House of the Dragon

Photo: Courtesy of HBO

Almost two centuries before the Long Night, Red Wedding, or the Battle of the Bastards, another massive conflict wreaked havoc across Westeros. The first of many planned spin-offs of HBO’s landmark series Game of Thrones goes back to an era when the Targaryens ruled the Seven Kingdoms and dragons were plentiful.

Based on material from George R. R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, House of the Dragon tells the story of the Dance of Dragons and the events leading up to the brutal civil war. King Viserys I Targaryen rules over an unprecedented time of peace, but questions about his succession threaten to send the realm into chaos. Will Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen sit on the Iron Throne, or is Westeros not ready for a queen?

House of the Dragon was developed by Ryan J. Condal and Miguel Sapochnik. It stars Paddy Considine, Emma D’Arcy, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Rhys Ifans, Sonoya Mizuno, Milly Alcock, Emily Carey, and a whole lot of dragons.

SEASON:

Episode 10 The Black Queen

House of the Dragon Season-Finale Recap: Blood of the Dragon The dragons are about to eat one another alive.
Episode 9 The Green Council

House of the Dragon Recap: Pawn, Queen, King The king is dead! Long live the king! … If the Hightowers can find Aegon and pull off this coup.
Episode 8 The Lord of the Tides

House of the Dragon Recap: A Cozy Little Melee The Targaryen and Velaryon families are not the kind of kinfolk whose problems can be solved over the dinner table.
Episode 7 Driftmark

House of the Dragon Recap: Bastards and Broken Noses The various dispersed Targaryens descend on Driftmark, and bring with them their genetically endowed abilities to be uniquely awful.
Episode 6 The Princess and the Queen

House of the Dragon Recap: A Bad Egg Like it was for the Starks in early Game of Thrones episodes, the stakes for child’s play are high for these little Targaryens.
Episode 5 We Light the Way

House of the Dragon Recap: One Wedding and Two Funerals A pack of new menaces has arrived just in time to broaden the show’s reach.

Episode 4 King of the Narrow Sea

House of the Dragon Recap: The Second Sex Congratulations to House of the Dragon for finding a way to make sex actually further the narrative and character development.
Episode 3 Second of His Name

House of the Dragon Recap: Green-Eyed Monster Viserys may swear to Rhaenyra, “On your mother’s memory, you will not be supplanted,” but Daemon is still out there, waiting in the wings.
Episode 2 The Rogue Prince

House of the Dragon Recap: The Westeros Wing Viserys actually makes pretty good decisions for a Targaryen king, which leads to boring ol’ stable politics. Luckily, there’s a dragon face-off.
Episode 1 The Heirs of the Dragon

House of the Dragon Series-Premiere Recap: A Song of Ice and Fire A Targaryen-centric prequel begins in typical Game of Thrones fashion: well-acted, violent, revolting, CGI’d to the max, and more than a little horny.

2024 preview 44 TV Shows We Can’t Wait to Watch in 2024 Seasons come and seasons go, but TV marches on. By Vulture Editors
fire and blood Imagine House of the Dragon With These Deleted Scenes Left In A lot of Daemon moments hit the cutting-room floor. By Savannah Salazar
fire and blood Who’s Who in Westeros: A House of the Dragon Character Guide Keeping up with the Targaryens after episode eight. By Sean T. Collins

Interviews

Eve Best on Rhaenys’s Huge Dragon Moment: ‘It’s the Intelligent Choice’ By Sean T. Collins
House of the Dragon’s Paddy Considine Had His Eye on Viserys’s Dagger By Roxana Hadadi
John Macmillan Shot Laenor’s House of the Dragon Escape on His First Day on Set By Sean T. Collins

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House of the Dragon’s Emma D’Arcy Brings You the New Drink of the SeasonAnd why is the internet going mad for it?

By Bethy Squires
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John Macmillan Shot Laenor’s House of the Dragon Escape on His First Day on Set“It was a really stormy day, and we were out in the ocean in this massive hundred-year-old boat.”

By Sean T. Collins

last night on late night Oct. 6, 2022

Trevor Noah Is Mad About How Dark That House of the Dragon Episode Was TooWhile he still has a platform, Noah is going to be fighting for what really matters.

By Bethy Squires
dinner party Oct. 5, 2022

One Simple Trick Can Fix House of the Dragon’s Lighting ProblemAnd any other shows that look like they were shot during an eclipse.

By Tirhakah Love
yikes Oct. 4, 2022

George R.R. Martin’s Co-authors Are Not Fit to PostRise of the Dragon co-author Linda Antonsson has repeatedly critiqued the casting of people of color on Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon.

By Rebecca Alter
fire and blood Oct. 3, 2022

House of the Dragon’s Big Twist: A Happy Ending“Driftmark” subverts book canon for a character send-off that might just be the last nice thing that happens in this series.

By James Grebey
fire and blood Oct. 3, 2022

Why Did That Episode of House of the Dragon Look So Bad?Possible explanations, not excuses, for why you couldn’t see anything.

By Kathryn VanArendonk
fire and blood Oct. 3, 2022

Westeros Weddings Ranked by How Much Fun a Guest Would HaveSome of these unions are just not worth the RSVP.

By James Grebey
fire and blood Oct. 2, 2022

Wow, It Kinda Sucks to Be a Velaryon Right Now, Doesn’t It?More money, more incest-caused problems!

By Roxana Hadadi
fire and blood Sept. 30, 2022

The Casting Challenge Behind House of the Dragon’s 10-Year Time JumpHow the series’ casting director navigated a time-lapsed, multigenerational plot.

By Sean T. Collins
buffering Sept. 29, 2022

Dragons vs. Elves: Who Has the Better Release Strategy?Streamers say time slots are irrelevant. Maybe they’re wrong.

By Josef Adalian
tv ratings Sept. 29, 2022

The Rings of Power Ratings Are In, and They’re GoodNielsen weighs in on the Lord of the Rings versus Game of Thrones battle.

By Josef Adalian

close read Sept. 26, 2022

House of the Dragon’s Brutal Birth Obsession Isn’t Realism. It’s Cruelty.In three separate instances, the Game of Thrones prequel reduces a birthing woman to the limits of her body.

By Kathryn VanArendonk
chat room Sept. 26, 2022

House of the Dragon’s Matthew Needham Is Playing Larys As a Hero“He might seem completely mad, but it’s very methodical.”

By Sean T. Collins
fire and blood Sept. 20, 2022

Theo Nate Could Ride a Dragon All DayAs his House of the Dragon role is aged up and recast, the British actor reflects on Laenor Velaryon’s bravery on and off the battlefield.

By Sean T. Collins
chat room Sept. 18, 2022

House of the Dragon’s Fabien Frankel on Ser Criston Cole’s Wedding Woes“He has to go in like, I’m going to f - - - ing give it everything I’ve got, and let it be what it is after that.”

By Roxana Hadadi
house of the dragon Sept. 14, 2022

So Is Incest Taboo in Westeros, or What?The Targaryens’ whole deal, explained.

By James Grebey
close read Sept. 8, 2022

The Rings of Power Looks on the Bright SideThe unfailingly well-lit fantasy series’ radiant beauty is illuminating both figuratively and literally.

By Roxana Hadadi
fire and blood Sept. 6, 2022

House of the Dragon’s Resident Lannister(s) Had to Forget What GOT Taught HimJefferson Hall on his “unremarkable” performance in Thrones’ first season and how he tackled double duty as Dragon’s newest twins.

By Sean T. Collins
the biz Aug. 31, 2022

House of the Dragon Co-Showrunner Abdicates His ThroneRyan Condal sits on the Iron Throne alone.

By Bethy Squires
final rose Aug. 31, 2022

House of the Dragon Became The Bachelor This WeekWill King Viserys follow his head (a 12-year-old) or his heart (a 15-year-old)?

By Nate Jones
bloody sunday Aug. 28, 2022

Blood Is Thicker Than Water in the House of the Dragon Title SequenceThe new title sequence keeps the same tune as the original series.

By Alejandra Gularte

fire and blood Aug. 26, 2022

The Most Expositional Lines of the House of the Dragon Premiere, RankedRemember winter? You will.

By Nicholas Quah
close read Aug. 23, 2022

Who Did It Better — House of the Dragon or Game of Thrones?A side-by-side analysis of premiere episodes “The Heirs of the Dragon” and “Winter Is Coming.”

By Jen Chaney
hairy styles Aug. 23, 2022

Ranking the Half-Ponytails of House of the DragonSometimes you’re on top, sometimes you’re on the bottom … in this gorgeous game of thrones we call life.

By Rachel Handler
tv ratings Aug. 22, 2022

A Lotta People Watched the Dragon ShowThe Game of Thrones prequel drew the most viewers for an HBO premiere ever.

By Josef Adalian
chat room Aug. 21, 2022

Milly Alcock Confirms Riding a Horse Is a Lot More Fun Than Riding a DragonHow the House of the Dragon star mastered constricting costumes, High Valyrian, and House Targaryen’s creatures for the Game of Thrones prequel.

By Jackson McHenry
house of the dragon Aug. 21, 2022

Don’t Worry, a House of the Dragon Title Sequence Exists!… and it’s coming next week.

By Zoe Guy
review roundup Aug. 19, 2022

Is House of the Dragon Burdened by Its Predecessor? Critics Weigh In.Well, there sure are dragons!

By Zoe Guy
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Interviews

Latest on House of the Dragon