House of the Dragon’s epic finale will have big implications for the future of the series as war beckons in Westeros. But it also began with heartbreak for Rhaenyra in an upsetting and disturbing scene.
We’ll be getting into heavy spoiler territory from here on out so if you haven’t seen House of the Dragon episode 8 yet, click away now.
After learning that Aegon has taken the Iron Throne, pregnant Rhaenyra goes into labor early. In a painful scene, she struggles through the birth on her own before her daughter is stillborn.
While it’s never commented on in the scene, it’s evident that the baby has been born with the abnormalities. In George R.R. Martin’s book 'Fire and Blood', he calls these "dragon-like", explaining she has scales and a stump of a tail.
However, unlike in the source material, we never learn of the child’s name in the series. Martin explains that the baby is called Visenya after King Aegon The Conqueror's first wife and older sister. She was a warrior and fought to capture all of Westeros during the time of The Conquest, as well as being the dragon rider of Vhagar.
Another alteration from the books is that Rhaenyra was in labor with the baby for three days, whereas the events of the series take place much more quickly. She also calls her a "monster", urging her to "get out" of her body while Rhaenyra says something similar in the finale but does not call her a monster.
The scene isn’t the only moment that the HBO and Sky series altered in the finale. Aemond’s dramatic murder of his nephew was also changed to suggest that it had been an accident, rather than intentional.
For more on the final episode, check out what showrunner Ryan Condal had to say about Aemond’s murder as well as our breakdown of what it means for House of the Dragon season 2.
