House of the Dragon has finished airing its first season back, but fans still can’t get enough of the show. And so they are now deep diving into the various characters and analysing their actions and arcs. One of the most compelling characters of the show is the late King Viserys I Targaryen. Many have said that he was just a nice king who couldn’t take hard decisions. Others have said that he was directly responsible for the Dance of the Dragons. We think he was a man who suffered from cruel irony and karma in his life.

Here’s how:

Viserys I Targaryen And His Want Of A Son

From the first episode we see him wanting a son badly. With his wife Aemma, he only has one daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen. When his wife is in the bath, she talks about the miscarriages and stillbirths she has suffered. And it’s clear that Viserys’ want for a son motivated her to keep going. In fact, he wanted a male heir so badly that he cut Aemma open just so he could potentially have one.

His son lived for less than a day and he lost his wife as well. But for someone who wanted a male heir so bad, when his second marriage with Alicent produces a son, Aegon II, he just ignores him. What’s more ironic is that his son initially never wanted the throne as well.

He Ignores Helaena Targaryen Who Was Like Him

Viserys Targaryen believed that some in his line were blessed with the ability to have prophetic dreams. He discusses Aegon the Conqueror’s dream of ice and fire or the prince who is promised with his daughter Rhaenyra several times. One of his last words before he succumbs to his illness is regarding this prophecy.

In fact, he himself badly wants to believe that he’s a dragon dreamer. But he fails to recognise that his other daughter, Helaena, is in fact a dreamer who has prophetic visions. And how will he when never even talks to her.

Viserys Ignores The Traditional And Strict Aemond Targaryen

Throughout the season, Viserys lectures Rhaenyra about tradition and duty. He says that there are rules about how an heir should act. But he ignores Aemond who is everything he would have wanted in an heir. His second son with Alicent is traditional and a duty-centric man.

One of the first dialogues we hear from Aemond is that he is willing to marry his sister Helaena because it will preserve their line even though Aegon II isn’t. This shows that he is inclined towards doing what is necessary. One also needs to consider that for all of his words about how an heir should act, he forgives Rhaenyra for every one of her sins or turns a blind eye towards it.

Speaking of eye, there’s also cruel irony in Viserys not caring about Aemond losing an eye when his cousins attacked him for taking Vhagar, and later on, he loses one of his eyes to the wasting disease.

So, Viserys had everything he wanted. He had a son to make an heir, a dragon dreamer daughter, and a rulebook follower son, but he ignored them all and ultimately the kingdom and Rhaenyra paid the price for it. It’s a most tragic case of irony and karma for him.

For him, there was only one child- Rhaenyra. And he considered her as his only kid probably because he felt guilty for his barbaric actions towards Aemma during the child birth. So his grief and guilt blinded him towards his kids with Alicent, and that led him to prioritise Rhaenyra over the others.

What do you think about Viserys and him suffering from Karma? Let us know.