HBO's House of the Dragon

[ZE_501]

If you remove all the child birthing scenes IT IS relatively bloodless

In no particular order we've seen:

• Forced amputations
• Forced castration
• Tongues cut out
• Eyes gouged
• Faces caved in
• Skulls caved in
• Disembowelments/gutting
• Heads cleaved in two by shield-bashing
• Heads cleaved in two by sword
• Diagonally bisected torsos dragged out as trophies
• All kinds of gore from mass combat wounds
• Living hands nailed to posts with iron spikes
• Living soldiers' open wounds torn at by crabs
• Bodies crushed
• People burned alive
• Animals burned alive

... plus all the bloody birthing scenes.

I'm probably missing something.

 

[Heavy Metal Spike]

. . . I'm probably missing something.

There are apparently horrific behind-the-scenes shots where cast members were forced to watch episodes of "Obi-Wan Kenobi" + "Andor"

.

 

[Buttmunch]

The king deserves an Emmy he is freaking amazing.

But enough of the damn time jumps.

Agreed. He was fantastic. Not showy like Matt Smith can be, but he nailed his role nonetheless. Slowly aging and falling apart believably was spectacular.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

In no particular order we've seen:

I'm probably missing something.

You missed Terrence. He's obscured in a corner so I understand why you didn't see him.

 

[ArtDamage]

In no particular order we've seen:

• Forced amputations
• Forced castration
• Tongues cut out
• Eyes gouged
• Faces caved in
• Skulls caved in
• Disembowelments/gutting
• Heads cleaved in two by shield-bashing
• Heads cleaved in two by sword
• Diagonally bisected torsos dragged out as trophies
• All kinds of gore from mass combat wounds
• Living hands nailed to posts with iron spikes
• Living soldiers' open wounds torn at by crabs
• Bodies crushed
• People burned alive
• Animals burned alive

... plus all the bloody birthing scenes.

I'm probably missing something.

A lot of that does take place within a couple episodes. It's not like the whole show is constantly gory. I want to say the only violence we really saw in the last one was the few inches off the top?

Suffice to say it's not that there are no bloody scenes. More so that it isn't how I'd characterize this particular show to anyone.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Viserys having his wife killed to save his unborn son (unsuccessfully) was one of the grossest things I've seen on TV. Good stuff.

 

[ZE_501]

A lot of that does take place within a couple episodes. It's not like the whole show is constantly gory. I want to say the only violence we really saw in the last one was the few inches off the top?

Suffice to say it's not that there are no bloody scenes. More so that it isn't how I'd characterize this particular show to anyone.

Maybe they're doing a better job with atmosphere than I thought, because I feel like the threat of violence is so constant that the show as a whole feels bloody. I haven't done an audit but surely there's at least an act of brutal violence once per episode? I don't know.

ARE YOU GASLIGHTING ME??!1!

 

[ArtDamage]

Maybe they're doing a better job with atmosphere than I thought, because I feel like the threat of violence is so constant that the show as a whole feels bloody. I haven't done an audit but surely there's at least an act of brutal violence once per episode? I don't know.

ARE YOU GASLIGHTING ME??!1!

Not at all!

Just feels like to me the show is so squabble centric that violence tends to be more sporadic and far between. As if even the writers feel the petty arguments might be losing you so they better inject some sort of action beat. Typically, someone meaningless getting bludgeoned or chopped in half or whatever. Just so we remember this is indeed on HBO

 

[davejames]

Yeah I was referring more to fighting between the main houses, not the random violence we've seen on the outskirts.

 

[jye4ever]

Not looking forward to the 15 year time jump next week.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

Not looking forward to the 15 year time jump next week.

Again? Wtf

 

[jkno]

There are more time jumps in this series than in the entire Back to the Future trilogy...

 

[karamazov80]

There are more time jumps in this series than in the entire Back to the Future trilogy...

I was put off by that idea initially, particularly when the young cast was so good, but I feel they have pulled it off very well, and now that I know it's just the way the story is told, I am primed for more. This show may ultimately span a couple hundred years' of time, and so long as the quality of the storytelling is what we've had thus far, I'm totally fine with that.

Daemon seems more passive a character than I originally thought he'd be (especially after the badass attack on the crab feeder scene) and we're just waiting for Viserys to croak.

This is something else that I like, actually. As time passes, people mature and go through experiences that change them. When he was younger, Daemon was unpredictable and frightening at times. That battle, the scene when he returns to the castle and walks up to the throne, and when he cripples and kills his first wife for example. But experience and age has made him weary of that kind of pursuit of power, and he has additional responsibilities with children. The evolution of the king and queen are also compelling illustrations of how time changes people.

 

[ArtDamage]

This is something else that I like, actually. As time passes, people mature and go through experiences that change them. When he was younger, Daemon was unpredictable and frightening at times. That battle, the scene when he returns to the castle and walks up to the throne, and when he cripples and kills his first wife for example. But experience and age has made him weary of that kind of pursuit of power, and he has additional responsibilities with children. The evolution of the king and queen are also compelling illustrations of how time changes people.

Yeah I guess could see that from a character growth standpoint.

It just seemed at the start of this though that we'd be looking at Daemon as more of an antagonist and yet through time jumps and his taking a step back somewhat in the narrative he's kinda just along for the ride.

Even with Viserys I felt for better or worse he was trying his best to hold things together, but it just doesn't feel like Daemon has any real agency quite yet. Which is a bummer since he was my second favorite to Viserys who of course is now gone

 

[Wor-Gar]

The evolution of the king and queen are also compelling illustrations of how time changes people.

As I have gotten older, I have come to realize that the only lasting truth is Holden Caulfield: The more things change, the more things stay the same.

 

[davejames]

Yeah I guess could see that from a character growth standpoint.

It just seemed at the start of this though that we'd be looking at Daemon as more of an antagonist and yet through time jumps and his taking a step back somewhat in the narrative he's kinda just along for the ride.

Even with Viserys I felt for better or worse he was trying his best to hold things together, but it just doesn't feel like Daemon has any real agency quite yet. Which is a bummer since he was my second favorite to Viserys who of course is now gone

Well Matt Smith and the writers have said in interviews that Daemon doesn't have any real desire to be king, and basically just enjoys stirring up trouble and being a wild card. And personally I'm finding the character far more interesting now, as you're just never quite sure what's going on in his head, even though it's clear he's always calculating something.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Everyone has a passion for something. The writers have certainly charted a course -- probably several pending audience feedback -- so maybe they are keeping his "desires" secret until they fully decide on their charted story (meaning, Season Two's direction).

 

[Wor-Gar]

 

[jye4ever]

 

[Bo Shrek]

King's Landing 90210