Tall Naive Guy Talking to Horses and a Small Guy (A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms S01E01)

Finally managed to watch the first episode of the new Game of Thrones spin-off, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. I want to share my thoughts and impressions on the episode. Note: I’m not that familiar with the universe and won’t obsess about houses etc.

We start with a burial under adverse conditions, with Tall Guy burying his former Ser Knight. He decides to become a knight of his own and wanders towards a tourney he heard about. On the way, he’s followed by a bald little orphan who wants to be his squire. At the tournament grounds it becomes clear that Tall Guy “Dunk” is awkward as hell, pretty naive, and well, a little stupid. But fun to be around. So he gets to know two sex workers, a Baratheon noble, and experiences random encounters that make it absolutely clear that he’s definitely not cut out to be a knight. But Baratheon Guy takes a liking to him. Which is good, as another noble the former pair of knight and squire worked for doesn’t want to know him anymore, and he needs someone who does to get approved for the tourney.

This is more of a comedy, not a drama, and it focuses on one guy and his mission to become something resembling a knight. We had these storylines in the major GOT series before, but now we have a series only focused on that part – at least if the plot isn’t split into multiple storylines in the future. And indeed, it is fun, down-to-earth, and the cast is likable. There’s a clear cliffhanger whether Dunk can take part in the tourney, and if he’ll be financially ruined due to his incompetence after that.

I rate this episode 7/10; I was entertained, but it was nothing special. Watching a comedy after just finishing five seasons of The Wire was a nice change of pace.

What might happen next? We’ll probably end up with a classic witty sidekick and hilarious but incapable main protagonist dynamic. Dunk will be admitted to the tourney because Baratheon Guy thinks he’s funny, and he’ll probably refund the equipment lost when Dunk inevitably fails miserably and breaks one or two bones. Then he’ll get assigned to a desperate mission Baratheon needs someone for who is stupid enough to take on the job.

Let’s see what episode two brings. Maybe more complexity will be added after all; GOT without political drama would be pretty atypical.