A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is two episodes deep, and already it's clear that HBO's new Game of Thrones spinoff is a keeper. Adapting George R.R. Martin's Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a lighter, funnier show than Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon, which feels just right for this particular moment in time. But that doesn't mean intense developments aren't coming our way; this is still Westeros, after all.
Today HBO released a ton of new images from A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 3, titled "The Squire." This episode is the halfway point in the season, and things are going to be heating up. Let's run through them all, starting with the ones that immediately caught my eye. Prince Aerion Targaryen (Finn Bennett) is going to be donning his armor for a joust in this episode!
Considering how much digital wizardry both Thrones and Dragon have employed for their sweeping vistas and legendary creatures, it's refreshing to see a shot like this of Aerion riding down the list with his joust raised. That's an actual guy on an actual horse! A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' commitment to practical sets, stunts, and effects is already paying off, and I can't wait to see what happens this week.
Here's an even better picture of Aerion in his armor:
We've got one more of Aerion Brightflame to check out. This time, he's changed out the armor for a red velvet jacket, replete with a chainmail shirt underneath and a sword at his hip. He looks mighty displeased about something.
If you've read the book, you probably have a good idea of what may be getting Aerion's goat around this point in the story. If you don't, well, prepare to watch from the edge of your seat this Sunday.
Now let's turn our attention to our lovable squire, Egg. We've got a bunch of new shots with him, starting with this one where he's blending in with the crowd at Ashford:
And here he is, trying to lead Dunk's horse Thunder:
As Dunk told Egg in the premiere, Thunder is no boy's pony. From the look of that last picture, the headstrong steed will challenge our young squire a bit this week, which should be fun to watch.
On to Dunk and Egg together:
I love this shot of Egg whittling in a tree, while Dunk looks up at him. This just feels like George R.R. Martin's book come to life, and it gets me so hyped for the next episode. That's presumably at their camp site; here they are wandering around the tourney grounds:
Dunk and Egg will cross paths with a familiar face at Ashford this week: Raymun Fossoway, played by Shaun Thomas:
Dunk and Raymun look like they're going to spend a bit of quality time together. These two are a fun pairing in the book, so I'm here for it:
Raymun seems to be holding Dunk back in that second picture; I wonder what from? Here's one last image of Raymun looking pensive:
There are a few other characters we'll be seeing this week, including the ever-raucous Lyonel Baratheon (Daniel Ings) and his drinking buddy, Manfred Dondarrion (Daniel Monk):
Yeah, that picture pretty much speaks for itself. We'll also be catching up with Plummer (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), the master of the games. Here he is standing in front of Lord Ashford:
There's another shot of Plummer in this batch of images, and it's an interesting one. It looks like he'll be having some sort of discussion with Dunk in the woods near Ashford:
Now that Dunk's in the games, Plummer seems to have a bit more of an interest in him. It's more than a little curious.
Someone Dunk will certainly be much happier to talk to than Plummer: Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford). We've already seen this image from a past press release, but HBO has confirmed that it's from Episode 3 with this drop, so we're gazing upon it again:
Here's another picture of Tanselle. Based on the lighting, this one's from later in the day:
And here's a last image of Tanselle, this time decked out in...armor?!
That's obviously got to be part of one of her puppet shows. If you've read the book, this likely clues you in to a certain scene we may get this week. If not, prepare to see a bit more of Tanselle Too-Tall as she weaves her magic for the crowd!
We've got one last image for the road, of the hedge knight at the heart of our tale:
In that earlier picture of Tanselle and Dunk at the market, the hedge knight is holding a pair of eggs. This is presumably from that same scene. As for what Dunk wants with those eggs, the preview for this week's episode doesn't leave us in suspense. It's breakfast, of course!
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 3, "The Squire," premieres this Sunday, February 1 at 10:00 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max. We'll be covering it extensively, so check back for more!