There are a lot of expectations around the new House of the Dragon series from HBO Max, and nobody is more concerned than George R.R. Martin himself. He has apparently been more active in this production than the original Game of Thrones series — and he was particularly insistent on three details that, unfortunately, might not be included.
According to Insider, Martin wanted “colourful dragons, an emphasis on bright heraldry, and the addition of King Jaehaerys Targaryen II.” It seems Martin was really jonesing for a technicolor dragon dreamcoat, and he wanted to see the beast in all shapes and sizes. The desire to see them coloured more brightly is partly practical. The people looking up at the dragons in the sky should “know which Targaryen is flying above them based simply on the colour of the dragon’s scales.” We haven’t seen much of the dragons so far, but I don’t think we’ll be getting a bright blue one anytime soon. (Bright heraldry, however, might be more easily attainable.)
As for Jaehaerys, Daenerys Targaryen’s grandfather, he was left out of the original series by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss when there was discussion of the historical kings of the fictional Westeros. They did so for “clarity” but it was something that Martin didn’t agree with.
House of the Dragon will be available to stream on HBO Max staring August 21.
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