House of the Dragon Season 3: How does the Battle of the Gullet compare to the book?
In House of the Dragon's Season 2 finale, Lysene Admiral Sharako Lohar (Abigail Thorn) declared that the Triarchy's fleet was headed to the Gullet, a stretch of water blockaded by Corlys Velaryon's (Steve Toussaint) forces, "on the morrow."
Well, "the morrow" stretched into a two-year wait for House of the Dragon viewers, but in the show's Season 3 premiere, that fated day finally comes. And with the morrow comes the incredible set piece that is the Battle of the Gullet.
In both House of the Dragon and its source material, George R.R. Martin's Targaryen history Fire and Blood, the Battle of the Gullet marks a huge turning point in the Dance of the Dragons. It annihilates Team Green's attempted power move with the Triarchy, and it also sees the death of Prince Jacaerys Velaryon (Harry Collett). Both of these key events carry over from the book to the show, which follows the Battle of the Gullet's broad strokes. However, the show also changes several key aspects of how the Battle of the Gullet plays out.
From a Sheepstealer surprise to Lohar's demise, here are all the biggest differences between House of the Dragon and Fire and Blood's Battle of the Gullet.
House of the Dragon's Battle of the Gullet leaves out a subplot about Rhaenyra's sons Viserys and Aegon.
Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO
In Fire and Blood, Jace isn't the only one of Queen Rhaenyra's (Emma D'Arcy) sons in mortal peril at the Battle of the Gullet. Her two youngest sons with Daemon (Matt Smith), Aegon and Viserys, are also present. They're onboard the Gay Abandon, a cog taking them to Pentos for safety. Unfortunately, safety is the complete opposite of what they find, as they get caught up in the naval clash. Aegon escapes on his young dragon Stormcloud. He makes it back to Dragonstone, but Stormcloud is fatally wounded in the process. Meanwhile, Viserys hides his own dragon egg and disguises himself as a ship boy onboard in a Lysene crew. He's soon discovered and becomes the captive of Lohar.
None of this happens in House of the Dragon. Strangely, Season 2 did hint at the boys' upcoming involvement in the battle, with Lady Jeyne Arryn (Amanda Collin) namedropping the Gay Abandon as she sent the boys off to Pentos.
The show not adapting Aegon and especially Viserys' storylines has broader implications for the future of Westeros. However, House of the Dragon most likely isn't progressing that far into Targaryen history, so leaving out the the brothers' horrible jaunt at sea helps streamline the battle.
Jace goes rogue in House of the Dragon, but not Fire and Blood.
Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO
Throughout Season 2, Jace challenged Rhaenyra's decisions, especially her plan to recruit the dragonseeds. (In the book, it was his idea.) However, in the Season 3 premiere, he defies her outright, locking her in Dragonstone to prevent her from flying out to the Battle of the Gullet herself. He claims it's a protective move, but there's a bit of a glory-hunting streak in there as well. He tells Baela (Bethany Antonia) that it's their purpose to win the war for Rhaenyra. But maybe they could do that without being reckless teenagers, right?
Jace's move against his mother is a new addition to the show, but it does provide an interesting justification as to why Rhaenyra doesn't fly to the Gullet herself in Fire and Blood. In Martin's work, Rhaenyra doesn't actually engage in combat much, instead commanding from Dragonstone. But the show's version of her wants desperately to be in the field, meaning they have to keep coming up with new ways to keep her away. Jace's defiance is the culmination of the tension between the two, and it also makes his death that much more painful for Rhaenyra. The last interaction she ever had with her eldest son was him keeping her from protecting him.
Did somebody order a beef between Lohar and Corlys?
Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO
Fire and Blood is written like a historical text, so some characters are fairly flat on the page. One such character is Sharako Lohar. We know he's a formidable admiral, and not too much else.
House of the Dragon seeks to flesh Lohar out further, with both the gender-bending established in the Season 2 finale, as well as her hatred of Corlys Velaryon, revealed in the Season 3 premiere to be the true reason she signed a contract with Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall). That motivation brings an extra layer of vitriol to Lohar's decision to sack High Tide. Plus, it leads to that incredibly suspenseful ship chase through a narrow pass, so I'm not complaining.
Tyland Lannister's death is an anti-armor PSA — and new to House of the Dragon.
Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO
RIP Tyland Lannister, who does not die in the Battle of the Gullet in Fire and Blood. By this point in the book, he's still abroad in Myr. House of the Dragon won't be adapting far enough into Fire and Blood for his return to Westeros to be relevant, so he's perfect cannon fodder for the Gullet. And what a way to go, shoved overboard by Lohar to lighten her ship's load. Sorry Tyland, but let this be a lesson to all other sailors that you should always choose a life vest over armor.
Which dragons are involved in the Battle of the Gullet?
Credit: HBO
The Battle of the Gullet is the unholy lovechild of naval warfare and dragon warfare, but the particular dragons vary between Fire and Blood and House of the Dragon.
In Fire and Blood, Jace leads the attack on the Triarchy fleet with his dragon Vermax. He's joined by the dragonseeds and their dragons: Ulf the White (Tom Bennett) on Silverwing, Addam of Hull (Clinton Liberty) on Seasmoke, Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew) on Vermithor, and lowborn Driftmark resident Nettles on Sheepstealer.
House of the Dragon makes several switches to this lineup. In: Baela on Moondancer. Out: the three male dragonseeds, who are camping out near Harrenhal until further notice. Nettles has also been cut from House of the Dragon entirely. Her storyline has been looped in with Rhaena's (Phoebe Campbell), who takes control of Sheepstealer. Speaking of...
Rhaena doesn't crash the Battle of the Gullet in Fire and Blood.
Credit: Theo Whiteman / HBO
Rhaena claiming Sheepstealer in the Season 3 premiere is already a massive deviation from Fire and Blood. (RIP Nettles, we never knew you.) But what happens next is even more of a deviation. Instead of aiding Rhaenyra's side, Sheepstealer unleashes friendly dragon fire on the Velaryon ships and attacks Vermax and Moondancer. That's not quite how you train your wild dragon, Rhaena.
Rhaena's unwitting involvement in Jace's demise sets up a remix of a key arc in Fire and Blood: Rhaenyra's hatred of Sheepstealer's rider. Obviously, there's no Nettles to hate in the show, so House of the Dragon is retooling. Instead of Rhaenyra despising Nettles for her closeness to Daemon, she'll likely wind up hating Rhaena for the role she played in Jace's death. Yet another Targaryen family tragedy to add to the tally.
Sharako Lohar dies in House of the Dragon, but lives on in Fire and Blood.
Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO
Sharako Lohar joins Jace, Tyland, and Rhaena's mental health as a casualty of the Battle of the Gullet. Corlys' bastard son Alyn of Hull (Abubakar Salim) has the honor of taking her out in a brutal one-on-one brawl.
However, Sharako lives well past the Battle of the Gullet in Fire and Blood. He remains the captor of young Prince Viserys, eventually selling him off. His murder down the line sparks a larger war within the destabilized Triarchy. Again, since House of the Dragon won't adapt that far into the future, killing Lohar off is another streamlining move. We'll always have "to the Gullet on the morrow," though, even if that morrow has finally passed.
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