What to Expect from House of the Dragon

House of the Dragon is airing on HBO on the 21st of August 2022, and here we're discussing what to expect from the show. Let me know what you guys think about the latest news, trailers and information!
Are you excited for House of the Dragon?
00:00 Intro
00:30 The Writers
03:07 In the Shadow of Game of Thrones
04:41 Cast & Characters
07:53 Casting Controversy
09:49 Outro
Written by Edwin Lundgren
Editing by Rahmat Syukri & Edwin Lundgren
Audio by www.lundgrenaudio.com
Music:
Desert Wind by MOKKA
/ mokkamusic
Chill Soul Rap Instrumental by Nkato
• Chill Soul Rap Instrum...
Crying Over You by christophermorrow
• Hip Hop Rap Instrument...
Vintage by MOKKA
/ mokkamusic
Jazzaddicts by Cosimo Fogg
• Jazzaddict's Intro - C...
Art work:
Viserys Targaryen on the Iron Throne by Karla Ortiz
www.magali-villeneuve.com/
Rhaenyra Targaryen by Roman Papsuev (aka Amok)
Daemon Targaryen by Marc Simonetti
www.deviantart.com/marcsimonetti
Young Daemon Targaryen by
Corlys Velaryon by Eve Venture
Press images by Entertainment Weekly
ew.com/creative-work/house-of...
David Lightbringer video on Corlys Velaryon
• Black Velaryons: Why T...
Entertainment Weekly interviews with House of the Dragon actors Emma D’Arcy, Matt Smith, Steve Toussaint, Rhys Ifans, Olivia Cooke and Eve Best,
• 'House of the Dragon' ...
Winter is Coming interview with Ryan Condal
• House of the Dragon sh...
Newsweek interview with Miguel Sapochnik
• Miguel Sapochnik Says ...
The Dragon Demands interview with Ryan Condal and George RR Martin
• House of the Dragon: N...
Official announcement of Ramin Djawadi scoring House of the Dragon
GameOfThrones/sta...
Quora thread on casting diversity in House of the Dragon
www.quora.com/How-do-you-expl...
Insider interview with Ryan Condal on casting diversity in House of the Dragon
www.insider.com/house-of-the-...

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Will you guys be watching House of the Dragon when it comes out?

[@objectivelyacat3873]

I will likely approach it the same was I approach all properties I don't trust. Wait for reviews from trusted sources and make my determination based on that.

[@alseid8709]

no

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Reasonable!

[@maxscherzer9521]

No.

[@theredeemer1644]

@@objectivelyacat3873 That is a very ЯЭTAЯDЭD way to say. Who the F is these "trusted sources"?

[@Makoto03]

I love how the showrunner stated he didn't want to appear to have 'tokenism' in the show, after literally admitting the lore breaking change was done solely for diversity box checking. lol

[@Karasuno86]

Not diversity. The normies couldn't remember all players in GOT even though all of them had different appearance, in F&B book like 90% of characters are white ppl in white wigs. So it was a very smart visual choice to change Velaryons a bit so that they won't merge with Targaryens on screen. GOT did that too with a few characters.

[@angryengine9616]

@@Karasuno86 nah, its literally diversity pal.

[@m00tes]

@@Karasuno86 Not a good decision. Lets make some black people white in some show about slavery, so normies can distinguish who's who better.

[@aintnoslice3422]

@@Karasuno86 a "smart visual choice" ISN'T blackwashing characters and breaking the lore. This isn't changed "a bit", his house is a whole different race. ASOIAF (like LOTR) has an internally consistent genealogy that the show-runners through out the window for the sake of virtue signalling and appropriation.

[@m00tes]

@Ali Chaudhry I mean, there were white slaves ofc. But you get my point, you arent gonna make a movie about M. Luther King and make him a white person because politics, right. That absolutely undermines his career and achievements as a black citizen.

[@MA-go7ee]

As a black person, i find race/gender swapping for anything other artistic reasons completely silly and immersion breaking mostly because every single time i see that character i KNOW why they are there. It is the writers politics being shoved in my face and it is pretty galling. When it comes to adaptations, i really really do not like deviations in general. The work is being adapted presumably because it is good and succesful. The audience probably wants to see what the original author wrote, not what D&D (for example) think is *shudder* better. In the original GoT i even hated the fact they changed Littlefinger so much. I mean it was an amazing performance but he did not really need to be so moustache twirling, lol. And it did affect his story because an important reason why Littlefinger was able to rise up so effectively was because of how friendly and unassuming he was! Point being, no unnecessary changes please...

[@Brekner]

I'm ok with it if it's for an unimportant character or someone whose race isn't important. Like, take the Mountain in GoT, if he didn't have a brother, I wouldn't have had any issues with him being black, but because the Hound is his brother, if they made him black it wouldn't have made sense.

[@riftvallance2087]

I usually don't get to hung up on a characters race , just as long as the right actor gets cast in the right roll. What gets me is a lot of race swapped rolls seem to go to third rate actors . It screams last second replacement to me in order to check a box.

[@Ready-ForTheEnd]

Also black myself and i agree. Its nonsense and im over it. And they specifically changed the characterd race because they "didnt want a bunch of white people on screen" which is horribly racist.

[@hudsonholdich3152]

loved this video, i watched it assuming you had millions or at least a few hundred thousand subscribers and was surprised because it felt very authentic. super hype for this show and this video made me more excited :)

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Wow, thanks for saying that :) Really appreciate the kind words!

[@surafelkebede299]

Looking forward to this

[@xancypillosi9497]

The way u say "controversy" lol love it

[@zithnaja]

Great video! I haven't read the books so I have no idea of what I'll be missing out of, but I do feel cheated on a great experience from the end of the earlier series. If the director himself is also dissatisfied with that I can only hope he will prove that another way is possible. So I'll definitely give this series a chance, if nothing else for the armors, they look rad :)

[@john_olsson]

Nice video!

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Thanks, glad you liked it!

[@RomaZeal]

Tokenism is a really good way of describing the casting aspect of the show. Come on son. Anyone with half a braincell just knows that that's a mater of fact. From what I can tell it's at least kept within reason. At least looking at what Amazon has coming up with Lord of the Rings, this show seems light years ahead in terms of pragmaticism.

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Really looking forward to seeing how they resolve this seeming contradiction.

[@RomaZeal]

@@CultureVultureMedia1 Same, time will tell. Btw I just wanna say I really love you videos man! You have a really great talent of showcasing and dialogue

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

@@RomaZeal thank you Oleg! That means a lot :)

[@mpalfadel2008]

lol You mentioned LML… David Lightbringer You might as well check with Preston Jacobs as well…

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Different perspectives is what makes it interesting, no?

[@Fimbulvinter19]

Appropriately tempered expectations, but it will receive a fair go. No dismissing it out of hand, but I'm also not wedded to the series shouldit turn sour.

[@reasonablyserious]

Still waiting for the continuation of GoT beyond season 4

[@scottishcanadian6581]

ReasonablySerious not for another 15 to 20 years even the Dragon demands says so on his channel and he looks it up carefully researching it . besides working as a admin on the Game thrones& House of the Dragon wiki for the last 5 or so years.

[@lsubesteva]

Great editing and production value! Shame! Just a shame you don’t have more subscribers and views!

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Thanks a lot for the kind words :) Glad you liked the video!

[@stevenhayes7910]

I don’t like lore-breaking in the name of diversity. But Toussaint looks so freakin’ cool as Corlys that I’m not too bothered. And it’s nothing compared to the crap D&D did in GoT.

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

His voice is great too. I bet he’ll do really well, regardless of the rest.

[@Raycloud]

You're virtue signaling

[@stevenhayes7910]

@@Raycloud Who are you talking to? Cause I sure as hell ain’t virtue signaling. Didn’t know saying someone looks badass as a character had anything to do with that. Lmao

[@IntellectualCuriosity]

I think I remember something about the Velaryon’s down in the Summer Isles as the explanation for race?

[@townfuneral4564]

Bro said fresh intro music 💀

[@superfamilyallosauridae6505]

I don't mind a bit, so long as they keep the race stuff in-universe logical. As other have mentioned, it can even help with the infidelity plot.

[@angryengine9616]

They wont. Liberals enjoy being disgusting racists now.

[@JerkWarlord]

I'd like to agree with you, but I'm a genealogist and frankly I just don't see how it's possible to. It would require a massive change to the canon where there were two different races of Valyrians that rarely or never intermarried for some reason or another. Simultaneously, while within Valyrian culture there would have to have been many cultural and societal differences to support the general lack of intermarrying between these two races, to the rest of the world, the two races would have to have been seen as essentially one and the same. There's a lot of repercussions that would exist as a result of that juxtaposition that would only change the canon even more. The result would need to be an adaptation that's fairly different from its source material. It's substantially easier to hand-wave the race stuff away in-universe with the same shitty fantasy genealogy tropes that have existed forever but fall apart at even the slightest levels of scrutiny. It could help with the infidelity plot, absolutely, and it's a move towards more diversity, inclusion, and representation, 100%, but I still don't think all of that is worth it with the way they've chosen to execute it. I'll gleefully be proved wrong, and I'd love nothing more than for you to be right, but I just don't see how it's possible.

[@superfamilyallosauridae6505]

@@JerkWarlord Grim. It really do be like that tho

[@scottishcanadian6581]

@@JerkWarlord with the lower ranking Valyrian families before the doom that was not a problem.it will likely show that in Empire of Ash when it comes out which likely won't be for another 5 years or so. like dragon demands said on his channel , it was like the Spanish colonies(even in the Caribbean)or Roman empire (like Roman Africa)where lower ranks nobles or bureaucrats intermixed with the local population. the children of the Spanish Colonists and Native peoples of south America like Colombia or Venezuela included people of mixed race(creole but a wealthy creole family)like Simon Bolivar the liberator.

[@indisbit9368]

Don’t have a problem with the valerians being black, kinda cool but kind of reeks of HBO changing lore for the sake of pandering to an audience that for all they know wouldn’t care regardless

[@GaudiaCertaminisGaming]

I've got to the point where I just don’t watch these shows till I’ve seen some feedback from trusted KZbinrs. Been burned too many times. And, y’know could we have something new for a change, something that’s just not a spin-off or a remake? Groundhog Day was meant to be fiction, not a blueprint.

[@sun_and_sage]

Never read the book so no idea who is whom but looking forward to watching it ⚔️

[@ConstanzaRigazio]

What’s your problem with Ed Sheeran? 😭He’s such a lovely guy!

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Haha, true, but he looked so malplaced in GoT it really ground my gears :P

[@stevei-cj4sc]

Folks, the guy is a super fan of books that will never be finished?

[@mpalfadel2008]

Lord Corlys Velaryon voyages occurred over twenty years prior to the events of House of the Dragon We won’t be seeing the same actor return..

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Fair enough, but Steve is a fresh looking dude. Wouldn't be surprised if they fixed him up with makeup to make due.

[@timi_ro]

Game of Thrones, is that a thing anymore?

[@uriahl2331]

Thanks for covering the Corlys controversy. I personally am against it, and the mindset of the show runners when they made the choice. If they didn’t want an Anglo story, they should have adapted something else, like a 1000 ships. Notwithstanding, there were other ways to get a diverse cast, say by creating new characters or by pulling POCs from ASOIAF to use in this story, like Jalabar Xho, or Chataya/Aliyaya. No one’s against diversity, but it’s got to make sense. Making a house famous for inbreeding to preserve bloodlines, intermarry with a house that is now Valyrian in name only (silver hair is all now that they are no longer pale, and of course don’t have purple eyes) is just nonsensical. Some of the blame here goes to the original decision not to give Dany and Viserys purple eyes, but it’s already established in GOT that they’re pale white.

[@Brekner]

I'll listen to some reviewers, if they say it's not the worst thing ever, I might watch it, but personally I'm not excited at all. Also, every fucking director says they're huge fans of the books or series, and maybe they are, but then they invent stuff or change stuff because somehow they think they know better than the authors or directors of the original materials....

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Yeah, it's not all too reassuring, you're right. I feel like whatever they say can only make things worse, or at best, not change anything.

[@iisotter8944]

Who cares what colour, sex, whatever anyone is. If they are a good enough actor, I would not even notice, just sell me the fantasy with amazing talent. So now I will contradict myself, and say no to a female Dr Who, maybe just maybe Zoë Wanamaker could pull it off, again talent. No female James Bond though. Steve Toussaint is a great actor and at no time pulled me out of the fantasy.

[@henrikhumle7255]

Martin apparently approves of the characters being people of color, hence it is okay for them to be people of color. End of debate. Any fanboy who gets upset about the fact that it "breaks the lore!" just needs to accept that it's not their story to tell and move on. If Martin thinks it falls within the realm of reason, then it does. Besides, the references in the books themselves aren't actually that explicit; and even if they are, a TV adaption is just that; and adaptation. You cannot expect it to be 100% accurate to the story told in the books, and as long as the changes are minor and don't influence the overall plot, what's the problem? This isn't at all like what happened to LotR and how that universe has been cannibalized and radically changed to prop up political messaging at the cost of the IP's integrity and content. The only major criticism is the routine defense of "We couldn't make a show that was just another bunch of white people." That's just a horribly racist thing to say, and it's perfectly possible to defend diversity in casting without making racist arguments that ultimately boil down to having too many white people making a product inherently worse, because white people are inherently bad. Those are the implications of such statements, and GoT itself, although it was hardly a *diverse* show by modern standards, wasn't "just" a bunch of white people. Besides, diversity is more than the color of people's skin. If I had to take issue with anything, it really isn't the casting decision itself, which is fine and clearly approved by the original author, but the mean-spirited defense and negative rhetoric that's used to defend it.

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Well put! I still think it's very unrealistic how not even the lowest of the low would make a fuzz over having exotic looking overlords. The show makes a massive point about gender differences, but never even agnowledges racism. Just because it's GRRM's own world, he's still chosen to make humans humans, and removing inherent human traits, like certain kinds of discrimination, when convenient is just weird.

[@henrikhumle7255]

@@CultureVultureMedia1 The lack of focus on race in GoT is definitely a bit odd, but coming at it from a historical perspective, it's not entirely out of line; medieval views on race were a lot different compared to colonial views on race. Of course, that also had a lot to do with there generally being less contact between different kinds of people than there was following colonialism (for context, I am a historian of culture). I think some of it of course also boils down to people working on the show being afraid to really go near the subject. Another major part is that Martin sadly doesn't really do a whole lot to explore the history and culture of people like the Dothraki. Compared to the fleshed-out culture of Westeros, they're almost just reduced to "Yeah, they like fighting and f***ing" which is a shame. Either way, the result sadly does end up being tokenism in place of real representations. Even the 2005 reboot of Doctor Who, in its early days, did more to depict and discuss actual racism in a meaningful way. What's interesting is the weirdly overlooked representations within GoT. The show tackles negative attitudes toward homosexuality with some fairly convincing depictions, but I guess since it isn't signposted ("tokenified" if you will), a lot of self-titled progressives completely overlook it? There's Brienne and how she defies both ideals about female beauty and gender roles in general. No one really seems to be discussing how Tyrion (and arguably Bran as well) sends a powerful anti-ableist message. How the show depicts and comments on the horrors of slavery (although Daenerys's "White Savior" moment was a regrettable decision in terms of how to depict her role). There's SO MUCH powerful representation in GoT that acting like that show was "just a bunch of white dudes doing white dude stuff" is just absurd. But again, since so much of it was *proper representation* and not heavily signposted progressive bait (I.E. Tokenism) it just ends up being ignored. It's such a shame, given that GoT is arguably the most important modern TV show since LOST. If you bothered reading this frustrated rant of mine, being the jaded historian that I am, do you have any interest in LOST and is it a series you might discuss at any point? Being a huge fan of that show, it'd be interesting to hear your takee on it.

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

​@@henrikhumle7255 I really enjoyed your take, and I agree about every single point about GoT. I think you're right that the HOTD team didn't want to go near the subject of racism out of cowardice, and that's one of many aspects of how HOTD and GOT are completely different. I guess that 'exploring themes (or anything) at depth' is what truly sets them apart. Arya is pure female empowerment, which people don't even seem to realize because they're so focused on Daenerys (probably because she becomes powerful so quickly). It's a shame, because what's the point of empowerment without challenges to overcome? In the end, I suppose a lot of people are satisfied with seeing all-powerful women and calling it empowerment, but all that accomplishes is polarization, because, while it arguably has noble goals, they do not achieve those goals. And folks who critizise their means of achieving those goals get mixed up with people who disagree with those goals. I just rewatched Black Sails, and, f*** me sideways, do they know how to explore themes. Racism, sexism and so much more, and so sensibly done. I'm left thinking that 2009-2016 was a golden age of modern TV. No intellectual insults or nose-flicking exposition, just pure rewatchabillity. Westworld is another one I keep coming back to. I've tried getting into Lost, but I'll have to give it another shot! It's been a while. If you want to have more of these sort of conversations, feel free to join the Discord channel! I can talk for days about these things :) discord.gg/YJtpreBC

[@henrikhumle7255]

@@CultureVultureMedia1 Thank you! My services are available for free. ;) I'll look into joining, thanks for the invitation.

[@snufkinhollow318]

I can't find a link to the interview I was reading recently but in it GRRM basically said that he thought the depiction of the Valaryons was a great idea and he wished he had written them as black in the first place. But he also said that even though he didn't do that, there is nothing in the lore that would preclude this interpretation. Personally, I think you have to accept that no adaptation of a book is ever going to be exactly as it is on the page or in your imagination. I have seen some excellent film/tv adaptations of books but only a rare few have ever made me think they were 'better' than the book. I think the two experiences are different and if you don't want to see differences from your own perceptions of a book, the beauty of television is a natty little device called the 'OFF' switch that you can employ if you don't like it. Seriously, there really are more important things in this world than a tv show and although I was, along will millions of others, pretty disappointed with how GoT ended, it was more in the context of D&D basically turning out to be a couple of charlatans who had scammed their way into highly paid jobs and seemed to be laughing in the face of the people who had put them where they were. Television is entertainment, it's escapism and can even be art but ultimately, it's not a life or death situation if a character isn't as you would like them to be. Use that 'OFF' switch and move on - but, if you can't, maybe question whether your online rants are really about how much you love a story or about your own real-life prejudices.

[@reasonablyserious]

Changing stories just to accommodate a very prejudicial ideology is what people have a problem with. A prejudice against propaganda, if you will.

[@bradleyleppington8366]

Ｐ𝐫Ｏ𝕞Ｏ𝓢ｍ 🌸

[@mamutthe4881]

The fact that they're black is 100% irrelevant to the story as the fact that Dany didn't have purple eyes was irrelevant to GoT :)

[@Letkharable]

Corlys Velaryon's skin tone is not described in the book. I don't see how people can say it's a deviation from canon. Personally I think it's a smart choice that makes the infidelity plot point clearer to the audience.

[@JonathanFingers]

But as said in the video, according to canon the Valyrians as are pale as the Targaryens?

[@YourBlackLocal]

@@JonathanFingers That’s entirely meaningless when you have multiple Valyrian houses it’s not that hard to say one hooked up with summer islanders, who are notorious sea farers in this world.

[@JonathanFingers]

@@YourBlackLocal I was more referring to the fact that they said simply because his skin tone wasn't described in the books meant it didn't deviate from canon, but clarifying that in in canon it is clear Valyrians were known for their pale skin. Just because the Valyrians had multiple houses doesn't mean viewers/readers wouldn't logically think a head of a Valyrian house carried the same universally known characteristics, especially when this character in particular was the head of his house and their skin tone wasn't made relevant from the source material. You're ignoring the point that it is undeniably strange that you introduce a valyrian character that looks nothing like the other valyrian characters already established in the universe, especially with comments from the writers/directors inferring they purposefully wanted to introduce black actors to the show to counter how many white people are in said established universe lol.

[@YourBlackLocal]

@@JonathanFingers You are making several different points. Yes, obviously the character was not intentionally black. But again, your point about valyrians being as pale as Targaryens, as a counter point, is like saying an entire culture that constantly interacted with various other cultures, could never once possibly mix with another culture, it’s an absurd point. Your argument is what? They made him black on purpose? Obviously. George described Valyrians as pale, he also said their were many of them. He also gave them purple eyes.

[@JonathanFingers]

​@@YourBlackLocal You were making the point that it is feasible to think there could be a black valyrian. I made the clear point that Valyrians were universally known to have pale skin in particular. I made the clear point that this character was a head of one of the Valyrian houses and was essentially white through omission of talking about their skin tone and would logically be known by viewers/readers to have been white, as well as George writing them to be that way hence the current debates over the casting. I made the simple point in response to op saying it is in fact a deviation from the canon unlike what they said and you responded to me saying "that's entirely meaningless" lmao so I explained how it clearly wasn't. No one is making the argument that it is literally impossible for them to be black, just that it is clearly forced and not befitting of the canon. It's not absurd to point out the established continuity of a fictional universe and how Valyrians were known to have said characteristics. All you are doing is making the strange argument that there could potentially be a possibility that he could be black based on a potential headcanon backstory, which almost entirely ignores the actual point of peoples contention with the casting. No its not simply that it was on purpose, no one thinks they accidently did it lol? It's that it was clearly a forced casting based on the lead writers ideology of wanting diversity in a fictional world where they deemed to not have enough of. "George described Valyrians as pale, he also said their were many of them. He also gave them purple eyes."

[@mechanicaldavid4827]

Why are all these racialized apologists making flimsy "time and place" arguments? As Shakespeare's works have only gained, in text and in spirit, from casting choices that provoke thought and re-reading of the time and place of the play (and its relationship to our here and now). To relegate fantasy to mere distraction instead of re-imagining our world by engaging the challenge of "breaking" lore, is to submit to words and fatalism. We are - to my mind - capable of being better creatures than that, and I say that taking words from the page is already transformational, and pointing towards new possibilities to learn from.

[@veggiesupreme3556]

what a load of waffle

[@Adam-bw2ch]

If it ends Rhaenyra dying from getting ate from sunfyre like In the books LET ME KNOW NOW so I don’t have to waste my time watching it 😒

[@eons8941]

We're here for the journey not the ending so be positive

[@davidwatson7196]

With respect. After watching this video, I realized something. It appears that you cannot speak about House of the Dragon, on it's own merits and potential, without trying to kick dirt on Benioff & Weiss and Game of Thrones. In most cases, that simply means someone putting another person down, in order to build themselves up. Does that sound about right? First off, Game of Thrones is the greatest tv series on the planet. 3 years after it ended, it's still finding itself in TOP TEN Favorite series polls. For example, earlier this month Game of Thrones was number 5, in the most In-demand series. Also, it was the most pirated series, earlier this month. And, it's been 3 years since it ended. You talk about season 8, as if it was the worst season ever, in the history of television. That is subjective. But, what do you have to back it up? Remember, the internet doesn't reflect what everyone is feeling. What do you have to back it up? Let me tell you about season 8 of Game of Thrones. Season 8 is the greatest season of television in 2019. No other tv series in that year, could beat it. Not Sucession. Not Bodyguard. Not Pose. Not Better Call Saul. Not Killing Eve. Not one tv series in 2019. Do you want to know why? Because season 8's writing was phenomenal. Every episode was gripping, compelling and intriguing. You sat in your seat, watching every scene. And, you dared not get up, for fear of missing something important. That is subjective. And, what do I have to backup my claim, that season 8 of Game of Thrones was phenomenal? Season 8 of Game of Thrones received 12 Emmys, including for Best Drama Series. End of story. Benioff & Weiss and crew, were the last to receive that award at the 2019 Emmy Ceremony. Don't you remember? They gave a great speech. "We shall never see her like again." Don't you remember that part, that David Benioff said? I get it. You didn't like season 8 of Game of Thrones. No one is saying, that you MUST LIKE IT. But, for you to trash the showrunners, who brought to the world a phenomenal show. All because, you didn't like the way it ended. Now that's a bit SILLY. You have nothing to backup your claim, that season 8 was trash. All you have is your feelings. Did Season 8 win the Golden Raspberry award(The Worst tv series)? I've checked. Season 8 wasn't even nominated. But, Game of Thrones season 8 has received 12 Emmys, including for Best Drama Series. Game of thrones season 8 was the greatest tv series in 2019. Season 8 has the hardware, to backup that claim. While you and your upset feelings, does not. You should be thanking Benioff & Weiss, for bringing us a fantastic show, to our screens. Adapting a series of books to the screen(big or small), is no easy feat. House of the Dragon, may have a shot to become great. But, you cannot know that, from a few trailers. Even Game of Thrones season 1 trailer, didn't give you the sense, that it was going to be a great tv series. In all honesty, season 1 trailer was MEH!!!! The only ones in 2011 who was ecstatic and optimistic about season 1 of Game of Thrones, were the book readers. I didn't know the books existed, until after I began watching the series. The HBO series, brought me to the books. That's how good the series was. House of the Dragon, has big shoes to fill. They may have Ramin Djawadi. They may have Miguel Sapochnik. They may have the stunt coordinator Rowley Irlam. But, they don't have Benioff & Weiss. Benioff & Weiss are the main ingredients. But, we will see how well House of the Dragon does. I strongly believe that Fire & Blood was George RR Martin's response, to Benioff & Weiss letting HBO know, that they were going to end the series after season 8. Grrm wanted them to go on 5 to 6 more seasons. Grrm went to HBO to see if they could force Benioff & Weiss to keep going. It didn't work. This was in late 2015, going into 2016. Fire & Blood was released in 2018. Notice the timing? LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I guess GRRM felt, that if Game of Thrones could win all of these accolades, he could repeat the same process. Only this time, without Benioff & Weiss. I don't know about this one guys. Anytime when you take on a huge project. And, it's out of desperation. In most cases, it never works out. It usually ends badly. According to many Credible book reviewers, Fire & Blood is not GRRM's best work. Some say that it felt like a "RUSHED JOB". "It doesn't have the same details, like A Song of Ice & Fire." "It reads like a book of historical events." I don't wish any failures, on House of the Dragon. But, it doesn't have the masterminds of television, behind it. That's Benioff & Weiss. But again. We will see how well, House of the Dragon does. Perhaps, it will be as good as Game of Thrones or, even better. Then again. Perhaps Not. With respect, I think that you need to pay your respects, to Benioff & Weiss. You are allowing your "FEELINGS OF SEASON 8", to cloud your judgement. Don't you agree?

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

Hi, thanks for taking the time to give me such substantial feedback. I will gladly answer your questions! If you've watched the video, I bring up many aspects with regards to House of the Dragon and what to expect. Many, like me, are relieved that D&D are not running the show (see other commenters). For those who paid attention, the quality of GoT dropped off severely with season 5. This is backed up in several of my videos where I analyse the objective quality of storytelling, judging mainly by the amount of inconsistencies introduced by the show itself, and as you can see, there are more and more errors as the seasons progress. So, D&D did a good job until they didn't. It's not so black and white. And it's common knowledge that they didn't want to work on the show anymore and decided to rush the lest few seasons so that they could move on to other projects. This is basically what my content is about; how well these productions live up to their storytelling potential. Some viewers seem to think it's about being negative, but it's quite the opposite. Also, don't you think it's contradictive to argue that my argument is more subjective/arbitrary than yours when I'm the one presenting a degree of research and analysis? Not saying that makes me right and you wrong, it just seems to me that yours is the argument that needs backing up :) Regardless, thanks for taking the time to discuss. It's always refreshing to have varying opinions on these subjects!

[@gravoc857]

Changing a characters race is meh. If it was a device to impact or enhance the story in some way then it’s fine. But instead characters are changed to appease the radical alphabet people and wokie’s. I don’t care about the characters skin color. Black or white, really doesn’t matter. It does bug me that the sole reason of changing the characters color is to appease a group that is actively blackwashing media, and seeking to remove the presence of white culture the same way whites historically repressed black culture. It’s just reverse racism. Yes it absolutely is a token black guy. They just went with a bigger token. Doesn’t hide it at all.

[@CultureVultureMedia1]

I honestly thought there would be explanations provided, but they haven't even done that. Seems unrealistic that a medieval society would so readily accept overlords that look different, let alone not even talking about it.

[@samjones6258]

You say it doesn't bother you.....but clearly it does!

[@gravoc857]

@@samjones6258 character skin color doesn’t bother me. What bothers me is changing stories to be PC friendly. That goes beyond race.