The first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the newest HBO series based on George R.R. Martin's world of Westeros, has come to its conclusion with the sixth episode, "The Morrow." The season finale had the difficult task of following the high stakes penultimate episode, "In the Name of the Mother," which fans loved. Ultimately, "The Morrow" pulled it off and stuck the landing, ending the first season on a satisfying note.
"The Morrow," as well as the rest of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' first season, expands upon its source material, Martin's first Tales of Dunk and Egg novella, "The Hedge Knight." Plenty of supporting characters receive more focus than they do in the original story, and the series answers some questions that the short story leaves ambiguous, as well as changes a few characters' motivations.
In one concluding conversation that does not take place in the original story, Ser Duncan the Tall, a.k.a. Dunk (Peter Claffey) speaks with Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings). In this quick scene, the show makes a reference to one of the most important characters in Martin's entire A Song of Ice and Fire franchise, potentially teasing what's next for our hedge knight protagonist and his princeling squire.
Tarth, the Sapphire Isle
In their last conversation, Lyonel invites Dunk to join him in Storm's End, the ancestral seat of House Baratheon, for his life of parties and merriment. Dunk is hesitant to accept Lyonel's offer, since he's a hedge knight, prone to wandering by nature. In trying to sway Dunk, Lyonel asks if he's ever been to Tarth.
Tarth, also known as the Sapphire Isle, has never actually appeared in the main A Song of Ice and Fire series, and in its TV adaptation, Game of Thrones, Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) just sees the small island from a distance on a boat. However, Tarth is still very important to the series' lore, thanks to one iconic character.
Brienne of Tarth, played by Gwendoline Christie in Game of Thrones, has become one of the most recognizable characters in the entire Westeros franchise. First appearing in the second novel in the series, A Clash of Kings, readers meet Brienne when she defeats the Knight of Flowers, Ser Loras Tyrell (Finn Jones), in a tourney for King Renly Baratheon's (Gethin Anthony) favor. Brienne then watches in horror as Renly is murdered by a mysterious shadow that looks suspiciously like his his brother Stannis (Stephen Dillane). After Renly's death, Brienne swears fealty to Lady Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), who tasks her with delivering the captive Jaime Lannister to King's Landing in exchange for Catelyn's daughters, Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Arya (Maisie Williams).
Brienne eventually becomes a point-of-view character for the fourth book in the series, A Feast for Crows, during which she, and her squire Podrick Payne (Daniel Portman), search for Sansa. Brienne's story to date ends on a cliffhanger, where she is captured by Lady Stoneheart, a reborn Catelyn Stark, hellbent on vengeance for the Red Wedding.
In Game of Thrones, Brienne's story concludes with her serving as Lord Commander of the Kingsguard to King Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), continuing her mission to protect Catelyn's children. Additionally, Brienne becomes the first female knight in Westeros history, and her performance in the second episode of the final season, also titled "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms," earned Christie an Emmy award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
Dunk's connection to Brienne and Tarth
According to George R.R. Martin, Brienne is a descendant of Dunk. The two share plenty of similarities, including their height and strong sense of nobility, and in the books, Brienne's shield resembles Duncan's. As such, it is reasonable to assume that Lyonel's reference to Tarth is meant to recall Brienne.
Given that Dunk is Brienne's ancestor, audiences can assume that the heroic hedge knight eventually visits Tarth, in order to conceive a member of Brienne's family. However, this hasn't happened in any Dunk and Egg story so far. To date, Martin has only published three Dunk and Egg novellas, "The Hedge Knight," "The Sworn Sword," and "The Mystery Knight." However, Martin has confirmed he has future stories in mind for his dynamic duo, and showrunner Ira Parker has revealed that Martin has shared some upcoming adventures of Dunk and Egg with him to adapt going forward. Perhaps one of these adventures takes place in Tarth, and Lyonel's invitation to Dunk is set to tease a future novella/season. This would bridge some gaps between A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and Game of Thrones, and place the spotlight on Ings' scene-stealing performance as Lyonel Baratheon once again.
The entire first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is now available to stream on HBO Max.