‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3 delivers a shock ending. Rhaenyra may technically gain ground in the war, but the finale makes it increasingly difficult to see her as a true winner. The episode is littered with deaths, demonstrating the devastating effects of the Dance of the Dragons across Tumbleton and King’s Landing.
The end is particularly sadistic because so many of these deaths are completely preventable. Rhaenyra wants to secure her claim, but every attempt to strengthen her position seems to leave another trail of bodies behind.
Tumbleton Becomes A Bloodbath In ‘House Of The Dragon’
Some of the episode’s most shocking deaths are in the Battle of Tumbleton. Ormund Hightower finally dies when he challenges Ser Roderick Dustin aka Roddy the Ruin. Roddy manages to strike Ormund despite losing an arm in the fight, but his victory lasts only moments.
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Ulf White comes with Silverwing and unleashes dragonfire, killing Ormund and Roddy. Roddy’s death is especially sad since he effectively gets the warrior’s ending he desired. He came south with the Winter Wolves to die for Rhaenyra, and his final moments are spent taking down one of her biggest enemies.
Meanwhile, Hugh Hammer’s wife, Kat, is also found dead in Tumbleton. Her death is all the more devastating because Hugh had believed that he could make a better life for his family if he became a dragonrider. Instead, he returns to a home that has already been destroyed by the war. Then there’s the larger devastation. When Silverwing attacks Tumbleton, it becomes a nightmare, killing many soldiers and civilians in the chaos.
Helaena’s Death Changes Everything
However, the most heart-wrenching death of the finale is Helaena Targaryen’s. After being imprisoned and manipulated throughout the war, Helaena ultimately throws herself from the Red Keep. Later on, Rhaenyra finds her body impaled on the spikes below, making one of the season’s most haunting images.
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Her demise is not just another casualty of the Dance. It symbolizes the price of treating people like pawns on a political chessboard. The High Septon also perishes for rejecting Rhaenyra’s claim. Alyn Velaryon is the one who carries out that execution at the Sept of Baelor.
By the end, it’s clear that Rhaenyra’s desperation has gone too far. Rhaenyra might still have the throne, but the conclusion of the series makes it painfully clear: there’s no real victory in this war, just survivors.
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