I think Ragnar and Rollo both need to die. Don’t they?
It seems to me that Bjorn has to become the main character, then maybe Ivar will?
Ivar is creepy. I really dislike Aslaug. Her indifference to the accidental drowning of Siggi, Bjorn’s daughter, is chilling. What is Bjorn going to do when he comes home and finds his daughter dead because no one was looking after her?
The series will obviously boil down to a duel to the death between Ragnar and Rollo. At this point I’m #teamRollo. I still like Lagertha and Bjorn. I like little prince Alfred. We all know how that will turn out: “If you pay the Danegeld, you never get rid of the Dane.” Alfred, historically, told the Danes to go pound sand.
Is it just me? Or do the leather jerkins worn by the Viking characters have the same weave patterns of some popular handbags?
Floki
http://cdn-static.denofgeek.com/sites/denofgeek/files/styles/article_main_wide_image/public/1/96//vikings_3-8.jpg?itok=Cww5E3ac
handbag from Cole Haan
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/f7/7f/cc/f77fcc3764dbf3e3d9b0c154fe18be3b.jpg
Ragnar
http://cdn.vinereport.com/full/1115/vikings-ragnar.jpg?w=760&h=395&l=50&t=40
handbag from Miu Miu
https://cdnb.lystit.com/1200/630/tr/photos/2013/09/03/miu-miu-black-doublestrap-pucker-leather-shoulder-bag-product-1-13229431-995602178.jpeg
“Come to think if it, it’s getting harder & harder to find characters in this show that aren’t despicable”
Momentarily, this does seem to be a key issue. As @NJsue pointed out, after Lagertha and Bjorn, I really don’t like/care about any characters.
Any predictions on who goes to Valhalla next episode? Ragnar or Rollo?
Based on history, I would expect Rollo to survive. But I am aware that Clive Standon got cast as the lead in a new TV series.
If history is any guide, King Aelle will play a role in the outcome. The last episode showed Aelle being very unhappy with Ecbert getting control of both Wessex and Mercia. In the past, Aelle’s role has been minor but it’s perhaps significant that he is being brought back.
Whatever happens, I think the series will end with Bjorn taking over in Kattegat with his brothers, and history (as always) will repeat itself with internecine conflicts.
@NJSue
Good word! I had to look it up. 
“Come to think if it, it’s getting harder & harder to find characters in this show that aren’t despicable”
That’s kind of the hallmark of the entire age. Vikings, Saxons, and Franks were all a pretty rough crowd. We all love Alfred, but his halo has been polished over the centuries from his having won in the end.
If you want to find a truly admirable figure from the history of that era you need to skip ahead one generation to Aethelflaed - Alfred’s daughter. She was sort of a real-life Lagertha, Princess Gisla, and Aethelstan all rolled into one.
She started out as a minor figure - the little-noticed daughter of Prince Alfred, who himself was not yet heir to the throne of Wessex, and she rose to be a ruling queen in her own right (of Mercia). As queen she personally led her troops to victory in battle. And in an era where few people other than priests could read and write she was a highly-educated scholar who promoted learning in her subjects. She was skilled in politics, diplomacy, scholarship, and military conquest.
It is widely believed among Anglo-Saxon scholars that Tolkien based his character of Eowyn on the real-life Aethelflaed. I’ve never understood why she is not a major heroine to modern feminists, especially in the English-speaking world.
I’ve been watching since it started. I wince and look away at times (blood eagle, anyone?) but stay with it because I love the stories and characters.
Ragnar is not my favorite right now. He hardly speaks and the whole opium (I presume) addiction was a bit much. But I loved him at first, less after he left Lagertha (or cheated, whatever). I’ve been cheering for Rollo in Wessex but it’s hard to root against Ragnar when they face each other. I am still siding with the Vikings over any of the “English”.
Love Viking folklore/culture, but can’t stand the show. Way too dramatic for my tastes.
Update:
Rollo triumphs! "Hail Caesar!"The Latin motifs are displacing the Nordic ones. I also like the way the show presents the battle of religions; the Nordic seer clearly shows agony, while the statue of the Virgin that Gisele prays to is weeping. The show presents people’s religious beliefs as living reality. This is very epic (in the old school sense). The rival gods are involved in human affairs.
Interesting how the latter part of the episode shows how time has passed, and Ragnar’s children by Aslaug are now young men. I’m still surprised there has been no confrontation between Bjorn and Aslaug over the neglect of little Siggi. Aslaug clearly has a drinking problem. Ragnar appears to have a death wish.
I must say I am very impressed by Travis Fimmel as an actor. He has done a terrific job bringing the tortured character of Ragnar to life. I would like to see him get an Emmy nomination for this season.
I saw an interview of him on a talk show. He said that w his grisly beard he was mistaken on the street for a homeless man, and a passerby handed him money.
I’m so glad to see Rollo finally get his. The old man Frankish emperor is not as dumb as thought…
I was impressed by the political sophistication of Ivar among his young brothers. He’s going to be a master manipulator to be entertaining to watch.
Well I wasn’t happy Rollo won, but I was happy he was given credit by the emperor.
I like how Aslaug redecorated the place while the knuckle-dragging barbarian menfolk were gone. Out went the frat house low-brow pub furniture. In came the “palaced up” interior, complete with chandeliers. I wonder if she also replaced the animal skin bed dressings with high thread-count sheets.
On a separate note:
A heads up for George Blagden (Athelstan in Vikings) fans. The new French TV series Versailles is coming! Blagden is young King Louis XIV, the Sun King, in this mega-spectacular French-produced TV costume drama that cost twice as much as Downton Abbey.
Versailles is going to begin airing on BBC in the UK next month, and is supposed to air on US TV this Fall. It’s available on NetFlix in the country I’m living in (don’t know if it’s also now available on NetFlix in the US). Last night I binge-watched half of Season 1. Whoa…
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/apr/22/french-tv-hit-versailles-reaches-uk-screens-bbc2