Jeri Jacquin
Coming to The History Channel on December 4th is the long awaited return of one of the channels most stunning and epic series to date is VIKINGS.
The last season ended with a battle between Ivar the Boneless (Alex Hogh Andersen) and brother Bjorn Ironside (Alexander Ludwig). Now Ivar has escaped with his life and Bjorn has taken the throne of Kattegat. Immediately the new king lets his people know that he wants to expand the city becoming an important route for trade. This will help all the people of Kattegat prosper.
On the road, Ivar travels on The Silk Road discovering things he didn't know existed. While on the road he is captured and taken to the Russian leader and proclaimed old Viking Kievan Rus Prince Oleg (Danila Kozlovsky). Discovering he has Ivar the Boneless, the Prince makes it clear from the onset that he is more merciless than Ivar ever thought he was. When the Prince asks what it is that Ivar wants, the name Kattegat is uttered and Ivar is assured that his vengeance will come but first, the royal has his own family problems to deal with.
In Kattegat, Lagertha (Katheryn Winnick) tells Bjorn that she no longer wants to be a figurehead of his reign. Instead, she is tired and wants nothing more than to go back to where she had a life with Ragnar and farm in peace leaving the life of a shield-maiden in the past. The women of the village come to see the famous Lagertha and tells her that most of the men have been killed in wars and attacks. The attacks aren't over as a new, formidable and the recognizable leader wants nothing more than to hurt everyone in his path and he has Lagertha in his sights.
Ivar in Kiev is beginning to understand what it is that motivates Oleg and his viciousness. Proving with ease that the Prince will destroy anyone who gets in his way, he takes young nephew Igor to raise. Ivar makes slow moves in order to place himself in a position that allows him to outwardly seem afraid but behind those eyes is a game that the Prince might not be prepared to play.
In Kattegat, Bjorn receives a message of help from a prior enemy and feels the need to do the right thing. Before leaving, he asks about Floki and what has happened to him. Not getting the answer he wants, Bjorn makes it clear that he will discover the truth and if anything has happened to Floki, someone will be held accountable. Ubbe (Jordan Patrick Smith) and Torvi (Georgia Hirst) are sent to the place now called Iceland to find answers.
The message of help turns out to be something totally different as Bjorn, Harald and Olaf come to a meeting of the minds and the suggestion that a vote be taken to find a King of Norway. Olaf believes that the ruler should be Bjorn Ironside but there are others who might have a different opinion.
What happens at that vote might change everything as the leaders know it.
Ludwig as Bjorn Ironside has taken the helm of Kattegat just as his father Ragnar (Travis Fimmel) did in the Vikings series. From the beginning, Ludwig has always been in the shadows as we have watched him grow into a storyline that is harsh but the reality of history in the Dark Ages. The character of Bjorn has grown slow and steady rising further into the storyline and Ludwig has given us every reason to remain curious as to how his story will end. The character of Bjorn tries everything possible to not be like the leaders that have gone before, including his father, mistakes are made but Ludwig's Bjorn leans quickly.
Winnick as Lagertha has been through the wringer and back again. Starting as a farmer with husband Ragnar, becoming Queen, not Queen and then Queen somewhere else and back to Kattegat taking out enemies along the way has just worn this lady out. Winnick has returned season after season giving her character strength, courage and eventually the ability to weed out those who are trying to destroy her. In all of this she has kept her sense of family, even children that are Ragnar's she has tried to embrace.
Andersen as Ivar continues to intrigue audiences with the duality of his insane brutality and moments where we all think he might have a chance to be human after all. He believes himself to be a god but certainly discovers that shouting it from the rooftops brings about unsavory characters who don't care about his divinity. Andersen continues to surprise with his performance and with this final season I am truly interested where this character will be taken.
Franzen as Harald is another Viking who has ideas of his own about how things should be done and who should do them. Always with the slight of hand in his planning I am keeping an eye on him. Smith and Hirst are the couple who are trying to help find answers in Floki's Iceland. That is a part of the storyline that I am so interested in and partly because I think Floki has been through just as much as the Lothbrok line.
Shout out to Marco llso as Hvitserk for what he is about to put everyone through!
This historical drama created by Michael Hirst began with the story of Norse hero Ragnar Lothbrok. We have seen almost everything possible with love, family, deception, intrigue and battles that hold nothing back. This is the final season and Viking fans, like myself, know that all good things come to an end but we aren't happy about it at all.
In just the first few episodes, the stage is set for changes that all of this has been leading up to. The cast is doing a wonderful job of taking us on this final leg of the journey.
Hirst created another of my favorite shows from Showtime with The Tudors followed with Camelot for Starz. Back to Showtime for the series The Borgias and MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS with Saoirse Ronan, ELIZABETH and ELIZABETH: The Golden Age. Hirst has such an amazing ability to bring a richness to the stories he tells but some outstanding actors to bring it all to the screen.
The History Channel brings Vikings back on December 4th so get through turkey day safely because once you are back at Kattegat, the ride will have begun and there is no turning back. Everything that we have come to embrace about each character is going to keep us coming back until the very last scene.
As salve to our open wound, it has been announced that Hirst is creating a series called Vikings: Vahalla that will be seen on Netflix. Said to be set one hundred years later there will be a new group of famous Vikings and their fight for survival in an ever-changing world.
Even with that, we all can agree that our excitement about Vikings came from Ragnar Lothbrok and all the intrigue that followed. Prepare to see how it all plays out with the return of Vikings on the History Channel December 4th!
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