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S04.E14: In the Uncertain Hour Before the Morning


formerlyfreedom
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I wonder if Lagertha is getting make-overs and fountain of youth spa treatments from her personal hair dresser Astrid.  She looks so dewy and youthful.  Meanwhile Ragnar truly looks like every bone is aching and stiff.  He looks like the old king he is.   Obviously Fimmel is a better and less vain actor than Winnick but they could be trying a little bit harder with age appropriate make up.  It's ironic because Travis Fimmel is actually an ex-model but you would never know it judging him by his performance in Vikings.  But when I look at Lagertha in comparison to Ragnar , yikes! it takes me out of the show.  And Astrid is even worse, her look is completely wrong for this historical show.

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I thought that the last straw for Lagertha was when Aslaug wouldn't let her participate in the blood sacrifice to send off Bjorn.  Aslaug was such a bitch about it, and after all, it was Lagertha's son leading the expedition.

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17 minutes ago, MartyQui said:

I thought that the last straw for Lagertha was when Aslaug wouldn't let her participate in the blood sacrifice to send off Bjorn.  Aslaug was such a bitch about it, and after all, it was Lagertha's son leading the expedition.

Hmmm...I hadn't thought about that.  You're probably right.

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On 12/25/2016 at 11:31 PM, magdalene said:

Could it be that "the trickster to cleave her" is Astrid?  Continuing her bad luck with all her lovers?

I do think Ivar is the most logical one to kill Lagertha, but I don't see him as a trickster figure.

 

On 12/25/2016 at 11:35 PM, Paradigm14 said:

It seems like the Trickster would be Ivar. I don't know what else he would be at this point as he's not yet a seasoned warrior. If Astrid wanted to kill Lagertha, why would she wait?

 

I wish I could remember the timeline of her conversation with the Seer, but since I can't and I'm not inclined to look it up right now... is it possible that the "trickster" was Kalf, and the cleaving was a euphemism? Maybe the Seer's prediction already came true.

I could be really off base though, especially if there was more specific information in that bit of dialogue between Lagertha and the Seer.

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On 12/24/2016 at 0:12 AM, Paradigm14 said:

Honestly, that's the most tired theory on Earth for me to be thinking or hearing about and while she had to be both mom and Dad to Ivar from the beginning, she enlisted Floki and Helga for help, too, so I don't think she needed to neglect the other kids. Sure, why wouldn't she be protective, but I'd hope it would be more complex than that.

Obviously, she changed for the long term after Habard, possibly because it ended Auslaug's closeness with Ragnar and maybe Sigurd would blame her for that, too, but Auslaug was all over the place anyway.

It might not be an exciting theory, but it is a pretty common story.  Some things are tired for a reason.  There are lots of parents with special needs kids that do an amazing job balancing their parenting time between their children.  There are also parents that don't.  I've watched more than one family member and friend struggle with this issue.  Having Floki, Helga, and Siggi around to help would actually make it more understandable for her to focus her attention on Ivar--she knew the other boys were cared for, and could focus her extra attention on the one she saw as needing it the most.  Especially since when Ragnar was around, he tended to focus on the others and not interact with Ivar much.

It wouldn't necessarily need to be neglect;  I don't think the other boys were neglected.  But kids are more likely to be close to the people they spend time with, and they notice when mommy/daddy/grandpa/grandma/auntie obviously favors one of the others.  Typically, it makes them act out or pull back.  I don't think it is the only thing going on, but it makes sense as a factor.  

Additionally, Aslaug did change after Habard, but some of that is likely guilt over Siggi, and guilt over what nearly happened to other boys.  Aslaug saw Habard as healing Ivar, and the show implied that she saw the deaths of the village children, and then Siggi, as the price Habard required for healing Ivar.

It makes sense that she would change after that, too.

Being with Habard when her own boys nearly died, with Siggi's sacrifice in their place, was something that changed her entire world--or, at least her perception of it.  It finished her marriage--not because of the sex, I believe, but because Ragnar pretty much wrote her off for not being vigilant enough (in his opinion) with the kids.  It drove home for her that that was all she was to him; his interest and affection were definitely elsewhere.  

Between Ivar needing her, and her own toxic emotional soup, of course she was closer to him.  

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2 minutes ago, Mari said:

It might not be an exciting theory, but it is a pretty common story.  ..... Having Floki, Helga, and Siggi around to help would actually make it more understandable for her to focus her attention on Ivar--she knew the other boys were cared for, and could focus her extra attention on the one she saw as needing it the most.  

Not buying that because we know that Auslaug more or less dleivered Ivar to Floki and Helga's door after the axe incident. The kid was more than able to make waves and it actually seemed more like Auslaug might have worried but sat around and drank rather than do that much. Maybe she felt guilty for his disability, and used that as an excuse to ignore the other kids, but you've lost track of something if you think Floki and Helga were watching the other kids.

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On ‎23‎/‎12‎/‎2016 at 1:22 PM, Captanne said:

Was anyone else a little -- taken aback by Astrid's "I want to change your look" comment?  I felt like I was suddenly on Vikings:  Project Runway.  Perhaps it was the way the actress delivered the line?  It was startlingly modern, and I don't mean that in a good way.

This was so incredibly stupid, but I find the Astrid character with her 80's haircut, from the first moment she judo wrestled with Lagartha just completely annoying and not credible. She takes me out of the world of the show every time I see her.

I hate how little effort is put into the Lagartha story line - as much as I hated Aslaug from the first time she appeared (both the character and how the actress was playing her), this death scene made no narrative sense and cheapened the motivations of both.  I am furious with this character slaughter, and don't see what good can come out of it.

Ragnar/Egbert was fantastic in their half sincere / half trying to play the other till the last moment conversation about life, religion, meaning and sadly departed Ahelstan was top notch, as well as the moments between Ragnar and Ivar.  You can feel that more than his disability, his intellect and his ruthlessness, these few weeks of interactions with his father will define who Ivar becomes. Ragnar was always fascinating to watch to interact with his sons - his greatest quest in life was "his sons" and he was ready to sacrifice literally or symbolically both Lagartha and Athelstan to reach this. And now life coming to a full circle, his sons will be defined and propelled forward by their father.

The Ragnar / Alfred meeting was incredibly touching - the true moment of the episode where Ragnar just could be himself without having to put up his guard or play a game (like he was with Ecbert) - just like he could be with Athelstan - which was probably while the monk was such an irreplaceable friend to him. Becoming a leader and a king meant he could not freely express his doubts, crisis of faith or failures to anyone, but Athelstan (Ecbert was always a frenemy, his sons needed from him the legacy of the legend, his people needed the confidence). Before his death, Ragnar gets one more unreserved moment of being himself with his old friend.

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On 22.12.2016 at 4:11 AM, benteen said:

But good lord, poor Magnus.  Aethelwulf is such an asshole...please tell me someone will get him before the end.

How is he an asshole?

"There are animals inside the villa!"

He send Magnus away for his own safety. Without his value as a hostage against Ragnar, Magnus was just Kwenridth's heir and therefore in danger of being murdered. 

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On 12/23/2016 at 2:27 AM, sugarbaker design said:

BBC's The Last Kingdom features an adult King Alfred.

I've just discovered this show exists! My first ever time with Netflix last night, that autoplay at 10pm was fatal. My god I'm enjoying it so much more than the last couple of seasons of Vikings. It's very entertaining seeing parallel takes on history. Alfred is actually scary in TLK, but in a good way.

Edited by Kite
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