House of the Dragon: What’s Wrong With King Viserys?

As “House of the Dragon” units up the years-long battle that may tear House Targaryen aside, there are already hints that the royal home is struggling to maintain it collectively. The king, Viserys I, finds himself coping with a nasty harm, and it might symbolize what’s to return.

King Viserys’s Injury

At the finish of the first episode, Viserys cuts his hand on one of the sharp edges of the Iron Throne (keep in mind, the throne is actually made up of a thousand swords of these conquered throughout Aegon I Targaryen’s conquest of Westeros). By the time the second episode rolls round, it is clear that the drugs of the day is not doing sufficient to assist him. His hand is contaminated, and the maesters attempt some pretty gross remedies to avoid wasting his fingers, that are clearly decaying.

The Symbolism of King Viserys’s Injury

The symbolism of Viserys being reduce by his throne would appear pretty simple. In George R.R. Martin’s books, the folks of Westeros have a superstition about the Iron Throne: it apparently can “choose” those that sit on it with out being really worthy. It is also reportedly constructed as it’s, with so many sharp edges, as an emblem of the warning required to be a monarch. Sitting on the throne is a fragile job that requires warning and forethought to keep away from harm; it’s meant as a symbolic warning towards impulsivity in all issues of state.

The implication of his harm, by these requirements, is that Viserys is being judged and located wanting. This appears very true seeing as the harm occurs after he makes the resolution to let his spouse, Aemma, die a painful and gruesome death, all in hopes of getting a dwelling son from her. As the harm worsens, it can be learn as a judgment on Viserys failing to assume issues by way of; as an alternative of focusing his efforts on his dwelling inheritor, Rhaenyra, he is listening to manipulative recommendation from his numerous council members to remarry.

What Happens to King Viserys in the Books?

In the books, Viserys is just not the Targaryen king greatest recognized for being injured on the Iron Throne. That belongs to two other kings: his ancestor, Maegor, and his distant descendant, Aerys II. Maegor, generally known as “The Cruel” for his brutal reign, was discovered useless on the throne, having apparently bled out, and rumors swirled that the throne itself had killed him for his violence and unworthiness. Centuries later, the final Targaryen king, Aerys II (aka the “Mad King,” Daenerys’s father), was nicknamed “King Scab” for consistently having half-healed wounds from slicing himself on the throne, particularly as his insanity worsened.

The “Dance of the Dragons” civil conflict is kicked off by the succession disaster following Viserys’s dying, and along with his harm, it looks like “House of the Dragon” is already getting ready us for his mortality. In the ebook “Fire and Blood,” nevertheless, Viserys truly is the uncommon Targaryen to die a really peaceable dying, but it surely stays to be seen if the TV model will maintain that plot level or make it extra dramatic.