House of the Dragonis in the unfortunate circumstance of followingGame of Thrones. For the first several years, that would present the unenviable challenge of constant negative comparisons to one of the best TV shows ever made. After the series' awful finale, it faces expectations of suffering the same fate. It’s a no-win situation. It is still receiving unkind comparisons. Fans thought they were in for the show’s most jaw-dropping moment in the season two premiere, but many were disappointed with how they handled Blood & Cheese.
One of the annoying aspects of being aGame of Thronesfan is that the show gets attention for elements that aren’t necessarily the most important.Unexpected character deaths, brutal moments, and shocking twists are great, but they aren’t whyGame of Throneswas great. There are moments in the series that feel blandly shackled to the grimmest possible outcome. Some fans don’t likeGame of Thronesfor its stellar writing, masterful characters, or epic fantasy action. Some just want something that will make other viewers cry.
Who were Blood and Cheese inFire & Blood?
The Blood and Cheese plot is, in many ways, the start of theDance of the Dragons. Before the first battle, both sides sent envoys across Westeros to gather supporters for their cause. Queen Rhaenyra sent her eldest sons, Jacaerys and Lucerys, to secure alliances. Lucerys encountered Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower’s second son, Aemond, in the Stormlands. Aemond killed Luke in aerial combat on the flight home. Rhaenyra fell into terrible grief, but her uncle-husband, Daemon, swore revenge. Conducting events from Harrenhal, Daemon entreated a brothel owner and spymaster called the White Worm to hire two assassins. The White Worm found a disgraced Kingsguard, removed from service after beating a sex worker to death. She also acquired a ratcatcher with intimate knowledge of the tunnel system beneath the Red Keep. History remembers the two onlyas Blood and Cheese.
Blood and Cheese crept into the Red Keep’s Tower of the Hand. There, they bound and gagged Dowager Queen Alicent after killing her servant. Theyknew that Alicent’s daughter, Queen Helaena, would bring her three children to visit Alicent, as she did each night. When she arrived, Blood and Cheese barred the door and took them hostage. The intruders forced Helaena to choose which of her sons they’d kill, seemingly operating with “a son for a son” as their only command. Under duress, Helaena selected her second son, Maelor. Blood and Cheese mocked her for choosing, then killed her other son, Jaehaerys, instead. This left Helaena racked with grief, ruining every aspect of her life and forcing her son to live with the knowledge that his mom picked him to die. Aegon II’s forces captured Blood quickly. They tortured himuntil he revealed Daemon’s involvement. Cheese and the White Worm escaped capture. With a son dead on either side, the Dance of the Dragons began.
Who were Blood and Cheese inHouse of the Dragon?
Much of the Blood and Cheese plot makes its way intoHouse of the Dragon, but many details change. Daemon still orders the hit, but he travels to King’s Landing to meet Blood and Cheese himself rather than making the White Worm handle it. More importantly, Daemon sends the violent guard and the ratcatcher into the Red Keepto kill Aemond, not Jaehaerys. He gives a physical description of the target but offers no answer when Blood and Cheese ask what will happen if they can’t find him. The show portrays the two of them as Westeros’s answer to the Wet Bandits, rather than competent killers. They enter the Red Keep and stroll by Aegon II unnoticed. There seem to be very few guards. Blood and Cheese never encounter Alicent or set up an ambush. They wander the hallslooking for Aemond, but Blood stumbles across a maid who seems to run for help. In the meantime, Cheese enters Helaena’s room.
House of the Dragonprovides a version of theSophie’s Choicemoment. Blood and Cheese hold Helaena at knifepoint and inform her that they’re here for a son. They force her to point out which of her two sleeping children is the male heir. Her second son hasn’tbeen born yet in the show’s timeline, leaving only Jaehaerys and his sister Jaehaera. The camera frames Helaena intently, giving the impression that she’s putting a lot of thought into her next move. Ultimately, she points to one of the children. Blood suggests she’s lying, but Cheese immediately believes her. They behead Jaehaerys while Helaena weeps silently. She quickly runs away and bursts into Alicent’s room, discovering her in the midst of a secret tryst with Criston Cole.
How did the new Blood and Cheese affectHouse of the Dragon?
The changes here will likely be immaterial to the wider narrative. The loss for those fans expressing outrage towards the perceived sanitization of this scene is the scene itself. The Blood and Cheese plot is still the turning point that escalates theDance of the Dragonsinto a war. The key differences are in the survivors and resulting shifts. If Jaehaera gets a character arc in the show, since she had next to nothing to do in the books, she’ll get to deal with the survivors' guilt. The downplayed reaction from Helaena fits into a very different role for the queen. While she was relatively dull in the books, Helaena is a strange character in the show. She wields the noted Targaryen gift for prophecy, which seems to provide her with a unique disposition. Her knowledge of Alicent’s relationship changes the dynamic between the two of them. Helaena may slip into depression and fall apart for the rest of the series, but she could also continue to become a more dynamic presence.
WhileHouse of the Dragon’s Blood and Cheese plot disappointed some, it will still serve the same purpose in the story. Other viewers seemed to consider even the off-screen demise of a small child a bridge too far forthe show’s grim tone. Whether it was too sanitized or too harsh, the Blood and Cheese plot has played its part. The slight changes could turn into something more interesting asHouse of the Dragoncarries on.
