10 Years Later, Game Of Thrones' Most Confusing Scene Might Have A Surprising Explanation

Television Fantasy Shows

When the dust finally settles on the fantasy phenomenon known as "Game of Thrones" and fans are able to look back without being clouded by emotion (along the lines of what's been happening recently with the 20th anniversary of "Lost" and its ongoing reappraisal), time may prove to be quite kind to the groundbreaking HBO series — controversies and all. Some of those controversies have become an inextricable part of how we discuss and analyze the epic undertaking, like its iffy approach to depictions of sexual violence or the various ways the adaptation strayed from author George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series. Others fall into a different and more nuanced category entirely, one that's worth dissecting even all these years later. In that light, a particularly odd scene from over a decade ago might be worth a second look.

No, we're not talking about Daenerys Targaryen and her fire-breathing dragon razing King's Landing to the ground or Bran the Broken somehow ending up as King of the Seven Kingdoms because had "the best story." Rather, the most confusing moment in the entire series had to do with the most mundane of topics entirely: beetles. Wind the clocks back to season 4 of "Game of Thrones," right when Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) had been accused of murdering his sociopathic royal nephew Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) and subsequently put on trial for his alleged crimes. On the eve of the trial by combat to decide his fate, in which he placed his very life in the hands of the vengeance-seeking Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal), the disgraced Lannister has one last conversation with his brother Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) where they end up reminiscing about a mentally ill cousin of theirs and his childhood obsession with, well, smashing beetles.

Almost immediately, viewers began wondering exactly what this was supposed to mean and what metaphor (if any) revealed the secret meaning behind it. Ten years later, this mystery might be considered solved.

Game of Thrones' smashing beetles scene explained

"House of the Dragon" might be currently embroiled in some backlash stemming from changes made to the source material (with author George R.R. Martin himself leading the charge, incredibly enough) but, believe it or not, "Game of Thrones" once was known for actually improving on the books at times. Whether it was Arya Stark and Tywin Lannister's interactions in season 2, the many conversations between schemers Varys (Conleth Hill) and Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (Aidan Gillen), or the entire battle of Hardhome in season 5, even book purists would have to admit that showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss knew what they were doing.

On the surface, the lengthy "Smash the beetles" monologue was another quintessential "Game of Thrones" sequence, full of florid dialogue, brilliant performances, and complex themes. The only problem with this one, however, was the fact that most of the fanbase had no idea what that bizarre beetle-smashing interlude was actually about.

While nobody involved in the production has actually spoken about this on the record, one theory seems to have figured it out. HuffPost did some investigative legwork and found this old Reddit post, which went to extremely in-depth lengths to analyze this scene through a literary lens. Naturally, the top comment skipped all that, opted for the Occam's Razor route, and put forth the following idea: The invented character of Orson Lannister was meant as a shot fired directly at writer Orson Scott Card, author of the "Ender's Game" series and an outspoken critic of "Game of Thrones" in its early infancy (as seen here on his personal website). So what better way to take him down a peg and take a jab at his most famous work at the same time, a story that basically boils down to a future of crushing bugs for no discernable purpose, than this otherwise inexplicable detour in the middle of one of the best episodes in the show?

Alternate theory: Was it a shot at George R.R. Martin?

That's the common-sense (yet admittedly boring) explanation; so how about a much spicier alternative? Viewers are free to read the anecdote of beetles randomly smashed and shattered as commentary on Tyrion's fate left entirely up to the merciless gods, or as a more metatextual statement that not everything in life will have a satisfying answer. (In which case, this could double as foreshadowing of the show's own eventual conclusion, which left very few fans with a deep sense of closure.) But I'll put forth my own interpretation that I've maintained since first watching this episode back in 2014. Perhaps, this was meant as a sneaky "apology" on behalf of George R.R. Martin.

Every book reader knows that the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series hardly ever hesitates to kill off entire swaths of characters at the drop of a hat. At this point in the story, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss had little choice but to adapt arguably the most heartbreaking and infuriating of them all: the killing of fan-favorite rogue Oberyn Martell, right at what should've been his ultimate moment of triumph during his duel with the villain known as "The Mountain." This made for one of the most thrilling and unforgettable moments in both the books and the show, but it also left fans with the bitterest of tastes in their mouths as Martin pulled the rug out from underneath us once again. From this perspective, Orson might very well be a stand in for Martin himself, and the "smashing beetles" of it all could be seen as Martin indiscriminately killing off his various characters for shock value. For Weiss and Benioff, this could've been their attempt to "apologize" to fans for what was to happen next with Oberyn and his, ah, impending headache.

What do you think? "Game of Thrones" will undoubtedly go down as one of the overall greatest fantasy adaptations ever, just behind "The Lord of the Rings," but this specific scene still provides food for thought. Never forget Orson Lannister and his beetles, folks.