Ryan Shoots First: House of the Dragon (S1 Ep1) “The Heirs of the Dragon”
Welcome everyone to House of the Dragon!! 170 years before the events of Game of Thrones we see the cracking of the hold of the Targaryen dynasty. House of the Dragon marks the return to Westeros as HBO goes back to the well of a prelude series to Game of Thrones. As interested as I am to watch the show I am equally interested in watching fans anticipation and reception of the series. People being upset with the final season of GoT is no secret and some were excited about this series almost equally some are still so burnt (no pun intended) by the finale they still are not ready to get back on that horse… or dragon.
But what about the show itself? Well one interesting tidbit is the source material it is based on, “Fire and Blood”, is a book that author George R.R. Martin actually finished! Because of that some in the Thrones fandom are a little more optimistic about this show as how close it sticks to the book is one thing but the fact there is a map to follow is encouraging. Back over at Thrones world we are still waiting for old George to put pen to paper. We will leave it up to YouTube break downs to see what fans think of how it lines up with the book but for now as a Thrones fan HotD strikes enough notes to give us many of the same feelings we loved about GoT but it’s not relying on call backs or cameos to piggyback of it’s big brother. We get a few little nods here and there but the show largely is built on an internal struggle for an heir to the throne with no apparent rightful son ready to take the place of King Viserys. This leads to many of the dialogue heavy back channeling and political maneuvering that made GoT famous. Even within one family the Game is still being played. Still the show cannot veer too much off course it is a prelude series after all so somethings are just naturally going to fall into place but I feel the characters are motivated and interesting enough to drive it’s own path and allow the show to stand on it’s own. There is not “Bran gets pushed out the window” moment in the premiere to really kick things off but the over all mood of the show, the peace failing and the once great house beginning to fracture sets a foreboding tense tone over the whole series going forward. Yes we know how this all ends but watching dynasties slowly and spectacularly fail is always interesting to see and unable to look away from.
I can see some characters I believe fans will fall for, Daemon is the bad boy who is dangerous but also cunning, and of course played by the 11th doctor Matt Smith. Rhaenyra seeks adventure and her own pleasure which makes her almost a mix if Arya and Daenerys and I think fans will like her as well. In the same way many people had to grow to love characters in GoT it will take some time for this batch to burrow into our hearts and take hold. I liked the premiere and I have high hopes for the show. There was nothing better than a Sunday night when Thrones was at its peak and the reactions on Monday mornings. I don’t know if we will ever get back to that in the public consciousness but this feels like a great first step.
Observations
- Ok, they had a Last of Us peek in the opening and I’m so hyped.
- Down with the patriarchy!
- Dang the tears welling up in Rhaeny’s eyes as she’s passed over. Let’s go!!
- It’s crazy how dragons were hyped up and built to in GoT for years and we just going all out here. A normal part of life.
- Seeing the dragons with saddles is awesome
- The subtle weaving of the Thrones theme as a tease
- Peep that throne.
- I’m just gonna say the 11th doctor would totally make his entrance by sitting on the throne.
- King Viserys is a unique ruler in the Throne universe. I can’t tell if he’s incompetent or we just haven’t seen kings during peacetime.
- Welp, I’ve seen the doctor’s butt now.
- Daemon’s armor is baller
- Woah! Never seen that on a jousting match. Is that legal?? Get me a ref by gawd!
- Well dang, I don’t remember this at Medieval Times.
- Geeze I’ve seen a lot of stuff in this universe but that c-section was rough.
- Well, every King should have a hobby I guess. Cool model.
- The fact that the throne keeps cutting and physically hurting Viserys is a great piece of symbolism for the peace that is beginning to fracture and lack of fit to the throne.
- Oh that’s awesome, the dagger Arya used to end the Night King.
