— Matt Smith

This moment—intentionally or not—captures something profound about the history of Westeros. Something that has huge ripple effects down the line from Ashford Meadow.

The briefest explanation for context for anyone reading this who doesn’t know the history (spoilers ahead I guess): Aegon, Egg, the future Aegon V, has one of the most peaceful and prosperous reigns of the Targaryen Dynasty. He makes his share of mistakes, but he is widely agreed to be a good king who rules fairly and justly. This is a boy who has Aerion and Daeron as his older brothers. A psychopath and a drunk. His father is cold and distant. He has every reason not to become a decent man when he gets older… but he does.

Much of that is because of Duncan’s mentorship, yes, and because from the moment we see Aegon he clearly wants to be a knight and a good man, but I think this moment, when he sees his uncle, the crown prince, put his life on the line for the cause of a Hedge Knight who protected a commoner from Aerion’s horrific abuse, is one of the key instants that propels him forward towards becoming the king he one day grows into.

Because we can all of us want to be better, we can all long to be something greater, but a big help along the way is having a moment, an experience, a relationship, that demonstrates to us that it is actually possible. I think that moment when Aegon sees his uncle Baelor ride onto the tournament field at Ashford Meadow to fight for the lowest of the low, might be the first time he realized it was possible for him to succeed at it.

And man, every time I see that shot of Dexter Sol Ansell’s face, it hits me again. What a wonderful, quiet moment amidst a bigger one. Where a kid who has every reason to grow cynical is given a reason not to be.

This is also part of why I think the occasional complaint that Baelor Targaryen’s death at Ashford was pointless misses the entire point. A lot of people in the story believed it was. Even Duncan, which is part of the reason for his grief over it… but I see that kid’s face, knowing the man and the king he is going to one day grow into, and no. Baelor’s decision to fight matters so much, because it sets his nephew on a path that one day secures the kingdom decades of peace and prosperity.