The Lord of the Rings

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It's estimated Amazon acquired the global TV rights to the series for as much as $250 million. HBO needs more tentpole shows and this isn't just a one show but potential franchise like Disney has with Marvel and Star Wars. Streaming is the business of selling addictive distraction, right? And if you have one show then you have that people love then you have subscribers hooked for three months out of one year.

HBO hopes to win the streaming wars with House of the Dragon, a prequel to Game of Thrones. But GoT’s disastrous finale disappointed viewers, and the prequel is being released as HBO’s parent company, Warner Brothers Discovery, undertakes massive cost-cutting measures. Still: DRAGONS.

This episode was produced by Amanda Lewellyn, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard and Tori Dominquez, engineered by Paul Robert Mounsey, and hosted by Noel King.

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