Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 15

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.