House of the Dragon | Return of the Dragons

With drum and trumpet, the first episode of House of the Dragon will air on Sunday. Highly anticipated, the series derived from Game Of Thrones applies the same recipe as the original: power struggles, sex and lots of blood.

Marc-Andre Lemieux
The Press

Entitled The dragon house in French version, this prequel is the adaptation of the novel Fire & Blood by George R.R. Martin. Prequel, because the action begins 200 years before the arrival of Daenerys Targaryen, camped by Emilia Clarke in Game Of Thrones.

This new offering from HBO, relayed by Crave in Quebec, paints a portrait of the ancestors of the heroine with long silver hair: Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), her father, King Viserys I^er (Paddy Considine), and his uncle, Prince Daemon (Matt Smith).

The first episodes hit their target… in part. Quickly, we understand that we will witness the decline of the Targaryen clan, which threatens to implode because of the many internal conflicts that disturb its balance. Some excerpts recreate the magic of Game Of Thrones beautiful days, but overall, we remain unsatisfied. (Speaking of appetite, a particularly harrowing childbirth scene cut it short. Be warned: this is real butchery.)

One thing is for sure, the action sequences are gripping. It was to be expected, since this first season is led by Miguel Sapochnik, director of one of the most famous — and successful — episodes of Game Of Thrones, Battle of the Bastards.

monster promotion

The arrival of House of the Dragon comes with a monstrous marketing campaign. In Canada, the operation includes the broadcast of television and radio advertisements, a $50 discount on the annual subscription to Crave, the screening of a trailer in the cinema and the use of billboards in Montreal. , Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver.

An augmented reality application has also been created. Named House of the Dragon: DracARys, it allows fans to “raise their own virtual dragon”. Dragons can also recognize points of interest around the world. In Montreal, they recognize the Olympic Stadium, Place Victoria and Saint-Joseph’s Oratory, we are told.

Worth noting, watching carefully House of the Dragon, users will be able to learn a few words of Valyrian (the fictional language spoken by certain characters). They can use it to manage their dragon, which will go through various stages of development to become a gigantic beast.

(We tried to install House of the Dragon: DracARysbut our phone was apparently “not compatible” with the app…)

Another promotional tool, the series was presented Wednesday in Toronto, in the presence of Steve Toussaint, who defends the role of Lord Corlys Velaryon. In a telephone interview the day after the event, the actor seemed satisfied with the reception given to the first episodes.

“After the screening, a woman said she was so disappointed with the outcome of Game Of Thrones that she didn’t want to watch House of the Dragon. But after watching the first episodes, she changed her mind. It was a win for us! »

racist comments

Steve Toussaint got the role of Lord Corlys Velaryon after a long audition process. During the first tests, he had no idea of ​​the content of the project he was trying to integrate. Everything was top secret.

Over the past few months, the comedian has met many devotees of Game Of Thrones, including attending San Diego Comic-Con. ” The fans are extraordinarily passionate, he observes. They are very, very attached to the work of George R. R. Martin, as if it were their own. »

This tour allowed the actor to heal the wounds formed after the announcement of the distribution of House of the Dragon.

“I’m friends with Idris Elba, who went through something similar when he joined the world of Marvel. I’m friends with Noma Dumezweni, who plays Hermione in the theatrical adaptation of Harry Potter. I just toured with John Boyega, who was in Star Wars… They too were victims of racist remarks. It must have been my turn, I guess. »

A Blockbuster

According to various press articles, House of the Dragon would have benefited from an envelope of 25 million per episode. A team of 2,000 people worked on the work.

At the end of the line, Steve Toussaint says that he realized the enormity of the budget when he walked on the set of the famous Iron Throne.

“It was gigantic as a decor! The place, the windows… It wasn’t recreated by computer. Everything has been built. It was really impressive. I thought, my God, there’s a lot of money on Earth…and a lot of it is here. »

House of the Dragon comes at the beginning of a season rich in series derived from immensely popular works. On September 2, Prime Video will launch The Rings of Power (power rings), which is derived from Lord of the Rings. Three weeks later, Disney+ will offer Andorwhich follows from Star Wars.

For Stéfany Boisvert, professor at the School of Media at the University of Quebec in Montreal, the objective of Warner Bros. Discovery, the media giant that owns HBO, is clear: replicating the success of Game Of Thrones to continue operating this franchise. A sequel focused on the character of Jon Snow is also in the works, recently reported The Hollywood Reporter and Variety.

“This is especially true for Warner Bros. Discovery. Its leaders are betting big, because financially, things are not going very well for them, ”continues the professor.

Series House of the Dragon will it triumph as they hope?

“It’s hard to predict the success of a series,” says Stéfany Boisvert. The last season of Game Of Thrones disappointed many fans. There is an audience to win back. The creators of House of the Dragon will have to show that they have taken the comments into account. »

The dragon house lands on Crave Sunday at 9 p.m. One episode will be uploaded each week.