House of the Dragon is about to unleash what the crew is hyping as the biggest battle sequence of not just Game of Thrones history, but perhaps TV history, too. But can it truly live up to expectations?
House of the Dragon season 3 sees the Dance of the Dragons in full swing as the Targaryen civil war reaches its peak. The season will open up with the Battle of the Gullet, cited in George R.R. Martin’s works as a turning point of the Dance. The Gullet itself is one of the key trading passages that’s been held by Rhaenyra's forces since the war began. Now, it’s coming to what showrunner Ryan Condal is calling “arguably the craziest episode of television ever made.”
What to expect from The Battle of the Gullet
In a cover story for Entertainment Weekly, Condal and the House of the Dragon cast broke down the battle and what to expect from it. Filmed at the U.K.’s Leavesden Studios, the names of the ships involved are enough to draw you in: “The Queen Who Never Was,” the “Bitchfist,” and more. It’s a major showdown with the former captained by the Sea Snake, Lord Corlys Velaryon (Steve Toussaint), with his son/first mate, Aly of Hull (Abubaker Salim), while the latter is led by Admiral Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn).
The article quotes many of the actors involved in filming in this massive set, complete with wind, rain, explosions, and that’s before the dragons enter the fray. Director Loni Peristere handled the entire conflict with Harry Collett, who plays Prince Jacaerys Velaryon, explaining, "They want you to feel hectic because you have all of these arrows flying and these boats burning and things exploding.”
It sounds truly epic, but can it be as great as fans have hoped?
Can the battle match the hype?
There’s no denying the Battle of the Gullet is one of the most anticipated moments of the show. Really, season 2 had been building up to it in many ways, and Condal admitted he was honestly not sure they could pull it off even with the show’s huge budget.
He was determined, however, comparing it to a certain other fantasy epic’s own celebrated battle sequence.
"To try to tell this story without doing the Gullet would be trying to film Lord of the Rings without doing the Battle of Helm's Deep,” Condal said. “If we were gonna do it, we had to do it right. And that meant dragons and ships and multiple theaters of conflict."
Several of the actors shared their feelings that the scene shows how House of the Dragon has gotten bigger since the first season. Condal sums it up, saying: “There is the reality before the Gullet and the reality after the Gullet.” That’s not just for the storyline of the Dance of the Dragons, but the series itself, with season 4 likely being the last.
It’s worth noting that a large chunk of the House of the Dragon fandom lost trust in the writers after season 2, seeing not only how many book changes were made, but also how slow the pacing was. Ahead of season 3, many fans see Condal’s promises and scoff, not able to believe the Battle of the Gullet will truly deliver. The show will just have to prove them wrong.
Of course, it’s very difficult for live-action to live up to the written word most of the time. However, Game of Thrones managed to pull off some fantastic battle sequences even better than fans dreamed. And to use Condal’s own example, the Battle of Helm’s Deep was a stunning cinematic experience to watch, far more entertaining than reading about it in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
The producers know how they have to make this a true spectacle and it sounds like they have it set. The descriptions of the filming pack in plenty of excitement, and the cast felt like they were in a true war. Condal appears confident they can make it work, so here’s hoping that the Battle of the Gullet takes its place among the other iconic Game of Thrones franchise battle scenes as an unforgettable watch.
House of the Dragon season 3 premieres June 21 on HBO and HBO Max.
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