S06.E20: The Last Act

[nodorothyparker]

Streaming 2020.12.30

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Tragedy strikes in multiple places, including England. Ragnar's sons set off in their journeys.

Episodes of the final half season will be streaming on Amazon Prime.

[magdalene]

I am so tired but had to know how it all ends.  I have to watch the last 10 again after I let them sink in.

I am relieved the show did not Game of Thrones its ending.

All in all I thought the characters got the ending that befitted their characters.

I was never an Ivar lover and this was the way he was always going to go out.

History knows Alfred as a great king and the show stayed true to that.

Hmm, Hvitserk having Guthrum's fate,  I am conflicted about that,  he caused so much damage but he also suffered so much. Of course his destiny was the destiny of many Vikings that weren't killed in battle,  it was the destiny of the Viking culture when you think about it.

Oleg got way too much screen time in the final ten. That bastard should have died sooner.

I am assuming Bjorns early exit from the show was because the actor had to go to rehab. Since I thought Bjorn was pretty much a douche bag I din't mind at all.

Good ending for Harald, I bet his actor was pleased with that.

So happy about Ubbe, he was always my favorite of Ragnar's sons.  He gets to be who he is, doing what he loves.  What more can a man ask for?

[Ravenya003]

Well, that was an ending. Perhaps a little underwhelming, but what saved it from being outright bad was that Hirst was respectful to the characters (unlike Game of Thrones) and had coherent arcs plotted out from the get-go (unlike Rise of Skywalker). I wasn't blown away, but everything felt right, if that makes sense.

My only real complaint was that Ivar got taken out by some terrified-looking kid. He and Alfred have long-since been set up as rivals, and it would have worked better with the "Christianity takes over" theme if Athelstan's son was the one to deal the killing blow to the world's most famous Viking. I get subverting expectations and "biggest bad gets taken out by a random nobody" is popular these days, but it really hasn't worked since Lorne killed Lindsay in "Angel". 

The guy who killed someone for the sake of gold in America was profoundly stupid (dude, where do you plan to SPEND this gold?) but it was part of the theme that there's always going to be greed and violence in the world; a new land won't change that. Also, that in order to survive, the Vikings now have to change and adapt to new cultures. 

Hvitserk... yeah, he was always a follower, so I'm not surprised he converted. 

I kind of wish we finished with Rus way sooner in order to give more room to Wessex and more cat-and-mousing between Ivar and Alfred. But I'm glad the latter maintained his integrity and has clearly become the good ruler he's so renowned for. 

So Ingrid becomes Queen of Kattegat. If you had told me that at the beginning of the season, I wouldn't have believed you, but good for her! Still bewildered that this fairly minor side character rose to such a height (along with a slave woman we were literally introduced to in the previous episode) but I'll take it. I bet Gunnhild is kicking herself in Valhalla. Girl, all you had to do was wait for Harald to go get himself killed in Wessex, and the throne was yours!

I'm kind of disappointed we didn't get some cameos from the original cast members: Ragnar, Lagertha, Athelstan, Rollo, Bjorn (I mean, we saw HALFDAN again for goodness sakes, but not the others?) but I supposed the actors have long since moved on. Honestly though: imagine a scene in which we see them all rocking out in Valhalla.

Glad Torvi made it, but did they really have to kill off her daughter? 

And of course, extremely fitting that it all ended with Ubbe (Ragnar's best son) and Floki (his oldest friend, and last remaining original cast member). Laughed my head off at the two of them sitting there in those ponchos. 

It's been fun guys. I don't think anything matched the excellence of the early seasons, culminating in Ragnar's long-con in defeating King Horik, and from season three onwards Hirst had a frustrating tendency to introduce new characters and almost immediately kill them off (Yidu, Heahmund, Magnus, Astrid...) but obviously something kept drawing me back. I guess we'll meet again in the spin-off.

Edited January 2, 2021 by Ravenya003

[magdalene]

Floki was the only main cast character who was both in the first episode and the last episode of the series.

[Ravenya003]

8 minutes ago, magdalene said:

Floki was the only main cast character who was both in the first episode and the last episode of the series.

Though Kathryn Winnick clocked in the most episodes at seventy-one. Gustaf Skarsgård came second with sixty-eight.

[magdalene]

I would have preferred for Gunnhild to be queen of Kattekat but I don't mind Ingrid being queen  when all is said and done.  She had to marry her rapist, managed to outlive him and have the last laugh.  Kind of poetic.

[LittleIggy]

So Hvitserk’s Christian name is Aethelstan? 😆

I can’t believe it, but I got verklempt at Ivar’s death. I wanted him dead so many times before that I never thought I would shed a tear over him.

I’m glad Ubbe, Torvi, and baby Ragnar ended up in a good place. They deserve it. 
It had its ups and downs, but Vikings was all in all an awesome show (it gave us Lagertha, for crying out loud!), and I’ll miss it.

[Auntie Anxiety]

Thank you, Vikings. You went out on a relatively high note and respected your audience.

You taught me (and made me much more curious) about how the Vikings lived, their conquests, their journeys and their traditions. I learned about King Alfred and his minions, even though I had watched The Last Kingdom a few years ago. I didn’t really get the big picture from that show. Maybe I’ll rewatch it now that I can follow the story.

I was surprised to see Floki again. Never thought he made it out of that mess in Iceland. I wished Ubbe and Floki had had an onscreen conversation about what an asshole Flatnose was. 

In any event, the goal of good historical fiction should be to encourage you to learn more about the subject. Epic win with regard to this viewer, Vikings. Skol! 🍻

[benteen]

Very good finale.  After being disappointed with so many series finals (Game of Thrones comes to mind), I'm glad that Vikings came through in the end.

About the one criticism I have us that so many characters are long gone but that is the nature of the show they are telling.  Those characters got their resolution and most of them were satisfying.  This season did a very good job of turning out the lights as the party was ending.

I'm glad to see the new world story didn't end in complete bloodshed.  Ubbe (love that he and his group have gone native with the wardrobe) made the right call in executing that dumbass for his crime.  Seriously, fighting over gold in a nearly empty land?  The guy had it coming just for being a moron.  I very much enjoyed the final shot of Ubbe and Floki on the beach and laughed that Ragnar still harasses Floki about boats in his dreams.

Very much enjoyed Ivar and Alfred's final conversation.  Two sons of kings who started this conflict and practically the only ones left.  I didn't sympathize with Ivar, his death was a long time in coming.  But the actor always turned in a compelling performance and crafted a memorable character. 

The Alfred actor did his best work here.

Hvitserk's fate worked for me.  If any character needed to find religion, it was him.

If I would have liked to have seen one character return, it actually would have been Rollo.  It would have been interesting to have seen him die in bed surrounded by family as his former fellow Vikings died on the battlefield.  Would Rollo have been happy with that fate?  I just don't know if he would have...

I'll miss Vikings.  It was a favorite show of mine.  Sometimes they could introduce a character or story that didn't work.  I recall a stretch of episodes in Season 5 that made me worry that the show had lost it.  But Vikings bounced back and remained a consistently entertaining watch for me.

For me it was the characters and acting.  It remains a crime that Travis Fimmell didn't get some awards recognition.  His Ragnar was one of the most compelling characters on television and his nonverbal acting was second to none.  I enjoyed the battles and the action.  They could deliver when it came to the CGI battles but I always founded the smaller non-CGI battles more, like when Bjorn took Kattegat from Ivar.  The sense of wonder remained perhaps its greatest aspect and props to the amazing location shooting.  History is my favorite subject so I always appreciated that as well, even though the show took great liberties with that.

Vikings was a great show and I eagerly look forward to the Netflix spinoff from Michael Hirst.

 

Edited January 3, 2021 by benteen

[MoldySpiceGirl]

So, that was a thing.

There's just a whole lot to process.

Though, in response to the Hvitserk thing -- Ivar did, essentially, kill him ultimately.  His acceptance and death led to Hvitserk ceasing to be Hvitserk.  (There is no Zuul, only Athelstan.)

Gah.  I'm gonna need a moment.

[thuganomics85]

And so it ends.  In some ways, it actually almost felt like another season finale since a lot of loose threads were left (I'm guessing for the possible spin-off), but there was also some solid finality here, and almost all of it made sense.

Obviously knew that Ivar was destined to die and I can't say that he didn't deserve it.  Still, Alex Hogh Anderson is always a compelling presence, and he certainly brought it all home for the big death scene.  Curious to see what he does next, because the guy's got talent.  Meanwhile, Hvitserk lives, but ends up throwing in with Team Christian and renouncing his fate, because of course he does.  That's just classic Hvisterk right there!  But the man is a survivor!

Speaking of which, never would have predicted that Ingrid of all people would end up claiming Kattegat's throne for good, when it is all said and done.  I guess it makes sense in a lot of ways.  She was always underestimate, but she never stopped scheming and looking out for herself.  Curious to see how Kattegat will fare under her rule.  It seems to be doing well so far.

Ubbe really had no other choice but to kill the murderous Viking, in order to maintain peace in the new land.  But I'm glad he ended up just slicing the guy's throat instead of Blood Eagling him, because I honestly wonder if that would have been too much for some of the Native Americans (especially since they wouldn't know that some would consider that a honor, since they would go to Valhalla, if they didn't show pain.)

Glad for more Floki (and Gustaf getting top billing), but a bit bummed we didn't get more cameos from anyone else.  Honestly kind of surprised Rollo and France never factored back in.

All in all, while I do think the latter half of the show didn't match the first half (in other words, Ragnar seasons>post-Ragnar seasons), it was overall an enjoyable watch, and I enjoyed all six seasons in their own way.  Curious to see if the spin-off does happen.  Might be interesting to continue exploring this universe.

[Brn2bwild]

I was confused about the scene when Ubbe punished the murderer.  He initially sentenced him to death by blood eagle, but after the guy was in a blood eagle position, it seemed like Ubbe just slit his throat.  Was that supposed to be a show of mercy, or to cheat the murderer out of his Valhala death?  Was it to bring it more in line with the native people's form of punishment?  

[magdalene]

46 minutes ago, Brn2bwild said:

I was confused about the scene when Ubbe punished the murderer.  He initially sentenced him to death by blood eagle, but after the guy was in a blood eagle position, it seemed like Ubbe just slit his throat.  Was that supposed to be a show of mercy, or to cheat the murderer out of his Valhala death?  Was it to bring it more in line with the native people's form of punishment?  

It was an act of mercy of sorts by Ubbe but also an act of contempt to slit the murderers throat instead of killing him by blood eagle. The guy was already whimpering before Ubbe even started.  If you remember when Ragnar did the blood eagle to what's his name - you only go to Valhalla if you bear the blood eagle stoically.  Ubbe knew the guy would never be able to stand it so he slit his throat which is a quick way to die.

[gaPeach]

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Obviously knew that Ivar was destined to die and I can't say that he didn't deserve it.  Still, Alex Hogh Anderson is always a compelling presence, and he certainly brought it all home for the big death scene.

Ok maybe someone can explain to me why Ivar basically committed suicide?  Did I miss the reason he ran on to the battlefield?  At first I thought he was going after Alfred and they would duel and Ivar get killed.  But instead he just stood there and comforted the red shirt that it was ok to kill him.  I don't get it so what did I miss?

Other than that I totally loved the final season and will miss this series.  We can only hope for at least one spinoff.

[brisbydog]

On 1/6/2021 at 12:19 PM, gaPeach said:

Ok maybe someone can explain to me why Ivar basically committed suicide?  Did I miss the reason he ran on to the battlefield?  At first I thought he was going after Alfred and they would duel and Ivar get killed.  But instead he just stood there and comforted the red shirt that it was ok to kill him.  I don't get it so what did I miss?

Other than that I totally loved the final season and will miss this series.  We can only hope for at least one spinoff.

Ivar knew his bone condition was worsening (we saw them cracking in the previous episode). He most feared dying in his bed. He wanted to go out on the battle field like a real Viking. I think anyway

[gaPeach]

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Ivar knew his bone condition was worsening (we saw them cracking in the previous episode). He most feared dying in his bed. He wanted to go out on the battle field like a real Viking. I think anyway

Ok now that makes sense.  I think I missed that about him getting worse.  

[LilWharveyGal]

Well, it's the end of an era and it's getting a little misty in here...

I too was hoping for a Rollo cameo or namedrop, but that's my only real disappointment. Despite sticking with our lovable scamps all these years I was rooting for the Brits and the Native Americans, so the ending sat well with me. 

Now to go learn about this spinoff...

[brisbydog]

I found it interesting that Ivar used the same words towards the man he chose to kill him as his father did to Egbert, who he also chose to ultimately end his life: "don't be afraid"

[magdalene]

On 1/8/2021 at 1:02 PM, LilWharveyGal said:

Now to go learn about this spinoff...

https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/vikings-spin-off-vikings-valhalla-everything-we-know-so-far-12-2020/

David Oakes is in this - he is always good.

[nitrofishblue]

14 hours ago, magdalene said:

https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/vikings-spin-off-vikings-valhalla-everything-we-know-so-far-12-2020/

David Oakes is in this - he is always good.

Oh great, it will show on NetFlix. I don't have a NetFlix account and can't afford to get one.

[magdalene]

This is so annoying, I thought Amazon Prime was showing the complete episodes.  But no, this scene is not in the episode I watched.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prPY4EyrsYo

Alfred invites Hvitserk to live with them.

[Wyndsong]

I like this. All three of Ragnar's remaining sons followed part of Ragnar's path. Ivar went out gloriously in battle, Ubbe found the new land and world that Ragnar always sought and Vitserk followed the Christian path that Ragnar flirted with. 

 

Ivar was not a character I liked but he carried the show after Ragnar died. The actor was charismatic and the character was fascinating. I also was a bit confused on why he essentially killed himself at the end. I thought he was doing something to save his brother but no I guess he just wanted to go out on his terms.

 

All said and done, I'll miss the show and will probably check on the spinoff now that I know it exists. 

[brisbydog]

The Seeer told Ivar that he would not like his ultimate fate, which Ivar interpreted as he would die in his bed as a cripple. They even flashed back on that to remind us, plus hit us over the head with the blue eyes showing his bones were disintegrating, so Ivar changed his fate by choosing to die (even picking the red shirt to do it) and saving Hitserk's life by getting him off the battle field. I ended up loving Ivar and Hitserks's relationship in Season 6- Ivar did finally find somebody who truly loved him and he in the end loved him back enough to save him.

[Wyndsong]

11 hours ago, brisbydog said:

The Seeer told Ivar that he would not like his ultimate fate, which Ivar interpreted as he would die in his bed as a cripple. They even flashed back on that to remind us, plus hit us over the head with the blue eyes showing his bones were disintegrating, so Ivar changed his fate by choosing to die (even picking the red shirt to do it) and saving Hitserk's life by getting him off the battle field. I ended up loving Ivar and Hitserks's relationship in Season 6- Ivar did finally find somebody who truly loved him and he in the end loved him back enough to save him.

I love this explanation. And I agree, the bond between brothers was beautiful. Ivar really came a long way as a character. 

[brisbydog]

On 1/13/2021 at 9:18 PM, Kail said:

I love this explanation. And I agree, the bond between brothers was beautiful. Ivar really came a long way as a character. 

I loved the actor. I hope since Ivar left Katia pregnant that they can bring him back for the sequel as Ivar's great great grandson who has his eyes but is a little less psycho 

[Auntie Anxiety]

On 1/7/2021 at 3:01 PM, brisbydog said:

He most feared dying in his bed. He wanted to go out on the battle field like a real Viking. 

That would be his ticket into Valhalla, dying on the battlefield.

[MaggieG]

On 1/1/2021 at 10:56 PM, Ravenya003 said:

Hvitserk... yeah, he was always a follower, so I'm not surprised he converted. 

I'm kind of disappointed we didn't get some cameos from the original cast members: Ragnar, Lagertha, Athelstan, Rollo, Bjorn (I mean, we saw HALFDAN again for goodness sakes, but not the others?) but I supposed the actors have long since moved on. Honestly though: imagine a scene in which we see them all rocking out in Valhalla.

And of course, extremely fitting that it all ended with Ubbe (Ragnar's best son) and Floki (his oldest friend, and last remaining original cast member). Laughed my head off at the two of them sitting there in those ponchos. 

I agree on Hvitserk. I also think the fact that he is completely alone may have played a part. His parents and all his brothers are dead. He doesn't know if he'll ever see Ubbe, his only alive brother, again. He has no reason to go back to Kattegat, not that I think he would want to. He has no wife, no children. It kinda makes sense for him to stay in England and convert.

I also was hoping for a cameo. I really would have loved to see Travis Fimmel again.

When the shot panned out and we saw them sitting there in those ponchos, my husband and I both cracked up. 

[dbell1]

I wish Hirsch would have stopped introducing new characters. Would have forwarded through the dead Erik plot line. 

We didn’t get a logical explanation about how Floki got out of the erupting Iceland volcano of doom, but yep, living in a tree hut makes sense. For him at least.

If you had told me years ago that I would end up liking Ivar, I would have laughed. 

Poor Harold always had the worst luck. Good to see Halfdan at his end.

Wonder if Hvitserk stayed Christian or was soon drinking holy wine and looking to score drugs? And how did everyone get to monologue on the battlefield? I’ve always hated battlefield monologues. 

I will miss this strange little show. Wasn’t as good post Ragnar, but was nice to say farewell to some beloved characters. Not you Kattegat Queen.

[Dobian]

I guess Floki is the ultimate winner of this show, There in the beginning, and still there in the final shot.  The only character who made it from start to finish, even if he wasn't in about a third of the episodes.

[foxfreakinmulder]

On 1/3/2021 at 7:10 AM, benteen said:

For me it was the characters and acting.  It remains a crime that Travis Fimmell didn't get some awards recognition.  His Ragnar was one of the most compelling characters on television and his nonverbal acting was second to none.  I enjoyed the battles and the action.  They could deliver when it came to the CGI battles but I always founded the smaller non-CGI battles more, like when Bjorn took Kattegat from Ivar.  The sense of wonder remained perhaps its greatest aspect and props to the amazing location shooting.  History is my favorite subject so I always appreciated that as well, even though the show took great liberties with that.

I agree 100% about Travis Fimmel. And for me, Vikings wasn't the same without him. I really wanted to root for Bjorn but he wasn't a good father or husband so it was hard too and the only other son I could root for was Ubbe so I'm glad he made it to the end. I just never warmed up to Ivar the psycho or Hvitserk the follower. I really wanted King Alfred to kill him on the battlefield. And I really didn't care for the whole battlefield scene with Ivar or the your eyes are really blue so your bone are about to break.

So Floki made it out of the Volcano, okaaay! And managed to sail to the new world and the same location the Ubbe and co would land. Also, I wanted to see how Floki got back up to his tree house. His weight lowered him down in the swing but how does he get back up?

I didn't care about the queen that was left in Kattegat, she wasn't on my screen long enough for me to get to know. She should've been the one to jump in the river instead of Gunnhild. And I couldn't stand Erik and I felt bad for the slave that he asked to kill Ingrid because he really didn't want to so for him to be hanged I thought was wrong.

I will miss this show. I do think it went off the rails a little bit but it stayed entertaining. I'm really glad Ubbe, Torvi and baby Ragnar made it. I will check out the new show since this one is over and so is The Last Kingdom. I'll need my Viking fix, lol.

It hit me that this is it and I did tear up at the end when the title song played while Ubbe and Floke are sitting on the beach. :-(

 

 

 

[Crashcourse]

Well, I just finished watching on History Channel.  I don't have anything to add, but I'll miss this show.

[alvajon]

On 4/17/2021 at 11:42 AM, foxfreakinmulder said:

Also, I wanted to see how Floki got back up to his tree house. His weight lowered him down in the swing but how does he get back up?

My favorite comment here.

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

I thought possibly Floki had converted to Christian, sounds like he felt no longer close to the old Norse gods?

[iMonrey]

To me this felt more like another season finale than a series finale (perhaps because of the spin-off I just now learned about*). I realize most of the main characters are gone now, but there still seemed like more story to tell with Ubbe and Co. in the New World. And leaving Kattegat with Ingrid as Queen is the ending nobody asked for. Sort of like Bran in Game of Thrones. Just, huh?

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Ivar knew his bone condition was worsening (we saw them cracking in the previous episode). He most feared dying in his bed. He wanted to go out on the battle field like a real Viking. I think anyway

I watch this show with closed captioning turned on. Without it I don't think I would have realized that Ivar's bones were snapping, because I couldn't really hear it in the audio and it wasn't referenced in the dialogue that I noticed. But in the captions it clearly reads "bones snapping." 

* I guess the spin-off doesn't have anything to do with the lack of finality I felt about this series. The new one is set 100 years later.

[One4Sorrow2TooBad]

The ending episode felt like I needed another episode  (or more) to finalize the series. Like there was more story to tell.  

[Maisiesmom]

I finally finished this last night. Very good ending. Harald had his brother with him when he died-Ivar had his brother with him also. Ubbe and his gang made friends with the natives and Floki!!! So good to see him again.  I think everything wrapped up pretty well-it was a fun ride. Hope to see some of the actors in different shows or movies-I thought everyone was really good. Sigh. Now I have to find something else to watch! Thank you Vikings for keeping me entertained.

[ChelleGame]

That was wonderful.  Just spent the last week bingeing the final season. I saved the last two seasons because I didn't want it to end. Now that Vikings: Valhalla has loaded I felt safe enough to say goodbye to these characters.

Who knew I would cry when Ivar said he was scared. Just killed me. I loved his relationship with the young Russian prince. That was his "son"  for all purposes. 

Hirst does pageantry well. And the final season was full of it. I wish it was Gunnhild sitting on the throne. I loved her character. Loved.

I cheered when Harald got one in on that soldier who taunted him about Valhalla. He was despicable but he ended up being a favorite.

I will miss this show. I'll start it over again in 5 years.

Well done. The final season felt like a love letter to devoted fans and I appreciate that.