Is [REDACTED] the genuine him?
There are several ways to pass away in House of the Dragon. The list includes beheadings, poisonings, sepsis, starvation, and illnesses. The most obvious hazard seems to be a sword through the gut, but even if one should avoid such weapons, there are other unplanned hangings to be concerned about, such as the hangings of the king’s rat-catchers when one of them was thought to have committed murder. Furthermore, I haven’t even touched on King Viserys’s outcome.
Still, there aren’t many more terrible outcomes than dying from dragonflame, even on Dragon’s distorted spectrum. especially if you are not killed by the dragonflame. Which leads us to the reason we’re all assembled here today: King Aegon II has experienced something, though it’s unclear exactly what.
Alright, so everyone seems to agree that Aegon isn’t (or ever was) a good guy. (Even if the bar is on the ground in the made-up world created by George R. R. Martin. Perhaps beneath it.) By HotD season 2 episode 4, however, Aegon appears to have realized he is the worst of the worst. He concludes that the only way to stop everyone from undermining, demoralizing, criticizing, and hating him is to… storm into the battle at Rook’s Rest without alerting even his own army. Riding into the battle on his dragon, Sunfyre, he only meets resistance from Princess Rhaenys and Meleys, who are too preoccupied with Prince Aemond and Vhagar’s awful fury. The younger brother of Aegon, Aemond, is not only shocked by Aegon’s interference, but he also perceives it as one more proof of his sibling’s incapacity. Surely, no tactician like that belongs in the throne.
Aegon is certain his brother has come to his aid as he sees the three dragons and their riders coming together in the sky. But when he sees that Aemond is not acting in a heroic but a calculated manner, his expression dims: The blast that results from the prince’s instruction to Vhagar to unleash fire on Aegon and Rhaenys destroys any remaining resolve in Sunfyre. Sunfyre’s body is left broken and smoking in the forest as the king and his mount fall to the ground.
However, Aegon’s physique is what demands our attention today. We observe as Aemond is still brandishing his sword while Criston Cole struggles up the slope to Sunfyre’s crash zone. There, the prince retrieves Aegon’s dagger from the woodland floor and points to his still body, which is framed by Sunfyre’s own quivering silhouette. However, it isn’t made clear to us whether this body is actually a corpse. As Cole looks about at the debris, his expression fills with grief, but it’s possible that this is due to Aegon’s disfigurement or death. In any case, Aegon II will not exit Rook’s Rest’s battlefield in the same manner that he arrived.
If you’re not happy with such a cliffhanger, there are some textual hints that if Aegon will live to witness episode five. The usurper indeed exist in Martin’s Fire & Blood, the novel that served as the inspiration for House of the Dragon, despite having “broken ribs, a broken hip, and burns that covered half his body.” Worst of all, his left arm. The king’s armor had melted into his skin due to the intense heat of the dragonflame. Not enjoyable!
Martin goes on, “King Aegon II did not die, despite the fact that some claim he prayed for death due to the excruciating pain his burns caused him.” His Grace was returned to King’s Landing in a closed litter to conceal the severity of his wounds, and he remained in bed for the remainder of the year. While maesters gave Aegon remedies and milk of the poppy to help him, Septons prayed for him and he slept nine out of ten hours, awakening just to have a small meal before falling back asleep.
In Fire & Blood, an injured Aegon continues to rule in name—he does, after all, “rise from his bed”—but Aemond assumes the role of Prince Regent and Protector of the Realm, leaving Cole as the Hand of the King. Though “unable to fly with his injured wing,” Sunfyre also makes it out alive, ending up stuck in “the fields beyond Rook’s Rest, crawling through the ashes like some great golden wyrm.” A terrible conclusion for a beast of such grandeur.
If Aegon were to be killed off in House of the Dragon so soon, it would be a dramatic departure from the original story, especially considering what’s left to come. However, showrunner Ryan Condal appears to be leaving us after taking a few bold artistic liberties already wondering until the release of episode 5. In any case, the lesson is clear: there is never any assurance as to who will survive or perish when dragons are involved.