These House Of The Dragon Theories Hint At What’s To Come In Season 2

Spoilers ahead for the House of the Dragon Season 1 finale. The House of the Dragon season finale saw the Dance of the Dragons kick off in violent fashion. After giving birth to a stillborn child, Rhaenyra suffered another heartbreaking loss later in the Oct. 23 episode: her son Lucerys, who was killed by Aemond and Vhagar at Storm’s End.

It’s clear from Rhaenyra’s face upon receiving the news that she’s ready for war, and there are plenty of House of the Dragon Season 2 theories that suggest what that might look like. Of course, you’ll have quite a lot of time to read them all as you wait for the next installment to arrive. In fact, if Season 2 follows the same production timeline as Season 1, we’re looking at a 2024 release date.

House of the Dragon is a prequel, so fans do know the long-term outcome of the Targaryen civil war — it’s a little series called Game of Thrones. But there’s still more than a century of Westeros drama, dragons, and family strife to get through before House of the Dragon catches up, and the HBO series isn’t afraid to make some changes from the source material along the way. “The fun of adapting Fire & Blood ... is that there isn’t as much detail and information there,” showrunner Ryan Condal told The New York Times, adding that certain storytelling choices might “bring a lot of pitchforks and torches out for [him] from certain segments of the fandom.”

What might those choices be? For now, we can only guess. Here are some of the most interesting House of the Dragon theories about Season 2 so far.

Lucerys Actually Survives

Still reeling after Lucerys’ death? If you’re an optimist, there’s a chance that he might have survived Aemond Vhagar’s violent attack. In Fire & Blood, it’s generally believed that Lucerys did die — either he was swallowed by Vhagar or his body washed up on the shore of Storm’s End. However, there is some ambiguity: in the same paragraph, George R. R. Martin mentions in-universe claims that Lucerys survived the attack but lost his memory in the fall and spends the rest of his days as a fisherman.

Several Twitter users shared that they were clinging to this theory — which, if it’s revealed to be true in Season 2, might serve to soften the blow of House of the Dragon’s latest tragedy.

User @CinePhoenix built upon this theory, adding that he might even be the ancestor of a future Game of Thrones character, Jaqen H’ghar.

A Different Character Gets Revenge On Aemond

OK, but let’s say Lucerys really is dead (which he probably is). In the book, Daemon avenges him by killing Aemond in a duel aboard their respective dragons — sadly, he reportedly loses his own life in the process. But according to several Twitter users, it would be a sweet twist of events if someone else killed Aemond instead: Rhaena Targaryen.

As @easybakeoven622 points out, Aemond has now taken her fiancé and her mother’s dragon, Vhagar.

@archypuppy agreed, writing that killing Aemond would be the “best change from the books,” where Rhaena does not play an active role in the Dance of the Dragons. @oswilu6 hopes that Rhaena gets a dragon in Season 2, at least.

We’ll Meet Alicent & Viserys’ Missing Child

It’s not so much a theory as a guarantee that Alicent and Viserys’ fourth child, Daeron, comes into play on House of the Dragon in the future. “He does exist,” Condal told Variety. “No worries, everybody. He’s the youngest son. He’s warded off at Oldtown to Hobert Hightower and soon to Ormond Hightower, who is Hobert’s nephew, who becomes Lord of Oldtown ... When he is relevant to be mentioned — and he will be — he will be mentioned.”

Redditor u/yuh____boi suggested that Daeron could be a way to introduce Oldtown on House of the Dragon from the perspective of someone who lives there. U/SansaBlackwood agreed, positing that the show’s been “waiting to introduce Oldtown in all of its glory and give us a good account of the city that we never got in GOT.”

Aegon’s Kids Aren’t Really His

Speaking of kids, Redditor u/Southern_Dig_9460 proposes that the real father of Helaena’s twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera, is not Aegon but Aemond. “When they were kids Aemond said he’d be happy to marry Helena it would keep the bloodline pure,” the user points out. “Aegon found the idea repulsing.”

u/Southern_Dig_9460 points out several other clues about Aemond and Helaena’s theorized affair — adding that it would give House of the Dragon even more thematic significance if true. “Hypocrisy seems to be a theme the writers of the show are trying to convey for the Greens,” they write, “and what’s more hypocritical than their King having bastards that are next in line or Aegon and Helena having a open marriage like Rhaenyra’s was.”

A New Character Will Come Between Rhaenyra & Daemon

In Fire & Blood, Nettles is a young dragonrider who is rumored to have an affair with Daemon — causing Rhaenyra to call for the girl to be killed. Redditor u/Adorabelle88, however, hopes that the on-screen iteration of Nettles’ character will have a purely platonic relationship with Daemon and be “wholeheartedly devoted to the Blacks/Rhaenyra.” When Rhaenyra becomes paranoid of the pair’s closeness, this will be “Daemon's tipping point,” u/Adorabelle88 writes.

u/Mugen_9978 suggests that Nettles and Daemon might actually end up together, too, even though Daemon is believed to fall to his death after killing Aemond. Clearly, there are a lot of ambiguous deaths in Fire & Blood!