A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Just Repeated Game of Thrones’ 2 Best Fights (& 1 Has a Deeper Meaning)

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1, Episode 5, “In the Name of the Mother,” is the closest it comes to Game of Thrones, right down to two of its greatest fight scenes. HBO’s latest prequel has largely succeeded by doing things its own way: the first few episodes were much smaller, lighter fare than we’ve previously seen in the franchise, more concerned with unpacking what it means to be a knight than things like the Iron Throne or the fate of the entire realm. That’s gradually shifted, though, leading to its most epic sequence yet with the trial of seven. Warning: SPOILERS from this point on.

Although A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5 is more focused on flashbacks, there’s still plenty of action to get excited about. The trial is foggy and muddy; it isn’t the same as the huge-scale battles we saw in Game of Thrones, but it’s true to the show and keeps its main character, Ser Duncan the Tall, at the forefront throughout. It perfectly builds to Dunk’s victory over Aerion Targaryen, and then the gut punch that it saves for last: Baelor Targaryen’s death. And in both of those, it very much echoes scenes from Game of Thrones Season 4.

Baelor Targaryen’s Death Was Similar To Oberyn Martell’s In Game Of Thrones

Baelor’s decision to fight for Dunk in the trial of seven is different from Oberyn Martell’s choice to be Tyrion Lannister’s trial by combat champion. While the Red Viper had his own sense of honor and justice, he was driven by revenge for what had happened to his sister, Elia, and this finally gave him a chance to get it. Baelor was more purely virtuous, but regardless, it produced a similar result: both men were killed with their heads crushed.

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Both are, of course, incredibly shocking and designed to catch viewers off guard for maximum emotional impact, after a season of making us care about them. And both are a reminder of how dark, dangerous, and cruel a world this can be, whether you’re good, evil, or somewhere in between. And yet, for as much as their losses feel both sudden and avoidable (neither man needed to fight, after all), it’s exactly because they chose to take part, and to do what they thought was right, even knowing the potential cost, that makes them such memorable characters.

Dunk’s Brawl With Aerion Recalled Brienne vs. The Hound (& There’s A Deeper Link Between Them)

Prior to the shock of Baelor’s death, there was the clash between Dunk and Aerion. Styles make fights, and we see two very different ones here: Aerion is actually the more skilled swordfighter, especially when Dunk is so wounded, and there’s an irony that he might’ve defeated him in a regular trial by combat. But that’s Aerion against Ser Duncan the Tall; fighting against Dunk of Flea Bottom is a whole other matter (an idea lifted straight from the pages of George R.R. Martin’s book), and is where this is won and lost.

It moves away from a swordfight and into a desperate scrap for survival. It’s ugly, vicious, and raw, and puts us close up in that in quite an unsettling, visceral way. And to that end, it very much calls to mind the fight between Brienne of Tarth and the Hound in the Game of Thrones Season 4 finale, “The Children.” That was not only one of the show’s best, but also its roughest, dirtiest fight scene, and this is the closest companion we have to it.

What makes this comparison even more interesting is the connection between Dunk and Brienne. Of course, there are clear similarities in stature, and in them both exhibiting the traits a true knight ought to. But it’s also been confirmed that they are related: the specifics have not been explained, but Brienne is a descendant of Ser Duncan the Tall (and even ends up with his shield), making their similar fights even better.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ Season 1 finale releases on Sunday, February 22nd at 10 pm ET on HBO and HBO Max.

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