How A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Quietly Reinvents One Of The Book’s Key Characters

Winter is coming, and so are spoilers. This article discusses Main plot details From the second episode of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”.

I bet you never expected that “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” and “28 Years Later: Temple of Bones” would suddenly enter into a competition in which one is more startlingly (and dare I say,) direct. Awesome) Full frontal nudity, now have you done that? Of all the ways to start the second episode of HBO’s fantasy series, “Hard Salt Beef,” even fans familiar with the source material weren’t expecting to see a flashback to the late Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb) in his film, importantfull glory…or any extent, for that matter. In author George R.R. Martin’s original novels, the old knight lives only in the thoughts of Dunk (Peter Claffey) as he remembers him serving as his companion throughout their many adventures across Westeros. But two episodes in, the adaptation is already taking a quiet approach to reinventing the side character who casts the biggest shadow ever on Dunk.

It all starts with Arlan’s cheeky opening moment, but interestingly it continues throughout the rest of the half hour. In another departure from the novel, Dunk goes so far as to plead his case to the neglected Sir Manfred (Daniel Monks) last week. During a sad montage of Dunk and Ser Arlan wandering through the countryside, Dunk attempts to remind several of the Great Lords present at the Ashford Tournament of the many years Ser Arlan has spent in their service – a scene that becomes progressively sadder and sadder as Arlan’s health deteriorates. The final insult is that despite devoting his life to one master after another, no one cares to remember him.

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

It is easy to understand why Sir Duncan the Tall was hard pressed to defend the good name of Sir Arlan of Pentree. Even Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) realizes this is a lost cause, loudly speculating that Arlan must have been a “dirty knight” after the recent rejection of Dunk’s earnest pleas. His companion’s calm remark that this is basically like having to “suffer your master dying over and over again” hits very close to home, and it’s not a leap to imagine Dunk fearing a similar fate for himself—a life of forgotten servitude that ends up coming to nothing. No wonder he insists that Arlan was a great knight someone We must remember him.

“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” uses this as the emotional backbone of Episode 2. In a clever bit of restructuring by credited writers Aziza Barnes (the late writer to whom this episode is dedicated during the end credits) and showrunner Ira Parker, the show has delayed Dunk’s first face-to-face encounter with the Targaryen ruling class until now, instead of premiering it. And here, of all places, the Hedge Knight finally meets someone who actually knows of Ser Arlan’s past accomplishments: the wise and generous Prince Baelor (Bertie Carville), next in line for the Iron Throne. Although the narrative reason for this is to give Dunk access to the tournament itself, the emotional purpose is to provide a small win for Ser Arlan’s legacy. If the next King of the Seven Kingdoms can take the time and effort to remember the unknown Hedge Knight, perhaps Dunk’s decision to follow in his master’s footsteps will lead to greater things in the future.

It all comes down to the final moments of the episode, which may be one of the most quietly poignant conclusions of any series. It’s time for the first round of duels, but while the action and suspense are as we’d expect, the entertainment factor soon becomes completely drained. Dunk’s mind flashes away from the violent carnage on display and back to the shock of Ser Arlan’s unknown and depressing death. Later, as they gathered around the campfire, Egg noticed the dejected silence of the knight. Staring into the darkness of the night, Dunk reluctantly admits what’s bothering him:

“Do great knights live in hedges and die by the side of a muddy road? I don’t think so. Ser Arlan had no talent for sword or spear, he drank, he committed adultery, and he was a difficult man to get to know. He had no friends either. He lived the night for sixty years and was never a hero. What chance did I have, really?”

The series is unusually frank about the idea of ​​humanizing someone who has taken on such a larger-than-life status in Dunk’s mind, but this character-defining moment where Dunk collapses back to Earth is a necessary one. This bold (and perhaps controversial) change may distort the idealized image of Sir Arlan of Pentree in our heads, but for good reason. “His name was Ser Arlan of Pinetree,” he said firmly. “And I am his legacy. And tomorrow we will show them what his hand has done.” By reinventing the complexities of Sir Arlan, this makes Dunk more committed than ever before.

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