House of the Dragon episode 4, AKA ‘A Dance of Dragons’ featured the first serious battle of the second season and tbh, we're not sure we'll ever be the same. If you haven't watched the full episode yet, be warned there are major HOTD spoilers ahead.
After being appointed Hand of the King, Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) decided that the Greens’ best move was to ambush the Blacks at Rook’s Rest. Cole planned to lay siege, forcing Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) to send one of Team Black's dragons to defend the smaller, unsecured castle. He would then signal Aemond (Ewan Mitchell), who was hiding nearby with his dragon, Vhagar, to attack.
Unfortunately for the Blacks, Rhaenyra fell right into Criston's hand and after being persuaded not to go herself, she allowed Rhaenys (Eve Best) to fly to Rook's Rest with her dragon, Meleys. It seemed like all was unfolding as intended for Team Green, though what Criston had not accounted for was the fact that King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney), would join the party aboard his own dragon, Sunfyre, and battle it out with Meleys.
Knowing how dangerous it would be for the king, Criston didn't want Aegon to join him up front in battle, with this one vital detail clearly throwing a major spanner in the works. Meleys quickly gained the advantage on Sunfyre (a younger dragon with no battle experience), and for a moment it felt like Rhaenys might actually win. However, then Aemond and Vhagar rocked up.
But after that cliffhanger ending, we need to know – is Aegon dead? Here's what to know about Aegon's fate according to Fire & Blood if you can't face only getting that sweet, sweet closure when the next episode drops.
Is Aegon dead?
Defying Aemond and Criston Cole's initial plan, Aegon took it upon himself to insert himself directly into an insanely tense battle.
Luckily (or potentially not so luckily) for Aegon, his brother Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) turned up aboard Vhagar. The biggest and oldest dragon in the Seven Kingdoms, Vhagar is no stranger to battle. After commanding her to breathe fire at Meleys to prevent her from further attacking Sunfyre, though this plan worked, it also gave Sunfyre a vital hit that led to him – and Aegon – falling out of the sky.
It's TBC whether Aemond's decision to drop a call of 'dracarys' was made with the intention of also harming Aegon. We'll leave that one up for you to decide. We will, however, also remind you that should something happen to Aegon, his crown would likely pass to his brother Aemond, so there's that.
When Criston found Aemond in the forest after the battle, he asked “Where’s his Grace?”, to which Aemond responds by pointing towards Aegon – who is seen lying on the ground with Sunfyre wrapped around him.
Cue the credits, and our uncertainty over whether or not Aegon is alive or not.
Did Aegon die at Rook's Rest in the books?
While we haven't seen the next episode, we do know that House of the Dragon is based on George R.R. Martin's books – and if the show were to follow the original storyline, it would mean that Aegon is in fact still alive.
As per Fire & Blood, Aegon survives the battle – and though only escaping with bad burns and some broken bones, Sunfyre is so badly maimed that she's not even able to be moved back to King's Landing. Aegon is taken back to recover, and while he's in a bad way, Aemond steps up to take up ruling duties in the interim.
That said, while this is the storyline the book features, we can't know how closely the show will follow this. Looks like we'll have to wait another week to find out for sure!
