‘House of the Dragon’ Season 1 Finale Features Another Disturbing Childbirth Scene
The House of the Dragon finale follows Rhaenyra and her faction of supporters as they receive news of Viserys’ death and Aegon II usurping the throne. When the news reaches Rhaenyra, she goes into labor with her sixth child. This time, Rhaenyra has a stillbirth, and it’s not the first traumatic labor scene in the series.
[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for the House of the Dragon finale.]
‘House of the Dragon’ has already had several traumatic birth scenes
House of the Dragon has featured several graphic birth scenes throughout the first season. In the premiere, Rhaenyra’s mother, Queen Aemma, undergoes a forced C-section when her baby is breached. Aemma, of course, dies during the procedure, and her son Prince Baelon lives for only a few hours after.
In episode 6, Daemon’s second wife, Laena, is in a similar situation while giving birth. Instead of letting her husband choose her manner of death, she begs her dragon Vhagar for a blast of flames to end her life.
Rhaenyra also gives birth to her third son Joffrey in episode 6. Everything goes well, though Alicent summons Rhaenyra immediately, and she drips blood all the way down the hall. The House of the Dragon finale features one more disturbing birth scene.
Rhaenyra goes into labor after learning about her father’s death in the ‘House of the Dragon’ finale
In the House of the Dragon finale, Rhaenyra receives news that her father has died and her half-brother Aegon II usurped the throne. Suddenly she goes into labor with her sixth child, far before the baby is full term.
“The birth in [episode] 10 is a very different animal to the birth in [episode] 6,” Emma D’Arcy, who plays Rhaenyra Targaryen, said in a featurette. “Rhaenyra has waited a lifetime for a letter, essentially — a letter that says, ‘You’re father has passed, and so now it’s you.’ That’s a dominating prospect and expectation.”
“It finally comes, and she’s in labor, and she’s essentially house-ridden, and I think there’s a deep sense of injustice,” D’Arcy continued. “The thing that she had always fought so hard against, about being the feted mother, is exactly where she finds herself at the point where the most important conversations of her life are happening.”
Daemon and Rhaenyra’s only daughter is a stillborn
During her labor, Rhaenyra is in agony and pulls her stillborn child out herself, refusing help from any of her handmaidens. “There’s a lot going on in that scene; she’s going through an emotional hurricane,” co-showrunner Ryan Condal told The Hollywood Reporter. “A big part of it is that Rhaenyra swore she was not going to go the way of her mother. That’s the reason that she didn’t want to get married if you go back to her resisting all the suitors.”
Rhaenyra has also just learned of her father’s death and Alicent’s treachery. Meanwhile, “Daemon takes the first opportunity to stalk off and try to start a war instead of saying at her side and helping her,” Condal continued. “So I just think at a very simple human level in that scene, she simply doesn’t want to be touched by anybody.”
A funeral then follows for Rhaenyra’s only daughter, Visenya Targaryen. George R.R. Martin’s novels mention rumors that Visenya had dragon-like birth defects. In the book, Rhaenyra stated, “She was my only daughter, and they killed her. They stole my crown and murdered my daughter, and they shall answer for it.”
All episodes of House of the Dragon are currently streaming on HBO Max.
