I know we all like to joke and use Ser Arlan’s character for humor, but I genuinely love his character. I especially love his scene with Dunk when he’s talking about the Pennytree l because it really sheds a light on the workings of Westeros from the bottom perspective. I think I actually started to tear up a bit during it because it really encapsulates the way nobility and those with power use the people of lower standings for their bidding—sometimes without even realizing they’re doing it because they have the privilege of not having to think about that kind of stuff.
We primarily follow the characters who are at the top of the social hierarchy, so we don’t usually focus on the other side of the aisle because to those characters, the small folk and lower nobility just exist in their world. Even characters we like act like this because that is just how the world works, so it’s nice to have breath of fresh air and follow the characters like Dunk and Tanselle and Ser Arlan.