It would not be an overstatement to say that Game of Thrones is one of the biggest series of all time. The large-scale fantasy drama has gripped audiences since its inception, and it is nothing short of a phenomenon. While the show’s ending left a sour taste in many viewers’ mouths, its overall goodwill seems to have extended to the prequel spinoff House of the Dragon. The streaming numbers of that show were remarkable, and it completely dominated Sunday night discourse. Despite all of this, it was still unable to avoid the lingering question on nearly everyone’s minds: does it really live up to Game of Thrones? From what I’ve gathered, the general consensus is that it’s not quite as strong as its parent show, but it’s still fairly solid and stands on its own. Since I saw House of the Dragon without any prior exposure to the Game of Thrones universe, I can confidently say that the latter is absolutely true. House of the Dragon’s first season is a promising start to a very ambitious show.

House of the Dragon follows the Targaryen family centuries before the events of its predecessor as they navigate political struggles and broken alliances. The plot of the first season is fairly interesting, as it introduced many new players and enthralled me with their shifting dynamics. A lot of the appeal of this show is its political intrigue, though, so if you’re looking for an action-heavy show, I would watch something else. There are excellent action sequences, but those usually only come after a few episodes of building up tension and developing the characters. However, I promise that the payoffs tend to be worth it, as the show is easily at its best narratively when it focuses on the fallouts of character dynamics.

Unfortunately, the characters of House of the Dragon didn’t enthrall me as much as I had hoped they would. Despite the large cast, there are very few characters who I really feel strongly about. I do understand that the ensemble nature of the show works against it, as it’s difficult to make every single character compelling when you have close to 30 of them. That being said, I would’ve liked to be more interested in them as people rather than as chess pieces for the plot.

While I have issues with the character writing, the cast that brings them to life is nothing short of fantastic. Emma D’Arcy, Matt Smith, and especially Paddy Considine have all been praised to the moon and back, and there’s not much I can say about them that hasn’t been said about them. They’re all simply incredible. My 2 MVPs, though, are pretty easily Milly Alcock and Olivia Cooke. Alcock was the obvious standout of the first half of House of the Dragon, as Rhaenyra was the lead of the first 5 episodes (in the second half, she takes a bit of a backseat). She brought much-needed life to the show as she played a flawed but charismatic protagonist that was a joy to watch onscreen. Cooke, on the other hand, dominated the last 5 episodes as the much less likable but endlessly watchable Alicent. Alicent’s internal conflict and devotion to her family was showcased excellently by Cooke, who did a lot to humanize a character that could have easily been a cookie cutter evil stepmother. Alicent could be truly awful in certain scenes, but Cooke made it difficult to entirely blame her thanks to the nuance she brought to the role. But once again, I must reiterate that the whole ensemble of this show is simply remarkable. There is not a single weak link in sight.

Where House of the Dragon shines the most is in its atmosphere. Everything from the score to the direction to the production design to the cinematography (yes, House of the Dragon does have good cinematography, contrary to what Twitter will tell you) is top-notch and helps make this show feel as grand as it needs to. Each technical component works to fully immerse you in this fantastical world and its rules. I was always blown away by how stunning everything in this show looks and sounds.

Unfortunately, what holds this show back from reaching its full potential is its pacing. Some episodes drag quite a lot, where almost nothing of substance really happens. Other times, the show timeskips right after pivotal moments, which feels terribly jarring. I cannot fault the show as an adaptation for its oft-irritating pacing since from what I’ve heard, the source material it is based upon also has several timeskips. However, I can’t help that it greatly affected my enjoyment.

The freshman season of House of the Dragon is a phenomenally crafted show with equally glorious acting. While the pacing and character writing could have been improved, this season is still a tremendous achievement that I highly enjoyed watching and discussing. As a newcomer to Westeros, I can attest to this show’s accessibility for those who have never seen Game of Thrones. I definitely recommend seeing it, although I would also advise you to expect a more methodical and dialogue-heavy show rather than Game of Thrones 2.0.

7.5/10