If you watched “The Squire,” last night’s episode of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, you know the secret that anyone who’s read George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas has been bursting with since the show started.
Ahead of the season premiere, showrunner Ira Parker talked more about the reveal—and what motivated the character in question to hide their true identity—to a group of journalists, io9 included.
If you’re not caught up, turn back now!
As we now know, Egg—the kid whose persistence earns him a trial shot at being a squire for Ser Duncan the Tall—is actually Aegon Targaryen. He’s no orphan stableboy; he’s a genuine prince who’s been shaving his head to hide his telltale Targaryen white-blonde hair. As has been made clear across Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, and now A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Targaryens are known to be cruel and selfish. Not all of them, but Egg’s immediate family (aside from his uncle, Baelor) certainly fits the bill. So is there more to Egg’s decision to go undercover than simply escaping his royal torment?
“[The] question actually came up a few times in the development process: why does Egg follow after Dunk? Why does he chase after this guy?” Parker said. “I talked to George a little bit about this: did he sense Dunk’s honor? Is that why? … George said something that really opened it up for me. He’s just like, ‘Kids feel disappointment more acutely than adults do … Egg wasn’t gonna get the thing that he wanted, [and] in a very princely way, he said, “Well, I’m gonna figure out way to get in there.’”
In other words, Egg really wanted to go see the fighting at Ashford Meadow, but as we saw in episode one, he’s stuck hanging around that roadside inn. When he realized Dunk was heading for the tournament, he saw opportunity in the squire-less hedge knight.
“In a lot of ways, Dunk is unsuspecting. Dunk doesn’t know anybody; Dunk doesn’t have any ties,” Parker continued. “Dunk is the perfect person to go and pretend with because he’s not gonna be treading into many important camps where Egg might be found out or caught.”
Now that Egg’s Targaryen truth is out there, it’s safe to assume his relationship with Dunk will change a bit. “The Squire” ends with a shocked Dunk realizing that Egg has been lying to him this entire time. But since we know there are more adventures ahead for the duo—including another season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms coming next year—it’s certain the rift will heal quickly.
As we will see in the weeks ahead, Parker teased, “I think [Egg has made a] very honest childish decision, and Dunk calls him out on that because part of maturing, part of this process of being a teacher for a young boy or a mentor for a squire, is that your actions have consequences.”
And, lest we forget, “[Egg] is just a kid. He should be forgiven. He is, at this point, unmolded clay. I mean, he’s a Targaryen prince officially, but he’s not anything yet.”
Dunk and Egg will confront the Targaryen bombshell in episode four, which arrives early this week—Friday, February 6—on HBO Max. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will also hit HBO at its usual time, on Sunday, February 8.
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