A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 1 Review: The Hedge Knight

The following contains spoilers for the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms episode 1.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms may be set in the world of Game of Thrones, but that’s generally where the similarities between the two properties end.

Yes, there are familiar family names, locations you’ve probably heard of before, and a similarly brutal atmosphere that conveys that none of these people are living particularly easy lives. But Seven Kingdoms is lighter in both tone and visual style (translation: you can actually see what’s happening onscreen most of the time). Its world is simpler, in that there are no magical creatures, family dynastic charts, or massive lore dumps. And its characters are those who exist on the margins, the craftspeople and innkeepers and other smallfolk whose lives make Westeros run, but who aren’t considered important enough to be remembered. It’s a breath of fresh air from its opening sequence, which undercuts the most familiar notes of Ramin Djawadi’s familiar score with the literal sound of shit. Truly, the OG series could never. 

The story opens, as most Game of Thrones-adjacent properties do, with a death. But it’s a fairly nondescript one, an old man dying from old age after a life of beating up his body in the service of money and honor. Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb) has died, and his squire Ser Duncan the Tall a.k.a. “Dunk” (Peter Claffey) digs his grave, before eulogizing him in a particularly straightforward fashion and getting on with things. That’s a big vibe in this show — the getting on with things. Because unlike the two series that sit alongside it, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms isn’t concerned with politics and succession the way that House of the Dragon or Thrones itself are. Here, dragons are paper tigers that breathe false fire onstage, and our hero is more concerned with where his next meal’s coming from than anything resembling destiny.

Now, left with his former master’s things, Dunk must decide what to do next. The answer, of course, seems obvious: Become the knight he’s always wanted to be, even if what that means in this corner of Westeros is more akin to a wandering minstrel than a Kingsguard captain. (Another character describes the concept of a hedge knight as “like a knight, but sadder,” which seems like a pretty fair assessment when Dunk’s busy using a bit of rope in place of a scabbard.)

Like Dunk himself, there’s something gratifyingly basic and low-stakes about this premiere, which generally follows our hero as he clumsily tries to enter the lists of a jousting tournament at Ashford Meadow in the Reach. But just because he claims to be a knight now doesn’t mean he knows how things work and he spends a lot of time asking random people for directions, advice, or help with getting his name on list to participate in the event. Along the way, he also meets a strange young boy (Dexter Sol Ansell) with a bald head and a bizarre habit of never answering a question directly. Even for those who don’t know the lore behind George R.R. Martin’s Dunk and Egg stories, it’s clear that this kid is more than he seems, an intriguing mix of preternaturally smart and strangely ethereal. 

Egg isn’t the only interesting weirdo Dunk comes across as part of this journey. There’s Raymun Fossoway (Shaun Thomas), squire to (and seemingly a much better person than) his more jerkish cousin Ser Steffon Fossway (Edward Ashley). Manfred Dondarrion (Daniel Monks) is the son of the man that Dunk’s good Ser Arlan once served, who seems disinclined to honor the bonds of sacrifice. And, of course, there’s Ser Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings), a knight known as the Laughing Storm, who will one day become Lord of Storm’s End. Lyonel is, admittedly, kind of over the top, hosting a pre-tournament party wearing giant antlers on his head, drinking to some significant excess, and dancing in a way that gives wannabe bullfighter more than grace. He also clearly takes quite a shine to Dunk, charmed by his honesty, forthrightness, and apparently endless love of food. 

Lyonel’s interest in Dunk probably shouldn’t be as surprising as it initially feels. After all, it’s pretty much immediately apparent that Ser Duncan is not like anyone else we’ve come across in Westeros before. Big, sweet, and more than a little dumb (complimentary), Dunk isn’t a schemer or a hero of destiny, or even a particularly good knight. What he is, however, is unfailingly kind, generally polite, and so unabashedly good it occasionally feels like he stumbled in from some other fictional universe entirely. The world of Westeros, after all, is best known for its morally gray characters and master manipulators, not its nice guys, and certainly not the kind of person who takes an untested young kid on as his squire just because he’s pretty sure that kid is not getting enough to eat. 

“The Seven above gave you tallness, so be tall,” Ser Lyonel tells him in what feels strangely like the show’s mission statement. Ser Duncan is tall, but more than that, he’s true. Essentially a golden retriever given human form, Dunk is kind, honorable, and almost completely without guile. Unfamiliar with the technical ins and outs of things like knighthood and tournaments, he’s more concerned with finding enough coin and food (this boy has a hole in his leg, as my grandmother would say) to survive. The best advice anyone can or likely will give him is to simply stay true to who he is, which is something so very different from almost everyone else we’ve met in this universe to date. 

If Thrones and House of the Dragon have taught us anything, it’s that nice guys finish last. But A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms dares to ask what if the hero of this story is actually a guy who talks to his horses, helps feed kids who are hungry, respects women, and just wants to live a life of honor? A guy who lives to make the world a better place instead of getting cut down in his prime? It’s maybe the franchise’s wildest plot twist yet.

New episodes of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premiere Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max, culminating with the finale on February 22.