How ‘House of the Dragon’ Staged Daemon’s Invasion of Harrenhal

Dragon Home The third episode of Season 2, “The Burning Mill,” takes viewers again to one of the infamous castles in Westeros: Harrenhal. What a reward!

On this episode, Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) raids Harrenhal along with his dragon Carax, nevertheless it’s removed from the victorious conquest he imagined. Lord Simon Robust (Sir Simon Russell Beale) is able to hand over the citadel to the Black Crew with out a struggle. Above all, Harrenhal is completely eerie, its melting ruins leaving anybody inside uncovered to the weather.

“Burning Mill” takes this weirdness to an excessive when Daemon first units foot on Harrenhal. He wandered down lengthy, empty corridors and staircases. Rain and thunder crashed from above, and bats burst from the rafters. Within the arms of director Geeta Vasant Patel, the citadel turns into a maze that Daemon should wander alone, and after a run-in with Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) within the second episode, This loneliness turns into much more isolating.

“Whenever you have a look at the scene carefully, it is simple to suppose that it would not match the timeline. What I wished to do was make it emotional and concurrent with what occurred in episode two,” Patel informed Mashable. “This is not simply the story of somebody who got here to Harrenhal and was scared. You may put it anyplace within the season. Why [we see it] Now in episode two, he is tossed apart by Rhaenyra. He had by no means been so low.

Even on this scene, Rhaenyra’s presence stays. Lengthy earlier than Daemon has visions of younger Rhaenyra (Milly Alcock), you possibly can hear her small, disembodied voice calling to him as Daemon searches for Simon Robust.

Daemon’s emotional vulnerability in the course of the invasion of Harrenhal begins along with his escape into the citadel. “In case you floor your self in actuality, this can be a man who was consuming closely in a automobile,” Patel stated. she had been with Dragon HomeThe visible results crew made Carax’s actions extra reckless, like a “drunken dragon,” reflecting the rider’s instability.

Matt Smith in Home of the Dragon.
Picture credit score: Ollie Upton/HBO

Daemon’s virtually labyrinthine journey throughout the citadel underscores each the size of Harrenhal and Daemon’s personal uncertainty. One of many inspirations Patel cited for her and Smith was a scene from the film The Silence of the Lambs Clarice (Jodie Foster) walks by way of Buffalo Invoice’s (Ted Levine) home. In each sequences, the digicam follows our uneasy protagonists by way of an unfamiliar place, rapidly transferring from doorway to doorway as they ponder what occurs subsequent. There isn’t any music, simply bizarre sounds within the surroundings.

The eerie, scary loneliness of Harrenhal is the right reflection of Daemon on this second. “This place represents what’s in his soul proper now,” Patel stated.

She continued: “As Damon walks from hallway to hallway, it is a metaphor that he is considering, ‘I do not know the place I’m in life. I’ve by no means been right here earlier than. Actually, I Feeling scared for the primary time.

Daemon takes out his rage on a passing strongman – his solely act of violence throughout his takeover of Harrenhal, and a second not within the unique script. “Within the script, the man simply ran away. However as Matt and I have been engaged on it, we have been each considering, ‘This does not really feel like Damon, the place does he match into the story.’ Hit that man and take every thing out on him,” Patel stated.

Whereas the strike was an act by the demons, Patel hinted that staying at Harrenhal could have been the primary catalyst for the demons’ change. “one factor [Matt and I] The query that takes essentially the most time is, “How can we retain Dimon whereas permitting him to remodel?” ’” defined Patel. “Since we dedicated to [the finale] Collectively we all know the place Damon goes, and we need to see the way it begins in episode three.

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