The latest Game of Thrones spin-off has made its way to HBO. And it’s something quite different than fans of the bloody, violent, and overstuffed series might expect. It’s rare that I ended an episode of Thrones or House of the Dragon thinking, “Oh, what a lovely episode!” But watching the pilot of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, that’s precisely what I found myself saying. Because this is a series that seems to care more about character, story, and building up a smaller corner of Westeros than the other two shows set in this world. It’s calmer, smaller, and well, kinder than anything we’ve seen before. I certainly don’t anticipate Egg getting murdered by a vengeful knight at the upcoming tourney – where I might have had that fear percolating as I watched Thrones or Dragon.* And, you know what? I really dig this new Westerosi vibe.
*While I haven’t read the George R. R. Martin source material for the series, I do know a bit about the two leading characters from pieces announcing the series was a go a few years back. Which means I am aware of some things the series has yet to reveal to the audience. I won’t be spoiling them here, but a heads up that there’s stuff out there to be spoiled if you go looking for it.
When we meet one of our two heroes, “Ser” Duncan the Tall – or Dunk (Peter Claffey), as he’s really known – it’s been a rough day for our very tall friend. Burying your knight is never easy, but it’s even harder when you know he’s the only person who could vouch for you in all of Westeros. Which means Dunk is on his own, without anyone in a position of power who could say that he is, in fact, a knight. Now, we also don’t see the late Ser Arlan of Pennytree knight Dunk, so chances are it’s just a fabricated story Dunk is telling everyone in the hopes of getting a place in the lists at the tourney. As we learned from the best episode of Game of Thrones, any knight can create another knight, so it’s certainly possible Ser Arlan did so with his dying breath, but considering Dunk’s recollection of just what he promised to do in the knighting doesn’t match what we’ve seen in the past, I’m calling b.s. on this one. But, as we all know about Westeros, the rules are only the rules so long as people believe them. All Dunk really needs is another knight to say, “You know what, yes, I remember Ser Arlan, and yes, he did say he was going to knight his squire,” and poof. He’s a knight.
Of course, this series is meant to be a hero’s journey, so that means it won’t be that easy for Dunk and his newly acquired, very bald small squire Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) to achieve what they’re setting out to do. But still, the groundwork has been laid and we know what Dunk’s goal is. As for Egg, well, he’s a small boy who is clearly hiding something. He’s far too well-spoken for a street orphan, and he has far too many skills to be someone who is trying to survive on their own after losing everything to tragedy. Which means he’s likely out in search of an adventure, having run away from a situation that could have been rough – but was likely a lot cushier than the one he finds himself in now, sleeping under the stars with his new knight.
A series like this lives and dies on the chemistry between its two leading actors and in that regard, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is thriving. While Claffey and Ansell only had a couple of scenes together in this initial outing, the pair played off one another expertly. If there’s one thing that the Thrones universe has excelled at, it’s been selecting child actors able to handle the complexities of this universe. Now, this series isn’t going to be nearly as complex as the other two, but Ansell brings the perfect blend of child innocence and hidden savvy that this role demands. And Claffey? He’s the perfect gentle giant – someone who genuinely wants to make something of himself but who isn’t willing to sully his name or his honor the way many others within Westeros would. It’s rare to have a mostly pure character like this in this world and not see him eaten alive in moments. But Claffey makes it easy to root for Dunk, to want to see him get a better understanding of his place amongst some of the snakes around him without compromising his morality. It’s a cool character to see.
I suspect folks looking for another fast-paced, violent story are going to quickly turn A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms off and wait for House of the Dragon’s return later this year. But I, for one, am smitten with this series. The chance to sit for a bit in a single story with only a handful of characters, none of whom appear to be plotting the overthrow of King’s Landings – at least not yet – is a refreshing break. Spending time building up another facet of Westeros is a positive for this wider world. And the chance to zero-in on a small subset of characters even more welcome. I’m intrigued to see where this adventure will take us, sans dragons.
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