The Real Reason Why You Won't See Viserys Ride a Dragon
It's notable that we won't see King Viserys ride a dragon in House of the Dragon – but why is that the case?
Maybe he was too old?
It's a possibility. And he's definitely not a well man. Ok, so the TV show and the books disagree on the exact reason for his ill health – but he's not really in a great physical state to be riding a dragon.
However, if he already had a bond with a dragon prior to falling ill, we'd at least have the possibility of seeing him ride it at some point.
Could it be that Viserys is not really an active king? He's not looking to expand his kingdom or defend what he has, so is there any real need for him to have a dragon? Not really.
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Perhaps he just has other priorities – like producing or determining his heir to the. This is arguably the biggest issue throughout his reign – and one that would take up far more of his time than joy-riding a dragon.
These are all plausible. And there may be an element of truth in each of them. But the real reason we never see Viserys ride a dragon is in the Targaryen DNA. Viserys, as all Targaryen kings appear to be, is obsessed with his legacy.
What he does ranks below how he will be remembered. And this means we need to rewind a few years, to before the beginning of House of the Dragon, to find the reason that Viserys has no dragon.
In 93 AC, Viserys bonded with the mighty Balerion – known as the "Black Dread". Balerion is the biggest, most powerful, and most revered dragon ever. He was ridden by some of the greatest names in the history of Westeros, including Aegon the Conqueror, Maegor the Cruel, and Princess Aerea.
And, at a ripe old age, he also bonded with Prince Viserys. Now, Viserys only rode Balerion on three occasions. By the time they bonded, the great beast had long put his best days behind him and was over 200 years old.
Which begs the question of why Viserys bonded with him in the first place. And that takes us back to his legacy.
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We may never see him ride a dragon, but history will declare that Viserys bonded with Balerion. It will tell how he was the last dragonrider to ride the "Black Dread". And it will align him with great kings like Aegon the Conqueror.