The third season of “House of the Dragon” has just come to an end, and wow, that was a wild ride. It was full of fire, battles, and some truly sad moments. The entire season felt like a major turning point for the series. It began with Rhaenyra Targaryen sitting on the Iron Throne, but her time as queen was anything but easy. The “Black” faction had control of King’s Landing, but the “Greens” continued to cause major trouble. Ormund Hightower was the biggest problem of all.
HELAENA’S DECISION SEALS RHAENYRA’S FATE: THE SEASON 3 FINALE OF “HOUSE OF THE DRAGON” EXPLAINED
Ormund caused plenty of drama, which finally reached its climax in the season finale. The Battle of Tumbleton began, and it unfolded quite differently than anyone had planned. To be honest, it’s hard to say that anyone really won this battle. Daemon Targaryen tried to be cautious. He used his dragon, Caraxes, only to burn down the gate. Nevertheless, the entire city of Tumbleton and its inhabitants were ultimately reduced to ashes. Ormund Hightower died, but thanks to Ulf White and his dragon, Silverwing, the scale of the destruction was enormous. This will look very bad for Queen Rhaenyra.
Even if people eventually realize that Ormund was the one who caused the chaos in Tumbleton, Rhaenyra is still in trouble. During the battle, Rhaenyra tried to have the High Septon anoint her in the Sept of Baelor. He refused. So she branded him a traitor and had him killed on the spot. That seemed like a really bad sign for her future. Then she received even worse news. When she returned to the Red Keep, she learned that Helaena had taken her own life.
WHY HELAENA MADE THIS DECISION IN THE SEASON 3 FINALE OF “HOUSE OF THE DRAGON”
If you’ve read the book “Fire & Blood”, you probably knew Helaena’s death was coming. But that doesn’t make it any less sad. She was by far the nicest person in the entire series and deserved so much better. As the daughter of King Viserys, she would never have a happy ending. She endured many tragedies but remained hopeful. She had actually planned to leave King’s Landing with her daughter. When she realized that would never happen, she decided to find a way out.
Rhaenyra dismissed Mysaria in episode eight. This prompted the Mistress of the Whisperers to tell Helaena exactly what lay ahead for her. She explained to the princess that Rhaenyra would never let her go. She also said that as long as Aegon and his dragon Sunfyre were alive, Helaena’s unborn child would be a prisoner. Helaena realized that the only way to protect herself and her child from being used as a weapon against her family was to put an end to it. She jumped out of her tower’s window onto the spikes below.
This is a huge problem for Rhaenyra. The queen was desperate to keep Helaena safe for good reason. Having a royal heir is invaluable to Aegon, so the child gave Rhaenyra great power. Furthermore, Helaena is a dragonrider. Even if she didn’t want to fly, she was still an asset to Rhaenyra’s army. Rhaenyra also hoped that Helaena’s dreams of flying on a dragon might help her in her leadership. Now those dreams are lost forever.
This will have significant consequences. The people of King’s Landing loved Helaena. They will not be pleased when they learn what has happened. In the book, rumors began to circulate that Rhaenyra was the one who had her sister killed. This caused the people to turn even more strongly against their queen. In light of this death and the total catastrophe at Tumbleton, Rhaenyra will find it very difficult to maintain peace in the kingdom.
THE OUTCOME OF THE BATTLE OF TUMBLETON EXPLAINED (& HOW IT DIFFERED FROM THE BOOK)
There is no doubt that the Battle of Tumbleton was a total disaster. Ormund Hightower didn’t have enough men, but he believed that winning over Ulf White would help him secure victory. The plan was for Ulf to turn against the Black Army and set it ablaze. He did eventually do that, but only after the battle had already begun. Ormund became so furious when he found out that Ulf was drunk and had passed out in the bathroom that he yelled at him, whereupon the dragonrider turned against everyone.
In the end, Ulf burned down the city and both armies. If Rhaenyra’s goal was to get rid of Ormund and Prince Daeron, then she was successful, in a way. But so many innocent people died in that fire. Rhaenyra asked Daemon to make sure she continued to appear like a good queen, but Ulf completely ruined that. In the book, Hugh Hammer betrayed Rhaenyra in favor of the Greens. In the series, Hugh doesn’t actually join the Greens, but he ignores Rhaenyra’s orders to fly to Tumbleton and protect his wife.
The series takes a slightly different approach than the book, but the result is the same. In the books, there are actually two battles at Tumbleton. The Greens won the first one because of the betrayal, and the second took place later. The series combined these two events into one, which only made everything even more chaotic and sad.
WHAT THE SEASON 3 FINALE OF “HOUSE OF THE DRAGON” MEANS FOR SEASON 4
With Tumbleton destroyed, the High Septon dead, and Helaena gone, Rhaenyra is in for a very difficult time in Season 4. She told everyone she was the savior of the realm, but after all the bloodshed and cruelty, people are finding it hard to believe her. It looks as though Queen Rhaenyra is officially turning into a tyrant.
Aegon Targaryen is now ready to reclaim his throne. He and his brother Aemond are preparing to set out for Tumbleton to confront Ormund and Daeron. When they arrive there and see the burned-out city, they’ll have to decide how to proceed. Eventually, Aegon will set out for King’s Landing, and Aemond will have to face his fate against Daemon at Harrenhal.
Let’s just say the final season of this series won’t have a happy ending. It’s a series about dragons and wars, so a nice, happy ending was never really on the cards. Since Helaena is dead and Rhaenyra is acting like a tyrant, the people of King’s Landing will likely rebel. Maybe they’ll even welcome back the Usurper and his golden dragon. There will be even more fire and blood. For now, we just have to say goodbye to Helaena and wrap up this crazy third season.
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