House of the Dragon is having a very good debut month on HBO during a time when shows are worried about whether they will survive the streamer's change in leadership. Fresh off a season debut that saw House of the Dragon draw in more than 10 million viewers, it's already been assured a second season.
The debut of the Game of Thrones spinoff was so big that some people claimed it actually crashed their HBO Max app. Knowing that information, it should come as no surprise that on Friday morning, the platform officially announced the show has been renewed through its House of the Dragon official Twitter account.
The tweet showed a picture of the show's logo with fire in the background. It included the caption that read "fire reigns" and then the announcement that fans didn't have to wait all that long to find out. The announcement comes not only after the series became the biggest series premiere ever on HBO but after House of the Dragon episode 1 also got almost universally rave reviews. The new series picks up about 170 years before the events of Game of Thrones when there was relative peace in the land of Westeros thanks to the ruling Targaryen family being seen as the unchallenged leaders of the realm.
However, as the first episode of the season went on, it became apparent that a civil war was about to begin when the king announced his daughter would be his heir, rather than the brother many people expected to take the throne eventually. While the fireworks didn't really begin in this first episode, they certainly set the stage for some rather large clashes as House of the Dragon goes on. It also appears the action will be long-lasting, as the casting of several characters has made it clear the story will cross several years as tension continues to build in Westeros.
The great ratings, great reviews, and guarantee that the show is going to get a second season should go a long way to assuage fears of House of the Dragon fans who might have been worried that the Game of Thrones franchise had run its course and that there weren't any more stories to tell. It's possible part of the reason why this new series is showing so much life is that it's in new hands, as neither GoT showrunner is attached to this show.
House of the Dragon airs every Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.
Source: House of the Dragon/Twitter