“We don’t do any of this stuff lightly”: House of the Dragon Showrunner Defends Omitting the Most Crucial Storyline from Season 2 That Has Made Many Fans Upset
- Ryan Condal explains the Nettles' storyline given a miss in S2 of House of the Dragon.
- House of the Dragon show runner wants the audience to wait for them portray the story according to the books in coming seasons.
- Ryan Condal compares Fabien Frankel's Criston Cole to Jamie Lannister.
Created by George R.R. Martin and Ryan Condal, HBO’s action-adventure fantasy drama House of the Dragon, starring Emma D’Arcy, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Ewan Mitchell, and more, aired its finale episode from the second season. Prequel to Game of Thrones, the series narrates the events leading to the decline of House Targaryen.
The action-adventure fantasy series based on the parts of Fire & Blood has received positive comments from critics and the audience. Special mentions for character development, visual effects, background score, and performances of the actors. Fans have expressed their concerns regarding the subtle change in the storyline, which is very essential for the story that lies ahead. The creator of the show now clarifies.
House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal clarifies Nettles’ storyline
Season 2 of House of the Dragon was one of the most anticipated shows for 2024, and it has not disappointed as it lays down the groundwork for what is to come in S3. However, ardent fans of the franchise and the ones who have read George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood expressed their concerns about the showrunner giving the storyline of Nettles a miss.
Nettles, one of the dragonseeds, is a young woman who, in the book, joins Team Black as one of Rhaenyra’s dragon riders. The young woman finds a unique way to tame the dragon, Sheepstealer, i.e., by feeding it a sheep carcass every day until it becomes accustomed to her. It has been mentioned in the book that Nettles, over time, becomes close to Daemon; some suggest her as his bedmate, and some say they have a close father-daughter relationship.
However, her lack of appearance in S2 made fans question the storyline because she is not just a mere character who joins Team Black. She is close to Daemon and helps Team Black in various battles. Some fans speculated that Rhaena Targaryen is being given Nettles’ storyline as she was seen discovering a wild dragon in the Vale. Ryan Condal during a press conference on Monday clarifies if the storyline has been taken over by Rhaena or will fans get to see Nettles (via Collider)
Given where we are in the storytelling, I think that’s a ‘Please stay tuned and keep watching the story’. I will say that we love Rhaena as a character, and we’ve really done a lot of legwork to set her up from the beginning as somebody in this Targaryen household who does not have a dragon.
The showrunner explained that the audience has seen with Aemond’s story how your identification changes within the family when you don’t have a dragon. He added that Rhaena is desperate to have a dragon and is willing to go to fairly dangerous lengths to have one. Condal mentioned that they are providing the television version of one objective truth to history, and anybody who has read the book is free to interpret it however they want to.
I think the Rhaena story, as we’re seeing it unfold, is potentially one of those interesting interpretations that we have to offer, and I would just say that we don’t do any of this stuff lightly.
Condal concluded by stating that they have planned a lot of things, so he would advise the viewers to buckle up and ride with them on this journey.
Ryan Condal touches upon Ser Criston Cole’s changing views on the war post-battle of Rook’s Rest
During the discussion, the showrunner also touched upon a significant character who rose from being Commander of the Kingsguard to Hand of the King in season 2. Ser Criston Cole portrayed by Fabien Frankel is one of the essential members of the storyline, and his changing views on the war post-Battle of Rook’s Rest have now been addressed by Ryan Condal.
I think Criston’s in a dark place at the end of this season, and understandably, I mean, he’s marched off; he’s going off to link up with Vhagar, knowing that if that happens, that the men on the ground, as they were at Rook’s Rest, are the cannon fodder, even the knights on horseback, even the reserves of the cavalry.
We’ve given the war to the dragons. I think he’s realized and processed his role in that, not only where his end is likely to be, which is not a pleasant one, but also where the end of this entire war is to be.
Condal added that the audience saw Cole march off at the end of Episode 6 back into the breach, noting that he does not think there is any reason for Cole to believe that he is going to come back home from that. He has seen how warfare works on a micro and macro scale at the Rook’s Rest.
The showrunner went ahead to compare Fabien Frankel’s performance to that of Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (via Collider), who played Jamie Lannister on Game of Thrones. He said he is very proud of Frankel’s performance in the season finale as he forces people to think a little bit differently about Cole. He added that viewers soon realize that he has more in common with Jamie Lannister than one thinks after he starts saying things that one agrees with.
House of the Dragon is streaming on HBO Max.
