House of the Dragon Fans Are Devastated With Premiere’s Tragic Death (Even Though They Knew It Was Coming)

House of the Dragon returned for its third season tonight, and like with every other season of the series, the show wasted no time hitting fans with a tragic death that will have major ripple effects throughout the rest of the season. That death rocked fans all across social media, even when they admitted they knew it was happening due to knowing the events of the books. Tonight’s events unquestionably had an impact, and this is a death that’s going to stick with longtime fans and new fans for a long time.

Tonight’s premiere featured the highly anticipated Battle of the Gullet, with the Velaryon fleet taking on the Triarchy in an epic battle. Eventually the battle becomes even more frenetic with the arrival of Jace and Vermax, but they ultimately meet their deaths due to the unpredictability of Sheepstealer and the overwhelming enemy forces, Fans have jumped online to share their reactions and thoughts on the tragic sequence, with @Livinat40 still coming to terms with the fact that the show immediately hit them with a tragedy, writing, “One episode in and you’ve already ripped my heart out ”. @arj_nicole1027 wrote, “RIP Jace. You’ve would have made a great king. Apparently we can’t have a HOTD who someone dying in the first episode of every season.”

@benmufc98 wasn’t a fan of the changes, writing, “One hell of an episode but changing Jace’s death was crazy”. As for @MichaelPW23, they are still reeling, writing, “I’m hurt, I’m unwell……. Rest in peace Jace #hotd #houseofthedragon”. @Soonerborn8503 wrote, “Me the entire episode because I knew it was coming:”, while @Alaska0420 wrote, “This moment will live rent-free in our minds and hearts for the rest of the year ”.

Jace’s Death Did Feature Several Changes From The Book (And This Was Supposed To Happen Earlier)

The Battle of the Gullet finally gets its due in season 3, but it was actually supposed to be part of the season 2 finale. Unfortunately, it was cut from season 2 due to budget concerns, so the battle was pushed to the premiere of season 3. This also meant that Jace actor Harry Collett got to be a part of season 3 unexpectedly, as he was told from the very start that his character would only be around for 2 seasons.

Now that the tragic death has happened, there are a few changes from the original book, though the main elements are still accounted for. In Fire & Blood, Jace still dies, but the events that lead up to his death are different. In the original story, there’s a whole plot thread around Aegon and Viserys, who are taken captive by the Triarchy. Aegon escapes and heads back to Dragonstone, and this is where Jace comes into the picture.

Then there’s the fact that while Sheepstealer is there, Rhaena is not. Instead, it is a girl named Nettles flying Sheepstealer, and during the battle there is no unexpected attack by Sheepstealer, which is what causes Jace and Vermax to be distracted and end up getting brought down from the sky in the show. It’s unclear why those changes were made, but sadly Jace still dies in the book and in the show, and fans are certainly going to miss him moving forward.

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