Arnheid’s Choice

Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 15 felt like a short episode, which is a good thing. That means it was a good episode since it went by so fast. But, I do wish a bit more happened in it. For example, I wish we got a status report on Leif’s ship.

There’s no point in complaining about what we didn’t get, though. After all, we got some good Arnheid content. And to me, that’s what matters the most right now. In my Episode 14 review, I said we’d likely be getting some Arnheid character development. And, it looks like it’s finally begun.

Now, Arnheid’s character development didn’t happen in this episode. In that regard, my prediction was wrong. But, I think starting to see how her development is going to go. As I’ve been saying since Gardar first appeared, he’s no longer the man Arnheid once loved.

When Arnheid gets the chance to tend to her husband’s wounds, she can’t even bring herself to touch him. In fact, she hasn’t made contact with him at all since he reappeared. And, this is likely for 2 reasons. First, she’s afraid of the person he is now. And second, she blames his absence for the loss of their son.

Then, when Gardar attacks and kills Snake’s man who was guarding him, we see the horror on Arnheid’s face. Before her husband left for war, he wasn’t a killer. But now, he has no problem slaughtering other humans.

And, something to keep in mind is that we never saw Arnheid free Gardar. I don’t believe she did — she’s too afraid of what he’ll do. Instead, it seems like Gardar waited until one of Snake’s men stabbed him. He then managed to use the sword to cut his binds and flee.

The Hunt Is On

As I mentioned in my review of Episode 13, it seems like Snake discovered God. Based on what we’ve seen so far, he seems interested in the teachings of the Bible — much like Thorfinn. But, Snake hasn’t committed himself to the teachings just yet.

Thorfinn isn’t a Christian. At least, not yet. He may become one later on in the series. But, there are a few things about Christianity that appeal to him. One is that it teaches that you should respect others and not do things like murder them.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he also liked the idea of Heaven and being forgiven. That seems a lot better than going to the endless bloody pit where he saw Askeladd in his dream. That’s Thorfinn’s own personal hell. And if there’s a way for him to escape that fate, he’ll take it.

So, back to Snake. What does all this have to do with him? Well, despite his interest in the Bible, he’s not against killing. Before this episode, I thought he might be against it. After all, we hadn’t seen him kill anyone and he guards a peaceful farm.

However, the events of this episode showed that Snake is very much still a warrior at heart. After Gardar kills more of his men, Snake gives the order to hunt him down and kill him. He’s no longer going after the reward for capturing Gardar. He wants revenge.

But, I’m not so sure Snake is going to get his revenge. From the next episode preview, it looks like Thorfinn is going to protect Gardar. And since we know Thorfinn won’t fight, that means he’s going to use words. He may try to remind Snake about the teachings from the Bible.

Dreaming of Vinland

Throughout this season, I assumed Ketil’s farm was the titular Vinland. But, that’s apparently not the case. Ketil’s farm is somewhere in Europe. Though, we don’t know where. He might have mentioned something about it being south of Denmark when talking to Leif.

Or, he might have meant that it was in southern England. I was going to say it might be in France. But, upon further thought, that doesn’t make sense. France is where Canute’s former rival for the throne was living in exile. It wouldn’t make sense for a vassal of the late King Harald to live there.

Maybe someone else knows exactly where it is. But, for now, I’m going to say it’s somewhere in Europe and leave it at that. And the reason we know this is thanks to Thorfinn’s description of Vinland. He describes it as being across the ocean from where they are now.

As Thorfinn tells Einar about the fabled Vinland, he begins to think his dream could become a reality. Maybe he can create a (small) world where there’s no war or slaves. Because, as Einar points out, it’s going to be impossible to eradicate war and slaves from the entire world.

However, all Thorfinn needs to do is build a village that adheres to his pacifist ideals. If he can do that, he feels that it will make up for all the lives he’s taken. But, that’s easier said than done. Not only does he need to get to Vinland, but he also needs people to get there with.

Luckily, there are quite a few people at Ketil’s farm who would likely join him. There’s Einar and Arnheid, of course. But, Snake and even Gardar might join in, too. And Leif and Ketil are on their way.

Conclusion

What do you think about Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 15? Do you think Arnheid actually freed Gardar? Will Snake kill Gardar, or will Thorfinn save his soul? And, who do you expect to be among the founding members of Thorfinn’s proposed community? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 16 is available now.

Gardar the Storm

Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 14 was an alright episode. I liked that we got backstories for a few characters. But, I also don’t think it was quite as interesting as some other episodes. Backstories are good. However, they’re no replacement for character development in the present.

That’s why I think next week’s episode is going to be better. The backstories we got in Episode 14 appear to be setting up for new character development. Specifically, it looks like both Arnheid and Einar are going to get some good development. Though, Einar’s might take another episode or two.

Now, there was some action at the start of this episode. We got to see Snake fight against Gardar. But, this fight wasn’t a very exciting one. Gardar kept attacking Snake and Snake kept dodging the attacks. Then, Snake used the back of his sword to incapacitate Gardar.

Something that immediately stuck out to me when Gardar showed up was how Arnheid reacted. Initially, she called out his name. But, once she actually got a good look at him, her demeanor changed. She looked like she was afraid of him. And she later confirms that to Einar and Thorfinn.

As I predicted in my review of Episode 13, she no longer recognizes the man he’s become. The things Gardar saw and experienced while at war changed him. And, that makes complete sense. That’s what this entire series is all about — the negative impact war has on all people.

In my Episode 12 review, I also pointed out how every character in the series brings a new perspective. Arnheid and Gardar are no different. Both of these characters bring new perspectives on the tragedy of war that are new and unique. And that’s the best part of this episode.

Hjelti and the New Child

So, what happened with Gardar and Arnheid? Although their parents arranged their marriage, it was a good marriage. They even had a son named Hjelti. But, things changed when an iron deposit was found in a marsh near their village.

Different groups were fighting over the iron. And at some point, the men from Gardar’s village decided to join in on the fight. They chose to do so for 2 reasons. First, they wanted to stop a different faction from gaining more power and influence. And second, they wanted to get rich from the resources.

The women objected to the war. But, the men left the village anyway to go and fight. While they were away, a Viking raiding party showed up and razed the village. They killed the elderly and kidnapped the women and children. And this is the last time Arnheid saw her son.

Something important to keep in mind here is that we have no confirmation of what happened to Hjelti. For all we know, he’s still alive. Of course, he might not be. But, if he is, we might run into him later in the series. And he may not know he was ever kidnapped.

It doesn’t seem like Arnheid believes she’ll ever see Hjelti again. So, maybe she knows something we don’t. But, that combined with the fact that she’s afraid of Gardar means there’s no going back to her old life. And besides, she has a new baby on the way.

That’s right, Arnheid is pregnant with Ketil’s latest child. So, does this mean Einar’s chances of being with Arnheid are over? Not at all. I still believe they’ll end up together. And I believe Einar will raise Ketil’s son as his own. He’s going to abandon a baby.

Why Ketil Hates War

Toward the end of the episode, Sverkel gives us a little bit of background information on himself. Like his son, Sverkel doesn’t like war. And he even once gave away Ketil’s girlfriend to a warlord in an attempt at saving his village.

This is probably why Ketil is such a coward. For starters, he was raised by a coward who would sacrifice a girl to save himself. So, there’s that. But, what I’m thinking had more of an impact on who Ketil is today is what happened to that former girlfriend of his.

On her wedding day, a rival faction attacked the village and slaughtered everyone. So, Sverkel gave this girl away to protect his own village, and then the village she was given to got massacred. Needless to say, she did not survive the attack.

So, why does Ketil hate war? Well, he’s a coward who doesn’t want to die. But, I also don’t particularly want to die any time soon, so I can’t blame him for that. What we really need to look at is how this experience in his past may have changed his outlook on life.

Before this event, he may not have ever worried about getting killed. But, seeing his former girlfriend killed in this way may have made reality hit home. At any point, someone who hates him could kill him. And that kind of explains why Ketil is the way he is.

Why do you think he became wealthy? So he can afford armed security and the protection of the King of Denmark. And why do you think he’s so nice to his slaves? So they don’t rise up and kill him. Everything Ketil does, he does to protect himself from the violence of others.

Conclusion

What do you think of Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 14? How do you expect Gardar’s story to end? Do you think Hjelti is still alive somewhere? And does Ketil’s background explain the way he acts today? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 15 is available now.

Living Like We’re Free

Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 13 features a new OP. My initial reaction was that this OP is worse than the previous OP. Mainly, that was because I prefer the previous song; this OP has great visuals. But, after watching it a few more times, I’m liking the new OP more.

Enough about the OP, though. Let’s get into the episode. After Sverkel collapses in his field, the mistress sends Arnheid to take care of him. And, for the first time since becoming a slave, Arnheid felt as if she was free again.

That’s a bit of an exaggeration, I’m sure. But, what she meant was that this was the first time she was able to enjoy a meal. Under normal circumstances, slaves don’t get to eat meals like this. But, Sverkel doesn’t like the idea of having slaves. So, everyone is equal in his home.

What I liked most about this whole scene, however, was how it sets up the life Einar isn’t going to have. As we know, Einar is in love with Arnheid. But, as we also now know, Arnheid is already married. So, in this scene, Einar gets a glimpse at family life with her, and later has it ripped away.

I’ll discuss Arnheid’s husband more later in this review. But since I brought him up, did you realize that’s who he was during the opening scene? If you didn’t there were some hints.

We see both Arnheid and her husband with their son in the OP. Now, sure, Arnheid’s husband hasn’t had a haircut in a while. But, once he said that he was looking for a woman at the end of the opening scene, it should have been obvious. What other female character is there who you can name?

Thorfinn Finds God

Apparently, Thorfinn is interested in the Bible. I guess that makes sense considering the time period and his newfound hatred of violence. Though, I’m going to guess he hasn’t yet heard all the violent parts of the Bible. He might change his mind about Christianity once he does.

Where did Thorfinn learn about Christianity from? Snake and Sverkel. Snake has been reading the Bible to Sverkel and Thorfinn has been eavesdropping on them. We’re also told by Einar that Snake is doing this because Sverkel can’t read. But, it’s unclear what exactly that means.

Does Einar mean Sverkel can’t read at all? We’ve certainly never seen him read, so that could be the case. Or, does he mean that Sverkel can’t read due to his ailing health? That seems more likely to me considering Sverkel owns a book. Books weren’t cheap during this time — why have one you can’t read?

The fact that Snake reads the Bible to Sverkel is weird. But, when asked about his relationship with the old man by Thorfinn, he says there is no relationship. All he wants is to inherit the Bible from Sverkel so he can sell it.

As I mentioned, a book like that isn’t cheap. So Snake could definitely sell it for a good amount of money. But, I don’t believe he was telling the truth when he said that. My impression is that Snake is a Christian convert and that’s why he’s taking care of Sverkel.

What evidence do I have for that? First of all, Snake is educated; he can read. So he doesn’t seem like some random soldier. Also, we’ve seen multiple times throughout the season that Snake reads the Bible on his own. Sverkel may have introduced the Bible to him.

Arnheid’s Husband

It’s time to talk about Arnheid’s husband, Gardar. He’s the slave we see escape from another farm at the start of the episode. And, he did more than simply escape. He killed his master and his master’s sons. But, he did let a woman and child go free.

It’s unclear who this woman and child are. Is the woman the wife of the master or one of his sons? Or, is she a slave who’s charged with taking care of the family’s baby? We don’t know. But, the fact that Gardar spares them appears to be important.

As I pointed out earlier, the OP depicts Gardar, Arnheid, and their son. So, I don’t think Gardar spared the woman and child on a whim. My guess is that he spared them because they reminded him of his own wife and child.

But, where is Gardar’s child now? There are two possibilities. Either the child is dead or the child was sold separately from either of his parents. I have no idea which is right. However, I’m going to predict that the child is dead. Though, it’s possible that we never find out. Gardar and Arnheid may not know the fate of their son.

So, now that Gardar is here, does that mean Einar’s chances of being with Arnheid are gone? No. There are a few ways those two could still end up together. And one is if Gardar dies, which I find pretty likely.

Though, what I kind of find more likely is that slavery changed Gardar. Vinland Saga is all about how war and suffering affect people. So, I could see Arnheid not recognizing the violent man her husband has become. She may not like that he’s a murderer now. Einar would never do that.

Conclusion

What do you think of Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 13? Do you like the new OP or the previous OP more? What about the ED? Do you think Snake is a converted Christian? And does Einar still have a chance with Arnheid? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 14 is available now.

Another Perspective on War

I was wrong about how Canute planned to use Olmar to take Ketil’s farm. Last week, I predicted they’d get Olmar to do something like steal from the King. But, they actually tried (and succeeded) to get him to kill a member of the King’s guard.

In hindsight, this actually makes more sense. And I’m glad that Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 went down this path. Why? Because this is an anti-war anime. Now that Olmar has killed a man, we’ll get to dissect how that changes him as a person.

But, you may be thinking that we have enough characters affected by war to follow. Do we really need Olmar’s perspective, as well? The answer is yes. Olmar’s perspective differs from all the other characters we’re following in the story. Each character brings a unique perspective when it comes to war.

To illustrate this point, let’s go through a few of the major characters from this season. Thorfinn was once consumed by vengeance and hurt people he didn’t even know, but now sees the error of his ways. Opposite him, we have Einar, one of the many people whom war has hurt.

There’s also Canute, who’s haunted by his actions but can’t help but be consumed by his desire for power. And what about Ketil? He’s a man who’s afraid of war but made up stories claiming to be a war hero to benefit himself.

Then, we have Ketil’s son, Thorgil, who so far, appears to be obsessed with war and death. I’ll discuss him more in a bit. And, lastly, we now have Olmar. Olmar is an unwilling participant. He never intended to kill anyone. But now that he has, he must carry that weight.

Olmar Did Nothing Wrong

Let’s look at the evidence against Olmar, Thorgil, and Ketil to determine their guilt. But, before I do that, let me just make one thing clear. If Olmar or Thorgil is guilty, Ketil is as well. In many cultures, the parents are responsible for the actions of the children.

So, with that in mind, that’s Ketil’s only possible offense. He didn’t do anything else that would warrant punishment. What about Olmar and Thorgil, though? Well, I’m going to say that Olmar is safe. Yes, he did kill a man. But, we need to look at the circumstances around that killing.

Of course, Olmar only killed him due to outside interference in their duel. But, let’s ignore that. The fact is that Olmar killed a man in a duel that they both agreed to. And, this duel was about honor, which, according to Thorgil, is a regular occurrence.

Yes, you could argue, as the King’s guard do, that duels are illegal. But, based on what Thorgil said, dueling between men for honor has never led to punishment before. If duels never resulted in punishments before, then why now? Olmar did nothing wrong.

Thorgil’s actions are a bit more suspect. He wasn’t involved in a duel. But, he was protecting someone from 4 armed attackers. I have no problem with him doing that. Even the fact that he killed all 4 men is fine. They intended to kill Olmar, so they should anticipate that they could be the ones killed instead.

Live by the sword, die by the sword.

But, where Thorgil messes up is when he kills the additional guards who come to arrest him, Ketil, and Olmar. He did this because he knew they were being set up. But, that doesn’t excuse those killings.

Thorgil the Mad

As I mentioned earlier, Thorgil seems to love war and death. I have a feeling that he would enjoy his time in the underworld where Thorfinn met Askeladd. If he could slaughter his enemies 24/7, that would be like paradise to Thorgil.

And if you have any doubt about this, just look at Thorgil’s response to becoming a fugitive. Thorgil is actually looking forward to fighting Canute’s soldiers. He knows they’re strong, and he wants to go up against strong opponents. That’s not the thought process of a normal, rational person.

But, you may have noticed that Thorgil has a lot in common with another character, Thorkell. Thorkell also loves war and only wants to fight against strong opponents. And, if I’m remembering correctly, he’s a member of the Jomsvikings. This is the group that’s going to accompany Canute to Ketil’s farm.

That’s right, we might get to see a duel between Thorgil and Thorkell, two of the strongest warriors. And I’m sure they would love to fight each other. That’s exactly what they’re both looking for. But, there’s always a chance that we don’t get this fight.

Who do you think would win? Thorkell has a size advantage. He’s not called Thorkell the Tall for nothing. Thorkell is also more of a wildcard, which could play to his advantage, as well. But, I’m going to assume Thorgil has more skill when it comes to fighting.

Thorgil may be insane like Thorkell. But, he’s also capable of rational thinking during a fight. The fighting we saw from Thorgil in this episode was methodical and executed well. Thorkell, on the other hand, is more like a berserker.

I’d give the fight to Thorgil. But, we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

Conclusion

What do you think of Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12? How do you think killing a man will affect Olmar? At what point would you say Thorgil crossed a line in his fight? And, do you think he could beat Thorkell? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 13 is available now.

How a King Fights

Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 11 starts off with a scene of Canute doing combat training. As a king of Danes, it’s important for him to be able to lead his men into battle. If he doesn’t do this, they won’t consider him to be their king.

During this training, Canute’s sparing partner (I forget his name) points out a flaw of Canute’s. Whenever he’s tired, Canute tends to retreat in an attempt to give himself a break. But, this is a bad idea for 2 reasons. The first is that it only extends the fight.

It’s better to be more aggressive and push forward to defeat your opponent quickly. That will actually lead to expending less energy than if you get into a long, drawn-out fight. And on top of that, if you pull back, your opponent could capitalize on it and push their advantage.

The second reason it’s a bad idea for Canute to retreat is that it looks bad. His men will be looking to him to lead by example. If they see him retreating, that will destroy their morale and cause their ranks to break. This is why he needs to be able to fight.

Additionally, the enemy will be looking at him because he’s the commander. If he shows signs of weakness, such as by retreating, that will bolster their morale. This, combined with the hit his own soldiers’ morale will take, could be costly on the battlefield.

One last thing I want to point out is how Canute defeated his sparring partner. Canute tricked him into looking away so he could launch a surprise attack. This is risky because his men could view it as a cowardly tactic. Or, they could view it as Canute using his knowledge of his opponent.

The Idiot Son and the Merchant

By the time Ketil arrives in Jelling, King Harald has already died. But, that doesn’t mean this trip is all for nothing. King Canute is in town, which means Ketil can attempt to get in his good graces. However, there’s one thing standing in Ketil’s way: Olmar.

As we saw, Olmar made a fool of himself multiple times in Episode 11. The first time was when he bumped into a merchant and caused the merchant to drop his wares. Olmar claims the merchant bumped into him. But, I think we all know whose fault it was.

This merchant turns out to be the adopted son of Leif Ericson — and his name is Thorfinn. At least, that’s what Leif introduces himself as. This “Thorfinn” also goes by the name Bug Eyes. And it’s unclear if his name is actually Thorfinn, or if that’s just the name he’s currently using.

I’m going to assume that Leif offered up a bounty for anyone who could locate Thorfinn. So, this “Thorfinn” could be one of the people who took him up on that. You know, like how people sometimes pretend they’re a kid who went missing 20 years ago.

Obviously, this isn’t the Thorfinn Leif is looking for. But, he seems to have kept him around for 2 reasons. The first is that he could use the help with his merchant business. And the second, and more important, is that Leif can use him to find the real Thorfinn.

I’m not sure how often the fact that Bug Eyes’s name is Thorfinn actually comes up. But, because he sort of looks like Leif’s Thorfinn, he’s a good model to use when explaining who Thorfinn is. If you can say “he looks like this guy,” that could be helpful.

Requisitioning Ketil’s Farm

We finally know how Thorfinn’s and Canute’s worlds are going to collide. Canute plans to requisition Ketil’s farm for the benefit of his kingdom. That means he’s going to take the farm from Ketil and it will belong to the kingdom. Why? So the kingdom can keep 100% of the profits it generates.

Technically, Canute doesn’t need a reason to requisition Ketil’s farm. Ketil is one of his subjects and Canute is the king. He can take the farm if he wants and there’s nothing Ketil can do about it. But, Canute isn’t going to do that.

If Canute began taking the land of his subjects without cause, that would reflect poorly on him. His other wealthy subjects may worry that their farms could be next. And once that happens, an uprising could be on the horizon. That’s not what Canute wants — and that’s also why he doesn’t want to raise taxes.

So, how is Canute going to justify requisitioning Ketil’s farm? This seems to be where Olmar comes into play, once again. Canute and his inner circle believe they can use Olmar because of his stupidity. And the implication was that they’re going to use him to take the farm.

How does that work, though? My guess is that they’re going to trick Olmar into committing some sort of crime against the kingdom. For example, they might get him to unknowingly steal something from the King. Or, he might get antagonized into starting a fight with someone he shouldn’t.

Regardless of what offense Olmar commits, Canute could then use this against Ketil. Let’s say Olmar steals something from the King. Under normal circumstances, the punishment might be death. But, Canute could be merciful and allow Ketil to trade his farm for his son’s life.

Conclusion

What do you think of Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 11? Will Canute’s tendency to retreat come up again and hurt him? Has Olmar’s character gone beyond the point of redemption? And, how do you think Canute is going to justify requisitioning Ketil’s farm? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me on your social media of choice — links are in the footer.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 12 is available now.