Warning: The following article contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 2, Episode 6.
While House of the Dragon Season 2, Episode 2 highlights the scarring on Mysaria’s throat, we don’t find out what caused it until Episode 6. So, what’s the story behind Mysaria’s neck scar in House of the Dragon?
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Mysaria’s Neck Scar in House of the Dragon, Explained
As noted above, House of the Dragon makes a running mystery out of Mysaria’s neck scar. We get very close to an answer when Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen grills Mysaria about her throat marking in Season 2, Episode 2; however, the White Worm remains tight-lipped. As a result, we’re left to mull over the scar’s origin, drawing on clues littered throughout both seasons of House of the Dragon.
For example, Mysaria mentions on more than one occasion that she was once a slave. Could the blemish on her neck come from wearing a slave collar? We also know that Mysaria worked as a prostitute before heading up her own brothel — maybe one of her clients tried strangling her, scarring her neck in the process? Or perhaps the White Worm escaped an attempted hanging? After all, an information broker like her is bound to make enemies in underworld circles.
But thanks to House of the Dragon Season 2, Episode 6, we now know that none of these educated guesses is fully on the money. It turns out Mysaria received her scar from her father, a sexual predator who repeatedly abused her. Eventually, the young Mysaria fell pregnant; enraged, Mysaria’s father assaulted her, leaving her for dead. Somehow, Mysaria survived, with the mark on her neck and another on her lower abdomen as permanent reminders of her ordeal. The damage Mysaria’s father did was more than skin-deep, though. His attack also left the White Worm infertile.
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Is Mysaria’s Neck Scarred in Fire & Blood?
Right now, you may be wondering why we didn’t consult House of the Dragon‘s source text, Fire & Blood, to find out about Mysaria’s neck scar sooner. The thing is, we did — and it’s not in there. Author (and House of the Dragon co-creator) George R.R. Martin doesn’t mention any scarring around Mysaria’s throat in Fire & Blood. That’s noteworthy since Martin does supply a physical description of Mysaria. So, it seems that Mysaria’s neck scar is something Martin and co-creator/showrunner Ryan Condal invented for House of the Dragon.
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It wouldn’t be the first time the pair has tweaked aspects of the live-action Mysaria’s backstory. For example, the House of the Dragon incarnation of Mysaria is apparently from a different part of the Game of Thrones universe. The script for House of the Dragon Season 1’s debut episode lists the White Worm’s birthplace as Yi Ti, not Lys as in the book. What’s more, Mysaria’s TV counterpart has no memory of Yi Ti, unlike in Fire & Blood, where she seemingly recalls her homeland.
House of the Dragon Season 2 is currently airing on HBO and Max, with new episodes dropping Sundays.
The above article was updated on July 21, 2024, by Leon Miller to reflect the most recent information on Mysaria’s neck scar in House of the Dragon.
Published: Jul 21, 2024 10:05 pm