A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Earns a Near-Perfect Score After Early Episode Release

It’s no secret that the newest showing of material based on the A Song of Ice and Fire series from HBO is, hands down, the network’s best work within that universe. And A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, despite being much smaller in scope and scale than its predecessors, Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, has yet to disappoint. And now, the limited series’ newest episode, which aired early to avoid competing with Super Bowl Sunday, is breaking some records, earning an IMDB score of 9.7—a higher score than any House of the Dragon Episode has earned thus far.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which is an adaptation of a set of novellas by George RR Martin, centers around Ser Duncan the Tall, or Dunk, a hedgeknight who finds himself in way over his head as he enters the tourney at Ashford Meadows, and Egg, or Aegon, a prince-turned-squire who lied to Dunk about his heritage, conveniently leaving out the fact that he’s a Targaryen prince, in hopes of squiring for the towering knight. And its latest episode, titled “Seven,” in which Ser Duncan, having stood up for the true ideals of knighthood against a prince of House Targaryen has to gather what essentially amounts to his misfit Avengers team, proves that it ultimately has a much better handle on the world that Martin has created than either of the other offerings HBO has created so far—and fans agree.

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What Makes A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms So Successful?

It might be as simple as the fact that the show has more heart in its first four episodes than House of the Dragon has in two seasons. But likely, it’s the fact that the showrunners are bringing to life an adaptation that is much closer to the book, instead of attempting to put their own spin on the material—something that Game of Thrones fell prey to over and over, and the thing that eventually led to the series being known for having the worst ending of all time. Reviews for the series as a whole, but especially this most recent episode, are nothing short of glowing for both of those reasons. 

“Turns out Westeros is way more interesting when it’s not exploding every five minutes. No dragons, no throne drama…just one well…meaning idiot with a sword and a kid who’s clearly smarter than everyone else. It’s slower, quieter, and somehow has more heart than most ‘epic’ fantasy. If you like honor, bad decisions, and consequences that actually matter, this one delivers. Surprisingly wholesome,” says one viewer on IMDB. And they aren’t wrong. Another adds, “After one episode, it is already clear that this is a significant improvement over House of the Dragon. I never actually bothered finishing the second season of HotD as it just didn’t grab me, but I loved the original Game of Thrones and have read all the books. Already, I feel this new series captures that early GoT vibe.”

It feels as though it’s safe to say that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is in more than capable hands with Ira Parker and Sarah Adina Smith, and with at least another two seasons of the show (depending on how many novellas Martin can crank out in the next few years), we have plenty of Dunk and Egg and the Westeros we deserve to look forward to.

What was your favorite moment from the most recent episode? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to check out the ComicBook forum to see what other ASOIAF fans are saying!