Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 7

Thorgil, Son of Ketil

Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 7 introduces Ketil’s other son, Thorgil. Thorgil looks almost exactly like his father, but with a tan. And he’s also the exact opposite of his younger brother Olmar in every way possible. The most apparent difference between the brothers, though, is their bravery.

As we know, Olmar talks big when it comes to proving himself in war. However, there’s no way he’d actually go to war and not flee. He’s scared of war and of dying, which is understandable. That’s not how Thorgil is, at all.

Thorgil is an accomplished warrior who has no problem spilling blood. And, he was apparently trained by Snake. I already assumed Snake had a military background due to how he interacted with Thorfinn. This is just more evidence pointing toward that being the case. But, we don’t actually have confirmation of that yet.

Anyway, back to Thorgil. Based on the fact Thorgil refers to Canute as King Canute, we know he respects him. But, what I didn’t realize is that Canute isn’t actually the king. I know the name King Harald was thrown around in Episode 6. However, I assumed he and Canute were kings of separate countries. I guess not.

Thorgil’s alliance to Canute could cause issues for his father’s farm later on. Would King Harald still defend Ketil’s farm if Thorgil supports his rival for the thrown? I’m not sure if that will come up. But, it does seem like something is going to happen to the farm.

Previously, I assumed that something would be Canute’s forces attacking. But, that doesn’t seem very likely now since Thorgil is one of Canute’s soldiers. Though, it’s possible that Thorgil is more loyal to Canute than his own father. He might sell out Ketil.

Iron Fist Ketil

You may be wondering why Thorgil would even consider betraying his father. After all, he seems to respect him. To understand that, we first have to look at the legend of Iron Fist Ketil. Apparently, Ketil was quite the warrior when he was younger.

Thorgil learned from the veteran soldiers that his father was called Iron Fist Ketil. He got this name because he was so strong, his weapon would break as soon as a battle began. And so, as any warrior worth his salt would, he continued to fight with his bare fists.

It’s a good story. But, we find out from Ketil himself at the end of the episode that it’s only a story. In reality, Ketil is a coward who’s scared of war. He made up those stories about himself so that others would view him as a strong Norseman.

So, as I said, Thorgil seems to respect his father because of this legend. But, what if he knows the legend is fake? What if the only reason he brought it up was to make his father start sweating? What if Thorgil views his father as a coward for not actually fighting bravely?

If that’s the case, I can 100% see Thorgil betraying his own father for the benefit of Canute. He wouldn’t even view it as a betrayal. In fact, he would think it was his father who did the betraying by lying about his battlefield glory.

Right now, that feels like the direction the series is heading in. I’m convinced that something bad is going to happen to Ketil’s farm. And now that Thorgil is here, the pieces seem to be falling into place. Oh, and maybe Thorgil will take Arnheid for himself, which will get Einar involved.

Ketil the Coward

I don’t have an issue with Ketil being a coward who’s afraid of war. But, I do have an issue with Ketil being a coward who’s afraid to lay down the law on his farm. And no, I’m not talking about him being afraid to punish the Sture and Thora for theft.

Ketil is afraid of more than just war. He’s afraid of the warriors present on his farm. In particular, he’s afraid of Thorgil and Snake. And he believes that if he shows any sign of “weakness,” they’ll get rid of him.

Is he wrong? I’m not sure. I doubt Snake would do something like that since he seems to like his cushy life as a guard. But, as I just laid out, the same might not be true of Thorgil. And looks like it’s Thorgil’s presence that Ketil is actually worried about.

And if Thorgil decided his father was weak, Snake would probably go along with it. Snake likes doing nothing all day. But, he’s still a warrior and doesn’t seem like he’d have any issues going back to that way of life. So, sure, Ketil isn’t in the most secure position.

However, I don’t believe Ketil’s weakness comes from how he doesn’t want to punish people. His weakness comes from him not asserting that his word is final. All he has to do is say that Sture and Thora are going to work for him now and that’s the end of it.

And then, if anyone speaks up against him, he only needs to remind them of who their master is. It’s hard to respect a master who bends to the wishes of those beneath him. It doesn’t matter if he’s scared. He needs to be the one making the decisions.

Conclusion

What do you think of Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 7? Do you think Thorgil is going to betray his father? Do you think he knows Iron Fist Ketil doesn’t actually exist? And, how do you feel about Ketil’s lack of a backbone? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 8 is available now.