House of the Dragon ended its inaugural season in an appropriately fiery fashion, bringing ratings that actually surpass numbers set by Game of Thrones during its arguable height.

The prequel series managed to keep its ratings strong for its tenth episode and Season 1 finale, "The Black Queen," having earned 9.3 million viewers across all platforms, reports THR. While that is slightly less than earlier episodes, the minimal drop-off is seen as an impressive feat. However, it seems that the finale's ratings also did wonders for the show's seasonal average, which now rests at 29 million viewers per episode. This is a notable number for the Game of Thrones franchise since it means that the new series has surpassed the seasonal averages for the mothership show's first six seasons, with only the final two seasons earning more.

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As HBO and HBO Max chairman and CEO Casey Bloys elatedly expressed in a statement, "We’re so thrilled to see House of the Dragon catch fire with Game of Thrones fans around the world, as well as new viewers who are discovering the world of Westeros for the first time. Congrats to George, Ryan, Miguel and the whole House of the Dragon team on an incredible first season."

Set some 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, the prequel series House of the Dragon delivered impressive numbers for its Aug. 21 premiere. It earned 9.986 million viewers across traditional cable and HBO Max platforms, achieving the all-time biggest audience for a new HBO original series. Likewise, the analytics company SambaTV reported the premiere as having corralled 2.6 million U.S. households, which it calls the biggest single-day premium cable or streaming viewership premiere of 2022. Yet, nuanced metrics aside, the series' average for on-air viewers ultimately came to about 1.87 million per episode. That number reportedly only accounts for 20% of the total number of night-one viewers from HBO Max and even replays on HBO.

Related: 10 Best Quotes From House Of The Dragon Season 1

The Dance of the Dragons Commences

As with any good finale, House of the Dragon's first season ended with a tense moment as Westeros prepares to jump from the precipice of a fleeting peace into a destructive civil war called the Dance of the Dragons. It was a climax that paid off for viewers who stuck through the compelling, time-jumping, drama-heavy preamble designed to build toward the conflict depicted in author George R.R. Martin's book, Fire & Blood. Indeed, the final moments saw protagonist Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) experience heartbreaking sacrifices even before the official start of the war.

Those sacrifices will prove consequential going forward since showrunner Ryan Condal is promising that House of the Dragon Season 2 will not only kick things into high gear but will vastly expand the scope of the continent Westeros during the course of the war. "Just as the original Game of Thrones grew in scope and expanse as it went, so, too, will ours," he said. "I think those will continue to be the home bases for the show. But a war is coming that requires allegiances from different kingdoms and armies all over the map of Westeros."

House of the Dragon airs on HBO and streams on HBO Max.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter