Game of Thrones may be focused on the war for the Iron Throne, but there’s another epic battle in Westeros’ past that’s just as iconic, and it’s finally getting told thanks to its own special.
HBO has unveiled a sneak peek at its storybook-style animated history called Game of Thrones: Conquest & Rebellion, which looks at Aegon Targaryen’s conquest of the Seven Kingdoms, likely leading all the way through Robert’s Rebellion. The first section of the 45-minute special, which is available online, is called “Valyria’s Last Scion: House Targaryen.” It tells the story of the Doom of Valyria, and ends on Aegon Targaryen’s sideways glance at Westeros. Oh yeah, that boy’s gonna conquer so many lands.
Bonus: This section is narrated by Game of Thrones actor Harry Lloyd, in-character as Daenerys’ dickish brother Viserys. And he sounds a lot nicer than he did in the show—you know, before being burned to death by liquid gold. The afterlife must have done wonders for his personality.
There is speculation that Aegon Targaryen’s conquering of Westeros could be one of the prequels HBO is planning after Game of Thrones ends, so this could be HBO testing the waters on whether Aegon’s story could carry an entire series. Meanwhile, I’m still hoping we could get a prequel about Valyria, one of Game of Thrones’ coolest mysteries. But considering how many freaking dragons they would need, it seems highly unlikely.
The 45-minute special is available as a bonus gift for pre-ordering the Game of Thrones season seven Blu-ray. You can check out the first episode below.
[YouTube]
[Ed’s note: A previous version of this article erroneously called Game of Thrones: Conquest & Rebellion a miniseries instead of a stand-alone special. io9 regrets the error.]