George R.R. Martin Criticizes “Sloppy” Targaryen Sigil Change in Game of Thrones

The second season of House of the Dragon is currently captivating audiences on HBO. The series, set nearly 200 years before Game of Thrones, delves into the Targaryen dynasty’s rule over Westeros. George R.R. Martin, the mind behind A Song of Ice and Fire, has been noticeably open about the adaptations of his novels. While he recently lauded the second season of House of the Dragon, there’s a particular detail that’s been bothering him.

In a recent blog post, Martin expressed his dissatisfaction with how the Targaryen sigil is portrayed. Initially, Martin designed the Targaryen sigil as a dragon having three heads, two legs, and two wings. This design was adhered to at the start of Game of Thrones, but it eventually underwent alterations. The altered design, now used in House of the Dragon, shows the dragon with four legs.

“No animal that has ever lived on Earth has six limbs,” Martin pointed out. “The shows partially got it right,” he remarked. “Someone got lazy, or perhaps they skimmed through a heraldry book without fully understanding it. A bit of knowledge can be dangerous.”

According to Martin, medieval heraldry is the root of the confusion regarding the correct number of dragon legs. In earlier times, both two-legged and four-legged dragon versions were depicted on shields and banners. However, as heraldry became more standardized, the four-legged creatures were termed dragons, and the two-legged ones were called wyverns. No one had ever seen such mythical beasts, so the distinction was arbitrary. Heralds were not known for their zoological accuracy, even with real animals, Martin noted.

However, in the world of Westeros, dragons and wyverns do exist. “In my books, the Targaryen sigil correctly has two legs,” Martin explained, adding that both dragons and wyverns could be observed directly in his fictional universe. This historical inaccuracy puzzled Martin, as any Westerosi could seemingly count dragon limbs to correctly represent them. “My wyverns also have two legs and differ from dragons mainly in size, coloration, and their inability to breathe fire,” he said, clarifying that the Targaryen sigil, while symbolically accurate with three heads, is not anatomically correct since its wings are too small for its body.

Based on Martin’s Fire & Blood, House of the Dragon is set two centuries prior to Game of Thrones. In its second season, Westeros is on the brink of a civil war, with factions supporting either King Aegon or Queen Rhaenyra. This conflict is fueling intense drama each Sunday night on HBO.

The cast for House of the Dragon is star-studded, featuring Matt Smith as Prince Daemon Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Dowager Queen Alicent Hightower, Emma D’Arcy as Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, Steve Toussaint as Lord Corlys Velaryon, Fabien Frankel as Ser Criston Cole, Ewan Mitchell as Prince Aemond Targaryen, Tom Glynn-Carney as King Aegon II Targaryen, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, and Rhys Ifans as Ser Otto Hightower.

New episodes of House of the Dragon air every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on HBO. Episode five of the second season is set to premiere on July 14.