Here's what happens to Aemond in House of the Dragon after meeting Alicent

Plenty of viewers went online asking if Aemond really just got finished off by his own mum, or if he might pop up again later – especially given how much the show likes to tease us with a bit of misdirection.

In episode teasers after his supposed death, Aemond is seen alive and kicking, which means the series is blatantly signalling he's not out of the picture just yet.

The Poisoned Wine Scene

The set-up in "The Dragon in Winter" starts with Alicent giving Aemond a spiced wine – a detail that obviously got alarm bells ringing, especially after all the tension during their slightly toxic dinner conversation. Before this, Alys actually tried to warn Aemond that his mother had it in for him, but he batted her concerns away and told her, in so many words, to stop with the doom and gloom.

Alicent, meanwhile, had just lifted a dagger from Ser Adrian's corpse (a lovely dinner party, then) before heading to Aemond's chamber. They spent a moment discussing Alys, and Alicent quizzed him on who he trusts – not exactly mother-son bonding. Aemond dodged that question and instead admitted he'd tried to kill his brother Aegon. Not a functional family, this lot.

It wasn't long before the effects of the spiced wine hit. Aemond staggered out into the dining hall, clearly in bad shape, supposedly hunting for Alys. He collapsed soon after, confirming that yes, the wine was definitely poisoned. As he dropped, Alys found him and, never one to mince words, called him an 'idiot'. At the same time, Alicent disappeared into the night, scarpering from Harrenhal while everyone's distracted. The episode makes it look like curtains for Aemond, but the episode 8 trailer throws that straight into doubt.

It's strongly implied that Alys actually manages to save him (the woman does have a penchant for the supernatural, after all), so it looks for now like Aemond lives to frown another day.

The (Much Bloodier) Book Version

If you know your Fire & Blood, you'll notice the series has taken a big diversion here. In the source material, Aemond's not done in by family drama over claret, but by a much more cinematic showdown. He earns his doom after killing Lucerys Velaryon, Rhaenyra's son. First Daemon tries to have him bumped off by hiring assassins (that goes spectacularly wrong), but eventually, it all comes to a head at Harrenhal. There, Daemon and Aemond have a full-on airborne dragon duel. Daemon leaps from his own dragon onto Aemond's, sword in hand, and goes straight for the one good eye. They both end up plunging into the lake below – presumed dead, with the dragons lost to the depths. Much more dramatic than a poison glass at tea time.