George R.R. Martin talks House of the Dragon's many time jumps. The Game of Thrones prequel series, set almost two centuries prior to the events of Game of Thrones, follows the events of Martin's novel, Fire and Blood. With showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik on board for season 1 (though Sapochnik recently departed the series), Martin serves as an executive producer on the series. In stark contrast to his reported lack of involvement in the final few seasons of Game of Thrones, Martin is actively involved with the show. The series has taken on the ambitious task of chronicling the Targaryen civil war, a.k.a the Dance of Dragons.
House of the Dragon has made an impression on audiences since its premiere in August, and is currently set to air the penultimate episode of the ten-episode first season on Sunday. One of the less-praised aspects of the series is the many time jumps season 1 has included, beginning with a six-month time in episode 2, moving into a three-year time jump in episode 3, a huge ten-year time jump in episode 6, and a six-year time jump in episode 8. Due to so much skipping around in time, Alicent and Rhaenyra were recast, along with their children. Though the series has mostly enjoyed a triumphant run, some viewers have been frustrated by the many changes the show has undergone.
On his website, George R.R. Martin expressed some of his thoughts about the season. The fantasy writer was quick to defend the series, saying that it has "helped brighten [his] Sundays]" and that the most recent episode was "everything [he] hoped it should be." After some musings about Paddy Considine's performance as King Viserys I, Martin addressed the show's controversial time jumps, supporting the show's choice to skip forward in time several times. See what the writer had to say in detail below:
"Very briefly, however, I think Ryan [Condal] has handled the “jumps” very well, and I love love love both the younger Alicent and Rhaenyra and the adult versions, and the actresses who play them. (Truth be told, we have an incredible cast, and I love all of them). Do I wish we’d had more time to explore the relationship between Rhaenyra and Ser Harwin, the marriage of Daemon and Laena and their time in Pentos, the birth of various and sundry children (and YES, Alicent gave Viserys four children, three sons and a daughter, their youngest son Daeron is down in Oldtown, we just did not have the time to work him in this season), and everything else we had to skip? Sure.
But there are only so many minutes in an episode (more on HBO than on the network shows I once wrote for), and only so many episodes in a season. Fewer and fewer as time goes by, it seems...If HOUSE OF THE DRAGON had 13 episodes per season, maybe we could have shown all the things we had to “time jump” over… though that would have risked having some viewers complain that the show was too “slow,” that “nothing happened.” As it is, I am thrilled that we still have 10 hours every season to tell our tale....I hope that will continue to be true. It is going to take four full seasons of 10 episodes each to do justice to the Dance of the Dragons, from start to finish."
Why House Of The Dragon's Time Jumps Were Necessary
Martin makes several key points about the structure of House of the Dragon. If the series took the time to deliberate on each significant event in the almost two decades it has covered so far, the choice would likely have been controversial as well, with viewers criticizing the slow pacing. As it stands, the show has been forced to skip over many of those milestones for timing reasons, as Martin points out, and due to the prioritizing of a singular narrative thread. By centering on the thread of who succeeds Viserys and the eventual war that will follow, including only the relevant details from the decades of build-up, the potentially overwhelming story becomes a more streamlined tale, easier for viewers to tune into and analyze once a week. The time jumps also allow House of the Dragon to set itself apart from Game of Thrones, by focusing on one main story over time rather than exploring the dynamics of multiple families and characters simultaneously.
With its long reach and streamlined narrative, House of the Dragon has been controversial for some viewers, who feel that the many time jumps make it difficult to follow and grow attached to the characters. However, with the vocal fan response after many episodes, it's clear that much of the audience has latched on to the characters, particularly those that have gone unchanged amid the time jumps such as Daemon and Viserys. With very few episodes left of season 1, there is still some time for House of the Dragon to justify its time jumps in the eyes of critics and finish strong, setting up an intriguing season 2, which will hopefully feature less skipping around in time.
Source: GeorgeRRMartin.com