# House of the Dragon, an HBO prequel series to Game of Thrones **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, hbomax-wb-dc\ **Created:** [May 6, 2021, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521 "2021-05-06T13:17:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 32
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2022, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/622 "2022-10-22T12:01:49Z")
> [@Lamoral](#): > > I think the story and characters of House of the Dragon are improving, but the show is still not much to look at visually. That’s interesting, as I feel like the views in HOTD are more stunning, and I love the scenery (particularly the overhead views). I agree that the lighting is sometimes off, though. Not sure why they do that. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2022, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/623 "2022-10-22T14:21:58Z")
Also remember early GoT had no dragons and completely skipped battle scenes in order to save their budget. Something has got to give on shows like this. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2022, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/624 "2022-10-23T15:02:35Z")
I don’t like this show as much as season 1 of Game of Thrones, but I do like it better than many first seasons of other shows. If GoT never existed and this was the only exposure to this world we had, I’d watch season 2 for sure. This show has no stand-out character like Tyrion. Characters like that, however, are rare. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2022, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/625 "2022-10-23T16:55:50Z")
The plot with many compelling characters? Battle scenes and dragons do not a show make. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2022, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/626 "2022-10-23T20:51:54Z")
Just watched the latest episode - was that Eric Idle I saw standing around the table while Daemon was talking about allies??? ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/627 "2022-10-24T02:08:11Z")
I am happy that the season ended exactly where I thought it would. What an ending! And you really get a sense of the size of Vhagar ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/628 "2022-10-24T05:28:48Z")
The other dragons are dragons. Vhagar is a kaiju. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/629 "2022-10-24T05:31:42Z")
I was kinda iffy about this show for the first 4 or so episodes, but it really turned it up at the end, and I was very hooked. Although I assumed the season would end with more resolution. As it is, the whole season basically feels like a prologue. One thing that I think is very well done is that neither side is clearly the goodies or the baddies. Both genuinely think they are right. And there are some genuinely despicable people on both sides. Although it’s particularly interesting on the Greens that Alicent honestly believes she is carrying out the will of the former king (and yes, it was self-serving or her to choose to identify his ramblings that way, but it makes TOTAL sense), while pretty much everyone else on that side has a much more realpolitik and/or sexist and/or possession-is-9-10ths motivation. Also interesting that she and Rhaenyra were (at least up until now) the two who seemed most intent on avoiding bloodshed, although it’s hard to imagine that continuing now. I agree that the characters aren’t quite as interesting as Tyrion, Ned Stark, etc. I agree that the show is so far not as good as GoT season 1… but GoT season 1 was _exceptional_. (All of the above said, if I had to choose a side it would clearly be Black… but not so much because of what Viserys did or didn’t decide, but because Aegon is a cunt, and Rhaenyra isn’t. In fact, she seems to have the making of a genuinely good and effective ruler.) ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/630 "2022-10-24T11:34:53Z")
Wow that was quite an ending. Bring on the Dance of Dragons in 2023 or 4. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/631 "2022-10-24T13:37:21Z")
Most likely 2024, I believe. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/632 "2022-10-24T17:10:25Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > The other dragons are dragons. Vhagar is a kaiju. That’s a very broad definition of kaiju that you’re carrying around there. I’ve never seen Tokyo on any maps of the realm. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/633 "2022-10-24T17:33:18Z")
Poor Arrax got torn apart like a chicken wing. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/634 "2022-10-24T18:31:02Z")
That scene made the difference in size between the two dragons very clear. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lantern2/32/3010_2.png) [@Lantern2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern2)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/635 "2022-10-24T19:25:25Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Most likely 2024, I believe. Really? That makes me sad… Great end to the season. I was wondering how the Blacks would react and the writers created a storyline which was both believable and exciting: Daemon is thirsting for war, Rhaenyra is trying to find a middle way showing she is in fact her father’s daughter but everything changes after her son is killed which was unexpected but quite plausible given the circumstances and the history of the characters. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/636 "2022-10-24T19:37:06Z")
> [@Lantern2](#): > > Really? That makes me sad… Yep. From the start of filming to S1 premiere was 15 months. And then they wouldn’t have started filming S2 until HBO greenlit a second season which happened a month ago or so. They’ll start filming in early 2023, I think. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/637 "2022-10-24T19:39:03Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Yep. From the start of filming to S1 premiere was 15 months. And then they wouldn’t have started filming S2 until HBO greenlit a second season which happened a month ago or so. They’ll start filming in early 2023, I think. They said spring at the earliest to start filming. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lantern2/32/3010_2.png) [@Lantern2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern2)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/638 "2022-10-24T20:06:15Z")
I would imagine there is some learning-by-doing and perhaps later seasons can be turned out more quickly. Many of the sets and digital assets would be re-used for example. But yeah it does look like 2024 and I imagine it may be the same for Rings of Power. I suppose for 2023 we can look forward to the Crown,the Gilded Age and Succession. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/639 "2022-10-24T20:55:38Z")
It sure did. I loved the horror on Aemond’s face once he lost control of Vhagar\*. As much as he loves violence he’s not a thug with no self control; he knows full well he how badly he escalated things. He didn’t just kill an envoy (itself taboo) he’s become the first kinslayer in the Dance of the Dragons. _ **Nobody** _ is going to believe him if he says it was an accident. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2022, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/640 "2022-10-24T21:37:33Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > _ **Nobody** _ is going to believe him if he says it was an accident. I think admitting that he doesn’t have control of his dragon would be the bigger problem. While he did escalate things he also removed a dragon and a dragon rider from the blacks, that is a non trivial shift in the power balance. ---
**Author:** ![SlipperyPete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@SlipperyPete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlipperyPete)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2022, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521/641 "2022-10-25T14:10:26Z")
That dragon scene also made it clear how badly miscalculated it was when Daemon was couting their 7 (or 13, counting riderless dragons) compared to the Greens’ 4 dragons. When one of their dragons is freakin’ VHAGAR, who is basically an undefeatable nuke in any dragon combat, the side with 7 ain’t looking so good anymore. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521.md?page=31) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-of-the-dragon-an-hbo-prequel-series-to-game-of-thrones/941521.md?page=33)