Fire & Blood

Image: HBOAt long last, Westeros is ready to tear itself apart in civil war (uhhh... again, although all this happened before the last time it did that for us). House of the Dragon is ready to return, and is preparing to bring one of the most infamously bloody conflicts in Game of Thrones history to life.What Should Fans Take Away from Imaginary?HBO has just dropped a pair of “dueling” trailers for House of the Dragon’s second season, which will see the rapidly fraying bonds between the two factions in the ruling House…

More dragons are coming to the world of Game of Thrones.Image: HBOGame of Thrones is likely to go back in time yet again. While several other spinoffs of the hit HBO fantasy series are at various stages of rumor and development, one has just taken a giant step forward. A previously discussed prequel show following Aegon’s Conquest of Westeros, which takes place roughly 100 years before House of the Dragon, and 300 years before Game of Thrones, just picked up a new writer.You Should Really Watch The Last of UsThe Hollywood…

Image: HBOThe Game of Thrones prequel may be about to get a prequel. Varietyhas reported HBO is in active discussions to make another series based on George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series, this time set even earlier in the timeline than the current prequel, House of the Dragon. If made, however, it’ll still star a Targaryen—specifically, Aegon I, the Targaryen who first conquered Westeros.You Should Really Watch The Last of UsAegon the Conquerer, as he was aptly titled, lived around 100 years before…

Screenshot: HBORider: Aemond TargaryenThe largest dragon that exists in the world of House of the Dragon, and the only one who came with the original Aegon the Conquerer to Westeros hundreds of years ago. Vhagar was ridden by Laena Velaryon, who begs to be incinerated while suffering a difficult, painful birth. The young Aemond Targaryen, bitter at not having a dragon of his own, crept out of Driftmark’s castle and approached the massive beast, got on its back, survived (barely) the dragon’s throes, and eventually tamed…

Image: Ollie Upton/HBOThe branches of the Targaryen family tree stretch far beyond the Game of Thrones TV franchise. In fact, if you look to George R.R. Martin’s original Song of Ice and Fire novels—including Fire and Blood, upon which House of the Dragon is based—there are more than 50 named Targaryens mentioned throughout Westerosi history. They all have two things in common: platinum blond hair and an abundance of ae’s and y’s in their names. Now, with scientific methods far too scientific to explain, I have ranked all…

Screenshot: HBO MaxOlivia Cooke plays Alicent Hightower, daughter of the Hand of the King, opposite Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra. The first episode focuses on their childhood in the Red Keep, where they’re played by Milly Alcock (Rhaenyra) and Emily Carey (Alicent). Those scenes help inform the older versions we follow, in building their characters.Cooke shared while didn’t visit during shoot, they did watch their scenes. “We were being really respectful of their process. We’re like, we don’ t want to impose…

Image: HBOThere are a lot of expectations around the new House of the Dragon series from HBO Max, and nobody is more concerned than George R.R. Martin himself. He has apparently been more active in this production than the original Game of Thrones series—and he was particularly insistent on three details that, unfortunately, might not be included.According to Insider, Martin wanted “colorful dragons, an emphasis on bright heraldry, and the addition of King Jaehaerys Targaryen II.” It seems Martin was really jonesing for a…

Cheer up Daemon, I’m sure it’ll go well for your family in... uhh... *flips through history books* oh no.Screenshot: HBOHouse of the Dragon wowed us earlier in the week with its new trailer setting the stage for a Game of Thrones prequel so full of dragons, civil war, and political intrigue that, well, you’d be convinced it’s a Game of Thrones prequel. But while we had to wait compared to folks who were at Comic-Con yesterday, we’ve finally got an even bigger look.House of the Dragon brought cast and crew and a new…