“Dragon House”
(This story contains spoilers from Dragon House season two, episode two.)
It is not easy to follow each character in the Game Of Thrones the universe, in particular on Dragon House. All these Targaryens running around are called Aegon. A few of them are called Jaehaerys (rest in peace to the late king and heir). And let’s not even get into Rhaenyra and Rhaenys.
But by the end of the show’s first season, few were more head-turning than two members of the Kingsguard essentially named “Eric”, albeit with George RR Martin’s fantastic spelling: Erryk and Arryk, twin brothers who are indistinguishable from each other. How to tell the difference in the world of ice and fire?
Exactly Criston Cole’s thoughts.
The Cargyll twins, Erryk and Arryk.
Max.
The second episode of Dragon House features a ton of reckoning, none more violent and dramatic than the final fight between the Cargyll twins, played by Elliot Tittensor and Luke Tittensor. In the aftermath of Prince Jahaerys’ murder, Ser Cole (Fabien Frankel) decides it is time to end Rhaenyra’s reign before it can truly begin. His plan: send Ser Arryk, loyal to King Aegon, to Dragonstone by posing as his brother Erryk, loyal to Queen Rhaenyra. If he plays the role correctly, Arryk can close in on the “suitor” and kill her with one skillful, clandestine blow – or so Criston reasons. The reality of the mission proves much more difficult when Mysaria spots “Ser Erryk” in a place where he could not be, given that she only saw him a few minutes earlier.
Alerted to his brother’s presence, Erryk arrives just in time to prevent his twin from killing Rhaenyra, but at a fatal cost. Both Cargyll brothers die in the fight, one of them killed by the other’s sword, the survivor then stabbing himself in shame. Which Cargyll died first? Confusion is a big part of the problem, one that drags the central themes of season two’s brutal war all the way to the end.
“The Erryk and Arryk duel is a giant moment in Westerosi history,” creator Ryan Condal said of the scene in HBO’s post-episode featurette, with executive producer Sara Hess. “We’ve always loved that moment of these two brothers who love each other more than anything and are also willing to kill each other. There’s a very American brother-brother aspect to the Civil War. Why are they doing that? Because these nobles decided they were angry with each other, and now these guys have to fight to the death.
The Cargyll twins from “House of the Dragon”, played by Elliot Tittensor and Luke Tittensor.
Max.
The battle between the brothers required “over 30 hours of rehearsals,” according to Tittensor (who plays Erryk), for a fight that only lasted about three minutes. But nailing the scene was crucial in at least one respect: Erryk and Arryk’s deathmatch is one of the standout moments of fire and bloodMartin’s fictional history book which HOT is inspired by. The relevant passage, as written by Martin:
“Ser Arryk disembarked safely, put on his armor and white cloak, and had no difficulty entering the castle in the guise of his twin brother, as Criston Cole had anticipated. However, in the heart of Dragonstone, as he made his way to the royal chambers, the gods brought him face to face with Ser Erryk himself, who immediately understood what his brother’s presence meant. The singers tell us that Ser Erryk said, “I love you, brother” as he drew his blade, and that Ser Arryk responded, “And me, brother” as he drew his.
“The twins fought for almost an hour,” says Grand Maester Munkun; the clash of steel on steel woke half the queen’s court, but the spectators could only stand helpless and watch, for no one could tell which brother was which. In the end, Ser Arryk and Ser Erryk inflicted mortal wounds on each other and died in each other’s arms with tears on their cheeks.
This is just one version of events, according to the book. fire and blood presents many conflicting reports about the Dance of Dragons, including the battle between the Cargyll brothers. The second perspective is “shorter, saltier and altogether nastier”, with Erryk and Arryk’s fight lasting “only a few moments”. Again, from Martin:
“There was no declaration of brotherly love; each Cargyll denounced the other as a traitor as they clashed. Ser Erryk, standing above his twin on the spiral steps, struck the first killing blow, a savage downward slash that nearly ripped off his sword arm at the shoulder, but as he collapsed , Ser Arryk grabbed his killer’s white cloak and pulled him quite close. to drive a dagger deep into his stomach. Ser Arryk was dead before the first guards arrived, but Ser Erryk took four days to die from his stomach wound, screaming in horrible pain and cursing his traitorous brother all the while.
Obviously, the series did not follow this second version. Although it also deviates from the “happier” story in several ways: Arryk reaches Rhaenyra for one, and only one brother deals a mortal blow to the other, with the surviving Cargyll committing suicide moments later. This is just the latest example of how Dragon House draws on Martin’s book, built on unreliable narrators, to present what the writers consider to be a more objective truth.
Whether these changes satisfy the book-reading public is a question to be resolved elsewhere, but for now we say goodbye to the Cargyll brothers. May we see you again one day in a prequel starring Benedict Cumberbatch called “E/Arryk”.
Dragon House releases new episodes of season two on Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO and Max. Follow with THRSeason coverage and interviews.