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House of the Dragon: what’s [SPOILER]’s dream all about?

25/8/2022

In «House of the Dragon», HBO’s prequel series to «Game of Thrones», the first episode ends with an unexpected dream. A new prophecy. Let’s find out what it’s all about.

This discussion of the series includes spoilers! So watch the first episode of «House of the Dragon» before you read on.

Text overlay. It’s 172 years before Daenerys Targaryen. That’s how the series starts. There was a lot of expectation riding on it. After all, «House of the Dragon» was meant to make up for what the eighth and last series of «Game of Thrones» screwed up. Whether it pulled it off or not remains to be seen. But the premiere of the first episode gives us a glimmer of hope. Rhaenyra Targaryen’s flight over King’s Landing on her yellow dragon Syrax is a sight to behold. Bear in mind Rhaenyra has been a dragon rider since she was seven. Both visually and musically.

No wonder when it’s directed by Miguel Sapochnik, who also directed the elaborately staged «Game of Thrones» episodes «Hardhome», «Battle of the Bastards», «The Winds of Winter» and «The Bells». Once again, the score has been penned by Ramin Djawadi, who set all «Game of Thrones» episodes to music. And the creator of the novels, George R. R. Martin, is said to be far more involved than in the last three seasons of the TV adaptation – and it’s set to stay that way – as he himself confirmed in a making-of. This should avert thefear that, as the series goes on, it’ll move too far away from the novel again, in this case «Fire and Blood».

In fact, the first episode, «The Heirs of the Dragon» manages to introduce umpteen new characters in the best tradition, all amid political intrigue and without expecting too much of us, the viewers. By the end of it, we know what makes the characters tick. We know their motivations, their motives, and above all, their goals. And then screenwriter Ryan Condal goes the extra mile by creating the ultimate link between «House of the Dragon» and «Game of Thrones» with a dream.

Viserys Targaryen, King of Westeros and Rhaenyra’s dad, tells his daughter about this very dream. A secret prophecy that has only ever been passed down from one Targaryen king to another. The prophecy of the Long Night and the Prince who was Promised.

A Song of Ice and Fire.

A Song of Ice and Fire

Let’s recap. The start of «House of the Dragon» is set over 100 years after Aegon I Targaryen gained a foothold with a small army and three dragons at Blackwater Bay. That’s where King’s Landing will eventually be and the place where Aegon began his war of conquest through Westeros. And successfully so. After more than a decade of conflict, it’s Aegon who unites the seven Kingdoms, who had previously shared the rule over Westeros, into a single empire.

But why did he do that, you might be wondering. 100 years on – or more precisely, 172 years before «Game of Thrones» – this is how Viserys explains it:

Ambition alone is not what drove him to conquest. It was a dream. Just as Daenys foresaw the Doom of Valyria, Aegon foresaw the end of the world of men. It is to begin with a terrible winter gusting out of the distant North. And whatever dwells within will destroy the world of the living. Aegon called his dream ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’.

Viserys Targaryen, «House of the Dragon», Episode 1, Series 1

Viserys’ words resound across the large hall, which is the resting place of a skull of the largest and most fearsome dragon of all time. It wasn’t just ridden by Aegon, but also by Viserys himself – Balerion the Dread. This dragon was also responsible for the fire that melted all the swords of Aegon’s defeated enemies to form the Iron Throne. And if fans haven’t pricked up their ears yet, they will at this. Because the novels «Game of Thrones» are based on aren’t called «Game of Thrones», rather «A Song of Ice and Fire». George R. R. Martin never explicitly confirmed what the title means. But in his novels and background work, there are certainly explanations that seem clear-cut. With that in mind, «A Song of Ice and Fire» is just that: a prophecy.

When the Night King first plagued the world 8000 years ago with his White Walkers, R’hllor, the Lord of Light, chose Azor Ahai as his warrior. He was to lead the armies of the First Men and the Children of the Forest. Armed with Lightbringer – a powerful, blazing sword of heroes that can only be forged in living fire – Azor Ahai faces the Night King. In the end, he manages to push the Army of the Dead back into the north. Bran the Builder, an early Stark ancestor, commands the creation of a wall and the Night’s Watch to protect the South from the North’s horrors.

Azor Ahai uses Lightbringer to push back the Night King.
Source: Jordi Gonzalez Escamilla.

Azor Ahai’s story ends here – and the Song of Ice and Fire begins, which is all about his return. The prophecy itself was written 5000 years ago in High Valyrian in the old books of Asshai – a faraway place in the south-eastern regions of Essos. According to it, this is what will occur:

The legendary Azor Ahai shall return as R’hllor’s champion. He will be reborn amid salt and smoke to awaken the dragons of stone. This will happen after a long summer, when the Long Night again covers the world and the Red Star bleeds. The Prince who was Promised will again wield Lightbringer. If he fails, the world will fall with him. His is the Song of Ice and Fire.

Samwell, Book 4: A Feast for Crows

What does Azor Ahai have to do with Aegon’s dream and the House of the Dragon? The word «Prince» might point towards royal blood. And the ability to awaken dragons from stone is attributed solely to the Valyr people, the Targaryens.

The dream – does it make sense in «House of the Dragon»?

If you haven’t already delved into the works of George R. R. Martin, you’ll be startled by the mention of the Song of Ice and Fire. At least it sheds new light on Aegon’s wars of conquest. That’s because only a united Westeros with a Targaryen on the Iron Throne can save humanity from the White Walkers. This is in keeping with tradition as Viserys hands down the royal baton.

Fans aren’t sure about it. Some were even disappointed at this revelation. They accuse the creators of having a clumsy Easter egg to link the prequel and mother series by making Aegon’s dream the real reason for the wars of conquest. Finally, the prophecy, which was hyped in the books and early series, ended up turning into a dead squib and going nowhere in the finale of «Game of Thrones». This is another reason why fans condemned the last series. Why incorporate a prophecy into the story if it’s immaterial at the end of the day?

Two things. First off, George R. R. Martin was barely creatively involved towards the end of the series. There’s a good chance that the prophecy could play a much bigger part, at least in the book series that’s not finished yet rather than in the TV series.

Secondly – and this is only mentioned in the books – Rhaegar Targaryen, the first son of the mad King Aerys Targaryen and eldest brother of Daenerys Targaryen, was actually seen as a returned Azor Ahai for a long time.

Rhaegar Targaryen, the Mad King’s eldest son.
Source: Karla Ortiz

But Rhaegar himself thought that his first-born son, not he, was the returning Azor Ahai. After all, a comet was seen over King’s Landing at his birth – the prophecy’s bleeding star. That’s why he gave him the name of the first Targaryen on Westeros’ mainland.

Aegon. What better name for a king? He is the Prince that was Promised, and his is the song of ice and fire.

Rhaegar Targaryen to his wife Elia Martell, Book 2: A Clash of Kings

Rhaegar and his son Aegon died in Robert Baratheon’s rebellion. But if Rhaegar knew about the prophecy, then it’s only logical that his Targaryen ancestors also knew about it – as far back as Aegon the I. And that Aegon I knew about the prophecy, not from the old books of Asshai, but from a dream. This is a creative decision that screenwriter Ryan Condal wasn’t responsible for. Instead, it was George R. R. Martin himself. And as I say, the emergence of «House of the Dragon» has been a lot more exciting than the finale of «Game of Thrones».

That’s why I don’t believe in dragons… sorry, I mean Easter eggs. In the hidden feature sense.

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Luca Fontana

Senior Editor

Luca.Fontana@digitecgalaxus.ch

I write about technology as if it were cinema, and about films as if they were real life. Between bits and blockbusters, I’m after stories that move people, not just generate clicks. And yes – sometimes I listen to film scores louder than I probably should.

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