The fantasy drama series House of the Dragon, based on George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novel series, is a prequel to the popular HBO series Game of Thrones. The House of the Dragon is specifically based on the 2018 novel Fire & Blood. The first season of the show premiered in August 2022, and the second season of the show is scheduled to be released this year.
The first season of the Game of Thrones prequel show won Best Television Series – Drama at the 80th Golden Globe Awards. Further, it received nine nominations at the Primetime Emmy Awards. Numerous dragons are seen in the series and recently, the showrunner Ryan Condal opened up about the challenge of creating the dragon Sunfyre.
Ryan Condal on the Creation of Sunfyre for House of the Dragon
Set nearly 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, and 172 years before the birth of Daenerys Targaryen, House of the Dragon follows the events that lead up to the onset of the downfall of House Targaryen. The decline is portrayed by the destructive conflict for succession called the ‘Dance of the Dragons’.
The show features approximately 17 different dragons such as Sunfyre, Vhagar, Dreamfyre, Tessarion, Seasmoke, Silverwing, and many others. Out of all these, Sunfyre is known to be the most beautiful dragon.
Although Ryan Condal worked with Miguel Sapochnik as the showrunner in the first season, Sapochnik exited the show before the second season. So, Condal serves as the sole showrunner in the upcoming second season.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Condal opened up about the challenges faced in the creation of Sunfyre, saying:
“That dragon was described so specifically in the book as the most beautiful dragon who ever lived. I think it was incumbent upon us to try to rise and meet that challenge, but doing so in a way that didn’t seem like we were making a dragon from a different show — a ‘fantasy dragon,’ for lack of a better word.”
The Hercules screenwriter added that Sunfyre had to be different from the other dragons in the show in a way that made it look magnificent.
Who Rides Sunfyre in House of the Dragon?
Viewers of the series will know that the fire-breathing creatures are not just for show. Some of these dragons serve as the rides of the members of Team Black and Team Green. A member of Team Green is the rider of Sunfyre.
The newly crowned king Aegon Targaryen II (Tom Glynn-Carney) rides Sunfyre. The dragon might be the most beautiful that anyone has ever owned, but it can certainly not compete with Aegon’s brother Aemond Targaryen’s (Ewan Mitchell) mount Vhagar. The latter of these is the largest and arguably most powerful dragon alive.
House of the Dragon Season 2 is scheduled to release on June 16, 2024.
