Rating: ★★★☆☆

TV-MA: Violence, Language, and Nudity

Exclusively on HBO and HBO Max

It’s been just over three years since the end of the multiple-time Emmy and Oscar-winning show: Game of Thrones. With HBO having recently released their first spin-off show “House Of The Dragon.” This series is a prequel, taking place about 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones. It has been allocated a budget of around 200 million dollars, breaking down to 20 million dollars an episode, and has planned ten episodes to be released.

It feels like the show was set up for failure from the start, for the simple fact of being associated with the very successful TV show Game of Thrones. This will bring a lot of fans at the start, but if expectations aren’t met the show will fall off very quickly. 

As someone who has watched all of Game of Thrones, when I started the first episode of this new show, this sense of nostalgia and excitement took over, followed immediately by nervousness when remembering how bad Game of Thrones ended. While watching this show a sense of nervousness creeps in because if this show is bad the end of Game of Thrones was the wake and this is the funeral. 

Like the early season of Game Of Thrones, this series is based on the book “Fire and blood” by George R.R. Martin. So viewers have come in with high expectations just based on what titles the show is attached to, and through five episodes it has met expectations so far.

House of the Dragon has landed back on the shock factored experienced in Game of Thrones and it’s very noticeable. There are very distinct scenes where they show you how they could cross the line and pull back. While this makes the show easier to watch with the family it can take away from the emotion of scenes. 

The show introduces a whole new cast of characters, and some names may sound familiar because of past references. So far not many of the characters have captivated my interest, early on they seem very basic and shallow. This is probably because only five episodes have been released, but the one character that has caught my attention the most is Dameon Targaryen. He is played by actor Matt Smith whose character leaves a sense of mystery in the plot. You never know exactly what he is planning and that sense of mystery is what keeps my attention the most. 

This show also explores the function of House Targaryen which despite barely existing in the Game of Thrones is one of the most recognizable. Exploring the details of a briefly mentioned past creates new storylines and overall completes and fills in the Game of Thrones timeline more. 

Overall the show is off to a great start, but there’s always this thought in the back of my head that, like Game of Thrones, they could really drop the ball on the ending to this first season. I would recommend people to watch Game of Thrones first, before starting House Of The Dragon.