Top 10 Things You Missed In House Of The Dragon Episode 1
#10: Picking Up Where “Game of Thrones” Left Off
Okay, not really, seeing as “House of the Dragon” takes place 200 years before the events of the main show, but it’s interesting to note that this follow-up begins in a very similar way to the way the latter ended. As “Game of Thrones” fans will remember - and probably regret - the final episode saw the various remaining Lords of the Seven Kingdoms convene to elect a new monarch. In an unprecedented move, they settle on Bran. Well, perhaps it wasn’t quite so unprecedented, as “House of the Dragon” catches viewers up by depicting King Viserys’s appointment after a Great Council deliberates on the rightful heir to the Iron Throne. We guess history really does repeat itself, huh?
#9: House Sigils
Top 10 Things You Missed in House of the Dragon Episode 6
The Tourney of the Heir is essentially a cornucopia of Easter eggs, featuring a slew of sigils from the competing houses. We’re sure you didn’t miss them hanging from the tilt barrier during the jousts, but we doubt everyone identified all of them, so that’s why we’re here. Of course, we all know the Targaryen sigil, as represented by a three-headed dragon, and the black-pelleted sigil of House Cole is prominent as Daemon jousts Criston Cole. Also seen however are the lion of House Lannister, House Baratheon’s stag, Tully’s trout, and the archer of Tarly. Lesser-known ones include the literal sea-horse of House Velaryon, Mallister’s eagle, Corbray’s raven, and the, err, high tower of House Hightower. Pretty on-the-nose there.
#8: Aemma’s Bath
In the first act of the episode, Viserys finds his wife Queen Aemma bathing in the last days of her pregnancy. Upon joining her side, Viserys remarks upon the lukewarm temperature of the water. Though dragons and by extension some Targaryens are drawn and resistant to extreme levels of heat, Aemma responds by saying this is the hottest the maesters would allow for. Of course, anyone who watched “Game of Thrones” knows that Daenerys Targaryen constantly bathed in scalding temperatures, so this connection is evident. However, seeing as Aemma’s complicated childbirth ultimately leads to her death and the baby’s, it’s possible that this scene could be read as foreshadowing that fact.
#7: Nymeria
It’s not just history that repeats itself, as “House of the Dragon” also brings back familiar names. There’s the obvious connection between King Viserys Targaryen and the Viserys Targaryen we know as Daenerys’s brother, but we’re sure fans’ ears perked up at the mention of Nymeria. Sitting under a weirwood tree - remember those creepy things? - Rhaenyra and Alicent recount the history lesson of the warrior-queen. Of course, we haven’t met the real Nymeria - with her having existed even centuries before this show - but we have met Arya’s direwolf of the same name. Still, this may be more setup than reference, as it’s been reported that another sequel series, “10,000 Ships,” is set to recount Nymeria’s story.
#6: Baelon Targaryen
“Viserys” isn’t the only name Targaryens apparently like to reuse over the years, as King Viserys decides to name his new baby boy “Baelon” after his own father. Much like his namesake, Baelon isn’t long for this world, but the similarities don’t end there. At the beginning of the episode, we already know that the first Baelon along with his brother have already perished. But book readers will remember that Baelon’s death was attributed to a “burst belly,” basically appendicitis in the real world. While baby Baelon didn’t die of a burst belly, he did come out of one, as the fraught birth requires a cesarean section. Next time you’re naming your kid, Viserys, try not to tempt the fates.
#5: A Feast for Crows
Top 10 Things You Missed in House of the Dragon Episode 8
While the fourth novel in the “Song of Ice and Fire” series, “A Feast for Crows,” is about where the show began to diverge storywise, screenwriters David Benioff and D. B. Weiss were still quick to drop the title during a conversation between Ramsay and Roose Bolton. Obviously, Ramsay’s being literal about said crows and their feast, but when the line loosely reappears in this episode, King Viserys is being a little more metaphorical. Even though Aemma and prospective heir Baelon have just died in childbirth, the Small Council is already fretting over who’s next in line. Incensed, Viserys rebukes them, likening them to crows feasting on corpses.
#4: The Iron Throne
Top 10 Things You Missed in House of the Dragon Episode 5
The Iron Throne is a staple of “Game of Thrones,” so it’s unsurprising that it appears here. However, show-watchers will note that this one’s looking a lot pointier. Indeed, there appears to be a whole lot more swords surrounding it than the last time we saw it, much more in-keeping with George R. R. Martin’s thousand-sword description in the books. Heck, the throne is so much pointier now that it’s giving Viserys serious pricks. Though Martin was disappointed with the throne on the original show, this may just rectify things, as it also matches the mental picture Daenerys had prior to her actually seeing it. While they might’ve taken swords away in the years since, it’s too bad they never made it comfortable.
#3: The Death of an Arryn
Top 10 Things You Missed in House of the Dragon Episode 4
Speaking of Aemma’s death, it should be noted that she hails from House Arryn prior to marrying Viserys Targaryen. While the Arryns don’t have a consistent presence on “Game of Thrones,” they ultimately play a major part in kicking off the show’s events. As you’ll recall, the first episode’s inciting incident is Ned Stark being courted by Robert Baratheon to be the new Hand of the King. This of course leads to eight seasons of misfortune, but it all came about with the murder of the previous Hand, Jon Arryn. While we’re only one episode in with “House of the Dragon” we’re already seeing that this Arryn death is similarly having major repercussions with Westeros at large.
#2: The Valyrian Steel Dagger
Top 10 Things You Missed in House of the Dragon Episode 3
More than anything else in the episode, Viserys’s speech to Rhaenyra is teeming with references to “Game of Thrones,” recounting Aegon’s dream of the events of the Great War between the living and the dead. Obviously, we’re not saying this connection was something viewers “missed,” but a smaller moment occurs when Viserys clutches the dagger attached to his hip. It seems like fate that Viserys would have this dagger with him at this moment considering its huge importance in the events he describes. Not only does the dagger kickstart the War of the Five Kings with the failed assasination of Bran, but it ends the Great War when Arya uses it to end the Night King. It’s cool to see fictional history come alive, no?
#1: “Promise Me”
The Valyrian steel dagger isn’t the only sly reference during Viserys’s speech, as one even slier comes at the end when he asks Rhaenyra to promise him to keep Aegon’s “Song of Ice and Fire” with her. The exact words, “Promise me this, Rhaenyra. Promise me,” may not seem like much, but they’re actually eerily similar to another pivotal moment in “Game of Thrones.” In the Season 6 finale, Bran’s vision takes him to the Tower of Joy where Lyanna Stark gives birth to Jon Snow. We don’t hear Lyanna telling her brother Ned that Rhaegar Targaryen is the father, but when she similarly has Ned promise to keep Jon safe, her words are almost the same as Viserys’s save for the name change.
