House Of The Dragon Season 2 Episode 5 Confirms Whether Aegon II Is Dead

Last week, "House of the Dragon" fans were left on a cliffhanger wondering if Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) had been fired from his gig as king thanks to his brother Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) trying to kill him and the absolute boss-level last stand made by Princess Rhaenys (Eve Best). In the closing moments of Season 2, Episode 4, "The Red Dragon and the Gold," we were given barely a sneaking peek over the charred scales of Sunfyre, before cutting from the status of its rider. Now leading into this week's episode, we finally got the confirmation we needed and it was delivered in the standard grisly fashion that George R. R. Martin's world is known for. Incredibly, Aegon is still alive, but he's certainly not in the best shape.

The build-up to revealing Aegon's health is drawn out brilliantly, as he's heralded as a hero and carried back to King's Landing undercover. As he's carried out of a rickety crate and onto his bed, the maesters quickly get to work on tending to their king in what is a horrific sequence. Armored plates are pulled from his chest, taking skin with it as bones are reset, showing just enough to clarify that he's certainly still with us, but the road to get back to a decent level of health is going to be a long one. Thank the gods, then, that while Alicent (Olivia Cooke) looks on in terror, Aemond's brother clearly already has his eye ahead after a plan that worked perfectly.

Aegon is going to be out of action from his kingly duties for some time, leaving Aemond to run the joint in his stead. It's a restructuring that (regardless of how Alicent might feel) will put the Greens in a better position than they've been. An impressive tactician as well as being in the conversation of one of the best fighters on "House of the Dragon," Aemond is going to be able to hold his own far better than Aegon did, given his bratty streak that's even worse than that of "Game of Thrones'" villain Joffrey. Sure, all those at the table were scared of pushing the wrong buttons in backing Aemond, but the choice was an obvious one. The problem with such a powerful gig, though, is the reluctance that can come in handing it back.

Whenever Aegon does regain consciousness, the dynamic between the brothers will undoubtedly echo that of their father, Viserys (Paddy Considine), and Daemon (Matt Reeves) back in the time when the Iron Throne found itself in uncertain terrain. With one bed-bound and being brought back from the brink and another set to inevitably thrive from the vacancy he's filling, it'll be interesting to see if Aegon and Aemond have a confrontation ahead whenever the former wakes up. Unfortunately, neither share their father's restraint and calm, which could only cause more problems for the Greens than they already have. We'll have to see if the brotherly dispute begins when "House of the Dragon" returns next week.