It’s easy to be mourned when you’re loved.
It’s a trickier business when many weren’t quite sure how they felt about you- and that’s exactly what they were supposed to feel.
The delicate balancing act of Hizdahr zo Loraq was achieved thanks to the subtle efforts of Joel Fry.
Hizdahr was the surprise casualty in “The Dance of Dragons,” the one that doesn’t draw tears so much as shock and questioning of what we know about this story. The Meereenese nobleman who often kept Daenerys on her toes kept us guessing as well- until Sunday, when the questions ended as Hizdahr fell to the Sons of the Harpy. The man who would be king turned out to be another victim of the guerrilla warfare in Meereen.
We first spotted Hizdahr in the fourth season on the walls of the city, facing Daenerys and her army. But it wasn’t until he stood before the khaleesi and pled for the body of his father that we knew the name of Hizdahr zo Loraq and really saw what Joel Fry was capable of, as an actor. It was clear from the get-go that Fry and the show’s take on the character was a less cynical turn than the novels.
That scene was also the first time we saw Hizdahr respond in a way that makes Daenerys question her choices, in this case her choice to crucify so many Great Masters without knowing anything about them. Fry was towering and held his own against Emilia Clarke even on his knees.
There were many times when Hizdahr disagreed with Daenerys, debating her distaste for his people’s traditions, providing a voice for the people opposing a conqueror and their culture. He also had an occasional comic beat to his delivery that I found endearing- the way he handled his brush with death when Dany roasted the masters this season, and Hizdahr chose false courage, only to later admit he just didn’t want to die a coward.
Fry created a character that was richer and more layered than his book counterpart- sympathetic but still suspect, as well. There was always the lingering question of whether or not he was in league with the Sons of the Harpy up until the very last episode when he arrived last with a flimsy excuse. Is this the man responsible for the death of Barristan Selmy and so many Unsullied?
It seems not. (Unless he did, and the Sons of the Harpy turned on their leader, which would be an interesting turn of events. Discuss amongst yourselves.) Yes, the Viewer’s Guide does confirm him as dead in case you were wondering and they don’t lie in those.
Hizdahr zo Loraq is not dead in the novels, and so book readers are once again at a loss…or shaking their fists at Benioff and Weiss. I would’ve loved to see more from the character but it’s not to be. How Hizdahr ends in the books, we’ll find out, I suppose. What matters now is that another player in the game of thrones is lost, another would-be king has fallen.
Joel Fry however is only getting started. Coming into Game of Thrones, he had a strong history as a comedic actor, and exiting the show, that’s where he’s headed. The actor has a third season of ITV2 sitcom Plebs lined up, and he’s been cast in the NBC/Sky dramedy Apocalypse Slough starring Rob Lowe and Jenna Fischer.
It’s only the beginning for this immensely talented and charming young actor.
I’d say long live the king but Hizdahr never quite made it to the wedding day. So instead I’ll say thank you, Joel Fry, and that your performance was loved.
He did a crackin’ job. Bit disappointed he went so early. Think his character had a lot more potential.
Oh and Hodor…or something.
I’ll miss you, Hizdahr zo Loraq, I’ll miss you and your perfect hot face.
Another underrated performance! That whole awkward dignity thing he had going on allowed me to really enjoy a character I didn’t give a shit about in the books.
He’s so not dead…
I don’t like Hizdahr in the books at all, but Joel Fry made this character more likable in the show. Thank you and farewell!
He did well with a bit role. I think that his high point came when he got on the podium seemingly happy (which we never really had seen from him) and having taken care of a few things. I could practically see yellow feathers hanging from his mouth!
Emily,
You just think that because of the scene where he was dancing on the ceiling.
I felt a bit bad for this character. He lost his father, got pushed around by Dany quite a bit, was nearly fed to her dragons, got roped into a marriage, then finally stabbed in the chest by his own fellow nobles after defending them to Dany so much.
I liked his verbal sparring with Dany and Tyrion at Daznak’s Pit. I didn’t agree with everything Hizdahr said but I could see why he would think those things and he did make some good points. I also loved the look he gave Daario when the big fighter decapitated the small one. Fry is definitely good with facial expressions.
I was expecting him to be connected with the SOTH, and so did Daario given the look on his face when Hizdhar tried to tell Dany he knew a way out. I was surprised when he got stabbed (and so was Daario).
All in all, a solid performance of an interesting character. Fare thee well, Mr. Fry.
Well, Hizdahr’s unexpected death screws with so many theories I’ve latched onto from “The Meereenese Blot”. Oh well…stuff needs rethinking! (maybe)
Really, he’s dead? Hmmmm…who are these show!SotH then?
Thanks for bringing HzL to life, JF!
Wimsey,
I liked him from the point he said ‘Hello’ …….I’m sorry.
I´m not so sure he is dead no matter what VG says.
Harpy´s need a leader for that plotline to be resolved quickly and Dany to move on to Westeros.
He really made Hizdahr an interesting character. He showed the human, emotional reaction to Daeneerys taking over Mereen. Loved his scene in “Laws of Gods and Men,” probably my favorite, but his conversation with Tyrion and Daenerys defending the traditions of Mereen in “Dance of Dragons” was also very good. Wish we had more of him, although I really liked everything we did see of him this season.
I hope they don’t make him the leader of the Harpies. What I thought was appealing about his character in general was that he was a defender of his culture, without being a violent fanatic. He advocated for a violent and atrocious cultural institution, but he tried to fight for it through legal avenues. There were radical factions trying to kill Daenerys, but there were also conservatives who were advocates within the political system. That’s more interesting to me than every person in the city either being completely for her or wanting to kill her.
Tyrion’s “my father would have liked you” was 2 chapters of character development in 6 words.
TheTouchOfFrost,
Yeah, but his best stuff was when he was with that corp of officers in the Meerenese navy.
I really did not like the character in the books; however Fry managed in a short time to make it someone I could relate to and respect (his Antigone moment was beautifully done). I also love that shot of him above; he looks like a kid watching the first game of the season! That sort of look doesn’t really belong to someone wanting to kill his queen, is it? (or maybe it is; but his expression is priceless. Glad to hear that the actor is on his way to other big things – looking forward to seeing him again!
sorry double post
barbecue,
He dead.
Friendly reminder that Curtain Calls are for positive appreciation of the actor and their performance.
Dang. Joel and D&D improved on the character, imo. He seemed genuine and reasonable (heck he earned praise from Tyrion), shame that he actually did go out that way. *salutes*
wizardeyes,
Bah! And you probably think that the second “handsome young man” was Kevan, too!
😉
I couldn’t take his Hizdahr seriously at all due to him being so amazing in Plebs that’s all I think when seeing him.
Darn editing time ran out, sorry.
Pretty much sums it up for me too. I don’t think Hizdahr was an easy character to bring to life and make him look sincere in his actions.
Good luck Lio… er I mean Joel
Wimsey,
Apparently he’s older than he looks and was around for The Long Night. In fact, he was there All Night Long! O_o
Just noticed that he was in ‘Tamara Drewe’ as well, I think I was too distracted by Gemma Arterton to notice…..truly.
Wimsey,
Yes, awesome line.
I absolutely adored this performance. It transformed a character I’d found utterly unmemorable in the books into one I found fascinating and always looked forward to seeing. That comedic touch mentioned above was masterful, as was the slight trace of privileged liberal undergraduate “but the upper class has suffered TOO!” whine that occasionally slipped into his tone. Very familiar, very recognizable, and simultaneously both sympathetic and just a tad punchable — which I thought was perfect for the character. Superbly done.
Thanks Joel! Will be checking out your new NBC show fo sho
I liked book Hizdar, but I equally looked show Hizdar. He was a nuanced, and different character. The ambiguity he had, as well as a practicality and realist approach, made him very memorable.
I never fully bought the idea that he was a leader of the sons. it would have stretched credulity if he suddenly turned out to be some kind of scheming mastermind. The character wasn’t played that way at all, there was not even a hint of it. Would have been an “aha gotcha” moment and very cheap.
I say let’s celebrate the character he actually was rather than a conspiracy theory. Fry did a great job making him seem determined yet vulnerable, weak yet noble! Awesome job.
Forced into a political marriage with the person who murdered her father, bullied and threatened, and yet hated by a large chunk of the fandom; I will miss male Sansa.
Goodbye Joel.
This…. you said it much more eloquently than I could have come up with. Mr Fry made me care about a character I couldn’t stand in the books.
Great stuff from Joel, one of the truly under-appreciated actors in the series. Hizzy will be missed!
Plot twist xaro is the harpy
“sympathetic but still suspect, as well”
That was the final lesson I am taking away from the character. Wonderful job by Joel Fry; not easy to play an ambiguous character, who wants to defend his city’s traditions, while at the same time, enjoy blood sports in the arena with abandon. His glee in the small pit where Daeny first sees Jorah and Tyrion was in such contrast to her reactions, lol!
So that was the moment when I finally understood Hizdahr. Tywin would have been so proud to have a son like him, instead of the children he ended up with.
Yeah, if he had had more time, an extra scene could have had Dany (or anyone) feeling a note of sympathy for him, even as they coldly moved forward with the marriage. The best material he got was talking about burying his father. His death in the one time I’ve seen the sequence had the feel of one of the character deaths in the Buffy finale: also this person dies too.
Like Roose and Jorah he was another actor who has a sonorous voice and could read the phone book wonderfully. Would have liked a scene of him and Dany getting married like people doing their taxes.
I agree. Joel Fry made a bland character much more interesting. He wasn’t playing a great character, but he was great at playing that character.
Well, Jaime and Cersei were all about Family Lannister….. 😀
But, seriously, it does seem that Westerosian values on this score are found on Essos as well. Daeny has a lot of wheels to break.
Poor Hizdahr… forced into marrying the woman who killed his father. A Meereenese Sansa Stark.
I very much liked Hizdahr zo Loraq.
And just as his future, as well as the whole Meereen storyline, was getting interesting, he’s dead… I was looking forward to his marriage with Daenerys and the new era of Meereen. Alas it was not to be.
He had a MUCH better character introduction than in the books. I was surprised to like him so much, honestly. A great secondary character. Kinda sad we didn’t get to know more about him, but it wasn’t meant to be.
I am genuinely, deeply sad to be commenting on this curtain call, because this is one death that I didn’t want to happen. I enjoyed every scene with Fry’s Hizdahr and will miss his presence far more than I ever would have expected when I just had the books to go on.
To my mind, Hizdahr was the most improved character from books to show. The show version had to do the work of a whole range of book characters, for whom the show had neither the time nor the money. His scenes needed to show that Dany was out of her depth in a city she didn’t really understand, working with people she didn’t want to work with, wanting to do the right thing for her people but not really liking some of “her people” or the fact that many of them had a different vision of “the right thing.” In my opinion, the effort was a complete success. If anything, maybe it was a little too successful, as I found myself more interested in what was going to happen to Hizdahr than most of the other characters. Meereen is meant to be Dany’s story, but by “Kill the Boy” it had become Hizdahr’s story to me. When someone described him as some kind of alternate-universe male Sansa (out-of-touch young noble whose home is conquered and parent murdered, forced to marry the killer), it clicked: Sansa’s always been my favourite character, so those same qualities were appealing to me here.
Joel Fry did an amazing job. I want to echo Sue’s praise of his dignity in the role, combined with a subtle comic note. Doubtless, a good bit of the credit goes to the writers for their interesting, fresh twist on Hizdahr, but it would have floundered without the right actor. Joel Fry was definitely that actor.
Fry portrayed Hizdahr in a complex manner. He radiated a sense of patrician dignity and privilege. When he had to stay silent as Mossador spoke during Dany’s council meeting, it was hard to see if his outrage stemmed from having to listen to a former slave or from the fact that the allegations levelled against the great families were false (at least, in the case of his own family) and could get him killed just as unfairly as his father was. Probably both.
It was never easy to like him completely – Fry managed to make him a little bit annoying even during some of his most earnest, admirable moments – but on the whole he was very sympathetic. His first speaking scene, where he begged for the return of his father’s body, was perfect as an establishing moment. He remonstrated with Dany for punishing the Masters indiscriminately, but also refused to try to justify what many of them had approved. He presented the idea that at least one of the Masters, who up to this point had been presented as evil caricatures, was worthy of a son’s heartfelt love. He wasn’t too proud to kneel before Dany, but when the audience was over he took what seemed like the minimum-required-for-politeness number of backwards steps before turning and sweeping regally from the chamber his father had restored.
The scene at the Great Games showed how simultaneously reasonable and problematic he could be. If, as he claimed, he was an expert on the games who had watched many bouts over the years, then he also saw people robbed of their freedom forced to fight and kill. While he knew than many relished the role of pit fighter, there had to be plenty who never wanted it – but their anguish doesn’t seem to feature as something he felt the need to describe. At the same time, his armour-piercing questions challenged Dany in a way that she couldn’t adequately answer. She had a vision of sweeping over Slavers’ Bay with a wave of progress, but what if the people she liberated preferred their cultural values to hers? Were they only free to follow her path, not their own? Nothing that she, Daario or Tyrion said up there on the dais came close to the insight Hizdahr brought to the discussion, even though some of his comments had dark implications.
We were always kept in doubt as to what role Hizdahr might have had when it came to the Sons of the Harpy. Personally, I persistently argued for his innocence, because he was purposefully written as being out of Meereen (on a peace mission that he couldn’t have known Dany would send him on) when the attacks began. When Dany ordered the heads of the great families arrested, I thought that his protestations of innocence sounded completely sincere, and that his various reactions when faced with death-by-dragon showcased Ned’s conviction that a man can only be brave when he’s afraid. Even still, I couldn’t be completely sure that Hizdahr had nothing to do with the Sons of the Harpy until I saw them murder him, and even that hasn’t convinced plenty of people. I’ve seen some argue that he was double-crossed by them, and still others convinced that his stabbing was fake.
While the show tends to kill off even more characters than GRRM, and I suspected that Hizdahr would be one of the casualties of that policy, I’d held out a hope that maybe he would rule Meereen in Dany’s absence, hopefully using his sense that politics is the art of compromise in order to keep the city in balance. I thought that might give a positive end to Dany’s Slaver’s Bay story, but I guess that’s not to be. All that remains is to thank Joel Fry for his amazing portrayal and the writers for the material they gave him, and also to highlight the following comment, which reflects a lot of my feelings too.
As anyone should know, Dany wears the trousers. Hizdahr had the shopping to do, or wasn’t that obvious? He’s got great experience pushing a trolley round supermarkets, which UK show watchers may know already.
Are we left to presume that he’s died from woulds to the right-side of his chest? Maybe, in Essos, hearts are in that side of the torso rather than the left, as with most humans. Perhaps someone has a knowledge of Hizdahr’s medical records to have noted his heart isn’t where you’d normally plunge daggers?
We’ve seen some recover from worse. Inconsistency is no problem for directors, I’d guess. Maybe all it takes is someone saying, ‘Bugger it. He goes.’ and that’s that.
Got it! Hizdahr shopped at a rival store to his usual and Dany’s favourite! Clearly, it had to be listed in Sons of Harpies Bazaar!
He took a character from the books that I found quite annoying to read and turned him into a show character that was truly compelling to watch. I have great respect for Joel Fry.
I liked the Sansa comparison, but he does seem a lot less naïve than she was on the first season.
He managed to make Dany question herself a lot, he always acted in a diplomatic manner, and yet she treated him with nothing but scorn.
This doesn’t answer my question. That could be anybody in ADWD.
Yeah. I think he was Running With the Night,,,
I don’t think he’s dead.
Estelindis:
This was such a superb analysis of the role! Thank you for it, Estelindis (and thanks also for your kind words over at PTV).
This is a really astute observation. I never thought about it that way before, but the script really did put a terrific burden on Fry’s shoulders, didn’t it? His character had to manage somehow to stand in for an entire web of messy problems associated with the foreign occupation of a conquered city, in all its ambiguous and all-too-resonant complexity. That’s a huge amount of conceptual weight to put on a single character’s head. And yet, while Hizdahr’s character always read as ambiguous, he never read as vague. That must have been a tough line to walk, and it’s a credit to both actor and writers that they managed it so well.
afartherroom,
Why thank you! I’m glad that we appreciate the same things in Fry’s excellent performance. 🙂
I’ve been a lurker for quite some time at PTV and, before that, Television Without Pity, but recent episodes finally made me come out of the woodwork. A splendid community with many interesting posts to read. 🙂
Yeah I liked his first speech so found it odd that he seemed such a bumbling fool type
But someone up top has nailed it with the “awkward dignity” phrase and he did that excellently, obviously it would be highly awkward to have a Conqueror come in who killed everything in Astapor and then a Sellsword Captain spinning knives and joking about killing you every five seconds
Then there’s the fact he argued for Mereens “Barbaric” customs, on the march to Mereen we see Daario talk about understanding the people in terms of the tea slaves make from leaves, but this goes both ways, a ruler manages all demographics which includes the elites
This show gets into tricky territory because everyone seems to be stuck with equating the Masters with the Plantation owners and the SoH with the KKK it seems, but the irony wasn’t lost on this non-American about how Dany is constantly moralising about how bad the Masters were and then she is giving him crap about never having to defend himself and making snidy comments about burning Mereen to the ground when if you actually listen he is only defending his culture and traditional customes.
Obviously the whole thing is geared for the audience to be against Hizdahr and everyone is suspicious of him, even his comment about the “bigger person always prevailing” which was shown as a knock at Tyrion by the camera angles but Hizdahr was talking specifically about the fighting pits
A tricky role and well done to Joel Fry who has nailed what the show character was meant to be, this is very much a role you are meant to dislike him at first watch and then be more sympathetic once you realise he isn’t leader of the Harpies which is a tricky juggling act
I suspected he would be killed at the Pits when he wasn’t in the centre of the Pits with Dany and co, plus if they are putting Mance etc aside it doesen’t surprise me at all that they are putting whatever Hizdahrs book arc is about aside too
My money is on Whore Woman being the Mother/Queen of the Harpies, she is like a bizarro High Sparrow.
Sons of the Harpy in the show I am beginning to think are meant to be the Mereeneese version, eg they hate the masters for the same reason the Faith Militant doesen’t like Littlefinger, but rather than religion their focus seems to be Ghiscari Nationalism.
So between the Sparrows and Harpies it is about totally New Orders, eg a Theocracy in Kings Landing at least and a new Ghiscari Empire spawning out of the Slavers Bay city-states
He really did presented the perspective of the upper class, who, unlike the slaves, are born Meereenese and preserve the city’s traditions. I really liked the scene when Mossador (not sure about the name, he’s the former-slave councillor) argued against Hizdahr. With the only local nobleman assisting Dany gone, a gap is left to be filled.
Btw, I think there is a trend that male characters around Daenerys die earlier than their book counterparts. Beware, dudes, beware.
I like the fact that he turned out to just be a well-meaning conservative doing what he can to try to moderate the alien and let’s face it, sometimes brutal regime that had conquered and occupied his city. And that he ended up being killed by the more radical, extremist elements of the very people he was advocating for. The Sons of the Harpy would almost certainly have seen him as a dirty collaborator.
That he managed to convey all that whilst still being just that little bit annoying is a bonus.
He is much better in Plebs than he was in GoT .
Knowing Mr Fry from his charming UK comedy roles it was great to see him take on a dramatic role one with great effect!
One of those British actors that will be around forever I suspect. Also vale the man eye candy %
He was excellent and, I feel, underrated by reviewers. Too subtle for his own good, one might say. I really liked his delivery! He was always quiet when he spoke yet always purposeful as well.
I was really rooting for him to be a good guy! It would have been fantastic for Dany to yield even more respect towards him.
Good luck, Joel. Stay sexy.
Kath6152,
For ‘How Long’?. I reckon, ‘Forever’ 😛
Amazing comparison!
Eleanor,
Except Sansa gets rape and Hizzy gets the fighting pits. Not a great comparison.
I wasn’t expecting to be any bit endeared to Hizzy but Fry was a great surprise.
He kept Meereen fresh. That’s crazy!
Great face… glad it didn’t get a mask. Really looking forward to re-watching his scenes, knowing he was solid all along. Bravo!
I loved his facial expressions when listening to Daario’s boasting.
He had the difficult task of making people empathise with an upper class of slave owners.
But he was able.
He did a terrific job. He will be missed
Joel Fry was top-notched in all his scenes. He made a very complelling character of what is a totally forgetable one in the books.
His death was a real surprise !
Joel Fry gave a great performance as Hizdhar zo Loraq during his two seasons on the show. He helped bring a sense of dignity to the character that his counterpart in the novels did not possess. While Fry is primarily known for his comedic roles outside of his work on Game of Thrones, he was primarily called upon to handle dramatic material during his tenure on the show. I thought he held his own extremely well. Hizdhar’s two best scenes on the show – his earnest plea for the right to allow him to bury his father in “The Laws of Gods and Men”, and his tearful appeal for mercy in “Kill the Boy” – both required him to get down on his knees and convince both Dany and the audience of his sincerity. Fry handled those moments perfectly. I found the way he said the line “Apparently, I do not want to die at all” to be genuinely affecting, a convincing portrayal of a man coming to terms with his own mortality.
Despite Fry’s appeal – or perhaps because of it – there were many members of the audience who never trusted Hizdhar. That was primarily because he was the only Meereenese noble with a recognizable face or any semblance of personality on the show, and thus the only candidate for the hypothetical “Harpy”. It seems fairly obvious now, given his death at their hands, that he wasn’t their leader. But Hizdhar’s deep-seated ties to Meereen were an inextricable part of the character. As the city became an increasingly toxic place for Dany to reside, the shadow of suspicion fell heavily upon Hizdhar, fairly or not. His late entrance into the arena certainly raised red flags. Then he was stabbed, and any suspicions the audience may have harbored, valid or not, went up in smoke.
We may never know if Hizdhar was actually in league with the Sons of the Harpy. If he was, he may have been double-crossed, written off as collateral damage and abandoned to the chaos. Or perhaps he was truly innocent, an advocate for his city and its traditions who paid the ultimate price for his willingness to compromise. I would like to believe it was the latter. Knowing Dany as I do, I may safely regard Hizdhar’s willingness to make peace with the woman who killed his father as an admirable quality. Thus, I can remember the character of Hizdhar with some fondness, and salute Fry for the ways in which his performance inspired me to care about a character I never expected to have this much sympathy for in the show (and who didn’t deserve even a modicum of sympathy in the novels).
Joel Fry is a talented performer with a promising career ahead of him. I genuinely appreciate the work he did on Game of Thrones, and I wish him all the best.