A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms offers laughs, action and refreshing take on Game Of Thrones
Ser Duncan the Tall (former rugby union player Peter Claffey) is finally a knight, following years of service as squire to veteran Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb). Unfortunately, the knighting took place when the old man was dying penniless in a ditch. Ser Arlan was a hedge knight: a wandering mercenary, selling his sword to various houses but claimed and protected by none – and now Dunk is one, too.
It’s a tough life, but a nearby tournament offers the opportunity for both coin and renown. But simple country lad Dunk is clueless as to how to navigate the courtly politics that underpin even the rough and tumble – not to mention frequently bloody – world of the arena. But as luck would have it, Dunk acquires his own squire, Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell), a young runaway with a shaved head, a refined way of speaking, and the wits help Dunk become a champion.
That’s all the plot you need, really. HBO’s A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms is the second spin-off from the formerly acclaimed Game Of Thrones. Like House Of The Dragon, it’s a prequel, taking place about a century before the events of the original series. Unlike House Of The Dragon, it’s a lot of fun.
In fact, when it’s firing on all cylinders, A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms is almost a comedy – a gross-out, frat boy, slobs vs snobs comedy. While other series in the Game Of Thrones tend to skew towards high level politics and literal clashes of kings, here we’re down in the mud of the arena with the destitute Dunk as he tries to first prove he has the right to compete, then pull together enough kit and support to survive the attempt. When our man interacts with the various noble lords, it’s generally to his detriment -which is how he picks up a nemesis in the form of the arrogant Prince Aerion “Brightflame” Targaryen (Finn Bennett bringing everything you want in a villain). Inevitably, their grievances will be settled on the field of honour.
Which brings with it all the bloody action you’d expect from a Game Of Thrones joint. A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms is a lot of fun, often skewing into outright comedy – it’s definitely not shy of crude humour, for one thing. But it’s still a Game of Thrones joint, with all the grimdark that entails. Villains rise, good people die badly, the world is a cruel and unfair place.
But in the middle of it all is this hulking idiot and his crafty squire, perhaps the best examples of actual chivalry we’ve seen in this nominally chivalric society. Peter Claffin and Dexter Sol Ansell are brilliant as the central pair, and thank Christ for that – the entire show lives or dies by their chemistry. Their performances are completely on point; you can imagine in other hands a Dunk that’s too oafish and stubborn, an Egg too smarmy and slappable, but these two relative unknowns (to be fair, Ansell has technically been acting since he was a baby) nail the assignment, giving us a mismatched duo we can really cheer for. Dunk really wants to be a knight – he cleaves to all those high ideals even when he’s surrounded by evidence of their essential meaninglessness – at least to those nobles who are espouse them. And Egg… well, I’m avoiding spoilers, but Egg has a much more clear-eyed understanding of what it takes to make it in Westeros – let’s just leave it at that. But it’s a good combo – the simple tough guy and the worldly kid, and I’d be happy to watch more of their exploits going forward.
George R.R. Martin has written a few Dunk and Egg tales, and has plans for more, for what it’s worth, so in theory there’s plenty more to come – this is the most enjoyable Game of Thrones has been in a long time.
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms is streaming on HBO now.
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