At long last, we just got some clarity as to who Dunk’s (Peter Claffey) mysterious—and adorable—little squire Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) is in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and you may have seen something like this coming.
The Game of Thrones prequel series, which takes place nearly a century beforehand, follows the smallfolk of Westeros as they watch a tourney in the town of Ashford.
House Targaryen still sits the Iron Throne at this point in the timeline, but we aren’t seeing things played out from their points of view. Instead, we follow an orphan from Flea Bottom and newly-appointed knight, Dunk, who decides to try his shot at a tournament. On his way, he meets a young boy with a shaved head who knows a whole lot about the noble houses, Egg. Dunk assumes he’s a poor kid like he was, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Surprise! Egg is actually a Targaryen
In Episode 3 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, “The Squire,” we learn the true identity of Dunk’s squire. At the end of the episode, Dunk spends time chatting with Raymun Fossoway (Shaun Thomas), when Egg bursts into the tent to say that Aerion Targaryen (Finn Bennett) is “hurting her,” speaking about Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford). Remember, Dunk has seemingly formed a crush on the painter/puppeteer, so this puts him on high alert.
When Dunk arrives at the scene, he quickly realizes Aerion has caused her harm, and he doesn’t take the time to think rationally. Instead, he attacks the prince, beating him up without hesitation. We know that Dunk is honorable, and we know that Aerion is definitely in the wrong here. (Aerion breaks Tanselle’s finger). But Aerion is a prince, and Dunk is a… nobody.
After realizing one of his teeth is now loosened, Aerion orders his guards to return the favor for Dunk and knock his teeth out, but just as they’re about to do it, Egg emerges and orders them to stop. Aerion is surprised to see him, and Egg addresses him as his “brother.”
The episode ends on an intense note, with dramatic music swelling and Dunk coming to the realization that the young boy he’s spent so much time with, his squire, is actually a Targaryen prince named Aegon. The very same Aegon who has been missing.
How he fits into the Targaryen family tree
We’ll learn more about how Egg ran away and why he’s bald in next week’s episode, but for now, we definitely know a few things. Egg is the son of Maekar Targaryen, brother to Aerion, Daeron, and Aemon—the latter of which is briefly mentioned in this episode and is a minor character in Game of Thrones. For some reason, Egg’s been desperate enough to get away from his family that he’s disguised himself as a stable boy and squire in order to do so.
Though we’re only three episodes into A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms so far, it was evident from their first scene how much chemistry Dunk and Egg have. George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas—which A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is based on—follow the pair’s journey through Westeros, charming readers across the fandom.
This show is much different in tone from Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, but one similarity is the character-driven storytelling. But this time, the main characters are extremely likable, and these novellas wouldn’t work if that weren’t the case.
But with Egg coming from House Targaryen and Dunk being who he is, can this relationship even continue? Keep watching A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms every Sunday night to find out! And don’t forget to catch up with our podcast, Take the Black, where we discuss all things AKOTSK and the Game of Thrones franchise each week.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 1 consists of six episodes, so that means we’ve officially hit the halfway point.