A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms 2026 Tv Series Review Trailer

In episode 4 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Baelor advised Dunk to demand a trial by combat with Aerion, because if he opted for a straight trial, he would be killed not only for striking a prince but also for allegedly kidnapping Egg. Dunk accepted Baelor's proposal because he knew he could take on Aerion in a one-on-one fight, but when he demanded a trial by combat, it backfired, because Aerion demanded a trial of seven.

This meant that Dunk would have to gather six other knights and fight Aerion and his six knights. Steffon was the first person to claim he would side with Dunk. Daeron said he would fall without much resistance during the trial to make up for the fact that he had lied about Dunk kidnapping Egg. And on the day of the fight, Egg convinced Lyonel, Robyn, Hardyng, and Beesbury to fight alongside Dunk. Now, Dunk was one knight short and entered the arena assuming his six-man team would face Aerion's seven-man squad. Although this was against the rules, Dunk's chances of proving his innocence dwindled when Steffon betrayed him to join Aerion.

Creators: George R.R. Martin, Ira Parker
Stars: Peter Claffey, Dexter Sol Ansell, Daniel Ings

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms opens with Baelor giving a pep talk to his team, while Raymun and Dunk are eager to experience their first time in combat. Once they've finalized their strategy, with the primary goal of survival, Dunk, Raymun, Baelor, Lyonel, Robyn, Hardyng, and Beesbury take their positions on the battlefield to face Aerion, Maekar, Steffon, and the Kingsguard.

As Egg heads off to take his place in the stands, since he can't be Dunk's squire in this situation, the hedge knight references their interaction from the second episode, and Egg's reaction shows how much he values his relationship with Dunk. With that settled, both teams charge. Dunk is momentarily stunned, then seems to hear Egg's shouts and charges forward. No, Egg was actually signaling Chestnut to get out of the way, because that's what they had trained for while Dunk slept. In fact, it's Chestnut's decision to move that spurs Dunk into action and into battle.

Unfortunately, as soon as he charges into the chaos, Aerion plunges his spear into Dunk's stomach. When Dunk tries to retaliate with his sword, he's knocked unconscious by Aerion's flail. This is when the episode flashes back to Dunk's childhood in Flea Bottom, King's Landing, and I think this flashback comes as we reflect on the events that led to his current situation. As a boy, he and his best and only friend, Rafe, used to survive by scavenging from the battlefield to sell at the market.

While traversing the aftermath of what appeared to be Blackfyre's first rebellion, which led to the Battle of the Red Grass Field and the death of Daemon I Blackfyre, Dunk found a warrior crushed beneath his own horse, yet still breathing. Dunk tried to free him, but Rafe stopped him, thinking that if they turned the warrior over to the authorities, they could get some money. However, when Dunk and Rafe tried to pull the warrior from under his horse, it squawked. So Dunk and Rafe gathered what they could and set off for Flea Bottom.

Dunk felt that, with Daemon dead, they no longer had any reason to abandon King's Landing. Rafe, referring to the dispute between one of his friends, Pudding, and a certain Cedric, emphasized that the world is trapped in an endless cycle of battles, and King's Landing was a focal point of such conflicts. Peace is not an option for those who seek power; therefore, it makes no sense to expect kings, queens, and lords to focus on the well-being of their people just because a long war has ended.

Furthermore, seeing the "irreparable" state of Flea Bottom, whoever sits on the throne could blame their predecessor for all the damage done and ask for more time to do something substantial for the poor, using that "time" to wage more wars and fill the coffers. Or, they would simply blame the poor for not taking the initiative to fix things. Returning to Dunk and Rafe, Ser Alester stopped them in their tracks, attempting to plunder what the boys had collected from the battlefield, but due to a commotion in the alleyways, the boys broke free from Alester, and Rafe even stole his wineskin.

Dunk warned Rafe that his actions would backfire, but Rafe knew that since she was leaving King's Landing, he didn't need to worry about people like Alester. With that in mind, they sold their belongings and retreated to the cellar, which served as their refuge. Dunk complained again about staying in King's Landing in the hope that his (presumably dead) mother would come looking for him, and Rafe essentially told him that he should stay with someone alive and in front of him instead of staring off into the distance for someone who was probably dead or had left him for a better life.

The next day, Dunk and Rafe went to the Game of Thrones equivalent of the state transportation authority, demanding two tickets to the Free Cities, but their request was denied because prices had gone up due to high demand. While they were regrouping, Alester and her friends cornered the boys, taking all their belongings as compensation for Rafe's alcohol theft. Alester let the children go relatively unharmed, but when he noticed Rafe had stolen his knife, he grabbed her and slit her throat, while one of his henchmen drove a spear into Dunk's leg.

Aerion surrenders. Rafe bled to death, and Dunk would have died if Arlan hadn't appeared out of nowhere and killed Alester and his cronies. I don't think Arlan was thinking straight, but his "protect the innocent" programming, however sober he was, was what drove him to save Dunk. Dunk profusely apologized to Rafe for not leaving King's Landing sooner, buried her, and then began following Arlan everywhere he went because, well, he owed the old man his life.

Arlan either pretended not to notice Dunk following him to see how dedicated the boy was to becoming his squire, or he was too drunk to realize that a child had been following him for days. By the way, many fans of "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" were confused about what caused Arlan's death. Well, during this flashback, we saw that Arlan had a habit of self-harming with his own weapons while drunk, so it's possible that the wound that killed him was Arlan's own.

Anyway, it was only after Dunk collapsed that Arlan paid attention to him and told him to get up. That's what ends the flashback, and it takes us back to the Trial of the Seven with Dunk, in the present, regaining consciousness. Contrary to everyone's expectations, Aerion defeats Dunk, albeit with the help of his allies, who constantly knock him down every time he tries to get up. Well, even without help, Aerion overpowers Dunk because, first, the hedge knight doesn't have the proper training; second, Aerion is much faster than Dunk; and third, Dunk is more injured than Aerion.

When Dunk collapses again, Aerion orders Ashford to declare the winner. And just as Ashford's assistant is about to sound the trumpet, announcing the conclusion of the trial, Dunk rises. This time, Aerion cannot bring Dunk down, and the hedge knight proceeds to deliver a million punches to the boastful Targaryen's face. Aerion publicly relents, the trial finally comes to an end, and all charges against Dunk are dropped.

At the end of episode 5 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Steely and Raymun take Dunk to the stables to assess his injuries so they can devise a plan to treat him properly. This is where we learn that Beesbury and Hardyng have died. Lyonel is alive, and it appears that Baelor is also well. He tells Dunk that he will send Maester Yormwell to examine him once he has finished treating Maekar. Although Dunk is gravely wounded, he kneels and expresses his desire to work for Baelor, something the Targaryen prince appreciates.

Now, at this point, it seems the show is deviating from the books, and the showrunners are going to let Baelor live because he's such a good character. However, when Raymun and Steely help Baelor remove his helmet, it's revealed that Maekar has crushed the back half of his skull. Perhaps the helmet was somehow holding Baelor together, and without it, he immediately collapses into Dunk's arm and perishes. Echoing Rafe's death, Dunk profusely apologizes to Baelor, because he believes he's the reason all the good people around him are dying.

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