A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Resurrects Game of Thrones’ Oldest Rule That House of the Dragon Broke

by

As a big fan of epic fantasy, I was really struck by how much A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms reminded me of the first few seasons of Game of Thrones. It felt like the showrunners had rediscovered something important. You see, Game of Thrones developed a certain way of doing things over its run – a set of traditions and unspoken rules that made each season feel consistent. But the first two seasons of House of the Dragon seemed to break from that pattern, and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms brought that classic Game of Thrones feel back. It’s one of the biggest reasons people are loving it!

Many viewers recall that Game of Thrones had a consistent pattern for wrapping up each season’s main storyline. Typically, the big battle or important event happened in the next-to-last episode. The season finale then showed the consequences of that event and hinted at what was coming next.

Unlike many shows, the first season of House of the Dragon didn’t save its biggest conflict for last. The major showdown between Aemond Targaryen and Lucerys Velaryon happened in the season finale, above Storm’s End. Aemond, riding the dragon Vhagar, killed Lucerys (on Arrax) in a pivotal moment. This act essentially started the Dance of the Dragons, as Lucerys was the first Targaryen family member to be killed by another.

Looking back, Season 2 really only had one big fight – the Battle at Rook’s Rest in Episode 4. I remember Season 1 ending with Aegon’s coronation, and Season 2 mirrored that with the reveal of the Targaryen heirs and them finally claiming their dragons in the episode before the finale. It felt like bookends to the seasons, focusing on power and legacy.

Unlike its predecessor, House of the Dragon initially deviated from the formula of Game of Thrones, but A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms returned to it. The season’s biggest event, the Trial of Seven, happened in Episode 5. The finale then broke from typical action-packed endings, instead focusing on the consequences of the trial and hinting at what’s to come in Season 2.

For reference, the climax of each Game of Thrones season was:

  • Season 1, Episode 9: Execution of Ned Stark/Birth of the War of the Five Kings
  • Season 2, Episode 9: The Battle of Blackwater Bay
  • Season 3, Episode 9: The Red Wedding
  • Season 4, Episode 9: The Battle for the Wall
  • Season 5, Episode 9: The Tournament in Meereen’s Fighting Pits
  • Season 6, Episode 9: The Battle of the Bastards
  • Season 7, Episode 6: The Fight Against the White Walkers Beyond the Wall
  • Season 8, Episode 5: The Battle of King’s Landing

Notably, seasons 5, 6, and 8 each contained other large-scale battles throughout their runs. For example, season 5’s eighth episode featured a fight against the White Walkers at Hardhome, season 6’s tenth episode showed Cersei destroying the Sept of Baelor, and season 8’s third episode depicted The Long Night.

Those storylines weren’t the peak of their seasons; the season finales usually wrapped things up and hinted at what was coming next. Season 8 was the exception, as it concluded the show entirely.

The new show, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, closely follows the story of George R.R. Martin’s The Hedge Knight, much like Game of Thrones did with its source material. The novella includes a complete storyline following the Trial of Seven that easily translates to a full television episode, and that’s precisely how the show adapted it.

The finale included many scenes that weren’t in the original story, potentially added to make the HBO Max series follow a similar pattern to Game of Thrones.

Will A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 2 Continue Game of Thrones’ Climax Rule?

I’m getting excited – Season 2 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is already filming! This time around, they’re adapting George R.R. Martin’s The Sworn Sword novella. Now, if you haven’t read the book, be warned – the show will likely reveal all the major plot points. But, just like Season 1, we can probably expect each episode to focus on a self-contained story within that larger narrative.

Similar to The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword focuses more on setup and character development. Expect the first four episodes to be slower-paced, building towards a major battle in Episode 5, and then a concluding resolution in Episode 6.

As a huge fan of the A Song of Ice and Fire world, I’m really excited about The Sworn Sword. It seems to dive deep into the First Blackfyre Rebellion with tons of dialogue about it, which could mean we finally get some flashbacks to the Battle of the Redgrass Field. That battle was famously brutal – the bloodiest of the whole rebellion, actually – and we already saw a glimpse of its aftermath in the fifth episode of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. So, I’m hoping The Sworn Sword expands on that and shows us more of what happened!

If this is true, we might see exciting action throughout the entire season, not just in one episode.

There’s a two-year gap between the events of The Hedge Knight and The Sworn Sword. During those years, Dunk and Egg journey to Dorne and visit Egg’s brother, Maester Aemon – a character fans may recognize from Game of Thrones – at the Citadel. The first episode of the series might briefly show some of these adventures before focusing on the story in The Sworn Sword.

It’s likely that the second season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will reach its most exciting point in the fifth episode, following the pattern of both Season 1 and the entire Game of Thrones series.

Read More

2026-02-26 00:06