Plot: Set over a thousand years ago in the early 11th century, VIKINGS: VALHALLA chronicles the heroic adventures of some of the most famous Vikings who ever lived — the legendary explorer Leif Eriksson (Sam Corlett), his fiery and headstrong sister Freydis Eriksdotter (Frida Gustavsson), and the ambitious Nordic prince Harald Sigurdsson (Leo Suter). As tensions between the Vikings and the English royals reach a bloody breaking point and as the Vikings themselves clash over their conflicting Christian and pagan beliefs, these three Vikings begin an epic journey that will take them across oceans and through battlefields, from Kattegat to England and beyond, as they fight for survival and glory.
Plot: Running for six seasons on History and Prime Video, Michael Hirst’s historical drama series Vikings garnered a solid fanbase and made Travis Fimmel and Kathryn Winnick into stars. Now, the story continues one hundred years later with an all-new cast telling a different chapter of Viking history. Netflix’s Vikings: Valhalla is a solid drama that features the same level of action, sex, and historical intrigue that made its predecessor such a hit without requiring any knowledge of that show. In fact, while watching the original Vikings certainly helps set up context, the events of that series are enhanced by what takes place in this new story.
Where Vikings dealt with the conflict between Vikings and Saxons, Valhalla shifts to the English people becoming a European power and their shunning of their lesser Norse neighbors. Within the first fifteen minutes of this series, a gauntlet is thrown that divides the English from the Vikings as well as draws a line between the Vikings who observe their historical religion and those who have adopted the Christian faith. This dichotomy is an interesting one that factors heavily into how the various tribes/factions of the Vikings must unite against a common foe. There is quite a bit of setup needed in the early going which means plenty of title cards and exposition to best understand who is who. If you were a fan of the original Vikings series, you likely already know how hard it is to tell some of these names from one another.
With the exception of John Kavanagh reprising his role as The Seer, the rest of this cast is all new and predominantly based on actual historical figures. At the forefront are Leif Eriksson (Sam Corlett) and his sister Freydis (Frida Gustavsson), who hail from Greenland and arrive seeking revenge. They join forces with Harald Sigurdson (Leo Suter) and Olaf Haraldson (Johannes Haukur Johannesson) who are leading the charge against the English. As their quests begin to align, the relationship between these characters helps define the main theme of this series which is far more violent than the original show.
Being based on actual historical events, there is only so much that can be changed to suit the narrative of a series like this, but the day to day drama kicks off when all of the work and effort that the characters from Vikings fought and died for is wiped out with one bloody decree from the English throne. Initially, this feels like a cheap way to discount six seasons of character development, but the historical precedence makes it all the more frustrating to witness and offers yet another cinematic reason to hate the English. Positioned as truly villainous, it is difficult to sympathize with them at all, but there are some interesting characters on that side of the story, namely Emma of Normandy (Laura Berlin). But this story is really about the Vikings and there are so many that this series could span multiple seasons and not run out of material.
With Michael Hirst no longer serving in a direct creative capacity, Vikings: Valhalla is the first television series from Jeb Stuart. Best known as the co-writer of Die Hard, The Fugitive, and Just Cause amongst other action-oriented films, Stuart leads a writing staff that also includes Vanessa Alexander and Eoin McNamee. Keeping this large cast and massive story in line for eight episodes was a challenge but they manage to keep the momentum going the entire season. With the premiere directed by Neils Arden Oplev (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Flatliners), Vikings: Valhalla starts out strong and never relents.
If you were a fan of Vikings, then you will absolutely love Valhalla. It works as a standalone series as well as a companion to the original series and offers a bloody and interesting look at an era of history that is often glossed over. With solid production values, great cinematography, and a lot of well-written characters, Vikings: Valhalla is a good watch for fans of epic battles as much as they are of palace intrigue and political thrills. It is worth noting that you will likely need a pad and pencil to keep track of who is who but if you are willing to invest in this you will enjoy the ride. With Vikings: Valhalla having already completed production on season two, you can rest assured you will at least get to find out what happens to these characters for one more season.
Vikings: Valhalla premieres on February 25th on Netflix.
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