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All the way back in season 1, one detail in Game of Thrones has nagged fans of the books the HBO series is based on. Thanks to author George R.R. Martin, upcoming prequel series House of the Dragon will rectify the point.
It concerns episode 9, when the Maester at Castle Black, one of Lord Commander Jeor Mormont's advisers in the Night's Watch, reveals his identity as Aemon Targaryen.
"My father was Micah, the first of his name," he told Jon Snow. "My brother Aegon reigned after him when I had refused the throne, and he was followed by his son Aerys whom they called the Mad King."
Aemon doesn't mention Jaehaerys II Targaryen, the son of Aegon V and the father of Aerys II in the A Song of Ice and Fire novels. During a press event, House of the Dragon co-showrunners Miguel Sapochnik and Ryan Condal said that Martin had taken note when Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss left Jaehaerys II out of the lineage of kings.
"David and Dan and skipped over Jaehaerys for reasons of clarity that he really didn't understand," Sapochnik said, referring to Martin (via Insider). "He had a bee in his bonnet about it. He wanted us to right that wrong."
One person on Reddit explained it as simply reducing an "unnecessary layer" to the dialogue. Basically, it might have been confusing for viewers to sit through a history lesson during a dramatic fantasy show.
Season 1 of House of the Dragon will consist of 10 episodes and premiere on HBO Aug. 21. Set 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, it chronicles the beginning and end of House Targaryen.
