Posted in: HBO, TV | Tagged: george rr martin, house of the dragon

House of the Dragon: GRRM Criticizes Series; HBO Responds (UPDATE)

George RR Martin called out HBO and Ryan Condal's House of the Dragon for the "Blood and Cheese" changes - especially regarding Maelor.

UPDATE [4:01 pm ET]: Here's a look at the statement released by HBO to Variety regarding George RR Martin's recent blog post criticizing House of the Dragon, which has since been taken down: "There are few greater fans of George R.R. Martin and his book 'Fire & Blood' than the creative team on 'House of the Dragon,' both in production and at HBO. Commonly, when adapting a book for the screen, with its own format and limitations, the showrunner ultimately is required to make difficult choices about the characters and stories the audience will follow. We believe that Ryan Condal and his team have done an extraordinary job, and the millions of fans the series has amassed over the first two seasons will continue to enjoy it."

UPDATE [3:09 pm ET]: It would appear that George RR Martin (GRRM) has taken down his original post about HBO's House of the Dragon. Here's a look at our original report…

Just before September kicked in, George RR Martin (GRRM) shared on his blog that he was going to go into more detail on "everything that's gone wrong with" HBO & showrunner Ryan Condal's House of the Dragon. Well, it looks like today is that day. To kick things off in his latest Not A Blog post ("Beware the Butterflies"), GRRM shared that he thought "A Son for a Son" and "Rhaenyra the Cruel" were "terrific episodes: well written, well directed, powerfully acted. A great way to kick off the new season." From there, GRRM goes on a lengthy run regarding that "Blood and Cheese" moment, explaining (with points) why he understood viewers who believe that the HBO series dialed back the impact of the scene as it played out in the novel: "The readers of FIRE & BLOOD found the sequence underwhelming, a disappointment, watered down from what they were expecting."

Things begin to take a more critical turn when GRRM addresses the absence of Prince Maelor Targaryen (son of King Aegon II Targaryen and Queen Helaena Targaryen). Offering some behind-the-scenes perspective, GRRM shared that he "argued against" Maelor being left out of the scene but was convinced otherwise by Condal's "practical reasons" for making the call. "They did not want to deal with casting another child, especially a two-year-old toddler. Kids that young will inevitably slow down production, and there would be budget implications," GRRM added, noting that budget issues were already impacting the spinoff series. "Budget was already an issue on HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, it made sense to save money wherever we could."

Another reason GRRM gives for being okay with the decision is that "Ryan [Condal] assured me that we were not losing Prince Maelor, simply postponing him. Queen Helaena could still give birth to him in season three, presumably after getting with child late in season two." But then, "sometime between the initial decision to remove Maelor, " GRRM notes that "a big change was made" and that Maelor "was never going to be born at all" in the series. And that's when GRRM begins bringing the "butterflies" into the conversation – as in, "The Butterfly Effect" that's now in play without Maelor having never been born.

As GRRM writes, that means that the horrifically tragic scene at Bitterbridge involving Ser Rickard Thorne and Maelor won't be happening. In addition, the brutal manner of Maelor's death is what drives Helaena to commit suicide ("The grief and guilt are too much for her to bear"); while GRRM notes that Condal's Season 3 outline has Helaena taking her own life, he adds that he sees it as happening "for no particular reason. There is no fresh horror, no triggering event to overwhelm the fragile young queen." And then "butterflies" continue to flutter because Helaena's suicide was meant to light the fuse that would lead to Rhaenyra's rule over King's Landing to an end – and eventually, her life – after rumors that Helaena was actually murdered by Rhaenyra caused the citizens to riot. "It is the beginning of the end for Rhaenyra's rule over the city, ultimately leading to the Storming of the Dragonpit and the rise of the Shepherd's mob that drives Rhaenyra to flee the city and return to Dragonstone… and her death," GRRM wrote.

"What will we offer the fans instead, once we've killed these butterflies? I have no idea. I do not recall that Ryan and I ever discussed this, back when he first told me they were pushing back on Aegon's second son. Maelor himself is not essential… but if losing him means we also lose Bitterbridge, Helaena's suicide, and the riots, well… that's a considerable loss," GRMM ended his post with – but not before warning that "there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4…"

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