The third season of House of the Dragon premieres on HBO this summer.
"There will be no mercy," teased the official House of the Dragon series page on social media the day before the first sneak peek of the third season of the massively successful prequel to Game of Thrones was set to premiere. And judging by those first glimpses, this applies not just to the series itself, but also to HBO's dealings with its fans. After such a tense teaser, waiting for summer is going to feel endless.
The famous network is definitely not done with Westeros. Even though the last season of Game of Thrones is often remembered these days more as an example of how not to end a series, it’s clear that no other fantasy franchise currently enjoys as much fan love as the world from George R. R. Martin’s mind.
Another spin-off from the mentioned series, The Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, is airing the final episode of its first season next Monday, February 23rd, and so far, fans are absolutely loving it. The show is breaking ratings records, with the fifth episode already among the top-rated episodes within both GoT and House of the Dragon. Compared to the other two, it’s quite the little sibling in terms of both scope and budget. HBO clearly reminded everyone of this with the first shots of the third season of HotD.
The Third Season Has a Lot to Make Up For
The third season is arriving about two years after the second's debut. The creators probably figured they’d need to hook everyone with the first glimpses since the second season—despite a promising start—was criticized for stalling and not offering the gripping narrative of the previous season. Dialogues, emotions, action—all top-notch. It's like the creators were saving the best stuff for this third season, including a big battle, which contributed to the second season not getting the same applause as the first.
Even Martin himself complained, visibly unhappy with changes in the script and story, to the point he cut ties with the series creator, Ryan Condal, with whom he previously had an excellent relationship and collaboration. Now, he’s practically not involved in the series at all. It’s unclear what this loss will mean for the show in its final two seasons (the fourth season will be the last), but at the very least, the third season will have a lot to smooth over from the fans' perspective.
The premiere is set for June.
