King Aegon II Targaryen was my favorite character from the second season of House of the Dragon. He was the screw-up king, a callow layabout hopelessly unprepared for the huge responsibility thrust upon him after the death of his father, King Viserys Targaryen. Yes, he's done bad things, but it was hard not to feel for him, especially after his power-hungry younger brother Aemond blasted him out of the sky on dragonback. Last we left Aegon, he was a wounded shell of a man fleeing King's Landing before Aemond could finish the job, aided by Larys Strong (Matthew Needham).
Even before he was wounded, Aegon was always "frail," as actor Tom Glynn-Carney put it to Awards Radar. "I don’t think there was ever a part of him that was strong," Glynn-Carney said. "He might’ve looked strong with a crown on his head, but I think he’s always been fragile. That explains his volatility, defensiveness and how quickly he is to attack. It’s all self-preservation and it comes from insecurity. The acknowledgement of his own downfall. There are some physical changes Aegon went through from the burns and the accident. That only brought forward the weaknesses he already has. It’s now a case of finding how to use those to his advantage. He needs to pave another path for himself to find strength and glory."
That's what Aegon will do in the upcoming third season of the show, which is filming as we speak. "It’s almost like we never left," Glynn-Carney said. "We’re back at it now and it’s the same faces, hair and makeup, costumes, directors and showrunners. It’s a family that was far apart and then everyone’s back together again. It’s really good to be back."
If you've read George R.R. Martin's book Fire & Blood, you have some idea of where Aegon's story is going, although the show has already changed some aspects; for instance, in the book, Aegon flees King's Landing a bit later in the story, but flee he does. After that, he is determined to retake the Iron Throne, even in his weakened state. Are we going to see this frail king grow a spine?
As Glynn-Carney puts it, "[h]e ended up stepping back a step or two" in season 2. "We see him pick it up in Season 3, which I can’t really go into. This whole character arc we’re working on at the moment is very satisfying and unpredictable. It’s tricky and very intricate. It’s hard to put it into words."
We've been keeping tabs on the production of House of the Dragon season 3, and while we've heard about some huge set pieces the cast and crew are working on, we haven't heard much about what Glynn-Carney is up to. That fits with Aegon's journey at this point from the book. He's very much in rebuilding mode, but his story is not over. I'm very much looking forward to seeing what happens with this character, especially with someone of Tom Glynn-Carney's magnetism behind the wheel.
But with the cast and crew in the midst of filming, we'll have to wait a while before we see what goes down. Look for the third season of House of the Dragon to premiere on HBO and HBO Max sometime in 2026.
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