The season three premiere of "House of the Dragon" opens with Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) face-to-face with a wild dragon. Unlike most who encounter the feral Sheepstealer, Rhaena bonds with the creature, climbing onto its back and becoming a dragonrider for the first time.
In George R. R. Martin's book "Fire & Blood," it is a character called Nettles who claims Sheepstealer, not Rhaena. The showrunners have consolidated two storylines into one, altering the source material's narrative. This change reflects a broader shift in the adaptation, compressing the sprawling civil war for television.
The premiere introduces several new dragonriders, as Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) continues recruiting dragonseeds — people with Targaryen blood — to ride the remaining untamed dragons. At least a dozen hopefuls were killed in the process, according to the episode, but the new riders bolster Rhaenyra's army as she plots to seize the Iron Throne from her half-brother, King Aegon II Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney).
As more dragons are claimed, the stakes rise for both sides in the Dance of the Dragons. The larger the dragon force, the more likely a ruler is to crush opposition, echoing the Targaryen conquerors of old. The season three premiere teases an aerial assault on King's Landing, setting up a bloody escalation of the war.
Some fans may view the replacement of Nettles as a loss of the book's diversity in favor of streamlining the plot. The series has previously made other changes from "Fire & Blood," drawing both praise and criticism from Martin's loyal readers.