House of the Dragon Episode 8 is the highly anticipated next episode in the House of the Dragon series. Game of Thrones was a worldwide phenomenon. Known for its shocking twists, intricate politics, and the fact that no character was safe and, at any moment, any of them may die, this show was HBO’s pride and joys. Even though HBO is known for its prestige-level drama, Game of Thrones stood out from the rest, catapulting an entire genre into mainstream fame.
Fantasy drama had never had a moment like this before, and with its popularity, a lot of other fantasy dramas were greenlit as well. Fans bought merchandise of the different Houses, it became common for everyone to declare their allegiance to a House based on who they wanted to sit on the Iron Throne, and every Sunday, everyone was seated for a new episode lest they miss out and get spoiled.
The season finale of Game of Thrones was a big event. The hype around it had grown to the extent that any lead actor in it immediately had their career made, and all eyes were on the show to see how this grandiose plot would resolve itself. Unfortunately, everyone can pretty much agree that the Game of Thrones ending was, well, kind of terrible.
It was rushed through, poorly paced, and anti-climactic, with fans complaining that the show was so poorly lit that the great battles couldn’t really be seen to a Starbucks cup being left on the table in the show immediately breaking the immersion. Rulers in ancient fantasy drama riding on the back of a dragon to get a Starbucks, now that’s a thought.
However, all this disappointment did not prevent HBO from setting up a new show in the same universe. The events of House of the Dragon take place around 200 years before those of Game of Thrones, 172 years before Daenerys Targaryen was born, and 00 years after the Targaryen Conquest, which unites the Seven Kingdoms.
This show is an independent show that is the second in the franchise and is based on the book Fire and Blood by George R. R. Martin. It is intended to serve as a kind of prelude to the show by describing the legacy of the illustrious Targaryen Dynasty set during one of the most brutal civil wars as Targaryen fought Targaryen for control of the Iron Throne.
Ryan Condal and George R. R. Martin developed this show for HBO. The showrunners originally were Ryan Condal as well as Miguel Sapochnik; however, Sapochnik stepped down after the initial season, leaving Condal to manage the project by himself for the following one.
The cast includes Paddy Considine as King Viserys I Targaryen, Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, Emma D’Arcy as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Queen Alicent Hightower, Rhys Ifans as Ser Otto Hightower, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon, Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, Graham McTavish as Ser Harrold Westerling and Fabien Frankel as Ser Criston Cole.
It also guest stars Wil Johnson as Ser Vaemond Velaryon, Tom Glynn-Carney as Prince Aegon Targaryen, the Elder, Phia Saban as Princess Helaena Targaryen, Ewan Mitchell as Prince Aemond Targaryen, Bethany Antonia as Lady Baela Targaryen, Phoebe Campbell as Lady Rhaena Targaryen, Harry Collett as Prince Jacaerys Velaryon, Elliot Grihault as Prince Lucerys Velaryon, Elliott Tittensor as Ser Erryk Cargyll and Luke Tittensor as Ser Arryk Cargyll.
And all this is just in the House of Dragon Episode 8! Every episode promises subterfuge, betrayals, and loss as the Targaryen fight for power comes to a head in this show.
House Of The Dragon Episode 8 Preview
Fire and Blood, a novel in George R. R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series, inspired House of the Dragon. It is a telling of the events that plagued the Targaryen Dynasty, written in the universe by Archmaester Gyldayn, who cites a variety of contradictory fictional primary sources while writing this book, making him an unreliable narrator. The Dance of the Dragons, a civil war between Rhaenyra Targaryen and her half-brother Aegon, is discussed in part of the novel.
The series so far has followed Rhaenyra Targaryen since the death of her mother, leaving her father without an heir, to her being named Heir, her father’s marriage to her close friend Alicent Hightower and her own subsequent marriage to her cousin, Ser Laenor, Velaryon. She has two sons with Ser Laenor Velaryon: Prince Jacaerys Velaryon and Prince Lucerys Velaryon, even though their parentage has been called into question.
The previous episode left off with the tensions between the Greens and the Blacks rising. Over the course of Queen Alicent’s and Princess Rhaenyra’s respective marriages, their friendship broke down due to both of them having to live in the midst of court politics and learning to protect themselves.
The Greens are the faction loyal to Queen Alicent, while the Blacks are the faction loyal to Princess Rhaenyra. Their name comes from Queen Alicent, who attended the inaugural feast wearing a green gown—the color of her House Hightower, and the Targaryen traditional red and black colors.
In Episode 7, after the death of Daemon Targaryen’s second wife, Lady Laena Velaryon, who committed suicide by dragon fire, Prince Aemond Targaryen tames her legendary she-dragon Vhagar known to be the largest dragon of them all. This is seen by her daughters, Lady Baela Targaryen and Lady Rhaena Targaryen, who protest at his stealing their mother’s dragon.
Along with Prince Jacaerys Velaryon and Prince Lucerys Velaryon, the cousins get into a scuffle causing a knife to be pulled on Prince Aemond Targaryen, who is the second son of King Viserys Targaryen and Queen Alicent Hightower when he attempts to murder his cousins with a rock, causing him to permanently lose an eye.
On seeing this, Queen Alicent Hightower demands an eye from the perpetrator as revenge for her son and moves to the young boys with a knife but is stopped by Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen. In the end, Queen Alicent draws blood from her childhood friend and is later praised by her father, Ser Otto Hightower, the returning Hand of the King, for her mettle. The episode ends with the marriage of Prince Daemon Targaryen and Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen.
House of the Dragon Episode 8 features another time jump and the takeover of the Throne by the Greens in place of the King due to his declining health. The young princes are now all grown up, and in the twilight years of King Viserys’ life, the Targaryen civil war is well underway as each faction begins fighting for the Iron Throne in earnest.
Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen is named Heir to the Throne, but the Hightowers feel that as King Viserys’ firstborn son, her younger half-brother and Queen Alicent’s firstborn son Prince Aegon Targaryen should inherit the Iron Throne instead. The two factions are determined to fight for this Throne to the death in this Dance of the Dragons, with Prince Daemon Targaryen gleefully supporting his niece and new wife in her pursuits.
The only mention of the dying King Viserys is when he says, “The crown cannot stand strong if the House of the Dragon remains divided,” an old refrain he has been saying since the beginning of the show, one that will ultimately prove fruitless.
House Of The Dragon Episode 8 Release Date
House of the Dragon Episode 8 is titled “The Lord of the Tides,” and its runtime is 68 minutes. Eileen Shim wrote the script, and Geeta Patel is the director. It will air on October 9, 2022, at 9 PM EST.
The release times for other regions are:
Pacific Daylight Time: 6:00 PM (October 9, 2022)
Central Daylight Time: 08:00 PM (October 9, 2022)
Eastern Daylight Time: 09.00 PM (October 9, 2022)
British Summer Time: 2:00 AM (October 10, 2022)
Indian Standard Time: 06:30 AM (October 10, 2022)
Singapore Standard Time: 09:00 AM (October 10, 2022)
Philippines Standard Time: 09:00 AM (October 10, 2022)
Japanese Standard Time: 10:00 AM (October 10, 2022)
Korean Standard Time: 10:00 AM (October 10, 2022)
Austalia Time: 12:00 PM (October 10, 2022)
Where To Watch House of the Dragon Episode 8?
House of the Dragon Episode 8 premiers on HBO in the US and Sky Atlantic in the UK. You can also watch it on the streaming service HBO Max. It can be watched in India on Disney+ Hotstar.
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