A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ King Joffrey Replacement Has One of the Franchise’s Best Deaths (but There’s 1 Problem)

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has introduced a King Joffrey replacement, and he has one of the Game of Thrones franchise’s best deaths — but we likely won’t get to see it. Thanks to the brutal world George R.R. Martin creates in the Song of Ice and Fire books, Game of Thrones is no stranger to memorable last moments. From Tywin Lannister being killed by his own son while on the toilet to Oberyn Martell’s gruesome loss to The Mountain, many character deaths will stick with viewers long after they’ve left Westeros.

And King Joffrey perishing at his wedding feast is another example — one that went completely viral, thanks to how hated the character was. Those glad to be rid of him might be frustrated to learn that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has its own replacement. He’s a member of House Targaryen, but he’s just as cruel and unlikable. And the spinoff’s Joffrey replacement does get comeuppance in the perfect way, just like the Game of Thrones villain. However, don’t expect that scene to make it to the screen. Warning: SPOILERS ahead for the Dunk and Egg novellas in A Knight of Seven Kingdoms, what comes after, and what’s to come in the show.

Aerion Targaryen Is A Knight of the Seven Kingdom’s Joffrey Baratheon Replacement

Game of Thrones fans have already met A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ Joffrey replacement, though they may not realize it yet. Prince Aerion Targaryen gets just a little screen time in Episode 2, but it doesn’t take long to realize he’s a piece of work. He automatically assumes Dunk is either a stable boy or a servant, and he scoffs at the claim that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms‘ lead is a knight. To be fair, so do most people — but it’s obvious we’re supposed to dislike this character. And those who have read The Hedge Knight already know why: he’s the antagonist of this story.

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Prince Aerion proves just as entitled and vicious as Joffrey, attacking Tanselle for a puppet show that depicts a dragon dying. Although it’s not intended as a jab at House Targaryen, he takes it as such — and starts to break the girl’s fingers as punishment. When Dunk steps in to save her, he’s arrested for assaulting a prince. The story spins out from there, with Aerion’s cruelty leading to The Hedge Knight‘s Trial of the Seven. And as time goes on, Aerion continues to prove he’s a horrible person. Even his brothers admit as much, so his behavior isn’t limited to those he deems beneath him. He’s just like Joffrey in that regard, though the Targaryen villain has a reason for acting this way: according to actor Finn Bennett, he’s “embarrassed by the state House Targaryen is in” and trying to compensate.

Prince Aerion Has One of A Song of Ice and Fire’s Best Deaths, but We Won’t Get to See It

Prince Aerion will give us reasons to hate him as much as King Joffrey, and he’ll face a similarly grim fate — but it’s unlikely we’ll ever get to see it on-screen. Although Dunk’s team comes out on top during the Trial of the Seven, Aerion survives the ordeal. We only know what becomes of him thanks to a few lines from the original Song of Ice and Fire books. According to them, he eventually drinks wildfire. As you might imagine, ingesting it kills him. As Jeor Mormont tells Jon Snow in A Clash of Kings, he does this in the hopes it will transform him into a dragon:

“The very one, though he named himself Aerion Brightflame. One night, in his cups, he drank a jar of wildfire, after telling his friends it would transform him into a dragon, but the gods were kind and it transformed him into a corpse.”

Aerion’s mentioned a couple of times in A Storm of Swords, too. While speaking to his wife, Stannis Baratheon confirms that “Aerion Brightflame drank wildfire to transform himself,” adding that he “died screaming.” And Olenna Tyrell directly compares him to Joffrey, when Sansa tells her that the young king is “comely” in an attempt to avoid the truth. Olenna’s next words underscore how similar the two are, connecting them definitively in ASOIAF canon: “Aerion Brightflame was comely, but a monster all the same.”

Unlike Joffrey, though, Aerion won’t perish on-screen — which is sort of a shame when you consider how fascinating his choice to drink wildfire is. It would certainly make for a memorable scene, as well as an interesting psychological exploration of the character. But Dunk won’t be there for it, which means A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has no reason to show it. We may hear about it through another character at some point in the franchise, but that’s probably the best we can hope for.

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