We saw the multi-fronted war for the Iron Throne slowly whittled down to just a few candidates, and then eventually result in a democratic vote to determine the most suitable monarch.The White Walkers were eradicated, thanks to some fancy dagger-work from Arya Stark, and the throne itself was melted away during a fit of grieving rage by a dragon.Basically, when it all finished up, there was relative peace in the Seven Kingdoms – which is probably why the new Game of Thrones spin-off, House of the Dragon, will be heading back in time to focus on the gruesome civil war between members of the Targaryen family.This civil war, known as “The Dance of the Dragons”, and the complex personalities of the Targaryens were referenced a number of times throughout Thrones, which piqued fans’ interest before the new series was even announced.Now, three years on from the Thrones finale, there are still burning questions left over from the series that we need to see answered in House of the Dragon, which premieres express from the US on Binge and Foxtel August 22.How fair is the ‘mad’ Targaryens’ reputation?When it comes to legacies, the Targaryen family’s hasn’t aged particularly well by the time the Thrones era begins.They’ve got a bit of a reputation for being, shall we say, hot-headed and erratic.George R.R. Martin’s books explains how House Targaryen seems to carry a trait for insanity in its bloodline – and it likely boils down to the heavy inbreeding that took place over 300 years, with brothers marrying sisters whenever possible to “keep the bloodline pure”.This incest resulted in mental issues, including extreme instability.Their unpredictable personalities are referenced often throughout Thrones and form the cornerstone of the series. The last Targaryen king, Aerys II – aka the violent “Mad King” – was killed by a member of his own Kingsguard, Ser Jaime Lannister, during the rebellion which installed Robert Baratheon on the Iron Throne and later set off a catastrophic chain of events.However, it’s also clear that not all Targaryens are “mad”.The very-occasionally wise Cersei Lannister summed it up best in Thrones when she quoted: “Whenever a Targaryen is born, the Gods flip a coin.”Far be it for the mother of Joffrey Baratheon to make light of anyone else’s mental stability, but she had a point.In the books, a more complete version of that quote comes from Ser Barristan Selmy: “Madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin. Every time a new Targaryen is born, the gods toss the coin in the air and the world holds its breath to see how it will land.”Daenerys Targaryen herself was an example of a great leader until it all went pear-shaped in the final season, while her oldest brother Rhaegar was considered a great man by all who knew him throughout his life.Plus, Maester Aemon was a wise and revered adviser to the Night’s Watch for many decades.Now that we’re getting an entire series dedicated to the Targaryens, we finally need clarity on how and when the “madness” affects each of the family members.“History was written by the victors.” Just how much of the Targaryens’ legacy was impacted by the fact that their enemies were sharing their stories after they died?What happened to all the dragons in Westeros?Daenerys manages to gain the upper hand in the battle for the Iron Throne after collecting three dragon eggs, which grow into three extremely large and loyal dragons.They’re a real game-changer in the war – but not so long ago, when her house ruled the Seven Kingdoms, they were a much less rare commodity.Fans of Martin’s books already know that Westeros was heavily populated by dragons, but it’s not clear precisely how many there once were. House of the Dragon’s showrunners have told us to expect almost 20 in the show’s first season alone.Another detail that we’d like to see answered in the series is which characters could actually ride and control the dragons.In Game of Thrones, we saw Jon Snow, Daenerys and the Night King hop on for a whiz around the skies. Will we see any non-Targaryens with that ability in House of the Dragon?Another detail that will be interesting to see play out on our screens is how the treatment of dragons changed from the time the prequel is set to when Daenerys becomes the Mother of Dragons, hundreds of years later in Game of Thrones.The eventual extinction of the dragons during the Targaryen era has been blamed on the way they were bred and cared for – the creatures were kept inside like dogs, and became weaker and smaller over the years.It’s a very different approach than Daenerys took when she miraculously stumbled upon her own trio of dragons, and nurtured and cared for them as her children.So why did this happen – and who was responsible?Who are the good guys and who are the villains?It’s already pretty clear that this will be a tough one to answer definitively.In Game of Thrones, fans were very much behind the Starks – who were clearly depicted as the flawed heroes – while the Lannisters (excluding Tyrion and occasionally Jaime) were the villains.But don’t expect it to be anywhere near that simple when it comes to House of the Dragon.In fact, Martin has already warned fans on that very topic.“There’s no Arya, [no] character everybody is going to love. They’re all flawed. They’re all human. They do good things; they do bad things. They are driven by lust for power, jealousy, old wounds – just like human beings. Just like I wrote them,” he told The Hollywood Reporter ahead of the show’s premiere.There was even a minor controversy recently when Emily Carey, the 19-year-old British actress who plays the younger version of a character named Alicent Hightower, suggested during the San Diego Comic Con panel that her character was “multifaceted”.This enraged some fans of Martin’s work, who suggested that went against how she was depicted in the books, which prompted her to double down in a now-deleted tweet and insist Alicent was “not the villain”.Martin – who was sitting on the same panel as Carey – even supported her comments, joking to the crowd: “We’re not going to have anyone who’s called Lord Evil. There is certainly evil. I always believed that the most interesting characters are great characters. They’re capable of generosity, good and love. And next week they do something they’re ashamed of.”The fact is that Fire and Blood – unlike the source material for Game of Thrones – was written in a subjective way, which leaves its events very much open to interpretation. (It is written like a history book, drawing on sources whose reliability is often dubious.)And fans are yet to see exactly which way the creators of House of the Dragon have chosen to do so – and while we’re sure to see characters undertake both “good” and “bad” acts, there’s certain to emerge those behind whom viewers rally.But who will they be?Where were the White Walkers?Our hero Arya Stark wiped out the Night King (and as a result, his huge army of White Walkers) during the Battle of Winterfell in the final season, ending their 8000-year existence.Given House of the Dragon dips back only a couple of hundred years, the terrifying undead creatures must have been lurking around somewhere during the events of the prequel series.So where were they – and will they feature in the series?
Powered by WPeMatico
