Warning: Contains SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 1, episode 2.House of the Dragon season 1 is already making major changes to the established Game of Thrones timeline, which makes some sense for its story but also raises questions about what’s to come. The House of the Dragon timeline begins just under 200 years before Game of Thrones, placing it in a Westeros that’s both similar (many of the most important houses, locations, and customs remain the same) and very different (not least the fact it’s ruled by House Targaryen and has a hell of a lot more dragons). The prequel is, curiously, simultaneously more intimate and more expansive than Game of Thrones, which makes its timeline all the more interesting.
This isn’t as far-reaching a story as Game of Thrones in terms of sheer breadth of story; whereas that went from the far North of Westeros to the south of Essos, and saw several major houses in main roles, House of the Dragon's story, building to the Dance of the Dragons, is more centered around King's Landing and the inner-workings of the Targaryens, though there are other key players. But at the same time, this is a much longer narrative, with rivalries and bitter feelings that will play out across around 30 years in total, whereas Game of Thrones' timeline spanned around eight years.
Perhaps inevitably, then, House of the Dragon's timeline is making some changes to what was previously established in Game of Thrones and the books. Though it started off following the same course - Viserys was named King Jaehaerys' heir at the Great Council of 101 AC - it's quickly jumped forward, meaning events are happening much later than they do in George R.R. Martin's works. For instance, House of the Dragon season 1, episode 2 sees Viserys choosing to marry Alicent Hightower; this takes place in around 112 AC in the show, but was 106 AC in the books. That's relatively minor in and of itself, but has knock-on effects: Viserys and Alicent's first son, Aegon, should have been born by now (107 AC, as per the books), and the tourney that gives the civil war its "greens" and "blacks" factions ought to have happened as well, and yet they're not even married yet. Assuming Aegon is born in the next couple of years, he would still just be a teenager of around 15-16 when the Dance of the Dragons begins, whereas he's 22 in the books.
Are House Of The Dragon's Timeline Changes A Problem?
It seems likely that House of the Dragon won't be changing the start date of the Dance of the Dragons (and there is only so much wiggle room before beginning to intrude on other areas of Westeros history), since Martin himself confirmed House of the Dragon season 1 covers 28 years. Beginning from the Great Council, that runs up to 129 AC, the established start date of the Targaryen civil war in the books. If that holds true, then it means a lot of the characters involved - certainly the children of Alicent - will be even younger in the show, a contrast to Game of Thrones' character ages, where most were older than the books.
It's an interesting wrinkle, and the decision to jump forward to the ninth year of King Viserys' reign in House of the Dragon season 1, episode 1 means that the show will have to cram more into its timeline, but not necessarily a problem. Many events can still happen at their established points, and this approach allows Alicent and Rhaenyra's bond to be even stronger before it's broken, which so far looks a smart choice). Having, say, Aegon be several years younger when challenging for the Iron Throne will reframe things somewhat, but should still be workable into House of the Dragon's story: indeed, making Alicent's children closer in age to Rhaenyra's own will make their rivalries seem more even and could improve things. Changes to the Game of Thrones timeline were perhaps inevitably given the scope of House of the Dragon, but two episodes in it's so far justifying its choices.
House of the Dragon releases new episodes Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.
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