The HBO show “House of the Dragon” has given the “dragon franchise with a bad ending” a new life. In “House of the Dragon,” a prequel to “Game of Thrones,” the royal Targaryen dynasty is portrayed 172 years before Robert Baratheon dethrones them. The characters of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, King Viserys I, Viserys’ evil brother Daemon Targaryen, and the cunning Hightowers Queen Alicent and Ser Otto are all brought to life.
“House of the Dragon” is already well-liked by viewers, and the opening episode had astounding viewership numbers. Fans appear to be ready to forgive the series for the controversial “Game of Thrones” last season at this point. Season 8, which was packed with controversial and unsatisfactory events, ruined the once wildly beloved series. Nearly 2 million people have signed a petition asking that Season 8 of “Game of Thrones” be redone, and many fans even went as far as to swear off the show entirely. Thankfully, it appears like “House of the Dragon” is healing those wounds.
By including more book-related mythology and sticking to author R.R. Martin’s work rather than departing from it, “House of the Dragon” is regaining the trust of its fans. Nevertheless, it could be considerably worse than that. The inclusion of specific storylines, such as Aegon the Conqueror’s prediction regarding the White Walkers, raises the possibility that “House of the Dragon” is entirely learning from the Game of Thrones season 8 mistakes.”
Game Of Thrones Season 8 Was A Mistake
“Game of Thrones” took a massive hit just after Season 8’s release. The last season, which was filled with controversial moments, received negative reviews from viewers who were upset by its hurried pacing and attempts to defy expectations. The White Walkers were beaten in one episode after eight seasons of buildup. If you believed that Jon Snow and the Night King would engage in an epic last fight after their confrontation in Season 5’s “Hardhome,” you would be mistaken. While Jon is busy with the undead dragon Viserion, Arya Stark defeats the Night King using a Valyrian steel dagger that Bran gave to her.
Not only that, nothing came of the revelation that Jon was really Aegon Targaryen, the trueborn son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen. Jon never acquired the Iron Throne or achieved the Prince That Was Promised destiny. In the meantime, Daenerys Targaryen changed from Mhysa to the Mad Queen in the terrifying episode “The Bells,” in which she used Dragonfire to massacre the citizens of King’s Landing after the city had been captured.
In the end, Bran Stark rises from the ashes to become the next king of Westeros. Jon stabs Daenerys to death before being exiled to the Wall for his crime. Many “Game of Thrones” fans swore never to forgive the fantasy series for its controversial ending when Jaime Lannister left Brienne of Tarth to die alongside his sister and lover, Queen Cersei.
House of the Dragon Restoring The Story
Fortunately, it looks like “House of the Dragon” is repairing ties with its unhappy fanbase. ” In this prequel TV series, shows one of the most dramatic times in Daenerys Targaryen’s family’s history, the Dance of the Dragons, a time of civil war. It takes place 172 years before Daenerys Targaryen is born. For viewers who liked the political drama and controversies of “Game of Thrones,” this is the perfect follow-up show to soothe their thirst.
Strangely, “House of the Dragon” gives the Song of Ice and Fire book as much attention in its first episode as it does the Game of Thrones show. In “The Heirs of the Dragon,” King Viserys tells his daughter Rhaenyra about a prophecy that inspired their ancestor Aegon I to take over Westeros with the help of his dragon, Balerion the Black Dread, his two sister wives, Visenya and Rhaenys, and their dragons, Vhagar and Meraxes.
King Visery narrates this vision. Aegon saw a “terrible winter, blowing out of the distant North,” which inspired the conqueror to build the Iron Throne and unite the kingdoms under Targaryen rule in preparation for a raging battle against the icy Others.
It’s a fascinating fact that gives the narrative more depth. However, why did Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik, the show’s creators, decide to put a vision about the White Walkers in a series about House Targaryen, especially in the first episode?
George R.R. Martin Is Confirmed To Be Heavily Involved
George R.R. Martin, who created the series, is the author of Aegon the Conqueror’s prophecy. Martin, the writer of the “A Song of Ice and Fire” books that served as the basis for the “Game of Thrones” series, confirmed his connection to “House of the Dragon” on his website.
Ryan Condal, the showrunner, explained in a recent interview about working with the author that “I was hired by George, and I was there as a supporter. He played a significant role at the start of the show. It is obvious that without him, it does not exist. The OG source material was written by him.”
Condal goes on, “Of all the spin off shows HBO was contemplating and investigating, I believe he was most interested in this one. Certainly, George was heavily involved from the very beginning of the conceptual phase.”
When talking in an interview, Martin compared his participation with “By Seasons 5 and 6, and undoubtedly 7 and 8, I was pretty well out of the loop, he said, referring to how he was kept “out of the loop” mostly during later seasons of “Game of Thrones.” When asked for arone Martin said, ” You’ll have to contact [showrunners] Dan and Dave to find out [why].” With Martin in charge, “House of the Dragon” has a chance to be more true to the novels and a second opportunity at a finale.
House of the Dragon Not Mentioning Arya Stark
“House of the Dragon” appears to be bridging the gaps between book and show canon because of George R.R. Martin’s involvement. No reference is made in Aegon’s prophecy to anything that might represent Arya Stark as humanity’s savior. In “Game of Thrones,” the final Targaryen prince barely scared the Night King; Daenerys and Drogon “Dracarys” tried to burn him only to learn the ice fiend is fireproof, and Jon is surrounded by zombie Unsullied warriors before he can wield his Valyrian steel sword, Longclaw, to slash at any White Walkers.
Maybe Aegon’s prophecy/vision in “House of the Dragon” isn’t meant to hint at the “Game of Thrones” ending, though. Martin admitted in an interview in 2019 that he hadn’t received any scripts for the season finale before Season 8 aired, saying: “They will be creating many of the minor-character [arcs] on their own. Naturally, they passed me a long time ago. There could be significant differences.”
In a more recent post on his blog, Martin stated that not all of the characters from “Game of Thrones” who lived until the end will also survive until the conclusion of “A Song of Ice and Fire,” and not all of the characters who perished in “Game of Thrones” will also perish in “A Song of Ice and Fire.”
House Of The Dragon Setting The Stage For A GOT Reboot
HBO may have future plans to remake “Game of Thrones” in light of this potential ignoring of the series finale (I mean anything can happen if three Spider-Man can come together). “House of the Dragon” might serve as a platform for a different Westeros-focused series that is more faithful to the books. Why not hold off on rebooting the original series that helped George R.R. Martin’s writing become a global success until he finishes writing “A Dream of Spring,” and “The Winds of Winter”, the last two installments in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” saga?
Remaking “Game of Thrones” can be upsetting for some fans. It may be difficult to watch “Game of Thrones” with a different Ned Stark or Tyrion Lannister because Peter Dinklage and the rest of the actors and crew contributed to the popularity of the show. On the other hand, a “Game of Thrones” remake would be a fantastic chance to showcase fresh talent and improve upon the shortcomings of the original.
There are still some connections between “House of the Dragon” and the original series. King’s Landing and Dragonstone share the same settings. The (future) ghost of Cersei haunts the Red Keep, which is still the Red Keep. Although the Iron Throne resembles the seat from “Game of Thrones,” it has been decorated with additional swords to more closely resemble its book counterpart. This unifies the two mediums by making the Iron Throne depicted in the new series true to the books and the original HBO show.
House Of The Dragon Making Way For More GOT Spin-offs
HBO has plans for other “Game of Thrones” spinoff shows in addition to “House of the Dragon.” Martin acknowledged that he and HBO are “creating a lot of additional spinoffs” for the “Game of Thrones” franchise in one of his interviews. HBO has ambitious ideas for its George R.R. Martin universe: In a book titled “Ten Thousand Ships,” which is set in Nymeria around a thousand years in the past, the Rhoynar’s journey to Dorne is told. That reads like the epic “Odyssey.” There are nine journeys of the sea snake Corlys Velaryon. That would lead us to areas we’ve never been in the world.”
Corlys Velaryon played the role of the Master of Ships in King Viserys’s council in the fantasy television series “House of the Dragon.” Corlys and Rhaenys, Viserys’ cousin, have two children together, Laena Velaryon and Laenor Velaryon.
The adventures of the Sea Snake would be a fantastic chance to fill in more details about the past of House Velaryon, another family to leave the Doom of Valyria, while also discovering new locations inside the “Game of Thrones” world, such as the remote regions of Essos and the rainforest continent of Sothoryos.
Similarly, Nymeria’s possible prequel is the ideal chance to highlight one of Westeros’ most famous characters and a bloody period when Valyria was at its most powerful. In “Game of Thrones,” Arya Stark gives her direwolf the name Nymeria in remembrance of the brave queen who fled to Dorne from the dragonlords.
House of the Dragon Was Not The First Spin-off
HBO nearly approved a different prequel to be released after “Game of Thrones” Season 8 before “House of the Dragon.” The intended series, “Bloodmoon,” would have taken place in the Age of Heroes, eight thousand years before “Game of Thrones.” The topic of “Bloodmoon”? Briefly stated: the White Walkers. This prequel would have shown the first Long Night, 8 centuries before the Night King was defeated at Winterfell, and the first appearance of the White Walkers in the far North.
HBO says that “Bloodmoon” would have covered a wide range of topics, including “the horrible secrets of Westeros’ past to the real origin of the white walkers, the secrets of the East to the Starks of legend… it’s not the tale we think we know”. In addition to George R.R. Martin serving as executive producer and showrunner, Naomi Watts had been chosen for the starring role.
However, “Bloodmoon” was never released after production. The series was canceled after filming a pilot episode in favor of “House of the Dragon.” It’s likely that Aegon’s prophecy — or whatever prompted it — would have been featured in the series given that “Bloodmoon” was planned to focus on the Long Night and the beginning of the White Walkers.
A Jon Snow Sequel
HBO doesn’t have to remake “Game of Thrones” in order to change the series finale, though. George R.R. Martin said on his blog that a “Game of Thrones” sequel is currently in the works, along with a lineup of prequel episodes. The planned show is Jon Snow-centric, and actor Kit Harington is in the lead of it, according to what is currently known about the sequel.
In an earlier interview, Emilia Clarke, who portrayed Daenerys throughout “Game of Thrones,” said that the sequel had been “developed by Kit as far as I can tell, so he’s in it by the ground up.”
There is no guarantee that the Jon Snow sequel show will go past the pre-production stage. Even so, if the sequel makes it to television, it might retcon some events from Season 8 and tie in with Aegon’s prophecy from “House of the Dragon.” The White Walkers could make a comeback in a sequel featuring Jon Snow, aka Aegon Targaryen, and be led by a fresh icy king for Jon to deal with. Alternatively, a follow-up might bring Jon and a revived Daenerys together. Some fans have theorized that the Red Priests of R’hllor may have resurrected Daenerys after Drogon carried her body to Volantis.
Also Read: Top 10 Most Popular Game Of Thrones Characters: Jon Snow Is Not On The Top
