House of the Dragon Season 3 finale trailer sets up the Battle of Tumbleton with a major Daemon twist

House of the Dragon Season 3 is moving towards an explosive conclusion, as the final episode will air this Sunday. HBO released the finale's preview online yesterday, after the penultimate episode aired on TV. It set the stage for one of the most decisive battles in the show's history, the Battle of Tumbleton. Therefore, this season begins and ends with a battle, making it cyclical.

But the season finale preview confirms a major change as we see Matt Smith's Daemon Targaryen on the battlefield. In the book, he was involved in the battles of the Riverlands at the time. But HBO's House of the Dragon made some changes by adding The Rogue Prince to the Battle of Tumbleton.

House of the Dragon - Why is Daemon Targaryen involved in the Battle of Tumbleton?

We don't know why Daemon Targaryen is participating in this battle, as he was not present in this specific conflict in Fire & Blood. Rhaenyra likely orders him to participate in the show's version of the battle. Whatever be the case, this battle is set to turn the fate of Rhaenyra's side. The series has been slowly setting the stage for her reign's downfall, and this battle might only hasten it.

If House of the Dragon is following the book, Daemon will survive the Battle of Tumbleton, because it is not until the Battle Above the Gods Eye that we will see his death, along with that of Aemond. Nina Lopez-Corrado, who directed the penultimate episode of the current season, teased how the season 3 finale battle would be different from the source material in this week's Entertainment Weekly interview:

"I do think you should start refreshing your memories for the Battle of Tumbleton."

Then, teasing deviations from Fire & Blood, Nina Lopez-Corrado said:

"We do deviate just a little bit in episode 7 from what’s originally in the books and, personally, from a character standpoint, what Ryan [Condal, showrunner] and the writers did in terms of that really helped evolve the character storylines from what were in the books. I know that’s a very controversial thing to say for diehards, but I think some of the storylines that you’re gonna see in 7 that’ll carry on into 8 were really executed strongly by the writers and also by the actors."

What can we expect from the finale?

The seventh episode reveals that Rhaenyra committed a grave mistake by mistreating her allies. As that happens, Aemond is recuperating his strength in Harrenhal. But the most important development in the House of the Dragon Season 3 finale is going to be Ulf's betrayal. Ormund promises Ulf Driftmark, and this offer seemingly pushes the disgruntled Dragonseed to betray Rhaenyra.

Apart from that, the penultimate episode also telegraphed Helaena Targaryen's tragic fate as she gets a vision of burning down the people of King's Landing while riding Dreamfyre. Helaena has shied away from riding her dragon and harming anyone. Therefore, she may consider ending her life in the upcoming finale, only making the situation worse for Rhaenyra.

It is Helaena's suicide in the book that pushes the people of King's Landing to storm the Dragonpit and kill some of the dragons. The Storming of Dragonpit is an event that ultimately pushes Rhaenyra to leave King's Landing after the tragic death of another son.

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