House of the Dragon Creator Explains Why Dragons in Other Shows Suck
Dragons always were a major part of both Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon. Even when budget limitations meant that their screentime was limited, their mere existence shaped the plot.
And with House of the Dragon being lavishly funded from the start, dragons also got more action, even in its Season 1, where the Dance of the Dragons had only just began.
George Martin himself, the author whose books serve as the literary source for both series, praised portrayal of dragons in House of the Dragon and compared it positively to other dragons that appear on screen. His comment appeared in the special features of the House Of The Dragon 4K/ Blu-ray release, which became available this month.
"You see some of these dragons in some of these shows, and they've got like little bitty wings and they're big fat things. They would never get off the ground. The aerial dynamics just don't work. They have to have very large wings and a relatively slender kind of serpentine body, a long tail, a long neck. They're more like pterodactyl dinosaurs."
Well, that sure sounds like George Martin, taking shots at others for lacking realism, while your own creations are just as unrealistic, only with a grimier color filter (Vhagar in House of the Dragon is a castle-sized monster, rivaling Smaug in the Hobbit movies in size, and, likewise, needing roughly the lift of a space rocket to fly).
But we can agree that dragons in House of the Dragon were excellently animated, with each of them being distinct in appearance – even their body shapes are notably different from each other, some being stockier, other more lithe and serpentine.
And according to showrunner Miguel Sapochnik that was at Martin's insistence.
"George really wanted the dragons to be recognizable from afar as unique and individual characters."
Well, in this case author's input certainly improved the series. Not only it enhanced the visual spectacle – what dragons belong to what characters is an important plot consideration in House of the Dragon, so it stands to reason to keep dragons as instantly recognizable as characters themselves. And computer animators working on the show did an excellent job with them.