Better late than never. Much better.
Having already endured a planned two-week break after the triple-episode premiere, Vinland Saga got an unscheduled hiatus last week due to Typhoon Faxai. It sucks to miss a week of this series of course, since it’s by far the best anime airing at the moment, but those of us with long memories (Eureka Seven: Astral Ocean and Madoka Magica spring to mind) were especially disquieted. There will be ample opportunities theoretically to make up for that missed episode before Vinland’s airing ends in December, but as those examples showed this isn’t necessarily as simple as it should be. It would seriously suck to have a Blu-ray only series finale or some such nonsense.
Nothing we can do but wait on that score of course, and my goodness it was great to have Vinland Saga back. Obviously this episode was finished and in the can in time to air last week, but if you tried to convince me Wit had used the extra time to gussy it up I wouldn’t have doubted you. Maybe it’s me, but it seemed like the series cranked up the gorgeous visuals right off the charts this week – what a stunning ep it was. Cinematography is often overlooked in anime, where most fans are blinder-focused on sakuga animation as a barometer of quality, but Vinland brought both to the plate in ample measure here. The visuals are always great with this show, but this was some of its very best work to date.
Once more we follow a familiar narrative pattern, with two wars playing out simultaneously. As the ebbs and flows of the Viking invasion play out, an internal battle continues to rage for Thorfinn. Thors’ influence refuses to die, even as the man himself has passed away. It’s a measure of how good a father Thors was that his son continues to be dragged towards the light by the message Thors passed on to him, even as his heart urges him to remain on the path of revenge. Thorfinn no doubt feels some guilt over having abandoned his mother and sister – as well he should, though five year-olds aren’t to to expected to make rational decisions.
I believe this is becoming increasingly more complicated as Thorfinn’s feelings towards Askeladd continue to evolve. I don’t think he’s grown to like him, but Thorfinn is no fool – he can see that by the measures of his time and people, Askeladd is a man that commands his respect. And in a perverse way, Askeladd is the closest thing to a father Thorfinn has had since he took away the boy’s real one. Askeladd’s feelings towards Thorfinn are probably no less complicated, and as a man with no children (at least that are a part of his life) on some level he probably sees Thorfinn as a son. In addition to affection, I think he feels a sense of responsibility for the boy after killing his father, a man Askeladd explicitly acknowledged as being a more worthy leader than he himself.
The conversation at sunrise in the Roman ruins between these two is as fascinating as it is visually stunning. Yes, time is on Thorfinn’s side – in point of fact, by not killing the boy when he was still small and weak Askeladd effectively allowed the scales to tip in Thorfinn’s favor. But nothing is simple between these two, and I suspect their final reckoning to be no less nuanced. What a fascinating fellow Askeladd is – a student of history, clearly (perhaps unusually so for a man in his position in this age). And the fact that he’s considering the reckoning – the one that the Christians say is coming in 20 years, or the Ragnarök foretold in the old religion – adds an intriguing layer to his decisions.
Against this backdrop we have the twists and turns of the Viking invasion complicating everyone’s lives. Tired of waiting for Canute and his army to attack, Thorkell finally takes 500 of his best men, routs Canute and his 4000 and takes the prince hostage. Canute is another fascinating enigma in this story (though a bit less so if you know the history of the time) – 2nd in-line to the throne of Denmark but clearly disrespected by the King’s armies, a devout Christian, maybe even a pacifist (which is about as incongruous a thing for such a man to be as is imaginable).
This situation is obviously a bit of a crisis for King Sweyn, but for Askeladd it’s purely an opportunity. When a survivor of Canute’s army reaches Askeladd’s group in the midst of pillaging yet another village, searching for the main army that’s already decamped to the north in plans of a return home, Askeladd listens to his story and then promptly kills him so that he can claim the glory of the prince’s rescue for himself. Askleladd’s 100 men against Thorkell’s 500 bears sounds like a mismatch to be sure. But for all his talk of the coming Ragnarök, Askeladd doesn’t strike me as the fatalistic type – he may not have a plan yet, but he wouldn’t go to battle against the likes of Thorkell unless he fully believed in his ability to come up with one. One that will, I suspect, heavily involve Thorfinn.
Bnk
September 16, 2019 at 2:15 pmGeneral consensus among manga readers, including myself, is that this is the part of the manga where it starts hitting its peak in term of quality. Epic battles, political manuveuring, some huge revelations. I have high hope that wit wont screw it up.
Jindujun93
September 16, 2019 at 2:24 pmI’m not worried about the possibility of a blu-ray only finale just yet – the three week break was planned and technically wasn’t a break at all (it’s just Amazon that showed the episodes early, JP seemed to have the regular schedule of one episode per week?), and this break here hopefully shouldn’t matter too much, considering that Vinland has 24 episodes instead of 26, so there’s some wriggle room.
Anyways, I find myself in agreement – once again this was a stunning episode, from the cinematography to the backgrounds, they’ve outdone themselves again.
Askeladd is a super fascinating character, always has been for me. Back when I read the manga for the very first time many years ago, I considered him to be a man full of contradictions, haha. But yes, it’s a complicated relationship, and Askeladd very much is the closest thing Thorfinn has to a parental figure, ironically enough. Askeladd keeps teaching Thorfinn little things – he did so in their very first meeting, when he told Thorfinn that he shouldn’t let his weapon swing him around. He did it in their last duel with the whole “control your emotions in battle” thing. And now things that aren’t necessarily related to fighting too, like the story about the romans.
So far, they’re doing a splendid job of fleshing out the story – the scenes with Thorkell were once again anime-original, in the manga we never saw how Canute was captured. They also did another change that I think was for the better (Thorfinn initially left the shed for other reasons than Askeladd’s men just being noisy, though it still shows how numb he has gone to some things, considering that he’s been sleeping right next to a corpse with the axe still sticking out of its back.)
Guardian Enzo
September 16, 2019 at 2:41 pmI was very struck by that moment, which subtly and beautifully showed us just how inured Thorfinn has become to carnage.
Jindujun93
September 16, 2019 at 4:50 pmOh yeah, and before I forget about it – let me say thanks for your wonderful coverage so far! It’s a treat to see your thoughts as an anime-only watcher here, especially during the more introspective moments of the story.
Guardian Enzo
September 16, 2019 at 5:06 pmVery kind of you, thanks. It’s a fun show to cover, that’s for sure.
Marty
September 16, 2019 at 4:09 pmI was reading the chapters of the manga coinciding with this episode. In a way, I understand why they changed it, but I still felt the manga reason for Thorfinn to leave was a lot more impactful.
Marty
September 16, 2019 at 6:17 pmIt’s kinda funny to think that 1,000 years ago people thought the world was about to come to an end (then again, 2012 kinda proved people in the 21st century aren’t above a little superstition).
In a way, Askeladd is right, the Age of the Vikings is largely considered to be finished somewhere around the 1060’s, so their world is ending from a less literal perspective.
I’ve always looked at ruins and ancient artifacts as relics of the past, evidence of a bygone era and proof of our progress relative to our ancestors. I’d imagine there’d be a certain kind of frustration knowing that the past was far better than the present; that things have regressed dramatically.
This might be the first rash decision I’ve seen Askeladd make in the show. It almost feels like he’s frustrated with his current condition, like he’s a big actor in a stage that is much too small, so the chance to bag the entire glory of rescuing Canute enticed him and he decided to enter the fray essentially undermanned and without a solid plan.
Lark
September 17, 2019 at 12:27 amAh Vinland, how I’ve missed you. I want to single out Thorfinn and Askeladd’s nighttime scene for the voice acting alone- few voice actors can command and personalise a scene as much as Uchida Naoya did that one. Haven’t seen much of his work, but he’s obviously an actor of incredible gravitas- which lends itself well to the Askeladd’s character when you look beyond the confident (and not unjustified) swagger.
If you’d asked me about the voice cast before the actors were officially announced, I would’ve expected Uemura Yuuto and Ono Kensho to switch roles. I’ll you’ll find out why when Canute (whose name I’ve probably been mispronouncing as Can-nyoot this whole time) finally – FINALLY- speaks next week.
Anyway, Enzo, are you planning to write something on the Totsukuni no Shoujo OVA?
Guardian Enzo
September 17, 2019 at 7:35 amShould I? I hadn’t even noticed it was subbed. Don’t know much about it, TBH.
Lark
September 17, 2019 at 10:24 amYou won’t need subtitles. I think you may benefit from knowing the basic outline of the manga, but I’ll leave the rest for you to decide.
Lark
September 17, 2019 at 10:26 am* summary, not outline
Fandago
September 17, 2019 at 12:34 pmIt’s only about ten minutes long, so I’m not sure if it’s long enough to merit a post. But it’s gorgeous, Enzo- I highly recommend it.
It’s presented very uniquely, too; Lark’s right in saying that subtitles are unnecessary for this one.
Guardian Enzo
September 17, 2019 at 1:05 pmAll right, I’ll check it out when time permits – thanks foe the hards up.
Yukie
September 18, 2019 at 1:41 pmThis episode almost had a cinematic feel to it. As a manga reader, it’s so rare to see one of my favorite manga get the adaptation it deserves, not to mention one that’s surpassed my expectations.