Is it really Westeros without dragons and kings? The upcoming Game of Thrones spinoff The Hedge
Knight might just give viewers an entirely new perspective on life in the Seven Kingdoms.
"I could tell you about Ser Duncan the Tall. Those were always your favorites."
Game of Thrones had its fair share of really, really tall characters. There's the Hound,
who in the books is said to measure in at 6 feet 8 inches. The actor who played him, Rory McCann,
is a close 6 feet, 6 inches. Then there was his brother, the Mountain, who was played by multiple
actors, but most notably by Icelandic strongman Hafþór Björnsson, who is 6 feet 9 inches. While
certainly above average for a man, the book's iteration of the Mountain was even taller.
Then, there was Brienne of Tarth, portrayed by the 6-foot-3-inch Gwendoline Christie.
Martin describes her as about 6 and a half feet. And who could forget Hodor,
the gentle giant brought to life by 6-foot-10-inch actor Kristian Nairn, who held the door for Bran.
The Hedge Knight will introduce another person of preposterous stature to the Game
of Thrones extended universe. The protagonist and point-of-view character, Dunk, is so tall
that instead of his family or place of birth, his defining characteristic becomes his name.
Ser Duncan the Tall is reported to be nearly 7 feet by one account and exactly 6 feet, 11 inches
by another. His size isn't just remarkable enough to have been preserved in Westeros' history books;
it's also a comedic contrast between Dunk and his traveling companion, the diminutive Egg.
Very few actors match Dunk's stats, and productions usually use camera trickery and
digital effects to create such illusions. Among the fans' suggestions for Dunk are Henry Cavill
and George MacKay. Both standing in the vicinity of 6 feet in height, they're tall for movie stars,
but not for knights. Since Ser Duncan's appearance is so important to the story, many readers are
hoping for a properly towering figure, which might mean casting someone relatively unknown.
Of all Martin's books, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms should be the easiest to adapt. Game
of Thrones had to fit thousands of pages of story into Seasons 1-5, while House of
the Dragon uses only a tiny section of Fire & Blood for its first 10 episodes.
Both had to contend with dozens of locations and hundreds of characters. The Hedge Knight
and its accompanying graphic novel, on the other hand, are less than 200 pages
and feature one main setting and a manageable number of central players. This means that,
assuming the showrunners keep the book to a single season, the show ought to be able to
render the events of the novella at about the same pace and with the same amount of detail.
But adaptations shouldn't be afraid to make changes that improve the
story for the new medium. One area where the TV show could do better
than the book is in its depiction of Dunk's mentor, Ser Arlan of Pennytree.
Arlan is an archetypical Game of Thrones character: like Davos Seaworth,
he's an older nobleman and hardworking knight with a grizzled appearance and demeanor,
good intentions, and a slightly mysterious backstory. Unfortunately,
we never actually meet him in Martin's writing, and some fans want the series to
correct that. While some folks on Reddit have suggested starting the show with
Ser Arlan, others think Ser Arlan and Dunk's relationship could be handled in flashbacks.
Family words and crests play a vital part in the overall aesthetic and the
narrative of Game of Thrones. There are also many ancestral weapons like
swords and shields that mean a great deal to various characters.
"See that sword? It's called Heartsbane."
Ser Duncan's shield serves as the cover of some editions of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and
it's a major Easter egg that supposedly connects Dunk to a beloved major character down the line,
though fans have yet to discover exactly how. In all likelihood, viewers of The Hedge Knight
will get to see the origin story behind that shield and its design early in Season
1. The ultimate reveal, however, probably won't come until closer to the show's end.
When Dunk comes into possession of Ser Arlan's belongings,
he realizes that since he isn't Arlan's son, he cannot use the Pennytree's symbol
or colors — a winged silver chalice against a brown backdrop. The problem is that Dunk
isn't anybody's son. He was orphaned in his infancy and knows nothing about his heritage.
To become a respected-enough hedge knight to enter tournaments and find work, he basically has to
invent an identity for himself. How plausible that identity is, both to Dunk and to noble
outside observers, is one of the main catalysts of the action in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
The way in which Dunk comes by his new personal coat of arms is one
of the book's more captivating subplots. The image — an elm tree under a shooting
star — is quite beautiful and sure to adorn tons of official merch.
Besides dragons, palace intrigue, violence, and frozen zombies, Game of Thrones is also
known for its steamy romances. A cursory glance through the history of Westeros
relationships will reveal that most of them are complicated, if not utterly doomed from the start.
If The Hedge Knight hews closely to the text at all, Dunk will have his very own fraught subplot
with a love interest, and it's one that some fans of the novella are deeply invested in. When he
arrives at the tournament at Ashford, Ser Duncan makes the acquaintance of Tanselle, a Dornish
artist and puppeteer who goes from town to town with her uncle as part of a troupe of performers.
Dunk can't get the statuesque Tanselle — whose nickname is Too-Tall — out of his mind.
Even those who haven't read the book can probably guess how things go for Dunk and Tanselle,
based only on the premise that they both lead somewhat transient lifestyles and
Martin's tendency to rip lovers apart as soon as he gets them together.
The fates of iconic couples like Daenerys and Drogo, Robb Stark and Talisa, Jon Snow
and Ygritte, Jaime Lannister and Brienne, Missandei and Grey Worm, and Jon Snow and
Daenerys still pull at the heartstrings of many viewers. But that's not the point.
The point is, Martin's best pairings crackle with tension, particularly before they get together.
Dunk doesn't have Tyrion's wit or Jaime's charm, but he's as much a lover as he is a fighter,
and The Hedge Knight should let his chivalrous lead fall hard enough for Tanselle that he
has something to think about as he wanders Westeros in later seasons.
There's a ancient saying about the Targaryen dynasty:
"They say every time a Targaryen is born, the gods toss a coin and the world holds its breath."
The two sides of this allegorical coin are greatness and madness. Dunk and
audiences will come into contact with a whole new generation of Targaryens in
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and that coin flip wisdom will hold up.
At court around the time of Ser Duncan are Prince Maekar and Prince Baelor Breakspear,
as well as Maekar's sons, the Princes Daeron, Aerion, Aemon, and Aegon. Daeron goes down in
history as Daeron the Drunken. He's plagued by prophetic dreams and self-medicates with drink
and women to ease his mind. He's no peach, but his fellow prince Aerion is much worse.
Aerion, who calls himself Brightflame, will probably function as the main antagonist
in The Hedge Knight. As Targaryens go, he doesn't inflict the worst or the most damage,
though he's still completely vile and cruel. He's in the running for most mad, however.
This vicious prince is really into his family's history with dragons — so
much so that he eventually believes himself to be one. Aerion decorates
his clothing to approximate the look of a dragon and dabbles in dark magic.
To compare his character to another fantasy series,
he's like a combination of Gilderoy Lockhart crossed with Voldemort from
Harry Potter. He's the antithesis of Dunk, who's kind and self-deprecating.
If HBO Max's The Hedge Knight gets their rivalry right, the series should be a hit.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms takes place almost exactly in between House of the Dragon,
and Game of Thrones. Dragons existed during those series, but sadly, they're extinct in
Dunk and Egg's age. Will casual viewers still tune in for a dragon-less fantasy show? Some
fans don't think it'll be a problem thanks to another massive spectacle — tournaments!
While duels and jousting might not sound especially enticing to fans used to
seeing enormous monsters on screen, without CGI dragons taking a bite out of production budgets,
that money can go toward making Season 1's tournaments extra grand.
Of course, there have been several tournaments in series set in Westeros already. On Game
of Thrones, Robert, Joffrey, and Renly Baratheon all hold tourneys. For its part,
House of the Dragon's premier episode showcases Viserys Targaryen's tournament
intended to celebrate the birth of his and Aemma's son with one.
Since several prominent tales in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms take place at tourneys,
this should mean they'll take center stage in the television adaptation. If done correctly,
instead of montages of jousting and swordplay, The Hedge Knight ought to show the tourney in
full and allow the audience to get to know and care about each entrant.
Westeros isn't exactly an egalitarian society. There's a ruling class and a working class,
and they're unmistakably distinct from each other. Though being of
noble birth comes with its challenges, it's no picnic being a servant at King's Landing,
let alone a peasant on the streets of Flea Bottom.
One of the few contexts in which the landed gentry and the common folk mix? Live theater!
Mummers troupes often perform lewd versions of royal history in the world of Thrones for
the rich and the poor alike. For example, Teenage Rhaenyra gets a taste of local politics when her
uncle Daemon takes her on a late-night field trip to witness a roast of her own family.
As previously mentioned, Tanselle is a member of a troupe of puppeteers that's assembled to entertain
the crowds gathered for the tourney. That troupe puts on what turns out to be quite a controversial
and consequential show with marionette-like wooden dragons. While it upsets characters in-world,
the show's potential audience in our world should get excited to see them acted out.
The creators of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon have done an exemplary job already with
these types of stories within stories. Tanselle's puppet show is yet another chance for the
cast and crew of The Hedge Knight to get creative putting their own spin on a franchise tradition.
Just as the citizens of Westeros don't enjoy income equality,
they also can't depend on a very fair legal system. For those suspected of
a crime in Martin's world, the choice is often between corporal punishment or trial by combat.
"I demand a Trial by Combat."
Game of Thrones fans have been present for some marquee trials by combat,
mostly involving Tyrion Lannister. Bronn fights on his behalf the first time,
Oberyn Martell the second. These scenes are some of the highlights of the whole series.
Without giving too much away, Dunk finds himself in a similar position at some point during
the events of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Fortunately, he's more than capable of defending
himself. Unfortunately, his adversary demands a Trial by Seven, in which both the accuser
and the accused must assemble a team of seven to square off in what amounts to a mega-duel.
This is easier said than done for Dunk, who isn't highborn and doesn't have a Lannister's
money or connections. The Trial by Seven is the climax of The Hedge Knight and fans on
Twitter are losing their minds about the possibility of seeing it in live action.
It will be the first time book readers will see a Trial by Seven on screen,
with each knight battling with his choice of fighting style and weapon,
and it will put a number of the show's main characters in a life-or-death situation.
If all goes well, The Hedge Knight could comprise
the first of at least three seasons of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
While there are some recognizable tie-ins to the author's overarching story in part one,
most of the stuff fans are really waiting to see won't happen until much later in Dunk's life.
Ser Duncan plays a pivotal role in the Blackfyre Rebellions. He's rumored to
have fathered at least one child and is thought to be related to at least one
fan-favorite Game of Thrones character. He even crosses paths with the likes of
A Song of Ice and Fire veterans Walder Frey, Barristan Selmy, and Maester Aemon.
Though Dunk's tale is relatively modest in scope and length, it offers a fresh perspective into key
pieces of Martin's lore. Not to mention, Ser Duncan the Tall becomes a legendary knight in
his own regard. We don't know if A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will stop where the novellas do as
of now or if Martin and Max will explore Westeros through Dunk's eyes beyond "The Mystery Knight."
But we can hope that if "The Hedge Knight" is successful, this series and other spin offs could
eventually give fans live-action adaptations of more of their favorite book moments.