Episode Review: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms 1x2 - "Hard Salt Beef"

Welcome back to the blog readers. As you know by now, I am a fervent fan of the content that we have gotten in the Game of Thrones universe. While I may love House of the Dragon (2022-) more than Game of Thrones (2011-19), I cannot deny that this universe can tell us some pretty amazing stories. The first episode of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (2026-) showed a real lot of promise with the potential for more. Would this episode, titled "Hard Salt Beef," written by Aziza Barnes and Ira Parker, and directed by Owen Harris, continue to get us in the right direction? Stick around to find out.

NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.

---

Peter Claffey really sold me on the idea that he could be a very likable Ser Duncan the Tall (aka "Dunk"). I recognize that the strength of this show is supposed to be the relationship and chemistry he has with "Egg," and we got the promise that it could be really fun. Going into this episode, I was banking on this chemistry coming up in spades. Not only did it do so, we got a pretty solid episode with great chemistry between the two leads. I also like that we are getting glimpses of the main story at hand.

None of the performances really stood out to me in this episode, but something regarding the performers did, and it is the aforementioned chemistry that we see between "Dunk" and "Egg." Peter Claffey (who plays "Dunk") and Dexter Sol Ansell (who plays "Egg") were going to be doing a lot of the heavy lifting in this series, and I truly believe that we have the makings of one of the best pairs on television so far this year. The warmness and charisma that Claffey is able to bring as Ser Duncan pairs so incredibly well with the wit and "sassiness" of Ansell's portrayal of "Egg" that I was left in awe of their talents. I hope they are able to continue their momentum because it has the potential to be really special by the time this series is over.

And now, I want to talk about the story of this episode because I think it is going to inform a lot of things that we see going into the rest of this season and future seasons. We start not too long after the events of last week's episode where Ser Duncan is eulogizing his former liege Ser Arlan of Pennytree to whomever he can find, but nobody seems to remember the man. He does, however, have "Egg," who is more than willing to listen to him. "Egg" decides to tell Ser Duncan to join the lists anyway, but shudders when he sees Targaryen banners. He returns to his and Ser Duncan's camp while Duncan stays to watch the arrival of Princes Baelor and Maekar Targaryen. This puts him in the path of Aerion Targaryen, who mistakes him for a servant and insults him. While this happens, Aerion's horse kicks someone in the face and Duncan is able to calm her down. Duncan then meets two members of the Kingsguard: Ser Roland of Crakehall and Ser Donnel of Duskendale. Ser Donnel intrigues Ser Duncan by revealing that he is not the son of nobility, but instead the son of a crabber.

After the Kingsguard depart, Ser Duncan follows a servant into the castle where he learns that two of Prince Maekar's sons are missing. The brothers discuss Daeron, but Maekar notices Duncan and accuses him of spying on them. He enters without an excuse and continues his conversation with Plummer that nobody will vouch for him. Baelor shocks everyone with his recollection of Ser Arlan and the two discuss his joust against Arlan. However, Duncan corrects Baelor's version of the joust, but the prince is kind to the gesture. Baelor is able to vouch for Duncan, but points out that he will need his own sigil to join the tourney. Duncan takes "Egg" to the puppet show that he went to last episode where this show tells the tale of Florian the Fool. After the show, the two meet the performer, whose name is Tanselle. Duncan asks her to paint a sigil for him, and she agrees, but he stumbles when asked what the sigil will be of. He is able to get out that he wants it to mimic the colors of a sunset. "Egg" jumps in and says the main symbol should be an elk tree, and Duncan adds there should be a shooting star. Afterwards, "Egg" chastises Duncan for failing to flirt with the performer and admits he is considered to be short for his age. Duncan replies that people call him stupid but fails to give his squire any real advice. Lyonel Baratheon saves him by asking him to join a tug-of-war match that Duncan's side is able to win convincingly.

Later that night, Duncan realizes he must buy some armor for the tourney and goes to a shop owned by Steely Pate. After admiring the armor, he is disheartened to learn of the prices, and Pate takes some pity on him. He agrees to a lower price if Duncan gives him Ser Arlan's armor. To make up the remaining cost, Duncan is forced to sell one of Ser Arlan's horses. He promises the horse, Sweetfoot, that he will buy her back when he wins. He continues to convince himself that the tourney could change his life, saying that becoming a champion could get him in the employ of one of the great houses, citing Donnel. "Egg" tells him that Donnel's family owns half the crabbing fleet in Westeros, still making him rich. The two gather along with everyone else to watch the official start of the tourney, where Duncan puts "Egg" on top of him. The first joust begins that includes Prince Valarr Targaryen and Lyonel Baratheon. "Egg" revels in the chaos, while Duncan panics when presented with how fierce his competition is. After the joust is over, "Egg" listens on as Duncan contemplates his perspective on Ser Arlan, and admits that he was not the great knight he was imagined to be. He questions his own chances in the tourney since Ser Arlan was not a gifted fighter, but loves the knight for raising him like his own son. He acknowledges that he is Ser Arlan's legacy and hopes he can show all the lords that forgot Arlan just who he was.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms brings us back down to earth with a more character-driven offering this time around, while excelling in the selling point of the show: the chemistry between Dunk and Egg. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.