How a Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Quietly Reinvents One of the Book’s Key Characters

Winter is coming, and so are the spoilers. This article discusses main plot details from episode 2 of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”.

I bet you weren’t expecting “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” and “28 years later: the Temple of Bones” suddenly entering a competition in which one has more direct access (and, dare I say, impressive) full frontal nudity, right? Of all the ways Episode 2 of the HBO fantasy series began, amusingly titled “Hard Salt Beef,” even fans familiar with the source material couldn’t have expected to see a flashback to Pennytree’s late Ser Arlan (Danny Webb) in his, hmmfull glory…or to any extent, for that matter. In the original short stories by author George RR Martin, the old knight lives only in the thoughts of Dunk (Peter Claffey), who remembers being his squire throughout their many adventures across Westeros. But after two episodes, the adaptation is already taking a low-key approach to reinventing the supporting character who casts the biggest shadow over Dunk.

It all starts with Arlan’s brazen opening moment but, oddly enough, it continues for the rest of the half hour. In another departure from the newsDunk goes beyond just pleading his case to the indifferent Ser Manfred (Daniel Monks) last week. During a melancholic montage of Dunk and Ser Arlan strolling through the countryside, Dunk attempts to remind several high lords present at the Ashford tournament of Ser Arlan’s many years of service – a sequence that becomes increasingly sad as Arlan’s health deteriorates. The final indignity is that, although he has devoted his life to one lord after another, none bother to remember him.

Fortunately, “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” turns this tragedy into unexpected strength.

It’s easy to understand why Ser Duncan the Great has such difficulty defending the reputation of Ser Arlan of Pennytree. Even Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) realizes it’s a lost cause, speculating aloud that Arlan must be a “shit knight” after the latest rejection of Dunk’s heartfelt pleas. His squire’s calm observation that it’s essentially like having to “let your master die over and over again” hits very close to home, and it’s not easy to imagine that Dunk fears a similar fate for himself—a life of forgotten servitude that ends up being for nothing. No wonder he insists that Arlan was a great knight and someone he must be remembered.

“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” uses this as the emotional backbone of Episode 2. In a clever restructuring by credited screenwriters Aziza Barnes (the late writer to whom this episode is dedicated in memory during the end credits) and showrunner Ira Parker, the series delays until now Dunk’s first face-to-face encounter with the Targaryen ruling class, as opposed to the first. And, here of all places, our hedge knight finally meets someone who actually knows of Ser’s past accomplishments. Arlan: The Wise and Although the narrative reason is to grant Dunk access to the tournament itself, the emotional goal is to provide a small victory for Ser Arlan’s legacy. If the next king of the Seven Kingdoms can take the time and effort to remember an anonymous cover knight, then perhaps Dunk’s decision to follow in his master’s footsteps. could lead to bigger things to come.

This all builds up to the final moments of the episode, which might be one of the franchise’s most poignant conclusions. It’s time for the first round of jousting, but while the action is as thrilling and visceral as we hoped, the entertainment factor quickly wears itself out completely. Dunk’s mind wanders away from the violent carnage on display and back to the trauma of Ser Arlan’s anonymous and disappointing death. Later, while gathered around their campfire, Egg notices the knight’s sullen silence. Staring out into the nighttime darkness, Dunk reluctantly admits what’s bothering him:

“Do great knights live in the hedgerows and die by the side of a muddy road? I don’t think so. Ser Arlan was no good with a sword and a spear, and he drank, and he prostituted, and he was a difficult man to know. He made no friends, either. He lived at night for 60 years and was never a champion. How lucky am I, really?”

The series is unusually frank about humanizing someone who has acquired such larger-than-life status in Dunk’s mind, but that character-defining moment where Dunk crashes to earth is necessary. This bold (and perhaps controversial) change may blur the idealized image of Ser Arlan of Pennytree in our heads, but for good reason. “His name was Ser Arlan of Pennytree,” he says resolutely. “And I am his legacy. Tomorrow we will show them what his hand has done.” By reimagining the complexities of Ser Arlan, it only makes Dunk more engaged than ever.

New episodes of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” air on HBO and stream on HBO Max every Sunday.