Game of Thrones' series finale might still be controversial, but that hasn't stopped fans from tuning in for its prequel House of the Dragon (which is streaming with a Max subscription). Season 2 has been a wild ride so far, with each episode breaking the internet... especially in relation to the titular dragons. A fan just made a great point about one thing House Of The Dragon does way better than GOT. And they're so spot-on.
Season 2 of House of the Dragon has ignited all-out war in Westeros, showing the destructive power of the winged creatures. Fans are trying to keep track of which HOTD dragon belongs to who, with new ones regularly introduced alongside members of the Targaryen family tree. One fan tweeted out a hot take regarding one way the prequel is superior to the original show, it reads:
Within two seasons, House of the Dragon has given the dragons more unique personalities (with limited screen time) than GOT ever did. Vhagar is the boomer, Caraxes the weirdo, Seasmoke super needy, Sunfyre & Syrax the big puppies, and Silverwing & Vermithor the royal beasts.
Points were made. While Daenerys Targaryen's three dragons had a big presence throughout Game of Thrones' seasons on the air, they didn't necessarily have distinctive characterizations. But each of the magical creatures in HOTD have their own appearance and (more importantly) personalities. And this will make their inevitable onscreen deaths all the more devastating as more fall during the Dance of Dragons.
As the above tweet pointed out, the title characters of House of the Dragon feel like real characters, rather than just vessels for badassery and destruction. The most recent episode, "The Red Sowing" was a prime example of this, where Rhaenyra tasked smallfolk with trying to claim some of the dragons living on Dragonstone.
While Vermithor violently killed the Targaryen bastards before Hugh claimed him by standing strongly and screaming at the massive creature, Silverwing went through with things much differently. Instead, she was gentle, tossing around Ulf White before allowing him to ride her over King's Landing. Despite both of the dragons being similar in age and size, they connected with new dragonriders in very different ways.
Making the dragons into individuals with their own personalities definitely help the audience connect with each flying creature. And since the concept of House of the Dragon is watching how the Targaryen civil war ends up killing off the magical beasts, having the audience really get to know each one which likely make the death scenes all the more painful.
Case in point: Rhaenys and Melys' deaths in The Battle at Rook's Rest. The connection between rider and dragon was palpable, which is what made their final moments together so tragic. We also got to see how close Aegon and Sunfyre were before that same battle. And that's not even mentioning the sleepy diva herself Vhagar.
House of the Dragon airs new episodes Sundays on HBO. Check out the TV premiere list.
