward its main cast. Above all these names, the most notable figure on the council is Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), Hand of the King to Viserys. Next up is Lyman Beesbury (Bill Paterson) as Master of Coin, a man who has little to do or say at this point in the story, but will eventually have an unforgettable role in the question of Rhaenyra’s succession. Game of Thrones had its Red Weddings and Stark beheadings aplenty, but House of the Dragon is waiting in the wings with big “hold my ale” energy. Sadly, the change in opinion extends to Otto’s daughter Alicent (Emily Carey), Rhaenyra’s best friend and closest confidant. “The Sea Snake,” as he’s known, is the most accomplished sailor in all of Westeros and likely well beyond it. Money aside, he commands the greatest fleet in the realm; what the Targaryens boast in air power through their dragons, Lord Corlys more than compensates with his command of the seas. the man on the throne at the very start of the premiere. Think of him as an Eddard Stark in a Targaryen suit; just as the late Lord of Winterfell was honorable but ill-fitted for the machinations of King’s Landing, so too will Viserys find himself overwhelmed by the dangers that come with sitting on the Iron Throne. Daemon’s cruel tactics and crude tongue get him in enough hot water that even his one true ally, Viserys, turns his back on him by the end of the premiere. But there’s an Arya Stark streak within her as well: she’s a fierce fighter in her own right who can (and, sadly, will) endure untold amounts of pain, and dish it back out in kind. Westeros is back, and with it, a slew of new contenders for the Iron Throne.

Paddy Considine, who stars in Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, has said he felt responsible for maintaining the quality and legacy of the show.

Most of them had set the bar very high and so you just wanted to be responsible and do a good job at the end of the day. Smith said: "I just hope we’ve created something that’s entertaining. Maintain that quality."

In the five years that HBO programming executives have been carefully considering a worthy successor to Game of Thrones, there was one idea that George RR ...

I am a lot more involved in House of the Dragon than I was in the later seasons of Game of Thrones. And even some of the things I told them are changing as I do the writing. I always knew once the show got beyond my books — which honestly I did not anticipate — they would start going in directions that the books are not going to go in. Before House of the Dragon was given a green light, HBO shot an entire pilot for a show that takes place 1,000 years before the events of Game of Thrones. Now, mind you, I was very involved in the early seasons of Game of Thrones. The Long Night is mentioned in my books here and there, but it’s an ancient event that people tell stories about — it’s like the Garden of Eden or a biblical flood. I do like what Marvel is doing because I like the variety of the shows. Let’s say House of the Dragon is a hit. It had dragons — a lot of dragons — and battles and betrayals. As you know, The Winds of Winter is very, very late — the last book was 11 years ago, and people are very angry about that. A hit could prove the viability of the Thrones Cinematic Universe. House of the Dragon was ordered straight to series in late 2019.

Some believed the show went too far - but others welcomed the bloody scenes, saying they harked back to the original Game of Thrones series.

- A mutilation of a horse - Scenes of a violent birth In the premiere episode of the Game of Thrones spinoff, there are a number of violent scenes.

Game of Thrones spin-off has finally landed, with fans of the original series in for a major treat.

Set 200 years before the world of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon is based on George R. "And that, after the bizarrely poor finale to what had been a roaring success of a show, is a relief." [writing](https://twitter.com/Great_Katzby): "The #HouseOfTheDragonHBO pilot very efficiently explains its context in relation to GoT, introduces its core characters, and lays out the central conflict of the series. R. [House of the Dragon](https://www.buzz.ie/tv/house-of-the-dragon-trailer-27539009) is finally here, and it looks like it's determined to give fans everything they've been missing out on over the past three years. [NOW](https://www.buzz.ie/all-about/now-tv), and aired at 2am (same time as in US) last night on Sky Atlantic for the die-hard fans.

Who's who? Matt Smith in House of Dragon, the Games of Thrones prequel. Pic: Sky. Considine plays King Viserys Targaryen, the fifth king of the Targaryen ...

But to even skirt the heights of Thrones' best work, it has an uphill dragon ride ahead." Cooke plays Alicent Hightower, while Notting Hill star Ifans plays her on-screen father and hand of the king Otto Hightower. "I think the reviews are in. Another fantasy based on author George RR Martin's Fire And Blood, the new series reportedly cost up to £17m per episode to make. Many critics have praised the first episode, and fans who watched in America - as well as those who stayed up/set their alarms to watch here - seem happy so far. Here's everything you need to know as the much anticipated prequel launches in the UK.

Milly Alcock as Young Rhaenyra, Emily Carey as Young Alicent in "House of the Dragon." The following contains spoilers about the premiere episode of " ...

contained in Martin's writing and the earlier series. Martin's struggles for the Iron Throne, the producers were clearly mindful of early criticisms of "Game of Thrones." Her husband, King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine), is desperate for a son in order to secure a male heir to the throne, in accordance with tradition. That included incorporating people of color into the "House" cast and, as , fueling fierce debate about issues of forced birth and women's freedom to make their own healthcare choices. As

The new show takes place 172 years before Game of Thrones and is based on George R.R. Martin's novel Fire & Blood, telling the story of House Targaryen and ...

While Game of Thrones was filmed in far-flung exotic locations such as Croatia and Malta, alongside Northern Ireland, House of the Dragon has more UK locations, including Cornwall and Devon. “So we, unfortunately, decided to pull the plug on it. Among them was a prequel set thousands of years before Thrones, with Naomi Watts as lead. And of course, the series is again based on George RR Martin’s books. Game of Thrones is not exactly family viewing; packed with gratuitous sex scenes. The Spanish town was famously used to depict the streets leading to the Red Keep when Euron brought his captives as an offering to Cersei in season seven. “I guess you have to ask yourself: ‘What are you doing? “She’s terrified of getting locked into motherhood and is aware of how her position would be different if she were male.” You have the determination to win it.” And just like Cersei, Alicent gets her ruthlessness from her father, the King’s Hand Ser Otto. “He’s sort of an outsider; he’s not black and white; there are shades of grey with him which is what interested me,” Matt said about his character. “It was tragic to see that decline, and I put that plus her kindness and love into Viserys,” he said.

Thanks, Joffrey! Despite being set 200 years before, Game Of Thrones actually contains quite a few House of the Dragon spoilers.

So much so that the original series is peppered with references to what could now be considered major spoilers for House of the Dragon (which we’re publishing below, so be warned). [House of the Dragon](https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/house-of-the-dragon-game-of-thrones-prequel-reviews) may be the successor to [Game of Thrones](https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/game-of-thrones-franchise-george-rr-martin), but it takes place around 200 years prior to the adventures of Ned Stark, Tyrion Lannister, and Daenerys Targaryen. Better Call Saul found novel ways to root the prequel into the world of Breaking Bad (including roping in Heisenberg himself for a cameo in the final season) while [Star Wars](https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/john-boyega-interview-2020) prequels like Solo and Rogue One were conceived as ways to fill in plot holes like: why is the Death Star like that?

Paddy Considine plays King Viserys Targaryen, while Matt Smith is Prince Daemon Targaryen, heir to the throne. Olivia Cooke stars as Alicent Hightower and Rhys ...

House of the Dragon has an average audience score of 89% of Rotton Tomatoes while IMDB gives it a score of 9.0 out of 10. House of the Dragon is set two centuries before the events of Game Of Thrones and we meet the ancestors of Daenerys Targaryen. Plus, there's no denying the familiar white-blonde hair of Daenerys' family.

The bloody push and pull over who would occupy the Iron Throne kept audiences enthralled with George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones, a series of epic fantasy ...

The new Game of Thrones prequel smacks viewers in the mouth from the very first episode, according to Screentime presenter John Fardy.

The Game of Thrones prequel shows patriarchy at its most dehumanizing — but in a post-Roe world, it was effective.