House of the Dragon viewers spot ‘subtle homage’ to Game of Thrones character
‘A small subtle way the creators put her on the same pedestal of Aegon the Conqueror himself,’ viewer noted
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.House of the Dragon debuted Monday (22 August) with a nod to Game of Thrones.
The show, which is the first of HBO’s planned spin-offs, is set almost 200 years before the events of Thrones and tells the story of House Targaryen.
The first episode of the new series opened with King Jaehaerys Targaryen choosing his successor to the Iron Throne.
Jaehaerys chooses his son Viserys (played by Paddy Considine) over his daughter Rhaenys (Eve Best) thus introducing the family dynamics that will shape this series.
The screen fades to black, and viewers are shown a message that pays homage to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) and Game of Thrones.
Noting that time has skipped forwards from the previous clip, the message reads: “It is now the ninth year of King Viserys I Targaryen’s reign.
“172 years before the death of the mad king, Aerys, and the birth of his daughter Princess Daenerys Targaryen.”
After a few seconds, most of the words vanish and the only ones that remain onscreen are: “172 years before... Daenerys Targaryen.”
The moment was picked out by one fan account, which wrote: “Homage paid to Daenerys Targaryen. A small subtle way the creators put her on the same pedestal of time that Aegon the Conqueror himself is upon while acknowledging her impact on House Targaryen’s adoration.”
You can read a full breakdown of the Targaryen family tree here.
Viewers might also have missed another reference to Daenerys during the first episode.
In a scene between Viserys and the pregnant Queen Aemma (Sian Brooke), the latter tells her husband: “After this miserable pregnancy, I wouldn’t be surprised if I hatch an actual dragon.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
This seemed to be a reference to the season one finale of Game of Thrones, in which Daenerys earned her moniker “the Mother of Dragons”: after emerging from a fire, she stands, naked, with the baby dragons she’s just hatched.
House of the Dragon airs weekly on Sundays in the US, with the UK premiere arriving 2am on Monday on Sky. The episode will then be repeated at 9pm on Monday, and will be available to stream on Sky and NOW after its initial airing.
Find The Independent’s verdict on the series here.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments