The world of Westeros awaits yet again in House of the Dragon, and George R.R. Martin is asking fans to embrace their return to the familiar land. In the lead-up to the prequel’s release on 21 August, the novelist shared his thoughts in a recent blog post, and they are nothing short of glowing compliments.
“I’ve seen all ten episodes now (albeit in rough cuts), and I love what I’ve seen. Ryan [Condal] and Miguel [Sapochnik] and their amazing cast and crew have done some magnificent work,” wrote Martin. “Hot D is all I hoped it would be; dark, powerful, visceral, disturbing, stunning to look at, peopled with complex and very human characters brought to life by some truly amazing actors.”
The sentiments echo initial reactions to the show, which have been largely positive so far. Set two hundred years before the events of Game of Thrones, the 10-episode spin-off inspired by Martin’s Fire & Blood follows the decline of the dragon-riders and how the dynasty came to civil war. The official featurette below delves more into its history and lore:
House of the Dragon is produced by Condal and Sapochnik, the latter of whom also worked on some of the original show’s best episodes, including “Hardhome,” “Battle of the Bastards,” “The Winds of Winter,” and “The Long Night”. It stars Paddy Considine as King Viserys Targaryen, Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon, ‘The Sea Snake’, Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, Fabien Frankel as Ser Criston Cole, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, and Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Natalie
