House of the Dragon Episode 6 introduced us to a plethora of new characters. Some of them will be playing significant roles in the road to the Targaryen civil war, popularly known as the Dance of Dragons.
Most of these characters are children as of now, after the 10-year time jump. We’ve been introduced to Viserys and Alicent’s children, Rhaenyra’s sons, and Daemon and Laena’s daughters.
As it goes without saying, most of our new generation Targaryens and Velaryons are dragon riders, having their own dragons who answer only their owners’ calls. So, let’s meet all the children in House of the Dragon as well as their personal dragons!
1. Viserys Targaryen and Alicent Hightower’s Children
Viserys Targaryen and Alicent Hightower have four children of their own in Fire & Blood, three of whom have been introduced in Episode 6 of House of the Dragon. As of now, we’re not sure if we’ll see their fourth son, Daeron. Nevertheless, these children are going to be some of the most important characters in the series, since they are a threat to Rhaenyra’s succession.
Aegon II, the firstborn son of Viserys and Alicent, is the most significant in this regard, considering that it is he who will fight the civil war with Rhaenyra. Apart from that, in the book, all of Alicent’s children have their own roles to play in the game of politics.
I. Aegon II Targaryen
Named after arguably the greatest Targaryen to have existed, Aegon the Conqueror, Prince Aegon is the firstborn son of King Viserys and Queen Alicent. Being the King’s firstborn male heir, a certain section of the realm expects him to ascend to the throne after Viserys.
In the episode, Aegon is introduced as arrogant and cruel, having no consideration even for his own brothers. If you’ve watched Game of Thrones, Aegon’s scenes will definitely remind you of Joffrey Baratheon. Though it is too early to equate him to Joffrey, especially if you’ve not read the book.
Aegon II rides Sunfyre the Golden. He was the only dragon Aegon ever rode, and Sunfyre too never answered to anyone apart from Aegon. In the book, Martin describes Sunfyre as the most beautiful dragon to have ever existed, with his golden scales and golden wings. Sunfyre was mentioned once in Episode 6 of House of the Dragon, confirming that Aegon had already claimed him by this time.
II. Helaena Targaryen
Halaena is Alicent and Viserys’ only daughter in the series and in the book. She is introduced in the episode as quiet and eccentric, spending a lot of her time talking to herself and giving attention to minute details.
Rhaenyra even proposes to get her married to her eldest son, Jacaerys Velaryon, in a council meeting. So, ten years down the line, women in Westeros were still getting married off according to their parent’s wishes. None of us expected that to change, did we?
In the book, Princess Helaena rode Dreamfyre, a dragon who has been mentioned earlier in the series. Remember when Daemon Targaryen stole a dragon’s egg for his non-existent child? It was Dreamfyre’s egg.
Before Helaena, Princess Rhaena Targaryen rode Dreamfyre. The she-dragon is described as blue and silver in color, and majestic in appearance. I am waiting to see him in the series, to be honest. Also, theories suggest that it was Dreamfyre’s eggs that gave birth to Drogon, Rhaegar, and Viserion, all of whom belonged to we-all-know-who!
We are not sure if Helaena has already begun riding Dreamfyre in Episode 6, since nothing was mentioned.
III. Aemond Targaryen
Aemond Targaryen is the youngest child of Viserys and Alicent, out of the ones who have been introduced in the series so far. As we saw, he does not have a dragon yet. The young Prince seemed quite conscious about this, something we saw Aegon took full advantage of.
Though Aemond is seen without a dragon right now, he eventually ends up riding Vhagar, the largest dragon to have ever existed. This happens after Laena Velaryon’s (who we see riding Vhagar in Ep 6) death (which also happens in Ep 6). Aemond will play a significant role in the upcoming Dance of Dragons, where he destroys much of Rhaenyra’s army while riding Vhagar.
2. Rhaenyra Targaryen and Laenor Velaryon’s Children
Pardon me, I forgot to add “officially’! Well, Episode 6 already dropped a number of hints about this, but it seems like Laenor is not the biological father of Rhaenyra’s children. Rumors suggest that it is Harwin Strong who fathered them.
This is not new, considering we already knew of Laenor and Rhaenyra’s agreement. Since Laenor is gay, he may have not fathered any of Rhaenyra’s children. This is further confirmed when we see Jacaerys and Lucerys’ hair, which is black, while both Laenor and Rhaenyra have blonde hair.
It took Ned Stark an entire season to figure out that Joffrey is not a Baratheon, so I guess we can assume that genetics aren’t exactly the strong suit of the Westerosi people.
I. Jacaerys Velaryon
Popularly known as Jace, Jacaerys is the firstborn son of Princess Rhaenyra and Ser Laenor, officially. He is most likely the biological son of Ser Harwin Strong. In Episode 6, we see him fighting his uncle, Aegon II.
When Rhaenyra gets crowned Queen during the Dance of the Dragons, she names Jacaerys as her heir. Jace rode a dragon named Vermax. Jacaerys has an important role to play in the book, and since the series has been devotedly following the book so far, we can expect him to play a pivotal part in upcoming episodes.
II. Lucerys Velaryon
Lucerys, better known as Luke, is the second son of Rhaenyra and Laenor, whom we see dragon training in Episode 6. He rides the dragon Arrax, whom we see him claiming his right on.
Lucerys is also the reason behind Aemond losing one of his eyes in the book. I am hoping the makers have a proper scene planned for this incident, so I won’t spoil anything for you. Both Jace and Luke aren’t as innocent as they seem, though.
III. Joffrey Velaryon
The youngest son of Rhaenyra is not named after a cruel king from the future. He is named after Joffrey Lonmouth, Laenor’s boyfriend who was killed by Cristen Cole before Laenor and Rhaenyra’s wedding. Joffrey eventually rides a dragon named Tyraxes.
3. Daemon Targaryen and Laena Velaryon’s Children
The last group of kids we see in House of the Dragon Episode 6 are of Laena and Daemon. During the ten-year time jump, Daemon ended up marrying Laena, and they had twin daughters, Baela and Rhaena.
I. Baela Targaryen
Baela reminded me of Arya Stark the moment I saw her, with her tomboyish appearance and more interest in dragons than marriage. In Fire & Blood, she famously cut her hair short so it doesn’t fly in her face while she is riding. I wonder why Arya never idolized her!
Baela’s dragon is called Moondancer. She was betrothed to Jacaerys Velaryon in the book, which is most likely what will also happen in the series.
II. Rhaena Targaryen
Rhaena was named after Princess Rhaena, daughter of Aenys I. She is the twin sister of Baela, whom we also see without a dragon in the series. However, she will eventually end up riding a dragon named Morning.
4. About House Of The Dragon
House of the Dragon is the prequel series to HBO’s blockbuster Game of Thrones based on George R. R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood.
Set three hundred years before the events of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon will show Westeros under the Targaryen family’s rule before the dragons went extinct. It will follow the Dance of the Dragons, the Targaryen civil war between siblings Aegon II and Rhaenyra, who fought for the throne after the death of their father, Viserys I.
Directed by Ryan Condall and Miguel Sapochnik, the show stars Paddy Considine as Viserys I Targaryen, Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen, Tom Glynn-Craney as Aegon II Targaryen, Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower, Steve Toussaint as Corlys Velaryon, Eve Best as Rhaenys Velaryon, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, Fabien Frankel as Criston Cole, and Graham McTavish.
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