S04.E18: Revenge

[formerlyfreedom]

Ragnar's plan comes to fruition; the Viking army lands on the coast of Northumbria.

 

[Babalooie]

Wow!  I teared up when Ivar came in on the chariot because it was quite visually stunning.   Didn't like how Bjorn managed to hug Astrid, but not his baby mama Torvi.  Is Eckbert becoming senile?

Edited January 19, 2017 by Babalooie

[slf]

How rude to intercut that fantastic sacrifice scene with Bjorn and Astrid rutting. Lagertha's beautiful white dress and cloak, her hair and simple coronet of twigs, the gold minimalist face paint, the owl on her shoulder. Perfection. I didn't recognize the man who volunteered for sacrifice but he was amazing too, letting go of the straps and taking Lagertha's shoulders. Historically that did happen, people did volunteer for sacrifice to appease the Gods and, hopefully, end a plague or famine. I loved that Lagertha maintained eye contact and held the man as he died.

Edited January 19, 2017 by slf

[Silverglitter]

:( Poor Aethelwulf. At least he finally knows that he's nothing more than a tool for his father. He hasn't been totally oblivious to that fact, as he pointed out all of the things Ecbert used him for. But it still sucks to hear that your parent doesn't love you. God, I just wish the show would give him some kind of a win. Why isn't he ever allowed anything good to happen to him. Yeah, he's done bad things, but so has almost every other character and they still get nice things. I personally feel that Dunford is one of the most talented actors on the show, and I really enjoyed that scene despite my heartbreak for Aethelwulf.

Bjorn/Astrid still sucks, but at least Torvi and Lagertha are aware. I feel so bad for Torvi. Bjorn detached himself from her so quickly and that goodbye scene was so awkward. I think Lagertha and Torvi have some plan for those 2. What it is, I couldn't tell ya.

[TaurusRose]

I'm sorry, but with the exception of the last 5 minutes, I found this episode disappointing.  The boring family drama, the incomprehensible relationships between Bjorn and Astrid, Astrid and Lagertha, Bjorn and Torvi; the abominable relationship between Ecbert, Aethelwulf and Judith, and the constant fighting/jockeying for position between the brothers was exhausting.  Lagertha walking into the ritual sacrifice ceremony with that damn owl on her shoulder was the height of pretentiousness (sorry, Lagertha) and I almost threw up in my mouth when Hvitserk and Ubbe decided to share a willing Margrethe.  And WTF was that going on with the princess and the conniving brother (forgot his name)?  Directv Now kept freezing during that scene.  And I know I'm a broken record where Judith is concerned, but I really despise that bitch.  Will someone just sink an ax in her skull and be done with it?  And yes, the battle was a major letdown.

Edited January 19, 2017 by taurusrose

[peridot]

Why are the Vikings so nonchalant about sharing partners?  Ubbe's wife couldn't even wait until after her wedding night to start lusting after someone else.

Ivar is an arrogant shit, I'm glad Bjorn brought up his lack of experience with leading an army. 

I loved the look on Aelle's and his bishop's face when they saw the sheer size of the army.  The blood eagle was disgusting, but it didn't seem so bad as Jarl Borg's.

I felt bad for Aethelwulf when Ecbert couldn't even bring himself to say "I love you".

1 hour ago, taurusrose said:

And WTF was that going on with the princess and the conniving brother (forgot his name)? 

She was the princess that told Finehair he had to be the king of Norway before she would marry him.  It turns out she just didn't want him and married a mere Earl. 

[Silverglitter]

That Danish princess reminded me of Rebecca DeMornay. Specifically as her Milady de Winter role in the Three Musketeers.

Edited January 19, 2017 by Silverglitter

[Straycat80]

Bjorn is such an uber Viking I was surprised he didn't stay for the whole sacrifice event and chose to go get busy with Astrid. Not cool. I'm glad he insisted on leading the army instead of Ivar though. 

It was kind of a let down that they didn't show some of the big battle scene. They had such a lead up to this big invasion and then...skip to King Aiella getting the blood eagle. Which was intense but I wanted to see Ivar in action on his new chariot. 

I really wanted to hear Ecgbert say if he loved  Aethelwulf or not. I felt sorry for him, his dad really did use him. 

[magdalene]

I really don't care for the human sacrifice scenes on the show.  I know it it was done by the Vikings and other cultures like the Aztecs did it too.  But this is when these people and their culture is the most alien, the most abhorrent to me.

[slf]

The fight between the Vikings and the English was a letdown. Such a buildup to the Great Heathen Army and all we got was a bunch of yelling, some music that too modern for my taste, a charge and that's it.

Edited January 19, 2017 by slf

[Straycat80]

I don't think Lagertha will do anything for revenge on Bjorn because he's her only son, but I think the next time they need to make a human sacrifice it might be Astrid. 

[magdalene]

2 minutes ago, slf said:

The fight between the Vikings and the English was a letdown. Such a buildup to the Great Heathen Army and all we got was a bunch of yelling, some music that too modern for my taste, a charge and that's it.

The big battle 

Spoiler

is still to come. Next episode I think.

Bjorn has really dropped in my estimation since he decided to get with Astrid.  I am siding with Torvi.

[TaurusRose]

1 minute ago, Straycat80 said:

I don't think Lagertha will do anything for revenge on Bjorn because he's her only son, but I think the next time they need to make a human sacrifice it might be Astrid. 

I thought she would end up on the sacrificial altar, imagine my disappointment.

[Knuckles]

I suspect that Ivar is now gunning for Bjorn; his other brothers are willing to step back, but not Ivar. And Ivar is exactly the kind of man to carry a grudge for a perceived slight and wait for his moment. 

Many folks hate Judith...me, I despise the Tattooed Face brothers...a perfect pair of psychos. They are looking to take out both Lagertha and Bjorn. And that poor blond woman, being pursued by these two...I suspect her husband will soon be dead and she will conveniently be a widow, if not dead herself.

Bjorn in full command mode, doesn't have the resonance of Fimmel's Ragnar. And I felt sorry for old Aelle. I think I would have preferred to thrown in with snakes, myself. Ecbert, unless he has an ace up his sleeve, seems to be just fading away.

[slf]

Just now, Straycat80 said:

I don't think Lagertha will do anything for revenge on Bjorn because he's her only son, but I think the next time they need to make a human sacrifice it might be Astrid. 

Honestly, I'm not even sure what the look between her and Torvi signaled. Obviously Lagertha cares about Torvi and is close to her so she wouldn't want to see Bjorn step out on her. But she just seemed mildly disappointed when she realized Astrid was sleeping with her son. And given how Lagertha was intending to reunite with Ragnar I can't imagine she's so emotionally tied up with Astrid that she'd see the affair as a personal betrayal.

[Ohwell]

I loved this episode!  It's such a relief to see other characters besides Ragnar because the few episodes before he died were torture for me, watching his downfall and just waiting for the inevitable.  As much as I liked him, I'm glad he's finally gone off to Valhalla so we can focus on the others and I can at least relax.

This episode felt somewhat like a soap opera, with all the romantic entanglements, like The Young and the Restless:  Finehair feeling bummed because he wasn't good enough for the princess.  The threesome of Ubbe, Hvitserk and Margarethe.  The hidden lusting of Bjorn and Astrid.  

I cracked up at the ride along bishop when he saw the Vikings.  He must have been thinking "Why the hell did I agree to come along? We are so screwed!"

I am so looking forward to what Lagertha has in store for Astrid, although I would like it even better if she let Torvi have the honor of killing her.  

[Pogojoco]

I don't know how many baseball fans are on here, but this dude on the left is Josh Donaldson, third basemen for the Toronto Blue Jays, American League MVP in 2015. He loves the show, they gave him a part. 

(For clarification, Donaldson is the one with the fur and the braid.) 

 

Edited January 19, 2017 by Pogojoco

[TaurusRose]

35 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

This episode felt somewhat like a soap opera, with all the romantic entanglements, like The Young and the Restless:

This pretty much sums up why this episode did not work for me.  

[Knuckles]

Pogo,

I am so shallow, I thought he was gorgeous and too good looking to sacrifice...I would have voted for Astrid.

[green]

8 minutes ago, Pogojoco said:

I don't know how many baseball fans are on here, but this dude on the left is Josh Donaldson, third basemen for the Toronto Blue Jays, American League MVP in 2015. He loves the show, they gave him a part. 

 

Wow I didn't even recognize him and I own him in 3 of my 4 dynasty leagues, haha.  Thanks for letting me know.  Not bad to have the 2015 AL MVP along as a viking.  I knew he did a cameo on the show but I thought that was in the past and I missed it.  I remember when he got the Ragnar-style haircut couple of years back and when constantly asked about it told all the reporters and fans where it came from and how awesome the show was.  Now there are several more ball players sporting that look.  Actress playing Lagertha is Canadian and a big Toronto fan too.  I saw a pic online at a baseball site of her autographing Donalson's jersey.  (All that said, go Red Sox!).

And that sacrifice scene was awesome.  Lagertha and her owl outscore Aslaug a hundred times over when it comes to bloody rituals.  And now enhanced by knowing Josh Donaldson was in the scene.  And the young actor playing the victim did real good too.  (Wonder if he is another ball player, heh).

Aethelwulf finally got his deserved scene where we finally see him as a sympathetic and fully fleshed out human being and the actor brought it.  Ecbert was honest with him but that had to hurt.

Ivar was like a little kid wanting his cookies and mommy Bjorn wasn't letting him have them when he nixed Ivar's argument to lead.  But Ivar is still hungry.  He wants his damn cookies.

The blood eagle scene was well done but since Aelle was a wuss compared to Jarl Borg he didn't get the almost mythic and mystical feel to his blood eagle.  And poor Aelle dies with his last mortal view of the world of Ivar's cold but curious and very delighted eyes staring at him an inch away.

Yeah I would have liked some of the battle shown.  I know there is plenty of fighting ahead but I wanted something this episode.  At least it looks like Floki got some of his old Viking mojo back after his self-doubts back in Kattegat.

Except for the stupid Astrid/Bjorn stuff and the Harold and Halfdan stuff which I know the latter is necessary but they still bore me, this was an excellent episode.  I'm liking Vikings just fine post-Ragnar and part of that is Hirst managed to write Ragnar out in such a way we were more than ready to see him go even though Travis Fimmel's performance was always an A+.

[TaurusRose]

30 minutes ago, Pogojoco said:

I don't know how many baseball fans are on here, but this dude on the left is Josh Donaldson, third basemen for the Toronto Blue Jays, American League MVP in 2015. He loves the show, they gave him a part. 

 

Huh.  They could have put forth an effort to make him look like a Viking.  He pulled me right out of the scene with his GQ appearance.

[green]

2 minutes ago, taurusrose said:

Huh.  They could have put forth an effort to make him look like a Viking.  He pulled me right out of the scene with his GQ appearance.

Josh Donaldson is the guy on the left like Pogojoco clearly stated above in that post.  He wasn't the victim.  He was the older brother.  And his hair beard are his own, not fake.

Edited January 19, 2017 by green

[TaurusRose]

Okay, but the guy in the picture still doesn't look like a Viking to me.  

Edited January 19, 2017 by taurusrose

[benteen]

Was not crazy about the first half of this episode.  It did pick up in the second half.  I agree that the sacrifice was very well-done but the hightlight was the outstanding scene between Aethelwulf and Ecbert.  Great work by both actors.  Hirst admitted that he didn't know if Ecbert did love his son or anyone.

Bjorn is a flat out asshole although the man really knows how to bring a "game face" into battle.  That blood eagle was brutal.

With Ubbe and Hvitserk sharing the same woman, there's no way they're going to know who the father is if she gets pregnant.

[Silverglitter]

I'm surprised they decided to have Ubbe share the wife with Hvitserk. Frankly, to me, it always seemed like she preferred Sigurd the most out of the three.

[green]

1 minute ago, taurusrose said:

Okay, but the guy in the picture still doesn't look like a Viking to me.  

He does to me.

[Pogojoco]

15 minutes ago, green said:

Wow I didn't even recognize him and I own him in 3 of my 4 dynasty leagues, haha.  Thanks for letting me know.  Not bad to have the 2015 AL MVP along as a viking.  I knew he did a cameo on the show but I thought that was in the past and I missed it.  I remember when he got the Ragnar-style haircut couple of years back and when constantly asked about it told all the reporters and fans where it came from and how awesome the show was.  Now there are several more ball players sporting that look.  Actress playing Lagertha is Canadian and a big Toronto fan too.  I saw a pic online at a baseball site of her autographing Donalson's jersey.  (All that said, go Red Sox!).

And that sacrifice scene was awesome.  Lagertha and her owl outscore Aslaug a hundred times over when it comes to bloody rituals.  And now enhanced by knowing Josh Donaldson was in the scene.  And the young actor playing the victim did real good too.  (Wonder if he is another ball player, heh).

 

I was on board until you said you were a Red Sox fan (hehe) We Jays fans have been waiting for it for awhile and I'm pretty happy.

I was mostly impressed with his accent. He has a Florida dashed with Alabama drawl and he copied their weird diction/accent pretty well. Katheryn Winnick is indeed from Toronto. (The guy who plays Bjorn is Canadian, too. It's Canadian co-production.) Clive Standen (Rollo) visited the clubhouse last season and hit batting practice (you can hear Josh yelling at him in this video.) 

Edited January 19, 2017 by Pogojoco

[green]

^  Thanks.  And hey for the record Toronto is my favorite big city much more than Boston if that soothes things over some.  :-)  And I like the Jays, just like my New England Sox better. 

[Pogojoco]

Just now, green said:

^  Thanks.  And hey for the record Toronto is my favorite big city much more than Boston if that soothes things over some.  :-)  And I like the Jays, just like my New England Sox better. 

It's totally cool. Just love on David Price. We still love him over here. 

 

I miss Ragnar. A lot. 

[TaurusRose]

25 minutes ago, green said:

Josh Donaldson is the guy on the left like Pogojoco clearly stated above in that post.  He wasn't the victim.  He was the older brother.  And his hair beard are his own, not fake.

Okay.  I was confused.  

[Pogojoco]

This is Josh in Ireland getting transformed. 

Edited January 19, 2017 by Pogojoco

[green]

3 minutes ago, Pogojoco said:

It's totally cool. Just love on David Price. We still love him over here. 

I miss Ragnar. A lot. 

Wow, Floki and Josh, both a little crazy, haha.  Well you got a kind of Ragnar on the Jays with Donaldson.  OTOH the Sox kind of got a guy with an Ivar personality now with Chris Sale and his amazing knife skills with retro uniforms he hates.  Let us both feast on the Yankees this year.

Yeah I miss Ragnar too but the old Ragnar before the Chinese lady and the addiction storyline.    But Hirst sent him out in style at least.

[Silverglitter]

43 minutes ago, green said:

 I'm liking Vikings just fine post-Ragnar

Me too. I actually prefer it. But then, I've been anticipating Ragnar's death since early season 2. I never had the attachment to him that others do.

Edited January 19, 2017 by Silverglitter

[TiffanyNichelle]

1 hour ago, Pogojoco said:

I don't know how many baseball fans are on here, but this dude on the left is Josh Donaldson, third basemen for the Toronto Blue Jays, American League MVP in 2015. He loves the show, they gave him a part. 

(For clarification, Donaldson is the one with the fur and the braid.) 

 

No wonder there seemed to be something slightly different about him. Now who was the adorable guy who got sacrificed?

Disappointed in Bjorn just flaunting his gross affair with Astrid. Next sacrifice please.

I laughed out lout when Aelle saw how the great heathen army kept growing in size. Judith tried to warn him. Ragnar wasn't just some random Viking...

Ubbe and Hvitserk sharing Ubbe's wife reminded me of when Ragnar and Lagertha invited Athelstan to join them in bed. At least Margrethe seemed to be down for it.

[green]

14 minutes ago, TiffanyNichelle said:

No wonder there seemed to be something slightly different about him. Now who was the adorable guy who got sacrificed?

Disappointed in Bjorn just flaunting his gross affair with Astrid. Next sacrifice please.

I laughed out lout when Aelle saw how the great heathen army kept growing in size. Judith tried to warn him. Ragnar wasn't just some random Viking...

Ubbe and Hvitserk sharing Ubbe's wife reminded me of when Ragnar and Lagertha invited Athelstan to join them in bed. At least Margrethe seemed to be down for it.

And Floki and Helga invited Leif I think it was to join them when he arrived with a message for the wounded Ragnar who was recovering in Floki's cabin back in Season 1.  Though I'm wondering if Ubbe is really down with it or is testing Hvitserk or even Margrethe in some way playing some Ragnar-style long game with them.

For the record I looked it up and Harald's obsession is named Princess Ellisif.  There is also an actor who played a person called Vik.  Don't know if that was her husband or not.  No Earl in the title so maybe not.  And I was just going to call him Earl Red Shirt anyway because Harald most likely has deadly plans in store for him.

Edited January 19, 2017 by green

[bluvelvet]

I totally thought Astrid was going to be the sacrifice or Ubbe's new wife, but I guess you have to volunteer. That scene was very well done and I do think Lagertha has plans for Astrid. I was also happy that we saw that Lagertha and Torvi knew the deal. 

I think we didn't see the battle here because I assume we will get a big battle scene with Ecbert's army which is much more subtantial. I didn't see a promo for next episode so I am just speculating here.  And for the record I dislike Ecbert immensely (even if I love the actor) and I will forever hate Judith because she of the way she treats her husband and the fact that she killed Kwenrith and Aethelwulfs unborn child way back when. He had some happiness and his father and wife took that away while flaunting their affair in his face. I live for the day when Ecbert realizes that Ragnar set him up and didn't tell his sons to leave Ecberts kingdom alone. I don't think he takes Aethewulf seriously about the army and I don't think he's fading.  Ecbert has a plan. 

For a second I thought Floki was gonna run the other way but looks like he still has the Viking mojo. 

Bjorn and Torvi never did get married so I guess he isn't that attached to her, he was willing to marry the slave girl who ran away after giving birth to his daughter. 

[magdalene]

My favorite scene was the one between Aethelwulf and Ecbert.  I can't understand human sacrifice and don't want to understand it.  I don't get the two brothers sharing Ubbe's bride, but they asked Margarethe and she chose - so more power to her.  I disliked Aelle but had to look away at his being tortured to death by blood eagle. But the emotions between Aethelwulf and Ecbert I understood.  I felt so bad for Aethelwulf.  Oh, Ecbert, you manipulated and lied all your life to get things your way. Couldn't you have lied to your son and told him the words he so needed to hear from you in that moment?

[BitterApple]

3 hours ago, slf said:

The fight between the Vikings and the English was a letdown. Such a buildup to the Great Heathen Army and all we got was a bunch of yelling, some music that too modern for my taste, a charge and that's it.

The music was totally wrong. Electric guitar for a battle scene circa 800-900? No, no and no. I felt like there was a bit of a letdown with this one. All this buildup to the invasion and then it sort of pittered out. I get that Aelle's execution was the focal point of this episode, but still, I expected a little more.

As the anticipation built for the human sacrifice scene I was totally expecting Lagertha to shank Astrid at the last minute instead of the Earl, but I guess Astrid lives to see another day. Bjorn's "see ya when I see ya" to Torvi was so awkward to watch. 

I'm kind of surprised that Aelle underestimated how large scale the Viking's revenge would be. He'd seen their brutality firsthand. You'd think he would've been a bit better prepared or at least had some sort of escape plan. 

What did the Saxons end up doing with Ragnar's body? Was it still in the pit covered by debris or did they remove it and bury it somewhere else?

Edited January 19, 2017 by BitterApple

[green]

2 hours ago, BitterApple said:

What did the Saxons end up doing with Ragnar's body? Was it still in the pit covered by debris or did they remove it and bury it somewhere else?

If you go here to the link magdalene graciously provided in the other thread for this week's interview with Hirst you will see he basically didn't think to put a body in the pit.  When the interviewer asked he conceded he could have put a decomposing body in there if he and thought about it but personally he thought that would be pretty gross except he didn't say gross.  He speaks better than me, heh.  But sometimes it is as simple as that.  A semi-oversight.  But according to Hirst it apparently has lead to some wild speculations online that that meant Ragnar had "risen" and would return again, lol.  He nips that rumor in the bud obviously.

http://ew.com/tv/2017/01/18/vikings-revenge-aelle-michael-hirst/

Edited January 19, 2017 by green

[benteen]

Quote

 And for the record I dislike Ecbert immensely (even if I love the actor) and I will forever hate Judith because she of the way she treats her husband and the fact that she killed Kwenrith and Aethelwulfs unborn child way back when.

Her husband had her ear cut off a couple of seasons ago so I can't find too much sympathy for him.

[ghoulina]

This episode was hard to watch. I'll admit I'm kind of a prude outside of my own personal life, but I watch enough adult fare to be used to sex stuff by now. What's unsettling is watching two brothers share the same woman. A son banging the girl who sleeps in his mother's bed every night. It's like they just threw historical and cultural accuracy to the wind and hired HBO to give us all an incestuous sex romp. Pass. 

And for those who noted the lack of violence in Spain - may I present you the human sacrifice and Blood Eagle? I'm actually really desensitized to violence and gore and all that, so I'm not sure why I was so unsettled last night. Maybe it was just too much visual sensory overload for one night? AElla is no Jarl Borg, that's for certain. 

I guess I was hoping to see more of The Great Heathen Army in battle. I LOVED the shots of that massive hoard on the battlefield. Ivar, especially, looked super menacing in his chariot and black mask. But then - boom - we've got AElla and the battle is all over. I get that that's why they really went there. And I know the history, and that there's a lot more to cover going forward. But I just feel like a lot of the story has been rushed since Ragnar's death. 

I'm also kind of pissed because the show is really making me start to hate Bjorn. And I always really liked him; he was always so loyal to his mother. Now he's having her girlfriend on the side and treating Torvi (who is an incredibly loyal and badass woman) like shit? What was with that goodbye? Astrid gets a side hug, but all Torvi gets is a shoulder shrug? "You're my baby mama....so....I guess take care...." Just really disappointed in what they've done here. 

So Harald Finehair is a stage 4 clinger. Obsessing over some princess who could not BE less into him. Halfdan needs to take him out for a beer and teach him how to pick up on signals. 

Is it just me, or is Ecbert becoming older and older by the episode? He was the very definition of doddering, to me, last night. And having Judith standing there cutting his meat - she seems more like his daughter than his lover. I was creeped out by them for the first time. And as much as I've never liked Aethelwulf, it was pretty devastating that his father couldn't/wouldn't tell him that he loved him. 

Overall, not my favorite episode.

16 hours ago, slf said:

I didn't recognize the man who volunteered for sacrifice but he was amazing too, letting go of the straps and taking Lagertha's shoulders. Historically that did happen, people did volunteer for sacrifice to appease the Gods and, hopefully, end a plague or famine. I loved that Lagertha maintained eye contact and held the man as he died.

Yup, it was a great honor. Many Vikings lived that way - not only not afraid to die, but proud to do so for their people. I thought, while disturbing, it was a very well done scene. And I agree that the sex back-and-forth added nothing and kind of ruined it.

14 hours ago, benteen said:

With Ubbe and Hvitserk sharing the same woman, there's no way they're going to know who the father is if she gets pregnant.

Which is one of the main reasons why this storyline felt so off to me. My husband is well versed in the sagas and has read the Poetic Edda a dozen times over, and shared his knowledge with me. And I really do not feel like wife sharing was something that really went in on in their society. I could buy it when she was still a slave girl. But now they're married, and hopefully going to be having children. Norse societies were patrilineal, and Vikings were very obsessed with their legacy and their bloodline. There's no way a man would want any question over a son his wife gave birth too. 

There's also no case that I can think of in any of the sagas of a man sharing his wife, especially with his brother. The gods all had just one wife, one husband, etc. It just seemed like something scandalous to titillate the viewers. 

Edited January 19, 2017 by ghoulina

[nodorothyparker]

This episode was kind of all over the place.  There was some great stuff but also a bit that left me scratching my head and wondering why it was there.

We already know Harald Finehair is a slimy asshole we're going to have to be rooting against in his inevitable attempt to overthrow the collective Family Lothbrok.  But the show decided to amp up his grossness by making him the worst kind of dude bro who confuses stalkery obsession with love and can't recognize when he's been given a brushoff or let down easy.  Was this even necessary?  That entire encounter with the equally odious brother offering him a knife to threaten the poor girl for having the audacity to not want to be killed for turning him down was just uncomfortable to watch and didn't really add anything.

Because I'm not particularly invested in the love lives of any of these characters, I don't really care if Bjorn wants to bang Astrid (I guess to get back at Lagertha?) but I didn't really care for scenes of it being intercut with the sacrifice.  The show has typically made something horribly beautiful and compelling out of those most alien of rituals but it kind of ruined it here by continually cutting away to show me sex I don't care about.  We know Lagertha is never going to kill or take any real vengeance on her only remaining child, but Astrid is not so irreplaceable so I wonder how she sees this playing out.  

What was the point of Ubbe formally marrying the former slave girl if he was just going to continue to share her?  It felt like they were trying to say something about the polyamorous relationships in Viking society, but this was one of those things that really needed Ragnar or a young Bjorn laying it all out for Athelstan if they it wanted it to work.  It makes no sense on the face of it and only makes me miss those characters more.  Worse, they wasted time on this and completely shortchanged the brothers' first real voyage or landing together for it.  Those used to be some of my favorite small things on this show just for the sense of adventure of them.

 Aelle and the bishop's slowly dawning recognition that they'd completely underestimated what they were going up against was nicely done.  The build up was very nice with a truly impressive battlefield presence but then they completely skipped the battle, which again would have been the first for all of the brothers except for Bjorn.  I was curious to see how the chariot would hold up in open ground combat and was momentarily distracted by how many of the Vikings were wearing their big heavy furs on the battlefield.  I was also surprised they skipped ahead so quickly to the blood eagle of Aelle, although with an episode titled Revenge I guess I shouldn't have been.  It was well done in showing the absolute place of rage from which Bjorn and all the sons are operating.

At least Aethelwulf is under no illusions about what a shit end of the stick his entire relationship with his father is.

Edited January 19, 2017 by nodorothyparker

[Babalooie]

Regarding the man who offered himself up for sacrifice, Lagertha called him Earl Jorgensen.  He was the same Earl who presented the sword to Lagertha in the Great Hall in The Great Army. 

[attica]

"I don't wish to be imprecise." may be the Flokiest thing ever Flokied.

I had to eyeroll to the point of optic-nerve sprain during the 'tell me you love me, daddy' scene.  (Way too modern a notion of family interaction.) I thought I saw a fleeting expression of WTF, Aethelwulf? on Ecbert's face, but I'll concede the show isn't aimed at a 9th C.  audience. Concessions must be made.

I'd like to see how they carried Ivar's horse and chariot on the longship. Me, I'd think it more practical to transport the buggy and obtain a horse when you land, but that clearly was his horse.

[nowornever]

1 hour ago, nodorothyparker said:

but this was one of those things that really needed Ragnar or a young Bjorn laying it all out for Athelstan if they it wanted it to work.  

This was a beautiful way of informing the audience that I didn't realize I missed so much until you said it.

[ghoulina]

35 minutes ago, attica said:

"I don't wish to be imprecise." may be the Flokiest thing ever Flokied.

Yes! I forgot that line. I've been done with Floki since he killed Athlestan, but I really really liked that line. Very thoughtful and deliberate. 

[nodorothyparker]

I've had no use for Floki since then either, but I find myself almost liking him despite myself this episode.  He looked completely unhinged in the battle buildup and his line "I've been told your god is carpenter.  Guess what, so am I," was absolutely perfect.

I really wanted to see the logistics of the chariot and horse too.  Since the character's reintroduction as an adult, the show has done a nice job of showing how Ivar maneuvers himself around and just what his limitations would be in Viking society and as a would-be warrior.  I want to see how it all comes together on the battlefield.

Did we know Aelle could speak Norse?  Ecbert at least learned from Athelstan, although his ability seemed to come and go depending on what the script called for but I don't remember anything indicating Aelle had ever taken the time to learn and it seems like something he would have thought beneath him.  The fact that he still thought he could bribe them to let him live and go away after he had so gloatingly and publicly killed their father suggests he never saw them as more than petty thieves and extortionists.

[MrsR]

The Normans brought their horses across the water in similar long boats during the Conquest. Lots of horses.

Oooh the sacrifice. It's no wonder so many northern pagans took to Christianity so quickly. The idea that one man can make the sacrifice for everyone, forever, was very appealing to people who had lost family members to sacrifice.

[Ohwell]

I loved those hand movements that Floki was making this episode.  First, as they were getting ready to fight, and later when he was watching Aelle getting blood-eagled.  

Speaking of Aelle, I was kind of surprised that he went out that way, blubbering and begging and trying to buy his way out of it, even before he was tortured. (Now don't get me wrong, I would have begged for my life, too, but I'm not a king).  Maybe if some of his men had been around he would have held up better, but since they weren't, I guess he could be his true self.  

I'm still not giving up on Bjorn.  I'm still hoping that he's playing the long con on Astrid, making her believe that he's forsaken Lagertha and Torvi for her, and to show Lagertha how unfaithful she is.    

I remain unmoved by Aethelwulf's woes because daddy doesn't love him.

[BitterApple]

3 hours ago, nodorothyparker said:

This episode was kind of all over the place.  There was some great stuff but also a bit that left me scratching my head and wondering why it was there.

 

It felt like there was a lot of filler because they didn't have the budget to stage two massive battle scenes in one season. I'm assuming the attack on Ecbert is where we'll see most of the good fighting, so they had to scrap any action with Aelle. 

Random thought, why do none of the Vikings wear protective headgear? Shaved heads versus axes and swords seems like a bad combo.