DRAGON IN THE HOUSE

Excitement as Thrones prequel nears

A NEW trailer for House of the Dragon has given the best insight yet at the hugely-anticipated Game of Thrones prequel.

The House of the Dragon – the first spin-off to Thrones, set in George RR Martin’s fictional world of Westeros – follows the titular family’s civil war for the Iron Throne.

The trailer dropped ahead of a panel at this week’s Comic-Con in San Diego.

The prequel series will premier in Australia on August 22. HBO hopes its can match the wild popularity of the original Thrones, which spawned countless imitations and delivered a record 59 Emmys awards.

Starring Matt Smith, Rhys Ifans and Emma D’Arcy, House of the Dragon tells the story of the murderous, dragon-breeding Targaryen family, some 300 years before the events of Thrones.

The series is based on author George RR Martin’s Fire And Blood. The new trailer gives a clearer look at the Targaryen’s conquest of Westeros.

House of the Dragon takes place 300 years before the events of Game of Thrones and will detail the peak of the Targaryen empire and the bloody reign that led to its downfall.

The series will chronicle the events leading up to and surrounding the Dance of the Dragons, the name given to the civil war that broke out among the Targaryens over the succession of the Iron Throne.

The trailer shows the great families of Stark and Baratheon swearing fealty to both king Viserys Targaryen, and his heir Princess Rhaenyra.

Game of Thrones author George RR Martin has said in a blog post: “For what it’s worth, those who have read Fire And Blood will realise it contains enough materials for a dozen shows. I can say that there will be dragons. Everyone else has said that, so why not me?”