
The funeral games later increased in scope during the reign of Julius Caesar, who staged bouts between hundreds of gladiators in honor of his deceased father and daughter. According to the Roman writers Tertullian and Festus, since the Romans believed that human blood helped purify the deceased person’s soul, these contests may have also acted as a crude substitute for human sacrifice. When distinguished aristocrats died, their families would hold graveside bouts between slaves or condemned prisoners as a kind of macabre eulogy for the virtues the person had demonstrated in life. Many ancient chroniclers described the Roman games as an import from the Etruscans, but most historians now argue that gladiator fights got their start as a blood rite staged at the funerals of wealthy nobles. Gladiatorial bouts were originally part of funeral ceremonies. You can also read Fire & Blood, the book on which House of the Dragon is based.2.


If you haven’t watched Game of Thrones, you really don’t need to watch it prior to watching House of the Dragon, but it might enhance your appreciation of the new series if you have some insight into the characters and the settings. While some of the locations will be the same, there will be many new places to explore. Heading into House of the Dragon, it’s expected that the new series will put an equal amount of work into establishing the Westeros of this time period. Westeros came to life with unique and memorable locations like King’s Landing, the Wall and Winterfell.

One of the reasons Game of Thrones was so successful is that it painted such an alluring backdrop for the talented cast. Either is possible - Bran Stark time traveled after a fashion, but I wouldn’t count on it. Unless, of course, there is either a seer who has visions of the future or there is some kind of time travel involved. The events depicted across the eight seasons of the series aren’t relevant. House of the Dragon is a prequel to Game of Thrones that follows the exploits of House Targaryen at the height of their power. You don’t need to watch Game of Thrones to enjoy House of the Dragon
