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‘House of the Dragon' can justify its changes from the novel 'Fire & Blood' in this way
Everything has to do with the narrative structure of the novel, which has these characteristics.
George R.R. Martin doesn’t like TV and movie adaptations of his novels to change what he put on the pages of his books, but the author of A Song of Ice and Fire is one of the main people responsible for House of the Dragon. The series is based on ‘Fire & Blood’, another work set in the ‘Game of Thrones’ universe. Both the first and second seasons make their own interpretations, changing the fate of some characters and changing certain aspects of the story. Why?
Martin’s novel recounts the adventures and misadventures of the Targaryens since the conquest of Aegon I, the monarch who established the rule of the House of the Dragon for centuries. In the book, the narrative structure is completely different from that of the series, as events are interwoven through the memories, experiences, interpretations, and inventions of several narrators, who were not necessarily first-person witnesses to all events. Much like historians did with classical sources, which were not always reliable. In the case of Fire & Blood, the fool Mushroom always gave the most outrageous and scandalous version of the events, while others softened what happened or even showed an antagonistic reality.
A matter of perspective
Screenwriter Sara Hess (via Screenrant) interprets the changes in the same direction: “In [Fire & Blood] the history was written by these unreliable narrators and nobody really knows what happened in those rooms. They know the big events that happened historically, but they don’t know what anyone’s intention was. And history is often written by men who write off women as crazy or hysterical or evil and conniving or gold-digging or sexpots.” According to Hess, the novel’s narrators make Alicent seem like an evil person, but was he really evil? That’s one of the things they wanted to explore in the second season, more proof that there will be all kinds of variations in the show.
The complexities and motivations of the characters may change, and some events have been significantly altered. For example, in Fire & Blood, King Aegon II Targaryen’s dragon, Sunfyre, does not die in the Battle of Rook’s Rest. It plays a pivotal role in the fate of Rhaenyra Targaryen, whereas in the books, it may not, since the reptile has already died. Everything points to many more changes, but it has already been said that there are two different continuities: that of the books and that of the audiovisual products.
The first two seasons of ‘House of the Dragon’ are available on Max. The third season is already confirmed and will be filmed in 2025.