this could’ve been a better movie but unfortunately nolan is incapable of writing actual emotional depth for his characters without leaving the patriarchal cage his mind exists at
fem!egg being forced to wed her brother after maekar found aerion abed with her forcing himself on her…she prays to the warrior for a big strong knight to save her from the monstrous dragon and slay him each and every day
in the noble westerosi context being a father would mean things like offering protection and teaching his children (sons in special) how to rule but aegon himself never mastered those skills and at the end of the day, you can’t teach something you were never taught 🫠
my take is that aegon simply can’t grasp what being a parent should mean. his relationship with both his parents was frail and constructed through the lens of power before those of affection. he has no reference to what being a really father means.
that’s not to say he doesn’t care about helaena and the children. with helaena he had a whole life to form a relationship with as siblings, but how do you bond with children when you yourself never experienced that bond as a child or saw it around you?