House of the Dragon has a lot of what I loved about Game of Thrones, but doesn't quite live up to it's predecessor. The first half of season 1 devotes a lot of (possibly too much) time setting up tensions between characters that aren't very convincing. By episode 5, I found myself asking "why do these two people hate each other again?" The second half of the show feels like a different series entirely, and is far superior to the first half. Tensions in the second half feel authentic, and the characters' actions deliver the familiar gut punch I felt watching Game of Thrones. At times, the characters' actions do not make a lot of sense, but this doesn't detract from the show in any major way.

Fortunately, the show doesn't desensitize the viewers with too many dragon scenes, which was my primary concern. Scenes that include dragons feel necessary and appropriate, and I found myself excited to see them every time they were on screen.