House Of The Dragon Fans Are Convinced Season 3 Directly Referenced The George R.R. Martin Controversy
by Jeremy Mathai · /FilmBeware the butterflies. That might seem like a strange description for a show where fire-breathing dragons have a tendency to rain death from the skies. But real ones know this one simple sentence speaks volumes about the ongoing debate swirling around "House of the Dragon." The HBO fantasy series has endured its fair share of ups and downs on its journey to the ongoing Season 3 (which I reviewed for /Film). And while the highs mostly speak for themselves, the lows have been awfully low — and uncomfortably public, as evidenced by those three ominous little words.
There's little point in relitigating all the issues that original "Fire & Blood" author George R.R. Martin has with the latest adaptation of his work, but this is one narrative that refuses to fly away. In his now-deleted blog post titled "Beware the Butterflies," Martin infamously expressed dismay over a series of minor changes made throughout Season 2, warning viewers that the butterfly effect would inevitably grow into hurricane-sized obstacles. In his own words, "And 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."
Well, Season 3 is upon us and it appears that "House of the Dragon" might be firing back ... if you choose to read it that way, at least. In the most recent episode, titled "Queen's Landing," one scene between Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) and her daughter Helaena (Phia Saban) has been interpreted by fans as a smoking gun of sorts. The camera briefly lingers on Helaena's book, which is opened to a page displaying — you guessed it — a butterfly. What's more, a closer look at the text reveals this to be a poisonous species. Toxic butterflies, indeed.
Is House of the Dragon directly responding to its biggest criticism? It wouldn't be the first time for a Game of Thrones show
Are fans reading way too much into a blink-and-miss-it moment in "House of the Dragon"? It's certainly possible, as one popular Reddit post putting forth this fan-theory seems completely split over whether series co-creator and showrunner Ryan Condal truly meant this as a response towards his former mentor George R.R. Martin. For one thing, Helaena has always been portrayed as having a fascination with insects, as seen multiple times throughout Seasons 1 and 2. For another, well, it's quite literally the briefest of moments amid an absolutely action-packed episode. The camera does seem to linger on that book for a beat, but whether that's simply meant as a callback to Helaena's strange behavior or a subtle shot at the writer who created the world of Westeros (and beyond) remains up for interpretation.
One piece of potential evidence in support of this idea comes courtesy of, fittingly enough, the original "Game of Thrones." Fans may recall a much lengthier sequence in the penultimate episode of Season 4, titled "The Mountain and the Viper," involving a somewhat head-scratching monologue by Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister. His memorable "Smash the beetles" soliloquy was a show-only invention, but it's one that could be explained as a rather sheepish rebuttal to Martin's habit of brutally killing off beloved characters. If history truly is repeating itself, this leaves the tremendously well-received "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" as the sole series in this franchise that hasn't alienated its own author.
What say you? Is "House of the Dragon" fighting fire with fire, or do we officially have too much time on our hands? Either way, new episodes debut on HBO every Sunday.