Arlan of Pennytree and Maekar Targaryen being foils just hit me in the head.
The two fathers of our two leads, one adopted and the other by blood. Maekar and Arlan both loved their sons, but neither were very competent fathers in the grand scheme of things. Maekar adores his sons, every last one of them, but it's clear that Maekar's parenting style is straight up indulgent. He's spoiled his children rotten because to him love is the giving of material things—again, I don't for a second doubt his affection for his children. The man was wailing "My boy!" and had to be dragged off and distracted by two of the best fighters in Dunk's team because he had seen red and was ready to protect Aerion against the man he had wronged.
That's the thing! Maekar indulged Aerion's sadism, even when he saw how detrimental it was. He saw his eldest Daeron suffer from dragon dreams and prophetic nightmares, saw how badly this was affecting his child, succumbing more and more into alcoholism and instead of giving his son an ear to listen and a community to help him heal, or at least process his visions, Maekar simply let him be, giving Daeron unlimited access to what was killing him. His two sons that hadn't yet fallen to depravity, Aemon and Egg, clearly did better than their brothers because they both chose to distance themselves from it. With Aemon becoming a maester and further down the line choosing the Night's Watch, while Egg learns humility from living and traveling and adventuring with Duncan.
The tragedy of Maekar looking up to Dunk and saying in such a broken voice "He's my last son" when it came to Aegon is that, yes, I pity the man, but the only reason Aegon is his last legitimate heir is all on him. He left Daeron to rot alone at the bottom of a cup; he turned a blind eye to Aerion's cruelty; he did not get in the way of Aemon's dreams, which for sure was the right approach, but it's just another example of his laissez-faire parenting. Maekar, legally, could not have stopped the Trial of the Seven once his son had demanded it, but as a Prince of the Realm he had other options.
Intimidate any and all who tried to side with Aerion, first and foremost. Block any chance of Aerion having a full team and thus having to surrender. Or order/bribe the participants into either doing a Daeron and falling off their horse, or just not participate entirely. Everything—from Daeron hiding away, to Aegon running off with a stranger, to Aerion breaking Tanselle's fingers; all the way to Baelor's death. It was Maekar's fault. All of it. Or at the very least he was the root cause of it all.
Arlan on the other hand was too stern of a hand. Even the smallest infraction, he would ring Dunk's doorbell, and he conditioned Dunk to think that he deserved most of those hits. While Aegon grew up ridiculously privileged, Dunk slept in ditches and ate hard salt beef. And the one thing Dunk wanted above all things, to be knighted like his father was, Arlan (seemingly) just shrugged and put it off. Never giving heed to Dunk's only real wish: to serve as a Knight, just like Arlan. To serve by his father's side.
And, I believe, this is rooted in the fact that Arlan had lost his nephew in the Blackfyre rebellion. In the source material, Roger of Pennytree was killed in the first Blackfyre rebellion by, ironically enough, a mace crushing his helm and head. It's most likely why Arlan was in a constant drunken state, and probably why he allowed that wound to fester and kill him. It's also, most likely, why Arlan chose not to knight Dunkan.
Arlan loved Dunk, I believe this with all of my heart. He wasn't just a squire he could abuse and push around (he still did that). That was his son, but he had found Dunk at the lowest point of his life and could not crawl out of that pit, and so saddled Dunk with so many issues.
That humbling upbringing gave us Duncan the Tall. A good, loyal, kind and just knight who would do anything for the innocent. A knight who would constantly threaten his newfound squire with a clout to the ear, but as both the audience and Egg come to learn, are just empty threats. Even the last threat of a beating from Dunk you can feel Egg just wave it off—just barrelling ahead and naming the Nine Kingdoms, leaving Dunk in a shock. That kid knows Dunk ain't gonna touch him, not because he's royalty, but because Dunk is a good fucking man.
It's also why Dunk blames himself for everything. Arlan had humbled him too much, to the point of self-hatred and self-deprecation. Dunk can't even perceive Arlan's moments of cruelty as cruel, because he has conditioned himself to believe he deserves it. And when Baelor dies in his arms, well, Dunk believes this was fault too.
Two sons, both coming from deeply flawed but loving fathers, finding each other and becoming true brothers. Being able to heal through one another.
That's the magic at the core of Dunk & Egg. This Hedge Knight and this Haughty Prince, one far too stupid and far too kind, the other prodigious but young and reckless. That feeling, even when it's never spelled out, is omnipresent in the entire show, and why nearly every episode has left me in tears.
It is earnest, because Dunk and Egg are earnest. The first season never loses sight of this sincerity and it elevates every scene, every character, every fight, every gross out gag. It's this sincerity that rounds out Lyonel's abrasive personality because he sincerely sees Dunk as a friend and brother-in-arms (alsohewantstofuckthedaylightsoutofthathimbo).
It's that sincerity that makes Raymun Fossoway the truest friend Dunk has ever had in a long time.
That sincerity that gives further weight to the tragedy of Baelor's death and Maekar's regret.
These are people trying to be good, even when it's hard. There is a cost to kindness, and the story refuses to shy away from this, which is why every bit of this show is so lovely. The main duo are always trying to be good people, always. Even when it hurts. Even when it costs them family or love or even their lives.
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