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House of the Dragon – Season 3, Episode 1 Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood

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House of the Dragon – Season 3, Episode 1

Salt and Sea, Fire and Blood

Aired Jun 21, 2026

Drama

Fantasy

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92%

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13 Reviews

Driven by her faith in Alicent, Rhaenyra positions herself to take King's Landing while the Triarchy sails to take on Corlys in the Gullet.

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Critics Consensus

Season three sets sail with a stellar nautical battle of Salt and Sea that sternly satisfies the series' long-awaited return, only to bring more Fire and Blood of the utmost intensity, nerve-wracking, and exhilarating.

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Matt Smith

Prince Daemon Targaryen

Emma D'Arcy

Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen

Rhys Ifans

Otto Hightower

Steve Toussaint

Lord Corlys Velaryon ("The Sea Snake")

Eve Best

Princess Rhaenys Targaryen

Sonoya Mizuno

Mysaria

House of the Dragon: Season 3 Episode 1 Sneak Peek - War Waits For No One

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Glen Weldon

NPR

Jun 23, 2026

Let's just acknowledge that this sea battle was a hell of a lot better, in every possible respect, than all those senseless sequences in Game of Thrones' final season involving Euron Greyjoy.

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Jarrod Jones

AV Club

Jun 22, 2026

B+

It’s a savvy place to start the season. Rhaena’s complex desire to become a dragonrider... illustrates the desperate shortsightedness that has defined this war and reinforces one of the series’ most foreboding ideas.

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Amanda Whiting

New York Magazine/Vulture

Jun 22, 2026

4/5

I was optimistic that the Battle of the Gullet could justify the nearly two years we waited, and it basically does.

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Aidan Kelley

Collider

Jul 6, 2026

8/10

Season 3 picks up right where Season 2 left off, and in spectacular fashion at that.

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Jinal Bhatt

Variety India

Jun 30, 2026

3.5/5

The 70-minute episode that should’ve been the ninth in a ten-episode Season 2 does start the new season with a bang and a spectacle. And yet, all the edge-of-the-seat action cannot make you forget that the show seems to have lost some of its soul.

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Alan French

FandomWire

Jun 29, 2026

9/10

A massive naval battle, the deaths of several big characters, and a great turn from Abigail Thorn help propel the Season 3 premiere of House of the Dragon into the upper tier of episodes for HBO's prequel.

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Synopsis

Driven by her faith in Alicent, Rhaenyra positions herself to take King's Landing while the Triarchy sails to take on Corlys in the Gullet.

Director: Loni Peristere
Executive Producer: George R.R. Martin, Ryan Condal, Sara Hess, Alan Taylor, Melissa Bernstein, Kevin De La Noy, Loni Peristere, Vince Gerardis, Miguel Sapochnik, Ron Schmidt
Network: HBO
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date: Jun 21, 2026

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