A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Season 1 4K UHD Review
“A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms” is a worthy “Game Of Thrones” prequel.
Based on George R.R. Martin’s “Tales Of Dunk And Egg,” HBO’s “A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms” is a prequel series to “Game Of Thrones.” The 6 episode debut season revolves around Ser Duncan The Tall (AKA Dunk) who is a lowly hedge knight. After his mentor Ser Arlan of Pennytree passes away, Duncan ventures to a jousting tournament in Ashford. While en route, he encounters a bald child known as Egg who would later go on to become his squire. Egg, however, isn’t exactly who he claims to be as he harbors a big secret. Throughout the series, there are plot lines about a feud between Duncan and Prince Aerion, the revelation of who Egg is, a Trial Of Seven (no spoilers as to what that is), and flashbacks to Dunk’s tragic childhood.
After the lousy final 2 seasons of “Game of Thrones” and the lackluster “House of Dragons,” I was certainly skeptical about returning to Westeros with “A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms.” Luckily, this fantasy series turned out to be a rather pleasant surprise. Yes, it’s a bit slight and the tone can be a bit lighthearted at times (there are some eye-rolling bits of humor to be sure), but that’s also part of its charm. The show isn’t just another Thrones copycat. It has its own vibe and tone with the towering goof that is Duncan, but it’s also plenty dramatic and violent. More importantly, this series is based on George R.R. Martin’s novella and he was involved with the series. As we found out the hard way, the Thrones TV universe is definitely at its best when it follows Martin’s work. This series is further proof of that.
What really makes ‘Knight’ work as well as it does is the cast. Former Rugby star Peter Claffey has relatively few credits to his name, but he’s certain to be a star from here on out. He really manages to make the character his own and allow audiences to see the show from his POV. Dexter Sol Ansell is equally fantastic here as the precocious Egg. He has perfect chemistry with Claffey. If that dynamic didn’t work, the show wouldn’t work. Daniel Ings steals the show as a Knight named Ser Lyonel Baratheon. Ings is brimming with energy and his comedic timing is pitch perfect.
For those on the fence about trying “A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms,” give it a shot. It’s a nice change of pace from what has come before and it shows there is still life left in this franchise. Season 2 can’t come soon enough.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 2.00:1 2160p. How does it look? This is far and away the best way to watch the series. The colors pop so much here it makes the show feel immersive.
Audio Track: Dolby Atmos. How does it sound? The Atmos track is every bit as dynamic as you hoped it would be.
Extras:
* “Inside The Episode”- Behind-the-scenes segments for all 6 episodes.
* “Building A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms”- A general 35 minute featurette with clips, set footage, discussions about adapting the novella for the screen and casting, table read footage, location shooting and set chatter, and more.
* “Ashford Meadow Set Tour With Dexter Sol Ansell”
* Blooper reel
* “Welcome To A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms (Extended)”- A short 4 minute featurette
* “A Knight In The Making”- A 3 part featurette that covers making all 6 episodes.
* “Character Pieces”- “Meet Dunk” and “Meet Egg” (interviews with the two lead actors about their characters).
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