‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Just Gave the Game of Thrones Franchise a Villain Even Worse Than Joffrey

Editor's note: The below contains spoilers for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 4.

From Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) to Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon), Game of Thrones became famous for its villains. While there are very few infallibly good characters in the series, there are plenty who are evil. Yet, as the franchise grows, it has outdone itself. Early on in Game of Thrones, Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) emerged as one of the most hated characters in TV history, yet the franchise's latest spin-off has proven that he could have been much worse. While many fans consider House of the Dragon's Aegon Targaryen (Tom Glynn-Carney) the best Joffrey replacement, it's really A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms's Aerion (Finn Bennett) who picks up that legacy and even surpasses the original villain.

Aerion has become the central villain of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, tormenting knights and smallfolk alike until Dunk (Peter Claffey) stands up to him, doubling down by putting Dunk on trial. Aerion's behavior places him firmly in the role that Joffrey occupies in Game of Thrones, but he takes his evil to a new level with his skill for violence and unrepentant cruelty, giving the franchise a new terrifying antagonist.

'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Aerion Targaryen Is Even More Evil Than Joffrey

There's no denying that Joffrey was insufferable. From his petulant outbursts to his violent demands, he spent four seasons on Game of Thrones being thoroughly unlikable. His choice to kill Ned Stark (Sean Bean) and torment Sansa (Sophie Turner) quickly showed exactly the kind of person Joffrey was, which eventually made his brutal death a satisfying twist for viewers. In many ways, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Aerion Targaryen is the same. He may not have been around as long as Joffrey, but he is constantly causing harm to others in his brief screentime, and many wouldn't be sad to see him die, especially Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell). While Joffrey is sadistically amused by others' suffering, Aerion feels entitled to cause others' pain, which is even darker.

Aerion's cruelty isn't impulsive; for example, in Episode 3, he intentionally kills his opponent's horse during the joust, simply wanting to win without thinking about the fallout. He later attacks the puppet show, accusing Tanselle (Tanzyn Crawford) and her troupe of performers of treason just because he can. Yet the full extent of Aerion's villainy can be seen in how people react to him. When he challenges Dunk, six knights willing to oppose the prince gather in a single day, with one being Aerion's own uncle, Baelor (Bertie Carvel), proving that Aerion's actions are beyond defense, and nearly everyone knows it.

Joffrey may have been a villainous character, but Aerion is fully evil, and that distinction is also clear in how they treat their families. Joffrey isn't the kind of brother anyone wants, but Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) still looks up to him. Even though he picks on the younger boy, Joffrey saves his worst behavior for others. Yet Aerion doesn't seem to care about his own blood. Egg and Daeron (Henry Ashton), two of Aerion's brothers, come to Dunk, offering help and revealing their own grievances. Egg believes Aerion killed his pet, and even worse, tells of Aerion threatening to mutilate him to turn him into a sister he can marry. His habit of terrorizing his own brother takes Aerion's behavior to an extreme that even Joffrey never reached; it's no wonder Egg has been cheering for his brother's death.

Joffrey Still Has One Advantage Over 'A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms' Aerion

One crucial difference does give Joffrey an advantage: he ultimately becomes king. In Game of Thrones, Joffrey has unquestioned power in King's Landing, if not in Westeros as a whole, but Aerion isn't especially high in the line of succession. Instead, Aerion's position is more similar to Joffrey's in Season 1, before Robert (Mark Addy) dies. As horrible as he is, Joffrey is only effective because Cersei enables him; meanwhile, Aerion's evil choices are solely his own.

The Targaryen prince manages to cause problems despite the consequences he faces. Throughout A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Baelor and Maekar (Sam Spruell) are both there to try to keep him in line. Even Maekar, as much as he dislikes Dunk, was frustrated with Aerion demanding a trial of seven in Episode 4, and Baelor forced him to gift Humphrey Hardyng (Ross Anderson) a horse to replace the one he killed, showing how much resistance he meets within his own family. No one can deny that Aerion is a vicious and cruel character, but even without a king's power, he continues to inflict harm, proving that he is even worse than Game of Thrones' original villain.