Exploring "House of the Dragon"--"The Heirs of the Dragon" (S1, Ep. 1)

The series premiere is a brutal, compelling, and triumphant return to Westeros.

I’m one of those people who was genuinely excited about the first episode of House of the Dragon, entitled “The Heirs of the Dragon.” While I was, like most fans, very disappointed in the rushed nature of the last season of Game of Thrones, I was more than happy to give this series a chance, if for no other reason than that I enjoyed Fire and Blood, the fictional history book upon which the series is based. And, let’s be real, this is a golden age of fantasy television, and I’m a sucker for this particular genre. 

As the series opens, there is unrest in Westeros. King Viserys I–who was awarded the throne as a result of the Great Council held by his grandfather Jaehaerys I–yearns for a male heir, but so far only has an adult daughter, Rhaenyra. Meanwhile, his small council is riven by conflict between his Hand, Otto Hightower and his brother (and presumptive heir) Daemon. Things only get worse when Viserys’ wife, Aemma, dies in childbirth (as a result of his own choice to have the maesters operate on her), after which his newly-born son dies as well. After a snide remark from Daemon enrages the king, he sends him away from court, even as he forces the realm to swear allegiance to Rhaenyra as his heir who, up until this point, has preferred the company of her best friend, Alicent Hightower–daughter of Otto, no less–to the council chamber. 

I particularly enjoyed seeing the obvious bond between Rhaenyra and Alicent, and from the moment they encounter each other after the former’s dragon flight, it’s clear how deeply they feel for one another. I’m sure that I’m not the only one who detected some definite sapphic overtones to their relationship, particularly in that scene beneath the weirwood tree. There’s a great deal of chemistry between Milly Alcock (Rhaenyra) and Emily Carey (Alicent), each of whom brings a great deal to the role. Alcock has an almost feral sort of beauty to her, which comes to the surface in those moments when the young princess gazes rapturously at the brutality of the melee, and especially when she has her intimate encounters with her uncle Daemon (a nice bit of foreshadowing of their later relationship). For her part, Carey also shines as Alicent, a young woman who hides an avaricious spirit beneath a seemingly loyal and loving exterior.   

The obvious bond between these two young women just makes what’s to come all that much more tragic. Book readers know that Alicent’s comforting of King Viserys in his grief–at the strong suggestion of her father, naturally–is but the prelude to their eventual marriage. She will ultimately give birth to several children, all of whom will become key players in the Dance of the Dragons. From being best friends and (quasi)-lovers, Rhaenyra and Alicent will become deadly enemies. If the drama is handled with as much skill as we’ve been promised, this series might actually achieve the level of Shakespearean grandeur we’ve been promised by no less a personage than Martin himself. 

In fact, one of the things “The Heirs of the Dragon” does especially well is to foreshadow what’s to come. Whether it’s Viserys’ decision to sacrifice the life of his wife in order to gain a male heir, the brutal tourney which sees several men unhorsed and beaten to death, this is a Westeros poised on the brink of a continent-wide armed conflagration. These are young men, as the bitter Lady Rhaenys observes, hungry for war and blood without any true knowledge of what they entail. And, given that her own claim to the Iron Throne was just as strong as that of Viserys’ but was denied because of her sex, she has all the more reason to be a little cynical about what the future holds. 

And wow, is that future going to be a brutal and bloody one, a saga that’s going to make Game of Thrones look like a walk in the park. This much was made abundantly clear during the tourney, which was something of an orgy of kinetic camera movement and brutal hand-to-hand fighting. On the one hand, I was a little perplexed by the levels of violence shown in the premiere, especially given how much this hampered the storytelling in its predecessor. On the other hand, I can’t help but feel that this is the only way the series could begin. It really does help establish a certain ethos which will only become more obvious as the series goes on. 

Nothing on the tourney field, however, is quite as traumatic as the C-section poor Queen Aemma undergoes. From my point of view, it’s as horrifying as anything we saw in Game of Thrones, particularly since the poor queen so clearly does not want to undergo this horrific procedure. The sight of her struggling and begging Viserys not to do this to her will be something seared into my mind’s eye forever, and it is a scathing indictment of the king’s character, all the more so in that his much-longed-for heir dies very shortly after birth, making Aemma’s sacrifice needless. Having just finished Fire and Blood, it seems as if they have transposed the tragic fate of Alyssa Velaryon, the mother of King Jaehaerys I and several others, though it is worth noting that at least Alyssa consented to this fate (or so we’re told). While I understand the series’ creators’ stated desire to criticize the patriarchal culture of Westeros, I can’t help but think that having this poor woman endure this kind of torment might not have been the best, or most effective, way of going about it (though I have to admit the juxtaposition of the brutality of the birthing chamber and the tourney field was nicely done at both a visual and aural level). 

What’s more, I do appreciate the complexity of the female characters we’ve been given. There’s a lot going on behind Rhaenyra’s exterior and, since it’s her voiceover which is layered over the opening shots of Jaehaerys’ Great Council, we’re led to sympathize with her perspective. I’m very much looking forward to seeing how she becomes the steely, uncompromising figure she is portrayed as in Fire and Blood. And, as already noted, Alicent is more cunning than she wants to let on, with brief flashes of guile in her placid eyes. Even the short-lived Queen Aemma is a formidable presence, someone who has endured significant trauma throughout her life but who perseveres. 

For my money, though, the standout female character was Rhaenys. Though, as yet, she is just hovering at the edges of the court, it’s clear she’s one of the wisest people in the realm. Bitter and cynical she might be–and who can blame her?--she understands far more about how the world works than her cousin, even if he is the one who sits on the Iron Throne. I can’t wait to see what the series ends up doing with her. 

The male half of the cast is just as strong. Rhys Ifans brings a world-weary cynicism to his role of Otto Hightower, a man who truly does seem to care about the kingdom, but clearly cares for his own family’s ambitions more (something Daemon recognizes right away). Matt Smith is truly sublime as the sneering, aristocratic, yet incredibly charming Daemon (who quickly becomes the prince of giving no fucks when he refers to his dead nephew as the “Heir for a Day”). And Paddy Considine is very good indeed as Viserys, a man who is truly doing the best he can as king, even if he doesn’t seem to be able to decide whether he wants to be a firm ruler or a beloved one. Even at this early point, it’s clear that his indecisiveness is going to have some severe, and negative, consequences for the realm as a whole. 

Visually, the episode was a feast. I love the physical details of the dragons–two of whom we get to meet in this premiere–as well as the many overhead shots of King’s Landing. This is, indeed, a realm, and a dynasty, at the height of its powers. 

There were a few notable bumps along the way. Though the wigs weren’t too distracting–far less than I had expected, in fact–two other things are worth noting. First, there’s the very dark cinematography. While I understand the desire to capture the brooding, claustrophobic nature of the court at King’s Landing, I know I can’t be the only one who found myself wondering just what was going on. Of particular note in this regard is the scene in which Prince Daemon leads the Gold Cloaks in an impromptu purging of the capital, most of which is shot in such darkness that whatever feelings of visceral horror it’s supposed to evoke is largely lost. 

Then there is that clunky bit of exposition near the end, in which Viserys reveals to his daughter the secret that all reigning Targaryens since Aegon the Conqueror have borne with them: they are the bulwark against the danger from the North. This is fine as far as it goes, and it certainly makes sense, but surely they could have come up with a better way of working the phrase “A Song of Ice and Fire” into the narrative (particularly since this was the name Samwell Tarly gave his account at the end of Game of Thrones). 

Overall, however, I found the House of the Dragon premiere to be a fitting start to a new chapter in the Westeros saga. Given how much ill-will Game of Thrones managed to engender with its final season–and, in particular, its finale–there is a lot riding on this series, as nearly every media commentator has noted. If the premiere is anything to go by, House of the Dragon is more than up to the task.