Arranged marriages are hardly a rarity in King’s Landing, but on House of the Dragon, Rhaenyra and her first husband have something of a mutual understanding, making for—oddly enough—one of the show’s healthier relationships. But clearly, something had to happen to Laenor for Rhaenyra to marry Daemon.
Laenor Velaryon (John Macmillan) was the byproduct of two great families: House Velaryon and House Targaryen. Being the firstborn son of Lord Corlys (Steve Toussaint) and—RIP—Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best), Laenor faced high expectations from his parents, particularly in regards to who he would marry and sire heirs with in order to carry on the Sea Snake’s legacy. However, there was one itty bitty problem: Laenor played for a different team, meaning his marriage to Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) wasn’t exactly one of passion and romance.
Luckily, Rhaenyra was never interested in this kind of partnership with him, so she and Laenor worked out an agreement: she could bed Ser Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr) and—oops!—push out a few of his bastard children, and Laenor was free to peruse the handsome young men of King’s Landing. It was, in every sense of the term, a marriage of convenience, and the two would go on to become each other’s confidants, fostering a different kind of love that serve them well for the better part of a decade. But as Game of Thrones fans are well aware of, some good things never last. So what happened to Laenor?
Laenor’s House of the Dragon fate, explained
Rhaenyra was never subtle when it came to her attraction for her uncle Daemon (Matt Smith), but her father, King Viserys (Paddy Considine), never allowed the couple to wed. It took the untimely death of his second wife, Laena (Nanna Blondell), for Daemon to finally marry Rhaenyra. To do so, Rhaenyra wished to absolve her marriage to Laenor ASAP, as her marriage to Daemon would also make her claim to the Iron Throne stronger—the union of two silver-haired Targaryens makes for some seriously good optics.
Thus, Rhaenyra and Laenor hatch a plan: Daemon will “pay” Laenor’s secret lover, Qarl (Arty Froushan) for a “quick death,” and he and Laenor will stage a duel. After a servant—the only witness—runs to get help, the couple does a classic bait-and-switch, tossing some random guy Daemon killed into the fireplace to make it appear as though the charred corpse is actually Laenor’s. He and Qarl make a quick escape via rowboat, sailing away to their “happily ever after” and allowing Rhaenyra and Daemon to become bride and groom. It’s kind of twisted, but it works—all of King’s Landing is fooled.
Laenor isn’t dead—or so we think
Laenor fakes his death in House of the Dragon season 1, but some internet sleuths have theorized that one key detail in season 2 might’ve confirmed that he didn’t get his happy ending after all. As we know, Laenor was once the rider of Seasmoke, a fierce beast who played a crucial role in the War for the Stepstones. Per the lore, the bond between a dragon and its rider is for life, and dragons deeply mourn the loss of their human counterpart when they die.
Because of this, it’s somewhat unsurprising that Seasmoke is so mopey in House of the Dragon season 2—he’s missing his other half. In his desperation to find a new rider, Seasmoke claims the Sea Snake’s second-eldest bastard (and Laenor’s half-brother), Addam Of Hull (Clinton Liberty). So does this mean that Laenor, at some point, died offscreen?
Well, it’s hard to say, as no one really knows if a dragon’s rider has to be dead for the bond to be broken. It could be as simple as Laenor having hurt Seasmoke’s feelings when he left, which could explain why Seasmoke decided to say “eff it” and bond with someone who resembled his old rider.
Still, it’s worth noting that Laenor does actually die in George RR Martin’s 2018 novel Fire & Blood following a disagreement with Qarl, so who knows? Maybe House of the Dragon will tell a similar story in season 3. But for now, Laenor’s fate remains up in the air.
Published: Aug 10, 2024 04:08 pm