House of the Dragon Follows Footsteps of GOT With Poorly-lit Scenes

House of the Dragon, the series prequel to Game of Thrones, was just as popular as its predecessor on this weekend’s episode, “Driftmark.”

House of the Dragon is a fantasy drama television series on HBO that’s popular with fans of the show Game of Thrones. In the recent episode of House of the Dragon (S1 E 7) “Driftmark”, which aired on October 2nd, GOT fans were caught by surprise as some scenes were too dark to see.

They compared this episode to the final episode of GOT “The Long Night”, which attracted similar backlash from fans for its dimly-lit battle. Both episodes were directed by Emmy winner Miguel Sapochnik.

Fans and viewers took to social media to express their displeasure at the dark scenes in episode 7 of the HBO series “House of the Dragon.” One of HBO’s official accounts went on record defending the dark moments as an “intentional creative decision.”

”We appreciate that you reached out about House of the Dragon’s Episode 7 night scene appearing dark on your screen,” HBO Max Help said in a tweet. “The dimmed lighting was an intentional creative decision.” This was after one fan tweeted the network needed “to issue a written apology for literally a whole episode of black screen.”

In a statement, HBO said that less than one percent of social posts sparked by the show’s episode “Driftmark” were about lighting issues. The company reaffirmed that dimmed lighting was a deliberate creative decision.

Some viewers were upset because the episode was too dark, so they couldn’t see what was happening on the screen. One of those viewers, Ringer writer and podcaster Joanna Robinson, suggested that viewers adjust their TV settings, turn off their lights, and close their drapes before watching the episode.

Some fans are saying that the show’s makers should have learned their lesson from GOT and made sure that they directed scenes in a way that was clear for everyone to see. However, others think that this is intentional because it adds to the moody atmosphere created by the show’s creators.

Miguel Sapochnik, the director of both “Driftmark” and “The Long Night” episodes in HBO’s fantasy drama television series, is no stranger to criticism.

In the past, he was accused of darkening his scenes in Game of Thrones ‘The Long Night’ to an uncomfortable degree. In a recent interview with IndieWire, director Miguel Sapochnik defended his creative choice by saying that the darkness of the cinematography was what the show’s atmosphere needed to reach its surreal and chaotic climax.

“We had this idea that this was the last hope humanity has,” Sapochnik said. “This is the last beacon of light and we needed an environment that was friendly to that. We had every reason to believe that their film would be a success and we didn’t wonder if it would be too dark.”

Just like Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon is a show that has become a favorite among HBO and HBO Max viewers. The show is getting rave reviews from critics and fans alike.

Fans of House of the Dragon can continue to enjoy the show every Sunday on HBO and HBO Max. Episode 8 is set to air on October 10th, 2022 at 9 p.m. ET. Stay tuned!