Viserys Targaryen is the middle child and younger son of Aerys II Targaryen, also known as The Mad King, and his sister-wife Rhaella Targaryen. Viserys Targaryen is not a point of view character in the novels, so his actions are witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of his sister Daenerys.
Storylines
''A Game of Thrones''
Viserys Targaryen is the second born son of Aerys II Targaryen. Thirteen years before the events of the series, he and his sister Daenerys fled Westeros to escape death at the hands of rebel Robert Baratheon. Viserys is an arrogant, cruel and ambitious man given to violent mood swings. In A Game of Thrones, he sells his sister as a wife to the DothrakiKhal Drogo, as a means to secure the allegiance of Drogo's army toward his goal of reclaiming the throne. Frustrated with Drogo, Viserys demands a crown and threatens Daenerys and her unborn child; Drogo kills him by pouring a pot of molten gold over his head. Daenerys later names one of her dragons Viserion, after Viserys. She explains that in spite of everything, he was still her brother, and that his draconic namesake will help do what he could not. She also tries to remember him as the good person he was before the stresses of their exile made him violent and bitter, and acknowledges that he at least kept her alive and safe through her childhood.
TV adaptation
Viserys Targaryen is played by British actor Harry Lloyd in the television adaption of the books. Harry Lloyd on Viserys Targaryen:
As soon as I looked into more of the history of the Targaryen family and actually read the other books, I found out more and pieced together his backstory, and he became sympathetic. I understood more what motivated him, and the fear he had, and the responsibility he had, and his childishness. I mean, he never really had a parent. That changed a lot my view from reading it to playing it.
Lloyd on his character's death scene:
I've never had to die on camera before, let alone in such a grisly way. So you just have to kind of give it everything. You talk to the two actors holding you and say, ‘Let's not pansy around here. I'm gonna absolutely try and get out of this, so don't let me.' Then, you let it rip. It can't be some sort of half-assed whimpering – you've got to really believe the pain and the fear. It's actually quite liberating.
Lloyd has received positive reviews for his role as Viserys in the TV series.
Season 1
Viserys Targaryen is the exiled prince and heir of the Targaryen dynasty and is known as "The Beggar King" for his search for an army to recapture his throne. A narcissist, he is arrogant and self-centered, caring only about himself and looking down on others, especially his sister Daenerys. In exchange for an army to help regain the Iron Throne, Viserys marries off his sister to the powerful Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo in the first episode, "Winter Is Coming", and follows his horde's journey to the Dothraki capital to ensure Drogo will keep his end of the bargain. But as they journey, it becomes evident that Viserys does not have any leadership skills to reclaim the throne as his arrogance and disrespect for the Dothraki does not win him any hearts. Furthermore, Daenerys, whom he has always threatened throughout his life, starts to stand up to him. Seeing that Daenerys is loved by the Dothraki and that her and Drogo's unborn son is prophesied to unite the world, Viserys realizes that it is not he but Daenerys who will reclaim the Iron Throne. In the sixth episode, "A Golden Crown", Viserys gets drunk, and in a fit of rage he demands that Drogo give him his army and crown, threatening to kill his sister and her unborn son if his demands are not met. Having had enough of his behavior, Drogo kills Viserys by giving him a "Golden Crown": molten gold poured over his head. Daenerys watches her brother's agonizing death, proclaiming that he wasn't a true dragon, as "fire cannot kill a dragon". Daenerys later names one of her dragons Viserion, as a tribute to Viserys, although the reasoning is not explained on-screen.
