Heartbreaking Truth Behind Both HOTD's Rhaenyra And Aegon Mental State

As soon as House of the Dragon was announced, it was clear that the story of the Game of Thrones spin-off would focus heavily on the family relationships within the Targaryen family.

Of course, there will be no shortage of political drama, battles, and all sorts of twisted motives. But the family story comes first.

The Targaryens are not your average family, that's for sure. This is the family where the marriage between cousins is pitted against the romance between the uncle and his niece, and all of this is happening while they are fighting for the throne.

If you think this is a lot to handle, you would be right: no child in such a family could possibly grow up without some trauma.

This goes for both Aegon II and his older sister Rhaenyra. Though they end up representing two different teams fighting for the throne, their motivations stem from the same childhood trauma.

Both were raised by King Viserys I, and both suffered from the same sense of being completely unwanted.

While Rhaenyra always seemed to have her father on her side, she was long convinced that her claim to the throne would be challenged.

Thanks to the many nobles around her plotting against her succession, the young princess was certain that her father would change his mind and name Aegon the heir, which was proven to be his true intention in episode 4 of season 1.

As soon as Rhaenyra makes a mistake, her father quickly wishes to name Aegon II the heir instead. If he didn't think it would further destabilize the realm, he would do it without a second thought.

Aegon, on the other hand, never really felt loved or wanted by his father. Being the king's first-born son should be a big deal, but all he got from his mother, Alicent Hightower, was yelling and some tough love.

So tough, in fact, that the boy has grown very distant from having anything to do with the throne.

He was so sure that his father did not care about him that he did not believe his name was mentioned by him on his deathbed. Which it wasn't. Which just goes to prove how far Viserys really is from his children.

Now that King Viserys I is dead and his son Aegon II has been crowned against his wishes, the battle between him and Rhaenyra will begin. Keep an eye out for news and behind-the-scenes updates to make sure you do not miss the release date for House of the Dragon season 2.