A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ first season was mostly about Dunk (Peter Claffey) coming of age as the hedge knight he’s destined to be—with agonizing violence, a huge upending of Westeros’ royal line of succession, and the crucial making of friends and enemies along the way. But there was also a tiny flicker of romance for our very tall, very awkward hero as Dunk developed a crush on puppet performer Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford), a relationship seemingly doomed by messy Targaryen interference.
Or was it? Across George R.R. Martin’s three Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas, Tanselle only appears in the first story, “The Hedge Knight.” It ends with Dunk and Egg talking about heading to Dorne, where we know Tanselle also went after fleeing Ashford Meadow. But the second story, “The Sworn Sword,” doesn’t really fill us in on what transpired there. The third story, “The Mystery Knight,” is another tournament-centered tale, but without any puppet distractions.
For his part, Claffey has hopes that Dunk will find “Tanselle Too-Tall” again. Speaking to journalist Marco Spagnoli (via Winter Is Coming), the actor alluded to some insider information he’s got under his helmet, presumably direct from Martin and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms creator Ira Parker.
“Obviously we know the first, second, and third novellas, so we know how those things will originate,” Claffey said. “And the reason that Dunk and Egg leave to go in ‘The Sworn Sword,’ the second one, to go to Dorne is in search of Tanselle and her company. But without trying to spoil anything, if we push on very far… I’m pretty sure you’ll probably see Tanselle and Ser Duncan the Tall in the same room together again.”
The adaptation of “The Sworn Sword” is currently in production, with some key character casting announced earlier this week. And it must be noted that HBO has only officially renewed A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms for one more season. While a third season feels inevitable at this point, given the show’s success and the fact that Martin’s source material story already exists, it’s still not certain it will continue past that.
However, given that both Parker and Martin are on the record in support of extending Dunk and Egg’s adventures, the outlook is good on that front. Only, don’t get too excited about shipping Dunk and Tanselle; as Westeros history scholars already know, that particular pair doesn’t actually end up together in the end.
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