HBO’s House of the Dragon is based on George R. R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood, but the fantasy drama has been deviating from the source material since the very first episode. One of the most significant changes from the book to the show is the fate of Laenor Velaryon, which has left the audience confused.
Laenor is the son of Corlys Velaryon, and heir to become the Lord of Driftmark. He is gay but lives in a society where being queer is not accepted. Hence, he marries Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and becomes the future King Consort.
Rhaenyra knows about his sexuality and supports him; however, she decides to marry Daemon, which means Laenor needs to be eliminated. While Laenor is killed in Fire & Blood, his fate in House of the Dragon still remains uncertain. Though he survived the events of the first season and escaped Westeros with his lover, season 2 hints that Laenor may not have lived for long after his escape.
Is Laenor Velaryon dead in House of the Dragon?

Laenor Velaryon plays an important role in the overall plot of House of the Dragon Season 1. King Viserys I Targaryen arranges his marriage with his daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen, hoping to unite the powerful Velaryon and Targaryen houses.
However, the marriage is only a political deal as Laenor is interested in men, and Rhaenyra is having an affair with Harwin Strong. Both Laenor and Rhaenyra agree to perform their royal duties but continue to pursue their personal desires.
In season 1, episode 7, Rhaenyra decides to marry her uncle after the death of Harwin. To make this happen, Laenor needs to be out of the picture. Rhaenyra and Daemon fake Laenor’s death, while he secretly escapes across the Narrow Sea with his lover, leaving behind his dragon, Seasmoke.
However, House of the Dragon season 2 raises questions about Laenor’s fate. In the A Song of Ice & Fire lore, a dragon only bonds with a person after his previous rider’s death. In the show, Seasmoke chooses Addam of Hull as his rider. This hints Laenor might have died offscreen.
The show does not explicitly reveal Laenor’s fate, and neither explains how can Seasmoke bond with another rider if his previous rider is alive. As per the book, Leanor is not around when the civil war begins, and hence, his return to the show seems unlikely.
What happens to Laenor in Fire & Blood?

In George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, Laenor Velaryon’s story ends much more tragically. He is described as a proud young man who claimed the dragon Seasmoke at a young age. In the book as well, he is married to Rhaenyra but is killed at a fair in Spicetown.
As per the witnesses, he and his longtime companion, Qarl Correy, have a heated argument, which turns into a physical altercation. Qarl then stabs and kills Laenor. Different accounts in the book offer different explanations for his death.
Some claim Daemon Targaryen paid Qarl to murder Laenor as he wanted to marry Rhaenyra, and wanted her to be free from her previous marriage. Though the book also leaves room for interpretation, it is certain that Laenor does not survive in the book’s version of events.
In Fire & Blood, Seasmoke eventually bonds with Addam of Hull, and the two play a key role in the civil war. Hence, Laenor is dead in the book, but House of the Dragon has left his fate ambiguous.
House of the Dragon seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Max.

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