House of the Dragons had a Muppets Easter egg in episode 6

One of the biggest challenges in adapting is Fire & BloodGame of Thrones’ prequel is more history than fiction. This is because it lacks the quirky moments and meta fantasy jokes found throughout A Song of Ice and Fire. George R.R. Martin still finds ways to weave joyful surprises into the book’s detailed Targaryen history lessons.

There’s one particular tidbit from Fire & Blood that I’ve been dying to see make it to screen all season, and in House of the DragonEpisode 6 finally had it. But if you weren’t already aware of this potential Easter egg and obsessively looking out for it, then you probably missed the fact that House of the Dragon just made a Muppets reference.

[Ed. note: The following contains spoilers for House of the Dragon and minor spoilers for Fire & Blood.]

Ser Lyonel Strong raises a border dispute among two riverlands houses, Blackwood & Bracken, during the council meeting. Alicent asks why this issue isn’t being addressed by Lord Grover Tully, to which Lyonel explains that Grover’s unnamed son is unofficially ruling over the riverlands now.

Although the council moved quickly to other issues, my thoughts remained tangled in this little back-and forth because I finally got the chance to mention Lord Grover.

Grover isn’t unique enough to be considered a Muppets reference by itself. The name Grover Tully is more in keeping with Westeros names such as Aegon, Larys or Viserys. (If anything, it’s characters named Jason that immediately stand out.) But while we’ve only gotten a Grover reference so far, this is just the first step towards introducing an entire Sesame Street-themed family tree.

Image: PBS/Sesame Workshop

Fire & Blood, Martin writes as the book’s authorial maester that Ser Grover Tully has a grandchild, Ser Elmo Tully. Ser Elmo had two more children, Kermit (and Oscar) later. This isn’t a joke, and I don’t want you to be disbelieved. George R.R. Martin really named three entire generations of Tullys after The Muppets and it’s inarguably hilarious.

What’s the best thing? The gag doesn’t even stop there. Martin looks deeper into the Sesame St extended reference. Fire & Blood when describing how “green” Kermit is as a soldier and Oscar’s “prickly” personality.

As they are now, riverlords were often fractious and obnoxious. Kermit Tully, Lord of Riverrun, was their liege lord, and nominally commander of their host…but it must be remembered that his lordship was but nineteen years of age, and ‘green as summer grass,’ as the northmen might say. Oscar, his brother, had killed three men in the Muddy Mess, and was knighted at the battleground afterwards. But he was greener and still cursed by the prickly pride that is so prevalent among second-born sons.

In the books, Kermit and Oscar make up two-thirds of “The Lads,” a trio of young Riverlands leaders who also have an objectively hilarious name. In the series, we all know that war is on its way to Westeros. Fire & BloodGrover, Elmo and The Lads are all pulled in to the Dance of Dragons at some point.

So while the mention of Ser Grover Tully is a pristine Muppets Easter egg, it’s also possible that the reference is sowing the seeds for the eventual on-screen introduction of the entire Muppet Tully family. Given the fact that Grover’s two sons in the book went unnamed, this also means there’s a great opportunity for House of DragonTake Fire & Blood’s best joke and make it their own. If the HBO series decides, for whatever reason, to introduce Grover’s mysterious unnamed sires, maybe the writers will gift the world with Statler and Waldorf Tully, Gonzo and Rizzo Tully, or — if we’reIt is really lucky — Dr. Teeth and Janice Tully.