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House of the Dragon – Season 1, Episode 1

The Heirs of the Dragon

Aired Aug 21, 2022

Drama

Fantasy

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for House of the Dragon: Season 1 Episode 1 Featurette - The House That Dragons Built

85%

156 Reviews

Tomatometer

Viserys hosts a tournament to celebrate the birth of his second child. Rhaenyra welcomes her uncle Daemon back to the Red Keep.

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Premiered Oct 24

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Watch House of the Dragon — Season 1, Episode 1 with a subscription on Max, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

Critics Consensus

Bearing the weight of a hallowed TV lineage, "The Heirs of the Dragon" won't fully fire viewers up for another game of thrones, but solidly sets the board with plenty of blood.

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Ryan Condal

Creator

George R.R. Martin

Creator

Paddy Considine

King Viserys Targaryen

Matt Smith

Prince Daemon Targaryen

Emma D'Arcy

Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen

Rhys Ifans

Otto Hightower

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House of the Dragon: Season 1 Episode 1 Featurette - The House That Dragons Built

3:01

House of the Dragon: Season 1 Episode 1 Featurette - Inside the Episode

7:14

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Eliana Dockterman

TIME Magazine

From its first episode, the Game of Thrones prequel has been moving at a frenetic pace, and it can be maddening to try to keep up.

Oct 21, 2022

Full Review

Scott Bryan

BBC.com

I like the fact that this show is less sprawling than the original. There are far fewer characters. The show also feels different to Game of Thrones by looking at the factions and fighting within one family rather than across many others.

Rated: Must Watch

Sep 28, 2022

Full Review

John Doyle

Globe and Mail

It’s deeply troubling. There’s ruthlessness, but here it seems part of a celebration of the fascist impulse to violence.

Sep 12, 2022

Full Review

Mini Anthikad-Chhibber

The Hindu

The ‘Game of Thrones’ prequel has a riveting storyline, awe-inspiring visuals, toned-down gore...and breathtaking dragons.

Oct 4, 2023

Full Review

Rob Bricken

io9.com

The prequel series can't decide if it wants to escape or stay in Game of Thrones' shadow, but it definitely has promise.

Oct 17, 2022

Full Review

Akash Singh

That Shelf

The series is juggling a delicate balancing act of establishing its own identity, folding back in the fans who vowed to never return to Westeros, and defeating competition in the age of there-is-so-much-to-watch-on-streaming.

Oct 3, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

Viserys hosts a tournament to celebrate the birth of his second child. Rhaenyra welcomes her uncle Daemon back to the Red Keep.

Director: Clare Kilner, Geeta Patel, Greg Yaitanes
Executive Producer: George R.R. Martin, Ryan Condal, Miguel Sapochnik, Vince Gerardis, Sara Hess, Ron Schmidt, David Hancock, Charmaine De Grate
Screenwriter: Ryan Condal, Sara Hess, Charmaine De Grate
Network: HBO
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date: Aug 21, 2022