HBO isn’t giving up on the Game of Thrones property. House of the Dragon is still going strong on the network, dropping an action-packed second season that features as many dragon fights as it does council meetings. Season 3 is sure to keep the momentum going as it continues to drive a wedge between the Green and Blacks. Since House of the Dragon is hogging all of the drama for itself, the next Game of Thrones spinoff, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, will have to keep the stakes low, not taking too many swings that will change the complicated landscape of Westeros.
The trailer for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms proves that the direction the series is heading in is a simple one. A hedge knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, is looking to make something of himself despite being a commoner. He’s bringing a young squire named Egg along for the right because the boy shows moxy. Of course, there will be more to the story, but the trailer does a great job of avoiding borrowing a page out of Game of Thrones‘ playbook, saving the surprises for another time.
The following contains spoilers for the Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas.
It’s no secret that the Game of Thrones franchise no longer has the allure it once did. After all, the final season of the flagship series drops the ball in a significant way, delivering anticlimactic conclusions for characters who have been fighting the good fight for years. All that to say, HBO needs to grab wins wherever it can get them, especially when they involve a callback to the good old days. House of the Dragon does it plenty, name-dropping the “Song of Ice and Fire” that drives Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow to fight against the Night King’s forces.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms doesn’t have anything as big as the fate of the world on its shoulders, but it is hiding a major connection to Game of Thrones. In the Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, it comes to light that Egg is actually Aegon Targaryen, a royal in line for the Iron Throne who gives up riches and fame to live among the common folk. His adventures with Duncan teach him valuable lessons that he takes with him to the Red Keep. While the live-action adaptation of the story could have easily revealed that from the jump and gotten eyeballs on itself immediately, it’s doing the right thing by keeping the focus on the characters themselves, not who they’re related to.
A member of the royal family hiding in plain sight is nothing new for Game of Thrones. The original show teases time and time again that Jon Snow’s family tree is much more complicated than it seems, and that turns out to be the case when Bran Stark reveals that his “brother” is actually Aegon Targaryen, the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. The bombshell sends shockwaves through Westeros and complicates Jon and Daenerys’ relationship. Unfortunately, not much comes of Jon’s new identity, as the show has him give up his claim to the throne and continue to fight for Daenerys until she cracks.
If A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms follows the source material, Egg’s story won’t be anything like Jon’s or Daenerys’. He will go through plenty of trials that try to break his spirit, but he’ll come out the other side a good person and, more importantly, a worthy ruler who has the best interests of Westeros at heart.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms airs on HBO in January 2026.
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