A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – Review
I have a confession to make. I enjoyed the mythology developed in the Game of Thrones series but struggles with aspects of it, including the graphic violence, sex, and nudity. But I was still drawn to the world that George. R.R. Martin created.
A House of Dragons was okay but I was intrigued by another spinoff called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. I never read the novella and so had no real expectations.
I can clearly state that I loved A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, far more than Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon.
While set after House of Dragons and about a hundred years before Game of Thrones, it has a much different vibe. Instead of being a epic about great houses, it was a much smaller tale, a story of a humble knight and his young squire.
The focus is on Sir Duncan the Tall, or just “Dunk,” a simple man who had squired for a drunken hedge knight who has since died. Desiring to make something of himself, even if just finding a purpose, he decides to enter the tourny.
Along the way, he finds a young boy with a mysterious past who goes by the name “Egg” attaching himself to him and insisting that he become Dunk’s squire.
It is hard for me to say what exactly is happening in each episode. Much of it is just Dunk and Egg waiting around until Dunk is eligible to enter the tourny. Sounds boring but it is actually a fun story of two different misfits who develop a close relationship.
The acting for the two main characters is exceptional. I was drawn to them and appreciated their wholesomeness, something I never expected from a George R.R. Martin story.
While set in a fantastic world, there is something about Dunk and Egg’s deepest longings that we can identify with. Neither is perfect but both have a certain innocence and we can’t help but root for them.
The final battle, and there is a big battle, is satisfying even if it is told in an unconventional way. I do not know what is next for Dunk and Egg, but even if this is all that we get, we have been treated to a great story.
You can purchase the first season here and you can get the book it is based on here. Both of these are Amazon affiliate links.
