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horse out of its misery. I’m thinking about today’s standards, where a horse would receive an injection that slows the heartbeat down entirely. Alas, this is the tourney at Ashford, and we see one of the horse masters come in with a very heavy and sharp lance – and you know what he does to the horse. I could not watch this part and had to look away. Every spectator who witnessed the barbarity from Aerion started yelling, pushing against the fences, and began to riot. 
My. Goodness! Thankfully, the beginning of the episode was calm and serene. However, still waters run deep, and this episode really showcased the level of animosity many folks have for House Targaryen.
Especially Egg.
We enjoy Dunk and Egg having a bit of a bromance going on. They often ponder what life has in
store for them and navigate through the comings and goings of the tournament. They share time
together eating simple food, mending their clothing, and tending to the horse. It’s small, simple
pleasures like this that are nice to see, given this is Westeros. Dunk, with his mind on romance, is
having a hard time focusing on what his next step should be. We know he has to enlist in some
jousts, and we know he needs to get his shield back from Tanselle.
If you haven’t already picked up on the anxiety that Egg experiences whenever any member of
House Targaryen is present, then you need to pay closer attention to what transpires in this episode.
Especially during one jousting match, which is the most brutal and gruesome act of malice that occurs.
Aerion is so sinister that he cheats, dishonours, and disregards any code of chivalry by setting his
lance too low while riding against his opponent. You know what that means for the horse – he
cruelly impales the horse, and we all know that once a horse is grievously injured, they put the
horse out of its misery. I’m thinking about today’s standards, where a horse would receive an injection that slows the heartbeat down entirely. Alas, this is the tourney at Ashford, and we see one of the horse masters come in with a very heavy and sharp lance – and you know what he does to the horse. I could not watch this part and had to look away. Every spectator who witnessed the barbarity from Aerion started yelling, pushing against the fences, and began to riot.And then smug son of a gun just sits there, no cares in the world because hey! He’s Aerion, BrightFlame, and he can do whatever he wants. Spoiled jerk and depraved monster, if you ask me. While
walking through the crowd, Dunk and Egg reflect on what they just saw. Dunk is either truly green when it comes to jousting rules, or he’s just trying to come to some sort of conclusion that would make sense. But this is Aerion Targaryen: a man so smug, entitled, and ruthless that he gets away with everything because of his family name. Is this fair? NO. Is it right to see a despicable scumbag like this get away with acts of cruelty all the time? ALSO, NO. When Dunk is screaming at the men jousting – he’s not supporting his brother, he’s yelling at Ser Humphrey to kill Aerion. You gotta love the look of shock on Dunk’s face.
When Egg is speaking to Dunk about the joust and how the cruelty and cheating were normal for Aerion to do….and his eyes were full of tears – you just KNOW that he’s experienced pain and trauma at the hands of 
his sadistic brother. I’m glad the common folks revolted – even if for just a bit, and yes, the Kingsguard came to save the royal scumbag from his just desserts. Truth be told, I would’ve loved to see Aerion get the snot kicked out of him. Let’s not forget Raymun Fossoway’s cryptic words to Dunk about the Targaryens (what’s that saying, “in vino veritas?”) – Raymun isn’t off the mark. Anyone who’s been around the Targaryens knows that they are rich, powerful, and (for the most part) formidable. They had dragons. HAD. Perhaps they are just a shadow of what they used to be. Baelor doesn’t seem too bad – but Aerion? He’s on a violent mission to desecrate everything in his path because of his smug sense of entitlement. Just look at what he ends up doing to poor Tanselle at her puppet show – he ruins the show, humiliates and scares her in front of patrons, and breaks her finger because he thinks he can get away with that kind of behaviour. You know, “boys will be boys” or “Targaryens are untouchable” mentality. Well, not today, Satan! Egg ran to fetch Dunk, and not only does Dunk come to the rescue, but he also beats the crap out of Aerion. Knocked a few teeth loose (too bad he didn’t break his arms or legs), and I can’t tell you how satisfying that was to watch. I’m pretty sure many fans of the realm were cheering at this point in the episode. Before you know it, several of Aerion’s guards take hold of Dunk, and just as it looks like Dunk’s teeth are about to get cracked – Egg steps forward to prevent the guards from doing any more damage. Dunk, concerned for his “squire’s” safety, yells at him – he doesn’t want to see any more bloodshed. That is, until Egg commands them to stand down because if they don’t, they will be dealing with his father….and guess who that is?! Aerion’s face becomes twisted with anger – as brother recognizes brother, and there is no love lost between them. I absolutely adored how Egg handed Aerion’s ass to him with the remark – “I cut it off, brother, I didn’t want to look like you.”
his sadistic brother. I’m glad the common folks revolted – even if for just a bit, and yes, the Kingsguard came to save the royal scumbag from his just desserts. Truth be told, I would’ve loved to see Aerion get the snot kicked out of him. Let’s not forget Raymun Fossoway’s cryptic words to Dunk about the Targaryens (what’s that saying, “in vino veritas?”) – Raymun isn’t off the mark. Anyone who’s been around the Targaryens knows that they are rich, powerful, and (for the most part) formidable. They had dragons. HAD. Perhaps they are just a shadow of what they used to be. Baelor doesn’t seem too bad – but Aerion? He’s on a violent mission to desecrate everything in his path because of his smug sense of entitlement. Just look at what he ends up doing to poor Tanselle at her puppet show – he ruins the show, humiliates and scares her in front of patrons, and breaks her finger because he thinks he can get away with that kind of behaviour. You know, “boys will be boys” or “Targaryens are untouchable” mentality. Well, not today, Satan! Egg ran to fetch Dunk, and not only does Dunk come to the rescue, but he also beats the crap out of Aerion. Knocked a few teeth loose (too bad he didn’t break his arms or legs), and I can’t tell you how satisfying that was to watch. I’m pretty sure many fans of the realm were cheering at this point in the episode. Before you know it, several of Aerion’s guards take hold of Dunk, and just as it looks like Dunk’s teeth are about to get cracked – Egg steps forward to prevent the guards from doing any more damage. Dunk, concerned for his “squire’s” safety, yells at him – he doesn’t want to see any more bloodshed. That is, until Egg commands them to stand down because if they don’t, they will be dealing with his father….and guess who that is?! Aerion’s face becomes twisted with anger – as brother recognizes brother, and there is no love lost between them. I absolutely adored how Egg handed Aerion’s ass to him with the remark – “I cut it off, brother, I didn’t want to look like you.”Oh, would you like some milk of the poppy for that burn, Aerion?! The shocking reveal at the end of the episode was fantastic – we now know the little lad is Aegon Targaryen, the “missing” son of Maekar. He temporarily saved Dunk from an awful punishment, but what will assaultingthe grandson of the King mean later on?
Next time -Dunk is faced with the daunting task of finding six others to fight alongside him.
