‘House Of The Dragon’ Review: HBO’s ‘Game Of Thrones’ Prequel Succeeds By Not Going Large

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SPOILER ALERT: This review contains details of Game of Thrones spinoff House of The Dragon, which debuts August 21 on HBO and HBO Max.Besides being bawdy and fire spewing, HBO’s House of the Dragons is no Game of Thrones.That dissimilarity actually might be the saving grace for the sword and regal struggle spectacle prequel inspired by George R.R.

Martin’s writing. Yet, capturing lightening in a bottle twice is quite a rare feat, even with a return to King’s Landing and a massive built-in and braying fanbase.Underneath all the wails of hype, if ever there was a series set up to fail no matter how much it succeeds, it is House of Dragons.

The Ryan J. Condal and Miguel Sapochnik-showrun series will only be gauged by one criteria openly or not , and GoT is a standard HoD can’t meet.So, spoiler alert, House of the Dragon smartly sidesteps the supposition for the most part.The first in a plethora of GoT spinoffs in the pipeline for the Warner Bros Discovery-owned premium cabler and streamer HBO Max, House of the Dragon is much more a straightforward family drama than its predecessor.Well, straightforward if you are the violently dysfunctional and dragon-commanding Targaryens, rulers of the Seven Kingdoms in one era of Martin’s dense books.

Add to that, a war of succession that is known in Martin lore as the “Dance of the Dragons” and things get a little bit more heated than the usual awkward Thanksgiving disagreements most families endure.