“Egg really just wants to impress his dad. But when he’s around Dunk…”: Here’s what Maekar doesn’t get about Egg

In A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Egg’s dual identity as both prince and boy comes into sharp focus. Dexter Sol Ansell explained that Egg’s behavior shifts depending on who he’s with — desperate to impress his father Maekar, but vulnerable and small when he’s with Dunk. This tension reveals why Maekar fails to understand his son’s true needs.

Quick Read

• Egg tries to act royal in public to impress his father.
• Around Dunk, Egg sheds that façade and becomes vulnerable.
• Egg craves love and friendship more than status.

Egg’s struggle: balancing royal pride with a child’s need for love and belonging

Dexter Sol Ansell described how Egg’s instincts change depending on the company he keeps. He emphasized that Egg’s desire to impress his father often clashes with his longing for simple affection. Before sharing his insight, Ansell highlighted Egg’s duality between royal performance and smallfolk vulnerability in a recent interview:

“He tries to be a smallfolk as much as he can when he’s out in public, but at the end of the day, Egg really just wants to impress his dad. When he’s around all these major things, he wants to look royal and be fancy. But when he’s around Dunk, he wants to be small and kind of curl up into a ball.” 

This shows that Egg’s bond with Dunk isn’t about ambition — it’s about finding someone who sees him as more than a Targaryen heir.

Why Egg chooses Dunk: friendship and honesty over failed family bonds and royal expectations

Ansell went further, explaining that Egg’s deepest need is for love and friendship. He stressed that Egg’s repeated attempts to connect with his family have failed, leaving him to seek belonging elsewhere. Before elaborating, Ansell underscored Egg’s vulnerability and his yearning for genuine relationships:

“He wants to be big, but he really wants to have someone who loves him. So he will do whatever he can to have a really good friend or a really good relationship with someone like Dunk. He’s tried to get it with his family hundreds of times, but it just hasn’t worked. That’s why he ended up saying to his brother, the lucky drunk Daeron, ‘I’ll find another wine bottle, and if I give you this, will you shave my head?’” 

Egg’s choice to bond with Dunk instead of Maekar highlights the prince’s failure as a father — and the hedge knight’s unexpected role as Egg’s true paternal figure.