George RR Martin ‘not keen to reveal everything that went wrong’ in ‘House of the Dragon’
George R.R. Martin said he will “reveal everything that went wrong” in HBO’s “Game of Thrones” prequel series, “House of the Dragon.” But he doesn’t like that prospect.
The author — whose books were the source material for “GOT” and “House of the Dragon” — spoke on his blog on Friday, Aug. 30, about the series’ second season, which wrapped up earlier this month.
“I don’t wait for anyone else [blog] “I need to write a few posts about everything that went wrong with House of the Dragon… but I have to do that too, and I will,” Martin said, referring to the posts he wanted to write but couldn’t due to his summer travels.
“But not today. Today is Zozobra Day, when we turn away from sadness,” he wrote, referring to the celebration of the burning of Zozobra in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he lives.
“It’s Santa Fe’s way of destroying the darkness to make way for the light and joy that will hopefully mark the new year,” he said of the celebration. “And believe me we need it, more than ever. The world, the country, and yes, of course me.”
He further said, “This year has not been good for anyone, war and fascism are rising everywhere… and on a personal level, it has been a very bad year for me too, full of stress, anger, struggle and defeat.”
“I need to talk about some of this, and I will, I will… I was away from my computer from July 15 to August 15, traveling, so a lot of things that needed to be said couldn’t be said.”
Martin, who is credited as the co-creator and executive producer of “House of the Dragon,” has previously praised the second season of the series.
“Has there ever been a dragon fight that matches this one?” Martin wrote in a July 11 blog post about the on-screen face-off between the dragons Malice and Sunfire in this season’s fourth episode.
“I remember there was some scene in ‘Rain of Fire’ with a dozen dragons circling across the sky. So, okay, maybe that was a bigger scene with more dragons on screen… but a better fight? I don’t think so,” he wrote.
“Our people drove it out of the palace.”
However, in the same post, the best-selling novelist also objected to the use of the wrong sigil by “HOD” for House Targaryen. The correct sigil shows a three-headed dragon with two legs. However, the HBO series has used a version of the sigil that shows the dragon with four legs.
“They used a bad symbol instead of a good one,” Martin said. “The sound you heard was me screaming, ‘No, no, no.’ Despite my strong protests, those damned extra legs have even made their way onto the covers of my books.”
Martin also praised the earlier episodes of season 2. After viewing a rough cut of the first two episodes in December 2023, he said they were “awesome.”
“Dark, mind you. Very dark,” he added. “They can make you cry. (I didn’t cry myself, but one of my friends did.) Powerful, emotional, heartbreaking, gut-wrenching. Exactly the kind of stuff I like. (What can I say? I grew up on Shakespeare, and I love tragedies and history plays best.)”
“House of the Dragon” has been renewed for a third season and will reportedly end after an as-yet-unconfirmed season four.