House Of The Dragon Season 3 Will Finally Deliver The Book's Biggest Battle

"House of the Dragon" season 3 may still be a ways away, but showrunner Ryan Condal has given fans some tidbits to chew on in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly. Among the points of discussion was the upcoming Battle of the Gullet — a core piece of George R. R. Martin's "Fire & Blood" book, on which the "Game of Thrones" prequel is based. According to Condal, the "House of the Dragon" version, which will be coming in season 3, could be the franchise's most gargantuan set piece yet.

"I will say that the war this season goes very hot, very, very quickly," Condal told EW. "I think the people that were waiting and waiting for all of the horrible, brutal, pitiless bloodshed will be getting it in copious amounts." He named the Battle of the Gullet specifically as a primary event in the early part of season 3, which comes as no surprise given how clearly it's set up at the end of season 2. "In many ways, the Gullet has been on the minds of the production for about three years now," Condal added, "and trying to figure out how we were going to mount it in a way that was both producible and exciting, thrilling."

If the whole thing comes off the way the production team on "House of the Dragon" seems to be hoping for, it may be an episode of television no one will soon forget. "I would like to think that this is probably the most complex sequence that's ever been done for television," Condal remarked, "not necessarily the most expensive or the longest shoot or anything like that, but just based on the number of moving pieces, the amount of different disciplines, media that have to be blended together to achieve success because you're talking about sea and ships and dragons and action."

In "Fire & Blood," as in "House of the Dragon," the Velaryon fleet creates a naval blockade that separates King's Landing from the sea, putting immense political pressure on the Greens and stirring dissatisfaction against the city's residents as food supplies dwindle. The effects of this blockade are detailed in numerous scenes of "House of the Dragon" season 2 as the so-called smallfolk turn downright violent against their rulers. In order to break the siege, the Greens recruit ships from the Triarchy in Essos — another arc seen at the end of season 2. This confrontation becomes the Battle of the Gullet — the waterway leading to Blackwater Bay.

There are a few other key details in the book version, and we'll have to wait and see if it all plays out the same way on HBO. Without getting too deep into spoilers, it's a battle with major repercussions on both sides, and it would be a powerful way to kick off the show's third season. And yes, some of the eponymous dragons of "House of the Dragon" will surely be involved.

That said, the naval aspect of the battle certainly makes it a challenge for live-action. "The planning that has gone into this," Condal explained to EW, "basically all departments working in concert to really make a thing that nobody has ever done before." Condal added that Kevin de la Noy, who was a production manager on James Cameron's "Titanic," is an executive producer on "House of the Dragon," bringing a bit of nautical expertise to the whole endeavor.

While the Battle of the Gullet may be the first big set piece in "House of the Dragon" season 3, it certainly won't be the only one. Some fans felt that season 2 was too slow and delayed too much of the actual action of the Dance of the Dragons civil war, while others praised the series' methodical approach and deft character work. Whichever side you fall on, there's no question that things will be more action-packed on the next go-round.

Condal told EW that there will be "four major events that we cover from the book in season 3," with the Gullet presumably being one of them. While we don't yet know which events will be changed on the show or how quickly season 3 will be moving through things, those who've read "Fire & Blood" will be aware that things start to snowball pretty fast after the Battle of the Gullet, as the war picks up momentum and key targets fall.

Beyond that, the plan remains for "House of the Dragon" to run for four seasons in total. And with a lot of the war still left to cover, season 3 should satiate anyone worried that the series has been too slow so far.