Opinion Today: A less sexist, more diverse version of ‘Game of Thrones’ can fly just as high

But let’s not call it “woking the dragon.” [View in browser](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P4QoAWh0dHBzOi8vbWVzc2FnaW5nLWN1c3RvbS1uZXdzbGV0dGVycy5ueXRpbWVzLmNvbS90ZW1wbGF0ZS9vYWt2Mj9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zOSZlbWM9ZWRpdF90eV8yMDIyMDkwNiZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MTE4NyZubD1vcGluaW9uLXRvZGF5JnByb2R1Y3RDb2RlPVRZJnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDU0OTYmdGU9MSZ1cmk9bnl0JTNBJTJGJTJGbmV3c2xldHRlciUyRmQzOWE5OTM4LTQ0ZGItNTU5Mi1hNmZhLWQ1MmYyYWNiNDljNCZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmMDujkXY_OjlV5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~)|[nytimes.com](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0SwaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM5JmVtYz1lZGl0X3R5XzIwMjIwOTA2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTcxMTg3Jm5sPW9waW5pb24tdG9kYXkmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwNTQ5NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYwO6ORdj86OVXlIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA)[Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-ad-marquee) ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0RtaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9MTYyMTM5JmxpPVRZJm09YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDcmcD1UWV8yMDIyMDkwNlcDbnl0QgpjA7o5F2Pzo5VeUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~ [Read more from Opinion](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0S_aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vc2VjdGlvbi9vcGluaW9uP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM5JmVtYz1lZGl0X3R5XzIwMjIwOTA2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTcxMTg3Jm5sPW9waW5pb24tdG9kYXkmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwNTQ5NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYwO6ORdj86OVXlIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) September 6, 2022 [Author Headshot] By Indrani Sen Culture Editor, Opinion I enjoy scaly C.G.I. dragons, palace intrigue and armored jousting as much as the next middle-aged Indian American mom. But I have to admit I was slightly dreading the premiere of “House of the Dragon.” As the hype grew for the prequel to HBO’s wildly popular fantasy epic, “Game of Thrones,” I shared the “sense of glum inevitability” about watching it that Scott Woods described [in a guest essay](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0TwaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOC8yMC9vcGluaW9uL2dhbWUtb2YtdGhyb25lcy1wcmVxdWVsLWhvdXNlLW9mLWRyYWdvbnMuaHRtbD9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD0zOSZlbWM9ZWRpdF90eV8yMDIyMDkwNiZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD03MTE4NyZubD1vcGluaW9uLXRvZGF5JnJlZ2lfaWQ9Nzc2NzQ5NTImc2VnbWVudF9pZD0xMDU0OTYmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPWFhNDkxZWY3ZjFkOTY0ZTQ5NzlmYjc4NGU3NGUwMWQ3VwNueXRCCmMDujkXY_OjlV5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~) ahead of the premiere. I didn’t hate “Game of Thrones,” but with an almost entirely white cast of main characters and gratuitous full-frontal nudity, it just never really felt like it was meant for me. And I was exhausted by the idea of plunging back into the extreme brutality and rampant sexualized violence that were part of what made the series such a ubiquitous topic of conversation. As a culture editor who has assigned more think pieces about “Game of Thrones” than I care to count, however, I also shared Woods’s sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) if I skipped the show. So I dutifully tuned in. The first episode of “House of the Dragon,” with its limb-chopping and a horrifically gory C-section, didn’t reassure me that this would be a particularly pleasant way to spend the next 10 Sunday evenings. But Jeff Yang argues [in a recent guest essay](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8wMy9vcGluaW9uL2hvdXNlLW9mLXRoZS1kcmFnb24tZGl2ZXJzaXR5LXNleGlzbS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM5JmVtYz1lZGl0X3R5XzIwMjIwOTA2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTcxMTg3Jm5sPW9waW5pb24tdG9kYXkmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwNTQ5NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYwO6ORdj86OVXlIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) that it’s worth giving “House of the Dragon” some credit for trying to address the criticism the franchise has received for [its sexist depictions of women](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P4QOAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZWF0bGFudGljLmNvbS9jdWx0dXJlL2FyY2hpdmUvMjAyMS8wNS9nYW1lLW9mLXRocm9uZXMtdGhlLWhhbmRtYWlkcy10YWxlLXRoZW0tdHYtc2V4dWFsLXZpb2xlbmNlLzYxODc4Mi8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzkmZW1jPWVkaXRfdHlfMjAyMjA5MDYmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzExODcmbmw9b3Bpbmlvbi10b2RheSZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA1NDk2JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjA7o5F2Pzo5VeUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~) and[its valorization of whiteness](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0TWaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuc2Fsb24uY29tLzIwMTIvMDQvMDEvaXNfZ2FtZV9vZl90aHJvbmVzX3Rvb193aGl0ZS8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9MzkmZW1jPWVkaXRfdHlfMjAyMjA5MDYmaW5zdGFuY2VfaWQ9NzExODcmbmw9b3Bpbmlvbi10b2RheSZyZWdpX2lkPTc3Njc0OTUyJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MTA1NDk2JnRlPTEmdXNlcl9pZD1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkN1cDbnl0QgpjA7o5F2Pzo5VeUht0cmlzdHJhbWJhbGR3aW45MEBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~). He points out that the new show has a notably more diverse cast, and while the women and girls are subjected to plenty of brutality, it’s mostly played to horrify rather than to titillate. And, Yang writes, “at least the lingering camera angles and lascivious framing that were hallmarks of ‘Thrones’ seem to be absent.” Some critics have complained that the new show lacks some of the excitement of “Game of Thrones” and wonder whether it’s a casualty of “wokeness run amok,” Yang writes. But he’s optimistic about Westeros in the post-#MeToo and Black Lives Matter era: If its story continues to evolve as it has, a fantasy many of us have had could come true: that female and nonwhite fans can delight in soaring dragons and palace intrigue without feeling burned in the process. It also makes business sense, Yang suggests, for the showrunners of “House of the Dragon” to welcome a broader base of fans (perhaps including a certain middle-aged Indian American mom). I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. For now. [Continue reading the main story](#a11y-skip-universal-0) ADVERTISEMENT ~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0RsaHR0cHM6Ly9saXZlaW50ZW50Lm5ld3lvcmt0aW1lc2luZm8uY29tL2NsaWNrP3M9NTk3ODUmbGk9VFkmbT1hYTQ5MWVmN2YxZDk2NGU0OTc5ZmI3ODRlNzRlMDFkNyZwPVRZXzIwMjIwOTA2VwNueXRCCmMDujkXY_OjlV5SG3RyaXN0cmFtYmFsZHdpbjkwQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~ [[Article Image] Ollie Upton/HBO](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8wMy9vcGluaW9uL2hvdXNlLW9mLXRoZS1kcmFnb24tZGl2ZXJzaXR5LXNleGlzbS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM5JmVtYz1lZGl0X3R5XzIwMjIwOTA2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTcxMTg3Jm5sPW9waW5pb24tdG9kYXkmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwNTQ5NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYwO6ORdj86OVXlIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) [Guest Essay ‘House of the Dragon’ Is Less Sexist and Racist. But Is It Good? The showrunners say they’ve heard and responded to criticism of “Game of Thrones,” but some say that has made the new show boring. By Jeff Yang](~/AAAAAQA~/RgRk-b66P0TsaHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnl0aW1lcy5jb20vMjAyMi8wOS8wMy9vcGluaW9uL2hvdXNlLW9mLXRoZS1kcmFnb24tZGl2ZXJzaXR5LXNleGlzbS5odG1sP2NhbXBhaWduX2lkPTM5JmVtYz1lZGl0X3R5XzIwMjIwOTA2Jmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTcxMTg3Jm5sPW9waW5pb24tdG9kYXkmcmVnaV9pZD03NzY3NDk1MiZzZWdtZW50X2lkPTEwNTQ5NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9YWE0OTFlZjdmMWQ5NjRlNDk3OWZiNzg0ZTc0ZTAxZDdXA255dEIKYwO6ORdj86OVXlIbdHJpc3RyYW1iYWxkd2luOTBAZ21haWwuY29tWAQAAAAA) Here’s what we’re focusing on today: Editors’ Picks [Guest Essay Britain’s Next Prime Minister Is Still in Thrall to the Empire Liz Truss is absorbed in imperial thinking. 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