7 TVs
by Thinus Ferreira
It's future's past for HBO's new prequel fantasy drama series House of the Dragon on M-Net (DStv 101), mirroring more of the same from Game of Thrones but in a story set 172 earlier - so much foreshadowing! so many linkbacks! so many wink-winks! - in the land of Westeros.
Anybody who read George R.R. Martin's Fire & Ice book or who watched Game of Thrones despite HBO's botched and terrible conclusion will very likely start to watch House of the Dragon anyway.
Taking place almost two centuries before the events depicted in Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon pulls open the curtains on the same stage setting, with new actors inhabiting characters behaving the same way as their future descendants, in familiar scenes, and with the same lack of self-awareness. The future is the past; destined/doomed to repeat itself.
This smaller story will revolve around the fall of the House of Targaryen and the events that set in motion the dynasty's Dance of the Dragons civil war and eventual loss of political power - and loss of (constantly getting smaller) dragons (for which there's a smart reason if you've read it).
The only big "surprises" in this 10-episode season are when certain plot points, dragons and characters will show up and in which episodes - the story is known from the writings and descriptions which proliferate the internet and Game of Thrones wikis, as well as that Reddit full season episode synopsis and plot outline which HBO lawyered up to remove and tried to scrub from the interwebs.
Despite repeated requests, HBO and M-Net refused to provide South African TV critics and journalists with digital screeners for review purposes - like it did to media in America, the United Kingdom, the Middle East and countries like Australia who got to view the first 6 episodes of the series - so this review is solely based on the first episode premiere of House of the Dragon only.
The only worthwhile "reveal" from the first episode adding interesting further depth to the existing and sprawling Game of Thrones arcana, is that the rulers of the House of Targaryen actually knew about the White Walkers on the other side of The Wall, knew they would attack again someday, and knew that it was their responsibility to summon and unite the entirety of Westeros' people to once day fight against this threat (again).
King Viserys I (Paddy Considine) tells his daughter Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock) after the decision is made that she will become his heir, about the White Walker prophecy, imploring her to keep the knowledge close, as a secret only known to rulers, and to make sure she passes it on to and down through the Targaryen royal lineage.
Some of the House of the Dragon special effects could have done with more refinement work, especially early on in the first episode.
Scenes in the familiar Red Keep look great and a familiar King's Landing, seen as a "real world" special effects creation and as a model inside Viserys' royal chamber, is an apt setting in which to restart this new-old story.
The white wigs look unintentionally bad - especially Prince Daemon (Matt Smith) as Viserys' ambitious and conniving brother.
Watching the first episode of House of the Dragon instantly started feeling very reminiscent of Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace - in structure and scenes, themes, characters and plot beats. Once I noticed, it was impossible to keep watching and not instantly think of like-for-like things in House of the Dragon correlating to and referencing Star Wars Episode I.
Maybe there isn't another (new) way of telling a history lesson story that comes afterwards but then fills in the blanks of what happened before what came before it?
From a princess and a competition with fake CGI-looking spectator crowds, from people standing on the precipice of new roles and thrust into them and into a bigger world, to Viserys talking about Aegon I's vision of the "Prince that Was Promised" like Qui-Gon Jinn talking about the Chosen One who will bring balance to the force, make your own interesting tick-list of the numerous parallels between the two works' first episodes.
From an arrival/landing opening scene, goodbye mother, place is called a hive of villainy, destruction from within, sliced in half and many more there are hundreds of "check, check, check" parallels to be found.
As an Ozymandias story, it will be interesting to see the entropy taking hold in Westeros and the gradual decline of everything that used to be, in House of the Dragon.
House of the Dragon season 1 is on M-Net (DStv 101) on Monday nights 21:30 from 22 August 2022.
