Warning! This article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon.
Summary
A reminder of how brilliantGame of Thrones' Red Wedding truly was has been provided by a disappointing sequence inHouse of the Dragonseason 2. As a prequel toGame of Thrones,House of the Dragonis naturally being placed in comparison to the original show. Not only do the stories adapted from George R. R. Martin’s originalA Song of Ice and Firebook seriesdraw similarities, but both shows share locations, names, weapons, and thematic elements that make them sister series'.
Even more so than in the first season, these parallels were evident by the time ofHouse of the Dragonseason 2 episode 1’s ending. From the return to Winterfell, the Wall, and the Starks that come with it to the gory, gruesome scenes of shock value,House of the Dragoncontinues its predecessor’s legacy in the best way afterGame of Thrones' divisive ending. However,a moment fromHouse of the Dragonthat was billed as its equivalent toGame of Thrones' Red Wedding only proved that the latter will be nigh impossible to replicatewithout disappointment.
Game Of Thrones: Every Character Who Died At The Red Wedding
The Red Wedding is one of the most shocking moments of HBO’s Game of Thrones, and many named and unnamed characters are murdered in cold blood.
Blood & Cheese’s Shock Value Was Expected To Match The Red Wedding’s
The moment in question isHouse of the Dragonseason 2’s Blood and Cheesesequence. This series of scenes ended the premiere ofHouse of the Dragonseason 2 and saw two assassins - known only as Blood and Cheese - sneak into the Red Keep with orders to kill Aemond Targaryen in retribution for his murder, however accidental, of Lucerys Velaryon. The two failed to find the one-eyed prince and instead took Queen Helaena Targaryen hostage, forced her to discern which of her twin children was male, and removed the child’s head.
In Fire and Blood, Helaena was made to choose between her first-born son and second-born son, not her twin son and daughter.
Naturally, this scene and all it encompasses can be classed as dark, shocking, gruesome, and difficult to watch. This was the case for the scene as it was written in Martin’sFire and Blood, and stood out as arguably the most shocking scene in the story. For this reason, many familiar with the source material were eagerly anticipating - or more aptly dreading -House of the Dragon’s depiction of the moment. Given the shock value present inFire and Blood,Blood and Cheese quickly began being positioned asHouse of the Dragon’s Red Wedding moment.
The Red Wedding is now infamous in pop culture thanks to the shocking nature of the sequence fromGame of Thronesseason 3, episode 9, “The Rains of Castamere.” The episode saw Edmure Tully’s wedding to Roslin Frey take a dark turn when the scorned Lord Walder Frey aligned with the Lannisters, massacred the Northman army, and killedGame of Thrones' central heroes, Robb Stark and his mother Catelyn. The episode is one of the most famous in TV history, primarily due to its harrowing, shocking ending in which main characters are unceremoniously killed in a gruesome fashion.
Game Of Thrones
Cast
Based on George R. R. Martin’s ongoing A Song of Ice and Fire novel series, Game of Thrones is a fantasy drama set in the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos. It follows noble families like the Starks, Lannisters, and Targaryen vying for control of the Iron Throne while a rising threat from the undead looms in the North. The series received significant critical success and amassed a loyal fan base due to its high production values, sprawling sets, iconic characters, and shocking twists.
Why Blood & Cheese Was Disappointing
Blood & Cheese Proves Not To Live Up To The Red Wedding’s Dark Legacy
Despite the similarities between Blood and Cheese and the Red Wedding in Martin’s books, the former could not manage to surpass or even eclipse the latter inHouse of the Dragon. The scene was certainly well-crafted, from the eerie, foreboding shots of Blood and Cheese skulking through the Red Keep to the awful scene in which Helaena watches her son be murdered. However,the consensus is that Blood and Cheese was simply disappointing inHouse of the Dragonfor several reasons.
The way it was presented could have been more akin to the HBO franchise’s more brutal moments, including those found in the Red Wedding, so as to remove the feeling of emotional detachment…
While fan expectations of another Red Wedding may have hindered Blood and Cheese’s impact, the scene has a few innate problems that saw it fail to matchGame of Thrones' most affecting scene. For one, the horrifying nature of the scene was toned down. Of course, this is not to sayHouse of the Dragonshould have depicted full-blown child murder on-screen. That said, the way it was presented could have been more akin to the HBO franchise’s more brutal moments, including those found in the Red Wedding, so as to remove the feeling of emotional detachment Blood and Cheese conveyed.
Not only did the toned-down nature of the scene fromFire and Bloodcause this emotional detachment, but the lack of connection to the characters involved.Little of note is known of Helaena or her two children, andHouse of the Dragonhas not crafted their stories so that audiences care about themin the same way the Starks were beloved inGame of Thrones.This lack of investment means Blood and Cheese’s actions, no matter how terrible, fall somewhat flat and leave the scene feeling emotionally cold, lacking the heartbreaking, tragic, and genuinely traumatic evocation of the Red Wedding.
House of the Dragon’s Blood and Cheese book changesalso removed some of the more brutal elements of the book, from Helaena’s choice between her children and the overall demeanor of the two assassins.
House Of The Dragon Season 2: 25 Biggest Book Changes
House of the Dragon is back with season 2, and there are already significant changes to the source material in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood.
Why The Red Wedding Remains Game Of Thrones' Greatest Moment
Blood & Cheese Worked, But Game Of Thrones' Red Wedding Is Untouchable
This is not to say that Blood and Cheese was a terrible scene, but simply that it failed to surpassGame of Thrones' greatest moment in the Red Wedding. It is strange to think that a moment in which so many heroes died at the hands of scorned villains isGame of Thrones’best moment, but several aspects make this true. Ironically, the death of these heroes and the sheer horror of them being killed without grace is a large part of why the Red Wedding works so well.Audiences love plot twists, and the Red Wedding delivered one after the other.
Furthermore, the Red Wedding sequence is impeccably crafted from a filmmaking perspective. The choice of shots, the performances of the actors, and the music all instill a sense of foreboding that, somehow, is not the main takeaway of the scene. The slow build-up of tension and drama is so subtle and nuanced that the dread it creates is almost subconscious, tricking viewers into thinking everything will go off without a hitch and Robb Stark will march south with an even stronger army.
Robb was the hero, the one audiences will follow until he sits on the Iron Throne and unites the realm, right? Evidently not…
Eventually, when the titular Rains of Castamere starts playing,Game of Thronesdelivers what it did best and the true shock value emerges. The emotional response is unlike anything else in the show, given that Robb Stark’s plight is one so many cared about. Ned Stark’s death was a travesty, andRobb’s transition from a young wolf to the King in the North bent on justice in an unjust world was incredibly easy to invest in. Robb was the hero, the one audiences will follow until he sits on the Iron Throne and unites the realm, right? Evidently not.
The shock of Robb and Catelyn’s deaths, as well as the thousands of Stark allies, is genuinely harrowing. The feeling of all-too-real grief is rarely captured so well in film and TV, yet the Red Wedding did it to perfection. This is arguably the biggest reason why the scene remains a shining jewel inGame of Thrones' crown, and why nothing inHouse of the Dragon- even a moment as renowned as Blood and Cheese - can come close to one of the greatest sequences in TV history.
House of the Dragon
House of the Dragon is a 2022 fantasy drama set in the world of Westeros, chronicling the Targaryen dynasty at its height. The story revolves around King Viserys’s controversial decision to name his daughter Rhaenyra as heir to the Iron Throne, sparking tensions and divisions within the realm.
