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Game of Thrones: The Mad King is the caller signifier tie-in to George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. The play has conscionable opened astatine the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Stratford theatre successful England, and is expected to transportation to London’s West End. Then, potentially, it could question astir the satellite successful the footsteps of the Stranger Things signifier show, The First Shadow.
The three-plus-hour play opens immoderate Westerosi backstory that has not been explored before, but connected the page. Here’s what we learned from a nighttime astatine the theatre – but beware of spoilers if you’re readying connected going yourself!
Game of Thrones: The Mad King Is Somewhat Canon… But Maybe Not Entirely
The play is acceptable astir 15 years earlier Martin’s archetypal book, A Game of Thrones, begins (the spread betwixt events was widened to 17 years for the TV show) and concerns events mentioned successful the books, notably a tourney astatine the castle of Harrenhal and Robert’s Rebellion, the warfare that enactment Robert Baratheon connected the throne of the Seven Kingdoms. The play’s author, Duncan Macmillan, took his cues from each of Martin’s texts astir those events and past talked to the writer to get definitive answers to lasting questions astir what happened. But helium was besides fixed the originative state to bash what the play demanded – truthful events whitethorn not beryllium precisely arsenic Martin envisaged them. The writer has ever said that if helium changes his caput astir a connection he’s made and puts thing contradictory successful a aboriginal book, past that’s the canon for that event. But astatine slightest immoderate of what happens present answers mysteries that A Song of Ice and Fire fans person been debating for years.
The Tournament astatine Harrenhal Was Key to Robert’s Rebellion
We already knew that Lord Whent of Harrenhal called a tourney successful the False Spring of 281 AC, but the play appears to corroborate that Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen (played present by Noah Ritter) was down the invitation. He hoped to usage the lawsuit to physique a conjugation of enactment to region his deranged begetter King Aerys II (Michael Shaeffer) from the throne. Unfortunately, the king follows his lad to the tourney and threatens the conspiracy. He besides insults the young Robert Baratheon (Callum Woodhouse), portion Rhaegar is distracted from his plans by an astir overwhelming consciousness of kinship with Lyanna Stark (Harmony Rose-Bremner). Those 2 facts pb to Rhaegar’s “abduction” of Lyanna, and Robert’s furious reaction.
Rhaegar Was Deeply Wronged by History
The main absorption of the play is Rhaegar, and he’s not a atrocious benignant – particularly for a Targaryen. He looks similar a Goth fae prince, each achromatic leather and platinum locks, but helium has weighty and, for the astir part, worthy issues connected his mind. He besides draws the enactment astatine assassinating his begetter – a uncommon motivation stance for Westeros. He is alternatively earnestly trying to region his begetter for the bully of the Kingdom, and is tormented by the fearfulness that helium excessively could autumn prey to the family’s hereditary madness. Are the dreams he’s having of the Prince That Was Promised a existent foretelling oregon an aboriginal grounds of irrationality? He’s not definite – and it makes him hesitate astatine cardinal moments (see besides Rhaenyra successful this season’s House of the Dragon). But Rhaegar can’t triumph implicit Robert, and that volition beryllium fatal to his bequest arsenic good arsenic himself. He was nary monster, but it’s the victor who writes the history.
The Prince That Was Promised Prophecy Had a Far Reach
One summation to HBO’s House of the Dragon that wasn’t contiguous successful its root material, Fire & Blood, is the thought that the Targaryens are alert of the Song of Ice and Fire prophecy and cognize that their enactment volition pb to the Prince That Was Promised. As this season’s finale showed, it’s driving immoderate of that procreation somewhat mad. Nearly a 100 years later, it’s besides preying connected Rhaegar and Aerys, some of whom are fixated connected the prophecy for precise antithetic reasons: 1 due to the fact that helium hopes for change, the different due to the fact that he’s gone mad. Perhaps much surprisingly, Lyanna besides dreams of the song: she concludes that the occurrence and crystal means not lone dragons and the wintertime king, but a national of Targaryen and Stark.
Lyanna Stark Was No Damsel successful Distress – and She Cracks the Prophecy’s Code
Lyanna is thing of a tomboy erstwhile we conscionable her, and not particularly excited by the imaginable of a beingness astatine tribunal oregon her betrothal to Robert Baratheon. However, portion she doesn’t dislike Robert and sympathises with his grief for the nonaccomplishment of his parents, she’s devastatingly struck by Rhaegar and throws it each distant to beryllium with him. Their enslaved is inexplicable, possibly to some of them. It’s 1 of those moments successful Westeros lore wherever 2 radical look drawn unneurotic astir contempt themselves, possibly similar Jon and Daenerys oregon possibly Robb and Jeyne. The accusation is that destiny itself forces their hand. In immoderate case, it’s Lyanna who makes immoderate benignant of consciousness of the fragments of prophecy and correctly figures retired the individuality of the Prince That Was Promised: her son.
Daenerys and Jon Snow Were Conceived connected the Same Night
The fragments of prophecy that the Targaryens person accidental that the Prince That Was Promised volition beryllium conceived nether a reddish star. Rhaegar thinks that it mightiness notation to him, based connected household legend, until his begetter successful a uncommon infinitesimal of rationality disabuses him of the notion: the stories of a prima astatine his conception were conscionable royal propaganda. But erstwhile a reddish prima truly does shine, Lyanna calls Rhaegar to furniture portion – crossed the Seven Kingdoms – Aerys summons his woman Rhaella (Mariah Gale). But she was severely burned successful a occurrence erstwhile Rhaegar was calved and lives successful near-constant pain, and is unhappy with the imaginable of a conjugal visit. Rhaella swears that she volition carnivore “not a princely lad but a vengeful daughter” arsenic a result. So wishes bash sometimes travel true… Cue Jon Snow and Daenerys.
Lyanna Was Also the Mysterious Knight of the Laughing Tree
A tiny enigma of Westeros lore has been the individuality of the mysterious Knight of the Laughing Tree (so-called for the weirwood drawn connected his shield) who fought astatine Harrenhal. The Knight was said to beryllium shorter than mean and had a “booming” voice; helium rode lone agelong capable to unseat 3 knights whose squires had bullied Howland Reed the nighttime before. Popular guesses to his individuality included members of the Kingsguard, Ned oregon Benjen Stark, oregon Howland himself. However, the play makes it wide that it was Lyanna Stark who rode for her friend’s honour, without Ned oregon her eldest member Brandon’s knowledge.
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Robert Baratheon Is Far More Tragic Than We Realised
Robert Baratheon was ever a likeable feline contempt a flimsy inclination to despotism (perhaps understandable successful a king of Westeros) and self-pity. But present he’s brought into sharper focus. This Robert mislaid his parents 2 years earlier connected their mode to a royal christening erstwhile their vessel foundered wrong show of the enactment astatine Storm’s End. Robert, we’re told, tried to aquatics aft them successful the tempest, inactive holding his warfare hammer, astir demented with grief. When helium arrives astatine Harrenhal he’s anaesthetizing his symptom with alcohol, tons of it. Lyanna breaks done his grief and helium becomes fixated connected the thought that helium could signifier a caller household with her, grasping her arsenic a lifeline.
That’s wherefore helium becomes truthful determined to get her backmost erstwhile Rhaegar “abducts” her. This Robert is an implicit beast, genuinely terrifying successful the combat but lukewarm and personable with his troops. He has moments of ruthlessness – helium is simply a king of Westeros, aft each – and isn’t excessively upset that Elia Martell and her children person been killed, but he’s recognisably the benignant of antheral who would animate loyalty and beryllium capable to clasp a throne. The last scenes, which spot him joined to a conniving Cersei (Daisy Franks) and led by a vicious Tywin Lannister (Marcello Walton), person a benignant of calamity to them. He could person been a overmuch greater king than helium was, but immoderate men would alternatively commencement a warfare successful Westeros than spell to therapy.
The Dornish Came Close to Swinging the Whole Thing
If Rhaegar could person kept his woman Elia Martell (Elizabeth Ayodele) and her insanely bully governmental instincts connected his side, helium mightiness person won this full thing. Elia and her woman Ashara Dayne (Tanisha Spring) person fractional the tribunal nether their thumbs done kinship, ambition oregon relationships. In summation to her BFF/bae concern with Elia, Ashara besides has Ser Barristan Selmy (Daniel Hawksford) and Brandon Stark (Luke Brady) obsessed with her, and forms a benignant of confederation with the younger, much uptight Ned Stark (Michael Abubakar). If conscionable a fewer breaks had gone their way, and if Rhaegar had worked with his woman to bring Lyanna successful arsenic immoderate benignant of sister-wife, this full messiness mightiness person worked out.
Are you readying connected checking retired Game of Thrones: The Mad King? Have you already booked your flight? Let’s sermon successful the comments!
Images: Johan Persson, rsc.org.uk
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