'House of the Dragon' plays a less-addictive game for an earlier throne

HBO has followed the majesty of "Game of Thrones" with what might be called "games of throne" in "House of the Dragon," a series whose epic visual grandeur belies a smaller and less addictive power struggle, more narrowly focused on the Targaryen line. It's not bad, and there are dragons aplenty, but it doesn't produce the sort of characters that defined and elevated its predecessor to prestige-TV royalty.

Working from author George R.R. Martin's prequel "Fire & Blood," the new series has the disadvantage of being set almost two centuries before the key events in "Game of Thrones," taking place 172 years prior to the birth of Daenerys Targaryen. That ratchets up the pressure to sink or swim -- or rather, soar or sputter -- strictly on its own terms.

The current occupant of the Iron Throne, King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine), is somewhat feckless as monarchs go, so much so that he's called weak by his brother Daemon (Matt Smith, playing a very different prince from his role in "The Crown"), a ruthless libertine who openly lusts for power.