Just in, HBO has officially announced the two lead cast members of the show playing the pair of “Dunk and Egg” a.k.a. Ser Duncan the Tall and Aegon “Egg” V Targaryen. Here’s the post:

Send a raven.

Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell will star in the new @HBO Original Series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, as Ser Duncan the Tall and Egg. Coming to Max. pic.twitter.com/OAXVSQKLrB

— Max (@StreamOnMax) April 5, 2024

Peter Claffey (Dunk) is best known for his work on the series Wreck, and his co-star Dexter Sol Ansell had a small part as a young Coriolanus Snow in the recent Hunger Games prequel A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Unlike the previous Thrones series which is based on full-length novels, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a series of novellas from George R.R. Martin, and three have been published so far—The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword, and The Mystery Knight.

In the lore, Duncan the Tall would grow on to be a legendary member of the Kingsguard, and his squire, Egg, would rule Westeros as Aegon V Tagaryen. Egg is also the brother of Aemon Targaryen in Game of Thrones, and he calls out to him before he dies in the series. Here’s a scene from GoT where they briefly mention Ser Duncan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBb15PQn-gQ

The story is a prequel set 90 years before the events of Game of Thrones, and after the Dance of Dragons from House of the Dragon. We don’t know what kind of tone the showrunners will be going for, but I am up for something more wholesome that takes place in a world as brutal as Westeros.

No release date has been set for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, but you can watch out for House of the Dragon which is set to come back to Max on June 16.

House of the Dragon is set to return this June, and we have two new trailers dropped, each focusing on different sides of the Targaryen Civil War—Black and Green. Watch this:

Unlike Game of Thrones which had to come up with its own ending because there was a lack of source material, House of the Dragon has a completed story in the lore, so a lot of fans are hopeful that we get a concise ending.

Even if the story is completed though, the series has been taking some liberties. In the books, Viserys Targaryen was more of a forgettable character, but the series actually gave hime a very meaningful arc, which made his death all the more devastating.

We don’t know what else the show could change, but so far, the series has managed to ignite excitement in the GoT fandom again; especially after the disappointment with the finale that a good chunk of fans cannot seem to shut up about.

Hopefully the showrunners of House of the Dragon have a good enough sense to condense the story without overstretching episodes or making some questionable character decisions. I don’t think the fandom can take another hit like GoT Season 8.

The second season of House of the Dragon comes to Max on June 16.

Writing on his own personal blog, Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin talks about how difficult of a year he’s had and how he anticipates 2024 not to be any better. He goes on to talk about ongoing wars, both publicized and ignored, but also has something to say about the recent fandom spaces. Martin writes:

“I take solace where I can.   In chocolate thrones, if nowhere else.   In books.   In films and television shows… though even there, toxicity is growing.  It used to be fun talking about our favorite books and films, and having spirited debates with fans who saw things different… but somehow in this age of social media, it is no longer enough to say ‘I did not like book X or film Y, and here’s why.’  Now social media is ruled by anti-fans who would rather talk about the stuff they hate than the stuff they love, and delight in dancing on the graves of anyone whose film has flopped.”

If anything, Martin definitely knows what he’s talking about. After all, the Game of Thrones fandom has been filled with the same ‘anti-fans’ ever since the series ended; on top of that, Martin has also been the victim of constant fan ridicule for taking his time when it comes to finishing the next book in the Song of Ice and Fire saga. Some are even blaming him for taking so long that the TV series had to write its own ending.

For now, the social media climate does seem to be cultivating a lot of hate—especially since they are very good with engagement. We don’t know how we could take on this toxicity moving forward; but some fans are trying their best to stay positive amidst the noise of it all.

Winds of Winter still has no release date, but watch our for the next season of House of the Dragon coming to Max this summer.

We never got an official look at the show, but thanks to make-up artist @floramoody, we have a look at Naomi Watts in costume for what was supposed to be called Game of Thrones: Bloodmoon. Check this out:

 

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A post shared by Flora Moody (@floramoody)

Here are the stills thanks to @westerosies:

First look at Naomi Watts in the pilot episode of HBO’s cancelled ‘BLOOD MOON’ #GameOfThrones prequel series.

The pilot reportedly revolved around a wedding between a Stark and a Casterly, taking place at Casterly Rock. pic.twitter.com/4htFRbSJsg

— westerosies (@westerosies) February 2, 2024

We don’t know who Watts was supposed to be playing in the show, but based on the blonde hair and yellow clothing, I’m going to guess she was a Casterly.

The official logline from the series did say (via ComicBookMovie): “From the horrifying secrets of Westeros’s history to the true origin of the White Walkers… the mysteries of the East to the Starks of legend, only one thing is for sure: it’s not the story we think we know.”

Besides the origin of the White Walkers, the show as also speculated to reveal how the Wall ended up being built; and we would also see how the Lannisters came to be the ones who would take over Casterly Rock.

We don’t know exactly why the series was cancelled, but seeing where House of the Dragon was going, I can imagine that HBO wanted something on the same level of scandalous that maybe the other prequel wasn’t able to match.

Maybe they can try again after HOTD ends, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

For now, fans are gearing up for the return of House of the Dragon on Max sometime later this year.

Reports had come out last week that Alcock was in the running to play Supergirl for James Gunn’s new DCU, and Variety has confirmed that Alcock is now going to be making her superheroine debut in Superman: Legacy, then headlining in her own feature film with Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.

Besides Alcock, Disney Channel star Meg Donnelly had been considered for the part, with her having voiced Supergirl in animation. Though Alcock did get the live-action part, I don’t see why Donnelly can keep playing the voice of Supergirl moving forward.

We don’t know yet how Gunn and his team plan to tackle Supergirl down the line, but I do think that Alcock won the role because she looks significantly younger than Donnelly. What makes the dynamic between Clark and Kara interesting is that Kara is younger, but she knows more about Krypton than Clark does, having grown up there before it exploded.

For now, we’re just going to have to wait and see what everyone looks like in costume, but a lot of fans agree that Alcock is a solid pick for the character. Fingers crossed we get a first look before the year ends.

Watch out for Alcock when she makes her debut as Supergirl in Superman: Legacy which comes out July 11, 2025.

A lot of love has gone Considine’s way since his last appearance, and in a post thanking the fans, he decided to thank actress Sian Brooke (Aemma Targaryen) for helping fuel his performance as King Viserys. Here’s his post:

 

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A post shared by PaddyConsidine (@paddy_considine)

“I want to give massive love and respect to [Sian Brooke] who came in for only a few days, but changed the course of my character with her brilliant performance and commitment to the work. The impact stayed with me until my final improvised words. She unlocked the missing piece of the puzzle for me, and allowed my story to come full circle. From the moment she dies, so does Viserys. It was a love story.”

This is some very interesting insight to the character, and we get to see how it Aemma tends to linger in the show despite dying in the first episode. It was even said that Viserys’ actions in appointing Rhaenyra as his heir, were all an act of love for Aemma, because Rhaenyra was their only daughter, and having her take the throne was Viserys’ way to honor her.

It was amazing how nuanced of a character Viserys was for the series, starting out as an incompetent king; but in the end he proved that he was a very loving father who just wanted his family to be happy.

Catch the next House of the Dragon when it comes to HBO Max this Sunday.

With every episode comes a breakdown by the showrunners and the actors, and here we have them talking about Driftmark and what it means for the series moving forward. Watch this:

Probably one of the biggest events in the series is the marriage of Daemon and Rhaenyra, and we see that this is a symbolism of Rhaenyra’s hardened stance when it comes to claiming the throne. Showrunner Miguel Sapochnik explains, “This consummating of the relationship brings with it all the obstacles. Suddenly with Daemon by her side, Rhaenyra becomes more formidable. It tells us that Rhaenyra is not going away.”

We had just gotten a time jump the episode prior, but now it looks like the episode after this will feature another jump a few years with the Targaryen children fully grown with their own dragons and family beef.

Though we had started the series during a time of peace, the show has steadily ramped up the stakes, showing us a clear divide in the family with the Hightowers wanting Aegon on the throne and Rhaenyra claiming her place as Viserys’ official successor. Admittedly, the series has been more sympathetic to the cause of Rhaenyra, but I am hoping that the show give some proper character exploration to the Green side of the war as well.

Catch the next episode of House of the Dragon on HBO Max this Sunday.

Watch this:

The preview pretty much starts with the funeral of Laena Velaryon who we saw ‘died a dragon rider’s death’ in the last episode. We don’t really know what her death means for the alliance with the Driftmark, but we do see Daemon standing side by side with Rhaenyra and her family—who we last saw escaping to Dragonstone before things get uglier in the Red Keep.

While he was also just a small character in the earlier episodes, we finally saw Larys Strong playing his hand, with the murder of his brother and father; hence trapping Alicent in an alliance with him. With the Hand of the King gone, there is now a chance for the return of Otto Hightower, who we see in the preview. We don’t know how Otto has changed over the years, but it’s very possible that he’ll be more hell-bent on getting Aegon on the throne. With his experience as hand, it’s very possible that he also has a lot of strings to pull now that he’s going to be brought back into the game.

The series has been having a strong run, and though fans are going to miss Milly Alcock and Emily Carey, I think Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke do such a great job with taking over the roles.

Catch the next episode of House of the Dragon when it premieres on HBO Max this Sunday.

What’s neat is, the pilot for House of the Dragon actually featured an actor from the original trilogy, way back from Return of the Jedi. @TalkingBay94 points out:

Shout out to the great Michael Carter (Bib Fortuna), who played King Jaehaerys tonight on #HouseoftheDragon. pic.twitter.com/WC63lhMeE1

— TALKING BAY 94 (@TalkingBay94) August 22, 2022

It’s funny that Carter should find himself on a throne, seeing that his character Bib Fortuna was usually just beside one, being the majordomo of one Jabba the Hutt. Though we did get to see Bib in a throne in the post-credits for Mandalorian 2, Carter didn’t reprise the role that time.

While we do see a lot of GOT actors showing up in the new Star Wars, I think it’s worth noting that one other actor in the original trilogy did show up in Thrones as Grand Maester Pycelle. Julian Glover, who plays the old schemer, actually played the part of the Imperial general on Hoth who lead the walker assault.

So far, Thrones fans are loving HOTD, what with the complicated dynamic within the Targaryen family as well as the promise of more dragons. While GOT did end up disappointing a lot of fans, HOTD is expected to deliver a completed story, seeing that it’s based on completed source material as well.

Catch new episodes of House of the Dragon Sundays on HBO Max.