The Battle of the Gullet and 3 things we don't expect to see in the House of the Dragon season 2 finale

The House of the Dragon season 2 finale is upon us, and unless you've read the book Fire & Blood (or have watched those leaks!) you likely have no idea what to expect. Yes, the preview for the eighth episode looks awesome and gives us a tease at what'll go down, but there are still so many questions. And even as a book reader, I'm unsure of what to predict at this point. The show has added many new plot points and moved events around, making it difficult to know for sure what direction they're going in.

But there are a few things from George R.R. Martin's Targaryen history book that we can all but definitively say won't be part of the finale.

Though anything could happen, at this point we are not expecting to see these four things from Fire & Blood in the House of the Dragon season 2 finale. We'll have to wait for season 3 for some, while one on the list seems to be totally removed from the show.

WARNING: Spoilers for Fire & Blood are below.

The Battle of the Gullet

In the Fire & Blood timeline of the Dance of the Dragons, the Battle of the Gullet comes right after the Sowing of the Seeds. It's not surprising that the show has moved events around in order to tell a more engaging narrative, and based on where we are in the penultimate episode, plus the preview for the finale, there's no way this battle is happening in episode 8. It's entirely possible the third season could open up with the Battle of the Gullet, depending on what happens in the season 2 finale.

Without giving away too many spoilers, the Battle of the Gullet is a pretty major one for the Dance of the Dragons, as a central character dies. I really hope they don't change much about this battle; as much as I don't want to say goodbye to this character, it would be a really epic sendout for them and one that they might need right now. (It seems the fandom isn't too big on them anymore after a recent episode.)

House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal has teased that they shot "two of the largest sequences that we’ve ever filmed" for the second season, and we've already seen them both. One was the Battle at Rook's Rest, and the other was the Sowing of the Seeds. At San Diego Comic-Con last weekend, Condal confirmed this ahead of a screening of episode 7. That means we will not be getting another big battle in the season 2 finale. We'll have to wait until next season.

Nettles

It hasn't been straight-out confirmed yet, but it very much looks like the Fire & Blood character Nettles has been cut from House of the Dragon, sadly. It's not surprising fans have been upset about this; Nettles is a fan-favorite from the book and we were all super excited to see how she'd be brought to life on our screens. Introduced as one of the dragonseeds, Nettles is a teenager who's able to bond with the dragon Sheepstealer after repeatedly feeding it. In House of the Dragon, it seems that the writers are giving this storyline to Daemon's daughter Rhaena, who is currently in the Vale.

Based on what we've seen so far, it looks like Rhaena might claim Sheepstealer, which on the one hand is awesome for her, but on the other is disappointing because we likely won't get to see Nettles on the show. While chatting with Black Girl Nerds, Condal remained tight-lipped when asked about Nettles, saying he wasn't ready to comment — though he did tease, "Stay tuned." At this point, however, it really does feel like the ship has sailed on the character.

The Fall of King's Landing

Another major moment of the Dance of the Dragons is the Fall of King's Landing, in which the blacks are able to take back the Iron Throne. Some fans speculated we'd be getting this event in House of the Dragon season 2 after seeing a scene of Rhaenyra and Daemon reuniting in a recent promo. And while we are expecting the two to reunite in the season 2 finale, it won't be at King's Landing. We're just not that far into the story yet.

In Fire & Blood, multiple other battles happen soon after the Battle of the Gullet. While Criston's army, along with Aemond and Vhagar, are busy in the Riverlands, Daemon and Caraxes meet Rhaenyra and Syrax at King's Landing. They're able to take back the city quickly, and Rhaenyra finds her rightful place on the throne. It's going to be an absolutely epic moment, one worth waiting for when it eventually happens in the third season.

Aegon's recovery

Aegon's recovery has been a subplot of House of the Dragon season 2 since the Battle of Rook's Rest, and spoiler alert: He's not getting better anytime soon. At least, his road to recovery is a lengthy one in Fire & Blood. The show will likely speed things up for the sake of the narrative, and I'm totally cool with that. Tom Glynn-Carney has been fantastic this season, so more of him actually speaking, please! That said, Aegon will not make a grand recovery in the season 2 finale.

The latest couple of episodes have been weaving in bits of Aegon as his health somewhat improves, with episode 7 seeing Larys forcing him to try and walk. But even though the show is building him up to recover, it still won't be overnight.

Similarly, Aegon's dragon Sunfyre will make a recovery, but it won't be in the season 2 finale, either. Though Aemond is now desperate to match Rhaenyra's army of dragons, Aegon won't be considered to help. He's still struggling to walk right now, and in the book, it takes a full year for him to recover. As always, we expect there to be changes from the source material, so hopefully, his storyline will start to pick up more in the early parts of season 3.

The second season of House of the Dragon has been a great one, though many have criticized it for being slow. The writers are no doubt taking their time telling the Dance of the Dragons, but that's better than it being rushed. The third season will likely be more eventful with the number of battles and events it'll have to cover, but we'll have to just wait and see what exactly goes down.

Don't miss the House of the Dragon season 2 finale on Sunday, Aug. 4, on HBO and Max.