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Episode 5 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, titled “In The Name Of The Mother”, weaves together two significant narratives. It unveils the fates of several characters during Ser Duncan the Tall’s (Peter Claffey) Trial of Seven, determining who survives, who perishes, and who is deemed guilty or innocent. Additionally, it delves into the backstory of how the young Dunk (Bamber Todd) from Flea Bottom came to serve as a squire for Ser Arlan of Pennytree (Danny Webb).
Warning: Spoilers ahead for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5 “In The Name of the Mother,” available now on HBO Max.
In George R.R. Martin’s “Dunk and Egg” novellas, we discover that Ser Duncan the Tall began his journey as an orphan boy named “Dunk” in the impoverished area of Flea Bottom, within King’s Landing. In “The Hedge Knight,” Dunk claims he became Ser Arlan’s squire at the tender age of five or six, rescued from the harsh streets. However, the third novella reveals more about Dunk’s early years, indicating he may have spent a longer period surviving on the streets.
At the start of “The Mystery Knight,” Dunk encounters a head impaled on a spike at Stoney Sept, sparking memories of countless similar heads he saw—and played with—during his childhood in King’s Landing. He recalls three close companions, mischievous kids named Ferret, Rafe, and Pudding. These youngsters once removed a head from a spike, turning it into a game where they chased girls to plant kisses on the decaying flesh.
“That head got kissed a lot, as he recalled,” Martin writes, noting, “There wasn’t a girl in King’s Landing who could run as fast as Rafe.”
While many fans assumed that Rafe was a boy, HBO’s show reimagines the character as a smart, scrappy girl played by Dune: Prophecy standout Chloe Lea. She’s Dunk’s closest friend and his most ferocious protector in the chaos of the Blackfyre Rebellion.
If you found yourself confused why little Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) was singing a cheeky kids’ song earlier in the show about Prince Baelor (Bertie Carvell) and Prince Maekar (Sam Spruell) defeating Blackfyres (or why he daydreams about slaying Blackfyre pretenders), it’s because before Egg was born, there was a civil war. King Aegon the Unworthy legitimized all of his many bastards on his deathbed, putting the succession of the Iron Throne up in the air. Half the realm sided with Daemon Blackfyre and the other stayed true to the legitimate Targaryens.
While the Targaryens eventually retook the Iron Throne, many smallfolk, including Dunk, grew up in its armageddon. We meet young Dunk and young Rafe scavenging the corpses of a battle as children so they can save up enough money to leave Westeros behind forever.
When Rafe runs afoul of a corrupt Goldcloak played by Edward Davis, she sets up a series of events that will lead her to her death at the City Watch’s hands. Dunk is injured in the fight, but saved by a noble, drunk hedge knight who slays the offending Goldcloaks. Awestruck and completely alone, young Dunk follows this rangy knight, Ser Arlan of Pennytree, from a distance until the old man takes him under his wing with one order: “Get up.” It’s Ser Duncan the Tall’s memory of this event that helps him defeat Aerion (Finn Bennett).
So who plays Rafe in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms? And what was Ser Arlan of Pennytree ranting by the fire?
Who Plays Rafe in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms? Meet Chloe Lea:
Rafe is played by British actress Chloe Lea, a talented up-and-comer who is already a familiar face to fans of genre shows.
Chloe Lea is perhaps best known for playing Sister Lila in Dune: Prophecy. Sister Lila plays a key role in the first season of the HBO science fiction epic. She undergoes a traumatic test early on in the first season and later emerges as powerful figure with the potential to save — or damn — the Sisterhood. She will be returning to Dune: Prophecy in Season 2.
Lea has also appeared in Apple TV+’s beloved genre hit Foundation. She played Gia, one of the children on Terminus attempting to get close to the vault in Season 1. She also played young Estella in Steven Knight’s recent reinterpretation of Great Expectations for FX.
You can follow Lea on Instagram @chloelea_19a.
What is Ser Arlan of Pennytree Chanting in Dothraki in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5?
Confused by what Ser Arlan of Pennytree, a knight who grew up smack dab in the middle of Westeros’s Riverlands, might be chanting in a foreign tongue around a fire? Well, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms showrunner Ira Parker spilled the beans to DECIDER.
“It is, in fact, Dothraki,” he said, “and there are lyrics for anyone who cares to translate. I’m sure that will be out there.”
Parker explained that the song is “about something happening that’s difficult and the struggles to get through it and to keep moving forward.”
“Perhaps somebody taught Ser Arlan along the way in his many, many journeys as a young man that he’s kept with him and he’s using now in the wake of his own squire nephew being recently killed,” Parker said. “He’s obviously he’s drinking too much and trying to get those devils to die down.”