A Vibes-Based Ranking of Ser Dunk’s Bromances
‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ delivered just what Westeros needed: a good hang
Throughout its first season, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms managed to be a meaningful departure from what we’ve come to expect from a Game of Thrones series. Where its predecessors comfortably operated at a blockbuster scale—bringing a regular dose of epic battles, CGI dragons, and great conversations in elegant rooms—A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was refreshingly small in scope. Every episode runs close to half an hour. The entire first season takes place over the course of a few days. It’s genuinely funny. But perhaps the spinoff’s most important shake-up to the Thrones formula is foregrounding the smallfolk.
The majority of the protagonists in the Thrones universe hail from noble houses, wielding great influence across Westeros. These characters haven’t earned their station but were lucky enough to be born into privilege; as a result, they can treat nobles and lowborns alike with contempt and suffer few consequences. (See: basically everything Joffrey Baratheon does until he’s—thankfully—poisoned.) Conversely, the titular hero of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is Ser Dunk, a lowly hedge knight looking to make a name for himself at a tournament. Without any connections, Ser Dunk must navigate an unfamiliar world on his own. And what’s the most important quality someone in Thrones should have if they aren’t afforded wealth and status? Well, they’d better be a good hang.
Ser Dunk is never the smartest person in a room, and he also isn’t the greatest fighter, but the one quality in which he has no equals is pure vibes. Time and again, Ser Dunk meets complete strangers—fellow smallfolk, knights from great houses, the freakin’ hand of the king—and they become completely enamored of him. These people don’t just want to share a pint of ale with Ser Dunk: If push comes to shove, they’re willing to take up arms with him. Perhaps that’s the truest mark of a great knight: the ability to instantly forge a bromance as unbreakable as Valyrian steel.
By my count, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ first season features more bromances (eight) than episodes (six), which is impressive in its own right. So in honor of Ser Dunk’s inimitable powers of friendship, I’ve compiled all his bromances from the show and ranked them by the only metric that matters: ride-or-die potential. (I will also provide a modern-day analogue for every bromance.) Many of these friendships were entirely coincidental; others came about through shared suffering. Regardless, each of these bromances reinforces the same undeniable truth: In a realm built on bloodlines and backstabbing, Ser Dunk has proved that charisma and decency can earn as much loyalty as a crown.
8. Ser Arlan of Pennytree
Modern-day analogue: Father—or father figure—you’re desperately trying to impress.
Ser Arlan of Pennytree, the extremely well-endowed hedge knight who initially took the young Dunk under his wing, believes in tough love. Upon burying his mentor, Dunk says that Ser Arlan never beat him unless he deserved it. (Except for that time in Maidenpool; it was the inn boy who ate the widow woman’s pie.) Like a conservative dad who played D-I football and never lets you forget it, Ser Arlan strikes me as someone who’s hard to impress. Still, Ser Arlan is a man of principle, saving young Dunk’s life from sinister gold cloaks after he drunkenly stumbles out of a Flea Bottom pub. However, it’s also clear that Dunk views him with rose-tinted glasses. Dunk says that Ser Arlan always wanted him to become a knight, but whenever the show brings us a flashback of their time together, our guy is … ambivalent about the prospect, at best:
The fact that Dunk’s claim for being a knight—that Ser Arlan knighted him just before his death—never happened underlines that, despite Dunk’s years of loyal servitude, Ser Arlan doesn’t quite hold up his end of the bargain. At the same time, there’s no denying that the experience of being Ser Arlan’s squire—seeking employment by going town to town and protecting the innocent—is what makes Dunk a nobler knight than most men who’ve been granted the title. Is Ser Arlan of Pennytree the greatest knight of the Seven Kingdoms? No, but he did the best he could—and, given the size of his [clears throat] longsword, I’m sure he’ll never be forgotten throughout the realm’s brothels.
7. Prince “Egg” Targaryen
Modern-day analogue: Adorable yet annoying little brother who always follows you around.
Yes, he’s one-half of George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, which the series is based on, but we have to stomach an uncomfortable truth: Egg does Dunk dirty. When they meet, Egg claims to be an orphan, which makes Dunk, an orphan himself, soften his stance on allowing Egg to squire for him. In actuality, Egg is a Targaryen—the youngest son of Prince Maekar—who’d gone missing before the tourney, prompting a desperate search for his whereabouts. Then, when Egg’s shitty older brother, Aerion, attacks a puppeteering troupe for depicting a dragon being slain, Egg seeks out Dunk to intervene—a moment that ultimately leads to a seven-on-seven trial by combat in which several people die.
None of this would’ve happened if Egg had told the truth—or, at the very least, alerted his own family about Aerion’s transgressions rather than a lowborn who would suffer serious consequences for striking a royal. But for all his faults, it’s hard to deny that Egg’s friendship with Dunk is quite endearing: an odd-couple pairing that amounts to the Westerosi equivalent of Pinky and the Brain. He’s a good wingman, too.
In the big picture, it’s a good thing that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ first season ends with Egg squiring for Dunk. It gives this highborn the kind of education no maester could offer: showing him what life is really like for the people he could one day rule. Except that Egg lies to Dunk about getting his father’s blessing and runs away … again. Nobody has ever needed a clout in the ear more than this kid.
6. The Horses (Sweetfoot, Chestnut, Thunder)
Modern-day analogue: Your pet(s) you treat like your actual children.
Other than his sword and shield, the only meaningful possessions Ser Arlan leaves for Dunk are his horses: Sweetfoot, Chestnut, and Thunder. Having a horse is essential for traversing the realm, but they’d also fetch a pretty penny:
Perhaps a more detached knight would be willing to part with his horses, but Dunk is a giant softie, and that’s what we love about him. An honest-to-God contender for the most moving scene in the series is when Dunk—in desperate need of money for the tourney—has to sell Sweetfoot but promises to buy her back once he wins. (He gives the stableman extra coin so that she gets some oats and an apple the first night they’re apart—my heart!) Dunk’s love of horses is so evident that Raymun Fossoway (more on him later) ends up buying Sweetfoot back for him. “I think an orchard might suit her better,” Dunk tells Raymun, whose family essentially has an apple monopoly in Westeros. Going forward, Dunk will have Chestnut and Thunder on his adventures, and if anything happens to them, I expect our hedge knight to go full John Wick in their memory.
5. Rafe
Modern-day analogue: Childhood best friend you caught feelings for.
When he was growing up orphaned in the grimy alleyways of Flea Bottom, Dunk’s only friend was Rafe, a fellow street rat who yearned to leave King’s Landing for the Free Cities once they rustled up enough coin for the journey. Rafe was a little rough around the edges, but you can’t blame her—Flea Bottom is a cruel, unforgiving place in which even the gold cloaks, the supposed law enforcement of King’s Landing, will try to steal anything of value from the city’s most vulnerable inhabitants. But from these early hardships, Rafe and Dunk formed a genuine bond, professing their love for each other:
Unfortunately, Rafe’s story ends in tragedy: After a run-in with a couple of gold cloaks, one of them slits her throat. As she dies in Dunk’s arms, Rafe’s fate is an early lesson that, in Westeros, the powerless pay the price for other people’s cruelty. (As one of the gold cloaks says upon stealing their money: “That’s life.”) You never forget your first love, least of all when they’re violently taken from you. If Dunk spends the rest of his life trying to protect the innocent, it’s because he already knows what happens when no one else does. RIP to a real one.
4. Steely Pate
Modern-day analogue: Bodega guy who’ll sometimes give you free stuff.
Dunk’s rocking little more than a sword and rusty shield, so he’s in dire need of armor for the tournament. When he pays a visit to the blacksmith iconically known as Steely Pate, Dunk soon learns that buying new armor is beyond his means—and he won’t be able to trade in any of Ser Arlan’s old steel for a discount. “Steely Pate sells only his own work,” Steely Pate says, and you know that someone is cool when they talk about themselves in the third person. But upon seeing how despondent Dunk looks, Steely Pate quickly changes his tune and says that he could make use of some old metal, offering a discount.
It’s an early window into the kind of person Steely Pate is: He’s running a business, yes, but he’s got a soft spot for smallfolk chasing big dreams. (He also implies that knights with flashy armor care more about theatrics than being good fighters—a direct shot at Aerion’s whole deal.) And when Dunk must compete in the trial of seven after hitting Aerion, Steely Pate makes him a new shield unprompted. As for the price:
Contrary to his name, Steely Pate has a heart of gold.
3. Ser Lyonel Baratheon
Modern-day analogue: Guy who throws the best parties in college.
The heir to House Baratheon, Ser Lyonel is perhaps the best possible outcome for a highborn: He doesn’t take himself seriously, and he loves to party. Nicknamed the Laughing Storm, Ser Lyonel entertains guests in his tent at the tourney with generous helpings of ale, meat, and pastries. Upon noticing Dunk in his tent, he beckons the lovable himbo over and drags him onto the dance floor. Their dance is more like play fighting, during which Ser Lyonel repeatedly tries to stomp on Dunk’s toes. When Dunk returns the favor, Ser Lyonel is amped:
Aside from hosting the best parties at the tourney, Ser Lyonel proves to be a worthy companion to Dunk by fighting alongside him in the trial of seven. Later, he offers Dunk the opportunity to be a knight under his banner so that they can “hunt and hawk and sail” in Storm’s End. But while Ser Lyonel is by no means a bad friend, he doesn’t strike me as someone you can always rely on. Ser Lyonel competes in the trial of seven less out of loyalty and more because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—there’s been only one other fight of its kind in history. And as much as he loves hanging out with Dunk, I wouldn’t put it past Ser Lyonel to get bored with him and move on to the next thing that grabs his attention. In short: Dunk made the right call by rejecting his offer to join House Baratheon. By all means, invite Ser Lyonel to your bachelor party, and you’re guaranteed to have a good time—he’s just not best man material.
2. Prince Baelor Targaryen
Modern-day analogue: Authority figure who sees a lot of potential in you.
There have been far more bad Targaryens than good over the years, but Prince Baelor belongs in the latter category. The hand of the king and heir to the Iron Throne, Baelor possesses a sharp mind and a keen memory—he’s the only person who remembers Ser Arlan of Pennytree, as they once jousted at a hastilude. (Ser Arlan called him the “soul of chivalry” for refusing to take his horse and armor after winning the bout.) Baelor doesn’t just support Dunk entering the tourney but goes against his own family in the trial of seven, simply because it’s the right thing to do:
Alas, in the grand tradition of honorable men in Thrones, Baelor meets a grisly end. A blow to the back of his head during the trial of seven proves fatal, but not before he expresses his desire for Dunk to serve under him. In an alternate universe, Baelor would’ve been an excellent king—levelheaded, intelligent, and compassionate. But Baelor says that the realm needs more good men like Dunk, and we know that the hedge knight will spend the rest of his life trying to prove him right.
1. Raymun Fossoway
Modern-day analogue: Your bestie.
Sometimes finding your bestie is like finding your soulmate: You just know you’re going to connect right away. The first time Dunk sees Raymun Fossoway, Raymun’s getting pummeled by his asshole of a cousin, Ser Steffon, for whom he’s squiring at the tourney. It’s a brief exchange, but Dunk makes enough of an impression that Raymun invites him to Ser Lyonel’s tent for a feast and, the next night, offers him a cup of House Fossoway’s esteemed cider. That he’s extending such kindness to someone who amounts to a stranger speaks volumes about Raymun’s character. Raymun rules—even before we witness his tipsy tirade about Targaryen rule:
But what makes Raymun a true ride-or-die is how he reacts when Ser Steffon goes against his word. After telling Dunk that he’ll take up arms with him in the trial of seven, Ser Steffon pulls a 180 and joins the Targaryens; in response, Raymun asks to be knighted to fight alongside his new friend. Of all the characters involved, Raymun takes the most risk: He’s not a seasoned warrior, and he’s going up against princes and members of the Kingsguard. That Raymun doesn’t hesitate to stand up for what’s right ends up having far-reaching implications for House Fossoway, splitting the family tree into separate orchards. In a franchise concerned with inherited power, Raymun reminds us that the truest alliances are the ones we choose for ourselves. May we all be lucky enough to have a bestie like Raymun in our lives.
