House of the Dragon Star Addresses Criston Cole’s Shocking Season 3 Fate

Ser Criston Cole’s reign of terror across Westeros reached a jarring halt in House of the Dragon Season 3, Episode 6. Cornered at the infamous Butcher’s Ball by Rhaenyra’s Riverland forces, led by the formidable Alysanne “Black Aly” Blackwood, the Lord Commander was struck down by three quick arrows before he could even draw his sword to initiate a formal duel. The scene unfolded right at the start of the episode, completely skipping the typical climactic finale treatment.

While some viewers viewed the sudden exit as “unceremonious”, actor Fabien Frankel sees it differently. Addressing his character’s abrupt execution, Fabien Frankel expressed immense relief, defending the sudden end as a deeply respectful translation of George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood text, which deliberately denies the “Kingmaker” any poetic grandeur or final heroic songs.

Fabien Frankel Feels Cole’s Sudden End Honors George R.R. Martin’s Book

Fabien Frankel in House of the Dragon / Credits: HBO

To many viewers, Ser Criston Cole was a character defined by his martial pride and complex morality, making a grand final showdown feel like the expected outcome. However, Frankel argues that giving Cole a heroic, drawn-out duel would have betrayed the core themes of Martin’s writing. Talking to the New York Times, House of the Dragon star said:

I’m relieved, to a degree. Criston Cole’s gone out in the way I wanted him to, and in a way that feels very in honor of what George R.R. Martin wrote.

In Fire & Blood, the Riverlords refuse Cole’s offer of single combat because war in Westeros is not a theater for individual glory. By dying swiftly under a hail of arrows, Cole’s TV exit preserves that exact message, ensuring the series stays grounded in the author’s anti-romantic view of medieval conflict. When Cole gets slain, his killer delivers a powerful line that represents the emotion conveyed by his death. The killer says:

I’ll have no songs about how brave you died, Kingmaker. (Via Entertainment Weekly)

The deliberate refusal to give Cole a Hollywood-style action spectacle sets House of the Dragon apart from standard television tropes. Cole’s death succeeds precisely because it refuses to indulge the character’s ego or give the audience a satisfying duel. By cutting him down before he can even draw his blade for a grand stand, the show highlights the grim efficiency of Martin’s writing.

Did you find Criston Cole’s death faithful to the book, or were you hoping for a final duel? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

House of the Dragon, seasons 1–3, are available to stream exclusively on HBO Max