Home of the Dragon Ought to’ve Began With Aegon’s Conquest

Editor’s be aware: The beneath accommodates spoilers for Home of the Dragon and George R.R. Martin’s Hearth & Blood.Irrespective of the way you’re launched to George R.R. Martin‘s World of Ice and Hearth, Aegon the Conqueror and his takeover of Westeros all the time looms giant. He is referenced many times in each Recreation of Thrones and Home of the Dragon. Balerion the Black Dread’s cranium has rested ominously in King’s Touchdown in each on-screen variations. There’s additionally the Iron Throne itself, an everlasting legacy of the three Targaryens who modified the face of the Seven Kingdoms without end. Fortuitously, Martin’s Hearth & Blood and The World of Ice & Hearth have documented the Conqueror’s exploits extensively, however his and his sisters’ time within the televised limelight nonetheless hasn’t arrived.

As pleasing as watching the Dance of the Dragons unfold in Home of the Dragon is, it often appears like an odd place to start out the Targaryen-based spin-off collection. The courtroom intrigue and bloody battle are nonetheless there in all their glory, however extra allusions to Aegon the Conqueror are by no means distant. It leaves one to surprise: Would the spin-off have benefited extra if it had begun with Westeros’ Warfare of Conquest? The Dance is actually essential, however watchers have nonetheless been left visualizing the fabled occasions that cast the Seven Kingdoms as they’ve been identified in common tradition. So far as juicy moments of conflict, politicking, and household drama are involved, the time interval is a veritable goldmine for HBO to adapt.

And it looks as if with the success of Home of the Dragon, HBO is eyeing Aegon’s Conquest as a possible storyline that might be explored in a sequel. Just lately, Selection reported that sources have steered {that a} new Recreation of Thrones prequel about Aegon I Targaryen and his sister-wives could possibly be within the works.

How Does Aegon Conquer Westeros?

Simply think about it: Aenar Targaryen and his household uproot their lives in Valyria and relocate to Dragonstone after a terrifying prophecy of dying and destruction, Aenar was a dreamer, a particular capacity that few Targaryens are gifted with like we see with Helaena (Phia Saban) in Home of the Dragon. Twelve years later, the Doom of Valyria wipes away the 5,000-year-old freehold in all its glory. After battling in Essos, a younger Aegon Targaryen returns to Dragonstone and comes into battle with King Harren “the Black” Hoare, ruler of the Riverlands and the Iron Islands and Lord of the newly-built Harrenhal. On the time, Westeros is a land divided amongst the Seven Kingdoms, from the Kings of Winter within the North to the Princes and Princesses of Dorne to the far south. Historical past is made in a single second as Aegon decides that Westeros will bow to at least one king.

A number of the most important parts of Westerosi historical past unfold as Aegon, his sister-wives Rhaenys and Visenya, and their dragons Balerion, Meraxes, and Vhagar start a marketing campaign of Hearth and Blood. The trio and their banners land on the mouth of Blackwater Rush, setting up the Aegonfort the place the Purple Maintain in King’s Touchdown now stands. Balerion the Black Dread, in all his horrific visage, takes to the skies and burns Home Hoare alive in Harrenhal, starting the large fortress’ lengthy historical past of misfortune. One after the other, the mighty kings of Westeros are pressured into submission. Some, like Argilac “the Boastful” Durrandon, are changed by Home Baratheon. Others, like Torrhen Stark, bow to Aegon’s dominion and lay down their weapons on the sight of Home Targaryen’s dragons approaching. Six of the Seven Kingdoms are crushed, with Dorne being the one kingdom able to resisting the preliminary conquest. The blades laid earlier than Aegon are melted collectively by Balerion’s fireplace, creating the Iron Throne that will cement the Targaryen Dynasty’s standing as the best authority in Westeros.

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Aegon’s Conquest Would Not Lack in Motion or Political Drama

If HBO had tailored the Warfare of Conquest first in Home of the Dragon, it absolutely would have been front-loaded with loads of conflict and violence. Nevertheless, the conflict was so huge that it would not be tough to examine episodes that concentrate on Rhaenys and Visenya Targaryen, and even the homes that originally supported Aegon’s declare to the Seven Kingdoms. Little doubt that there can be loads of courtroom drama unfolding in Westeros as dragons razed the countryside and monarchies that had existed because the Age of Heroes bent their knees to the younger dragonlords. For HBO, it might’ve been a uncommon alternative to point out how Home Targaryen grew to become the powerhouse it’s identified to be for a lot of its historical past. Then in subsequent seasons, the showrunners might have all the time tailored the Dance of the Dragons as deliberate.

The chance virtually looks as if too good of an opportunity to go up, because it establishes the unique forerunners of the Targaryen Dynasty nicely earlier than its descendants would ever sit on the Iron Throne. As soon as watchers had change into well-acquainted with the beginnings of the Targaryens in Westeros, subsequent seasons might have lined extra pivotal moments within the household’s subsequent years. From Aegon the Conqueror to Aerys “the Mad King” Targaryen, the household’s story is considered one of nice triumph and tragedy at each flip. Their centuries-long rule is ripe for adaptation, as there have been 284 years between the conquest and the beginning of Daenerys Stormborn (Emilia Clarke), who would write the newest chapter within the household’s story and convey dragons again into the world.

Such a large paradigm shift within the Seven Kingdoms deserves its personal central season, and it looks as if HBO sees the potential after the success of their Recreation of Thrones spin-off. Whereas it looks as if the collection continues to be in its early levels, HBO is doubling down on Home Targaryen so we must always all buckle up for extra blonde wigs and extra fire-breathing dragons.

Home of the Dragon premieres new episodes weekly each Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.