3 Reasons Why Everyone's Favorite in HotD is Actually a Terrible Person
One reason per child.
King Viserys Targaryen, portrayed by Paddy Considine in House of the Dragon, is one of the most beloved characters in the show... despite being an objectively bad parent.
The fact that he only really loved Rhaenyra out of all his children was obvious to pretty much everyone watching. That's why some people in the fandom can't wrap their heads around the fact that Viserys remains someone's favorite.
Tumblr user bbygirl-aemond has come up with three reasons to reconsider your love for the king, and all of them involve his children who are not Rhaenyra.
Aegon
From the very beginning of the series, we know that Viserys wants a male heir; in fact, he allows his wife Aemma to be murdered in order to have a son, only to have him die some time later. But when he finally gets the son he always wanted from Alicent, he doesn't love him and makes him feel neglected.
The way he almost never interacts with his children does not quite match the amount of trouble he put so many people through to have them.
Aemond
Aegon may not be the most pleasant person in the world, and we get that. He never really wanted to be king, he prefers sex and alcohol; well, what about Aemond? But even though he loves dragons and is an avid student, Aemond, like his older brother, never received any love from his father.
Helaena
Finally, when it comes to Helaena Targaryen, she is "the dragon dreamer Viserys had always hoped to be, the holder of the Valyrian magic he so revered," as the fan put it. Yet Viserys never loved her back; essentially, all three of his children were ignored by him in favor of Rhaenyra — the very person Viserys was so reluctant to make his official heir.
"I will rage forever at how much Viserys should have loved these kids," the fan continues. "Every single one of them embodied one of his deepest hopes and dreams. And yet he spent the rest of his miserable life punishing them for his own goddamn decision to bring them into this world."
Well, we can love Viserys all we want, but look where it got us? The actual Dance of the Dragons, a bloody civil war that will erupt in the upcoming season.
House of the Dragon season 2 will begin filming this March, with a premiere date to be determined by HBO later.