Princess Rhaenyra from House of the Dragon. Picture: DStv.com
The show billed as the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon is finally here and it seems to be all South African fantasy fans can talk about.
The franchise’s die-hard South African fans either stayed awake or woke up just before 3am, to catch it live on M-Net and it seems to be off to a good start in terms of winning fans over.
The series is based on George RR Martin’s book Fire & Blood, which chronicles the history of House Targaryen and the show’s events 200 years before the events in Game of Thrones (GOT).
You, therefore, do not need to watch Game of Thrones to follow what’s happening in House of the Dragon (HOTD).
While the show is heavily rooted in fantasy, the show will also focus on character dynamics fueled by personal drama as well as the sociopolitical turmoil that comes with a scramble for power.
So, if fantasy isn’t necessarily your thing, no need to fret as the show provides so much more.
One thing to be weary about, however, is all the graphic violence that comes with a show set during such a time. If you’re on the sensitive side, you may find yourself needing to occasionally cover your eyes from time to time.
Much like GOT, HOTD is not a family-friendly show so if you have young ones in the home, you may want to schedule this one as adult viewing time after they have gone to bed.
The show will air on Mondays at 3am and again at 9:30pm on M-Net (DStv channel 101). House of the Dragon will also be available on the DStv Catch Up platform.
Sadly, the show will not be available on Showmax as of yet but the box set will be available for binge viewing sometime towards the end of the year. Release dates will be confirmed at a later stage.
According to DStv, there “are naturally a lot of Targaryens in the show, which is going to create a nightmare for our spellcheck over the next few months.”
The characters are played by an amazing cast including the esteemed Paddy Considine as King Viserys I Targaryen and Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen.
The star of the show will undoubtedly be relative newcomer Emma D’Arcy who plays Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen.
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CNN did a brief explainer of the House of the Dragon’s main characters which include the following:
King Viserys I: The current king of Westeros and Daenerys’ great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather.
During the season, we’ll get to see those around him fighting to inherit his power when his life eventually comes to an end.
Princess Rhaenyra: Viserys’ daughter by his first wife and her father’s preferred successor. She also has a dragon named Syrax.
Prince Aegon II: Viserys’ first-born son and half-brother to Rhaenyra. He is another possible successor and a very big part of the war to come.
Prince Daemon: Viserys’ brother and Rhaenyra’s uncle. He is understandably upset about not being the most powerful, however, it is unclear (after watching the first episode without reading the book) what role he’ll play in the story.
Alicent Hightower: Viserys’ second wife and stepmother to Rhaenyra. She is also Aegon II’s mother and has desires to be Westeros’ first queen regnant, so she doesn’t get along with her stepdaughter.
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