Viserys breathes one last breath as he says “my love,” but he is of course referring to his first wife, Aemma, of who he has visions while on his deathbed. Tune into the finale of
This isn't the case, though: Viserys thought he was talking to Rhaenyra. "I saw him last night, before he … he told me he wished for Aegon to be king," Alicent tells her father Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King. "It is the truth, uttered with his own lips, his last words to me and I was the only one to hear it.
As he lies on his deathbed, Alicent comes into his chambers to give him his medicine. As she does, Viseys, in a confused daze, starts to tell Alicent Aegon's prophecy about the Long Night and the Prince that was Promised. He breathlessly tells Alicent that Aegon was right and, “The Song of Ice and Fire.
After Alicent leaves Viserys's bed chambers, the king groans in pain. "No more. No more," he says in his final scene, reaching one hand up above him. Before taking his last breath, he exhales the words, "My love."
Viserys tells his daughter, Princess Rhaenyra, that Aegon “foresaw the end of the world of men. It is to begin with a terrible winter, gusting out of the distant North.
Not only does this prove Rhaenyra's legitimacy to herself, but it also reveals more about the nature of Daemon and Viserys' relationship. Frankly, Viserys didn't tell Daemon about Aegon's dream because he didn't trust him with it or believe he would give it the dedication it required. It's part of why...
Viserys' mistake here is not adequately preparing his daughter for the realities that come with ruling a kingdom. His quest for peace at any cost is of no use to Rhaenyra, who faces an existential war to secure her claim to the throne. This mistake may not be Viserys' alone. However, he could have done so much better.
“My own face is no longer a handsome one, if indeed it ever was,” the skeletal, one-eyed Viserys tells his loved ones.
The ring that Viserys kissed was the one Queen Aemma was wearing when she died.
Succumbing to His Leprosy
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, actor Paddy Considine revealed that his character was suffering from a form of leprosy, which would be incurable at the time.
Viserys' Last Words
In a romantic final bow, Viserys reaches out and whispers, “My love.” He's referring to his late wife, Queen Aemma Targaryen, who died in childbirth years ago, implying that he sees her and is reuniting with her in death.
It's not caused by greed or pride or somebody getting their head surprise-sliced in half; it's a genuine and regrettable mistake. On his deathbed, King Viserys mistakes the person he's talking to, and – due to the multiple Aegons situation – they mistake the person he's talking about.
Aegon II Targaryen, also known as Aegon the Elder, was the sixth Targaryen king to sit the Iron Throne, succeeding his father, Viserys I Targaryen, as Lord of the Seven Kingdoms.
Leprosy is a slow moving disease
The show has got the speed of the disease correct. King Viserys has lived with leprosy for many decades and the disease has grown very slowly.
Viserys literally says “Don't you remember? Aegon… his dream… the song of ice and fire…”, and he never says the name Aegon again in his speech. And he talked about Aegon the Conqueror's dream with Rhaenyra at the end of episode 1.
The Mad King was Aerys II Targaryen, not Viserys I Targaryen.
Since the beginning of the show, House of the Dragon, King Viserys' health is steadily worsening. He even ends up losing two fingers in a bid to stop what is affecting him from spreading further.
He is, presumably, farting out of fear. But it's so jarring, a comedic beat buried in the middle of a disgusting and brutal act.
As you'll know from the first two eps, King Viserys suffers from an infection that eats away at his flesh (not nice, we know). And due to the two-year time jump in episode 3, it was noticed that his illness has since progressed, causing him to lose two fingers on his hand. Dragonstone: from set to screen.
Viewers see the illness slowly take over Viserys's health as he loses strength and is unable to heal from minor cuts induced from the razor-sharp edges of the Iron Throne. Over time, various extremities are removed from Viserys, including fingers, an entire arm, and one of his eyeballs.
One of the episodes most curious moments is the sex scene between Viserys and the slave girl Doreah in the bathtub.
As of Episode 8, King Viserys and his daughter Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) are the only ones who know about the Song of Ice and Fire, a prophetic dream of their ancestor Aegon the Conqueror which holds that only a Targaryen leader can avert the White Walker invasion that will one day happen in Game of Thrones.
Paddy Considine, who plays Viserys, has recently explained that his character is suffering with leprosy. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly's West of Westeros podcast, he revealed: “He's actually suffering from a form of leprosy. His body is deteriorating, his bones are deteriorating.
Viserys had a form of leprosy in House of the Dragon.
He's just, unfortunately, got this thing that's taken over his body.
Viserys' deterioration happened slowly. First, it was a few festering cuts from sitting on the Iron Throne, then it was some missing fingers. After the 10-year time jump in Episode 6, he lost an entire arm.