Most Game of Thrones fans are eagerly anticipating the August 21, 2022 arrival of its sequel, House of the Dragon, with many searching the web to find out what is going to be in store. The new storyline is based on the reign of the Targaryen family, 200 years before the events of the original HBO Series, where their history was only occasionally mentioned, buried as it was in the mysterious ruins of Valyria.
The bits of information gleaned from Game of Thrones about the Targaryen backstory were usually associated with Daenerys and her sense of entitlement regarding the Iron Throne, plus Tyrion Lannister and Jorah Mormont's boat trip from hell through Valyria. However, for casual GoT fans who haven't read George R.R. Martin's books, the history of the Targaryens and earlier Westeros is opaque. A quick primer on the subject can go a long way in preparing for what to expect from the complicated socio-political tale to come.
Fire & Blood
A Song of Ice and Fire author George R. R. Martin has supplemented his epic novel series with a number of associated books (including Fire & Blood, where he explores the history of House Targaryen). The HBO House of the Dragon series is meant to be based on the second half of the first volume (via HBO).
Fire & Blood is an indispensable read for fans who revel in minutiae, but, like the GoT TV series, casual House of the Dragon viewers will be entertained without needing to understand who sired everyone in which House and so on. If inclined to tackle one chapter of the book to viewing expectations, "The Dying of the Dragons," chronicles the brutal Targaryen civil war known as "The Dance of the Dragons."
House Of The Dragon Title
Fittingly, the show title is taken from a passage in A Game of Thrones, Chapter 3, Daenerys I:
The water was scalding hot, but Daenerys did not flinch or cry out. She liked the heat. It made her feel clean. Besides, her brother had often told her that it was never too hot for a Targaryen. "Ours is the house of the dragon," he would say. "The fire is in our blood."
It is notable that the title is derived from the words of the flailing Viserys Targaryen, who soon proved he was no "dragon' in GoT (he won the wrong kind of golden crown.) Daenerys, on the other hand, adopted dragon hatchlings and occasionally walked through fire on her way to becoming the Mother of Dragons. The varying levels of "fire" in the Targaryen line certainly pave the way for interesting power struggles in the family.
Ancient Rome And Atlantis
George R.R. Martin has often discussed his use of real history for inspiration in the creation of his political landscapes in A Song of Ice and Fire. For example, he's stated that The War of the Five Kings is based on England's 15th century War of the Roses and Danaerys is a female version of Henry Tudor (via The Guardian). Martin has also said that Valyria is partly based on Ancient Rome and the legend of Atlantis (via Smarter Travel):
"Valeria" was the name used by ancient Roman women of the Valeria gens (an extended family claiming descent from the same ancestor.) Considering the immense archetypical power of Rome and Atlantis, fans can expect numerous echoes of their histories in House of the Dragon.
The Targaryens
The silver-white haired Targaryens are one of 40 dragonlords in the Valyrian Freehold, a powerful empire based in Essos. Empowered by their mastery of magic and dragons, they rule the kingdom from their magnificent city of Valyria. House of the Dragon begins at the beginning of the end for the Targaryens, chronicling events leading up to and including the Targaryen Civil War (the "Dance of the Dragons.")
GoT was all about "the game" and viewers can expect House of the Dragon to follow in the bloody, cloak and dagger footsteps of its predecessor. If George R.R. Martin and the producers stick close to his books, fans might see seminal events such as the shepherds of Valyria discovering dragon lairs in the surrounding volcanoes (a 5,000-year flashback, granted) and the origin of Valyrian steel.
The Greens And The Blacks
Upon the death of Viserys I, the Targaryen house splits into two opposing power factions vying for the succession. Those who back the widowed queen Alicient Hightower and her son Aegon are called the "Greens and those loyal to Viserys I's daughter, Rhaenyra, are called the "Blacks."
While GoT often focused on the balance of power between kingdoms, the House of the Dragon follows the struggle for power within the Targaryen family. Civil wars are known to be more vicious than wars between states, so viewers can expect the acts of passion, murder, assassination, betrayal, and deception in the prequel to be heart-wrenching.
Dance Of The Dragons
House of the Dragon will focus largely on the build-up and struggle of the Valyrian Civil War, called "The Dance of the Dragons." At its core, it is a war of succession involving Viserys I's throne.
While Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion had important parts to play in GoT, viewers will fully expect dragon action to be a huge factor in the prequel, where the Targaryens maintain control through magic and dragon-power. Once the war begins, the Targaryen vs. Targaryen battlegrounds will thunder with the roars and fiery breaths of the legendary draconic beasts. There are no doubt fans will see the likes of Caraxes and the she-dragon Syrax in action, and perhaps even Balerion.
Where Will The The Starks Be?
GoT was a story of the Stark family at heart, so where do the Stark predecessors figure in the tale of the Targaryen ancestors? Viewers have seen Rickard Stark, father of Eddard, Lyanna, Brandon, and Benjen, appear in a House of the Dragon trailer, pledging support for Viserys' daughter, Rhaenyra (alongside Boremund Baratheon and Corlys Velaryon), but they have no idea how they might figure into the distant Targaryen drama.
While the Starks and other major GoT Houses may only provide background in the prequel story of the Targaryens, viewers can expect to learn a great deal about the dynamics of the family lines and how they produced Daenerys, Jon Snow, and maybe even that dagger that Arya used to kill The Night King.
King Viserys I Targaryen
As the Targaryen King at the outset of the House of the Dragon series, Viserys I (played by Paddy Considine) is portrayed in the books as a generous, peace-loving man, who possesses the decisiveness required to be an effective ruler. Unfortunately, the seeds of dissent that explode after his death are sown during his reign.
As House of the Dragons opens, fans can expect to find Viserys I's court already divided into Green and Black camps. Unhappy with the situation, Viserys will try to quell the conflicts; he'll manage to keep the situation under control until his death, but, after his passing, expect the knives to come out.
The Doom Of Valyria
The Doom of Valyria is a volcanic apocalypse that obliterates the Valyrian Freehold empire, destroys the Valyrian peninsula and creating the Smoking Sea. Resembling the end of the real-life Hernaculeum and Pompeii under Vesuvius, the cinematic event will certainly prove to be one of the most ambitious and expensive sequences produced on House of the Dragon.
House of the Dragon has Miguel Sapochnik aboard as producer and director and he's best known for his helming of spectacular battle sequences in episodes of Game of Thrones. With Sapochnik in charge, fans can expect some superb action scenes (especially during the immense catastrophe of The Doom).
Known Endings
Since George R.R. Martin was writing (and still is writing) the end of A Song of Fire and Ice, viewers never had a clue how the epic GoT story would end or even how the producers would choose to finish things. The opposite is true of House of the Dragon: the HBO series and Martin's Fire and Blood have already described the Targaryen family's collapse.
What can be expected from House of the Dragons as far as surprises go? Of course, Martin and the TV show writers can change aspects of Fire & Blood as much as they want, but it would be difficult to deviate too much, considering the complexity of the narrative and the legacy already established in the previous works. There's a reason people read books and watch movies they've already seen; the emotional power of the storytelling is the real reward, and that is where House of the Dragon must excel.