It's no secret that House of the Dragon's season 2 finale didn't sit well with audiences. The second season ended in roughly the same place as where it began, highlighting the pacing issues that the Game of Thrones prequel series has struggled with since the beginning. Now, you can count creator George R. R. Martin among the disgruntled viewers as well. "I do not look forward to other posts I need to write, about everything that’s gone wrong with HOUSE OF THE DRAGON," the author wrote on his personal blog, "but I need to do that too, and I will."
Classic George! Talking about writing instead of just writing. Still, it's puzzling that Martin is still dissatisfied with the series despite joining as an official series creator this time around. After fan backlash plagued the final seasons of Game of Thrones, the writer supposedly made sure to be more hands-on with HBO's prequel. Martin suggested several tie-ins to his overarching story himself, according to showrunner Ryan Condal, which the writers were more than willing to include. He also praised previous episodes in season 2, calling both the acting and directing "superb." As he wrote back in July:
“I have visited real castles that did not look half as imposing as the Red Keep and Dragonstone did. And they were HUGE, I also got a sneak peak at the first two episodes of season 2. What a great way to start the season. The directing was superb. Game of Thrones veteran Alan Taylor directed the first episode, and Clare Kilner the second. Both of them did a magnificent job. And I cannot say enough about the acting.... “Rhaenyra the Cruel” has been getting great reviews, for the most part. A lot of the fans are proclaiming it the best episode of HotD, and some are even ranking it higher than the best episodes of GAME OF THRONES. I can hardly be objective about these things, but I would certainly say it deserves to be in contention.
Now, it appears Martin's changed his tune. Whatever his gripes are, fans waiting for his reply may have a long winter ahead of them. The writer previously stated that he planned to fix Game of Thrones'controversial ending with a very different story in the novels, but those books won't arrive any time soon. "When Winds of Winter is done, the word will not trickle out, there WILL be a big announcement," he recently wrote on his blog. "Where and when I cannot say." Sounds like pacing problems are becoming quite the theme.
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