Three years after Game of Thrones came to a fiery end, spin-off House of the Dragon is set to heat things up once again, if the new trailer is anything to go by.
The upcoming series, which is set 200 years before the events that occurred in the original show during Ned Stark’s time in Westeros, stars Matt Smith, Emma D’Arcy and Paddy Considine as members of the ruling House Targaryen.
The latest teaser opens with Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma), the King’s daughter, looking out ominously at the sea, as a voiceover states: ‘What is this brief mortal life if not the pursuit of legacy?’
The camera zooms in on what appears to be Dragonstone, the ancestral home of the Targaryens, as Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt), the dragon-riding younger brother of King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy), walks while holding a dragon egg, accompanied by his confidante Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno).
It turns out that Prince Daemon is walking towards Ser Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans), the Hand to the King, who’s decked out in armour – teasing the conflict that will undoubtedly unfold in epic fashion on the show.
A dragon soars above King’s Landing, before various Lords of the land are shown pledging their allegiance to the king, who sits on an Iron Throne decked out with far more swords than viewers ever saw on Game of Thrones.
Princess Rhaenys Velaryon (Eve Best) tells the young Rhaenyra that ‘men would sooner put the realm to the torch than see a woman ascend the Iron Throne’.
However, the next shot teases that Rhaenyra is hellbent on proving that notion wrong, as she’s depicted mapping out a battle plan with her allies.
As a dragon egg is shown being heated by fire, ahead of it being hatched, a voiceover states: ‘We play an ugly game.’
Ser Otto then turns to his daughter Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), regarded as the most beautiful woman in the Seven Kingdoms who has close links to the king’s inner circle, as he tells her: ‘You have the determination to win it.’
At one point in the trailer, it appears as though Alicent is targeting Rhaenyra with her knife, hinting at the future violent discord between the characters.
Meanwhile, as Daemon pays a seemingly tetchy dragon a visit, the trailer ends as a voiceover warns: ‘History does not remember blood. It remembers names.’
Before the new trailer and footage of the series came out, House of the Dragon shared a new picture from the show, capturing the Targaryens seemingly plotting a war from Dragonstone.
Several fans deduced that it was Rhaenyra standing at the table, looking ready for battle in a similar manner to her descendant, Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), from Game of Thrones.
‘Westeros is on fire again!’ one person tweeted in response, while another wrote: It’s happening.. Rhaenyra my queeeeeeennnn.’
Another person pointed out the similarities between Rhaenyra and Daenerys, tweeting: ‘Yall, her outfit is giving very much Daenerys conqueror. I’M CREAMING RN!’
HBO then released new character posters for the characters, dubbing Daemon the ‘Prince of the City’, as well as revealing Alicent in her signature emerald green gown and her father Otto with a steely glint in his eye.
Meanwhile, Princess Rhaenys was described on her poster as ‘the Queen who never was’, as fans prepare to meet her and her husband, Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), otherwise known as the Sea Snake.
The dance with dragons will be a fiery show indeed.
House of the Dragon will premiere on August 22 on Sky Atlantic and streaming service NOW.
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