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HBO Releases First Episode of House of the Dragon for Free

You can watch the first installment of the hit Game of Thrones prequel on YouTube.

Bree Fowler Senior Writer
Bree Fowler writes about cybersecurity and digital privacy. Before joining CNET she reported for The Associated Press and Consumer Reports. A Michigan native, she's a long-suffering Detroit sports fan, world traveler, wannabe runner and champion baker of over-the-top birthday cakes and all-things sourdough.
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A mid shot of Milly Alcock as Princess Rhaenyra standing outdoors with a crowd of people (who are blurred out)

You can find the first episode of House of the Dragon on YouTube.

 Photograph by Ollie Upton / HBO

Hoping to pull even more viewers into its hit House of the Dragon series, HBO has made the first episode of the Game of Thrones prequel free to watch on YouTube.

The complimentary availability of the wildly popular show's first installment comes at the same time as the debut of the new Lord of the Rings series The Rings of Power. The first episode of that show dropped Friday on Prime Video.

House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin's book Fire & Blood. It's set about 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones and tells the story of House Targaryen.

Its debut episode drew nearly 10 million viewers when it dropped on Aug. 21, setting a record for the largest audience for any new HBO original series. It was subsequently renewed for a second season.

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