Vikings: Valhalla ‘The End of the Beginning’ – Kattegat fights for its survival
- Cherish
- Jun 20
- 6 min read
Recapper's Note: Vikings: Valhalla had its three-season run whilst I was mostly away from the recapping world. Now that I'm back, I still want to write about it. Please join me in this look back as we wait for the next Viking show.
Season1 Episode 8 Recap and Review
When I was watching this first season finale of Vikings: Valhalla, I thought that the timing on when what was happening was a bit all over the place. How did Emma’s brother get to London from Normandy so quickly? Was that even her brother? How much time did Ælfgifu spend in London before she left for Mercia? The whole time that she was there, was she not sending messages to the Danish fleet to assure them that she was all right? Could Godwin or Emma not have assigned a few people to ensure all of Ælfgifu’s people were followed, so they could use them to find the fleet? Did no one know the route that Ælfgifu took to London? Could they not have used that to deduce where she left the fleet, given that they needed to be close enough to receive her messages?
But you know what, the finale worked overall, the stories were neatly tied together, and they gave us more than enough to look forward to the next season. The writers had a lot of threads, and the fact that they were able to cram this much story into one episode and have the episode turn out well was an achievement. So, from my point of view, it was a successful first season.
Harald left Kattegat without telling anyone and joined Olaf and Kåre’s camp. He went there to spy on them, of course, and it was notable that both Olaf and Kåre knew this, but Freydis did not. The subterfuge, such as it was, did give Harald and Olaf time to talk, and as someone who has loved Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson’s work through the season, I appreciated that.
Olaf brought up Harald’s deal with Canute. Harald said that when he promised his support to his brother years ago, that was before Olaf started slaughtering pagans. Harald claimed he was concerned that if he waited, there might not be a Norway left. Perhaps this was true, but remember that Harald made that deal with Canute after he found out that Olaf had a child, an heir who could replace him and claim the throne. Olaf called out Harald’s idealism, but neither of them acknowledged Harald’s ambition. In any case, Olaf was confident that there was nothing Canute could do, he was locked in a war in Denmark and Olaf, via Ælfgifu, had hobbled his fleet.
Kattegat’s walls had not fallen in 100 years, which was why Olaf had a plan – whilst Kåre and his forces attacked the main walls, Olaf’s men would come from the sea. The harbour usually protected Kattegat but in two days, a wolf moon would cause a swell that would allow Olaf’s ships to reach the beaches. Quick to his feet, Harald declared God would not sanction this attack. He wanted a parley to persuade Jarl Haakon to allow a mass conversion. Should she refuse, then the effort itself would mean their actions during battle would be forgiven on the day of judgment. Harald, of course, only meant to use the parley to send a message to Leif about the attack from the sea. Leif got the message, and the forces of Kattegat were able to prepare a defense on the beach.
Yet, it was deception upon deception upon deception. Olaf sailed his ships but not the bulk of his army. Kåre was mad, Olaf knew that, and he used Kåre’s army to destroy Kattegat’s army. By the time Olaf rode in with his forces, they could easily sweep what was left of Kattegat. He knew Harald would never betray Leif and Freydis, and used him to split Kattegat’s forces.
Harald raced back to Kattegat, but his sword did little to help their cause. Freydis and Kåre finally got their chance to fight one on one, and after Freydis prevailed, she got two horses and found Harald. They lost, they accepted that they lost, and fled.
Leif, meanwhile, experienced his own loss, when Olaf himself stabbed Liv. It didn’t even look as though Olaf knew who Liv was; what happened just happened in the heat of battle. Leif took Liv to a barn, where with her dying breath she declared that she was going to Valhalla, and tried to get Leif to commit that he would join her. But Leif was already feeling the pull of Christianity. When he finally spoke the words Liv wanted to hear, it was too late, she was already dead.
It was a Leif experiencing a surge of grief and guilt that a few men walked into, with a couple of women they obviously intended to assault. Leif went full berserker on them and killed them all, unleashing the darkness he had previously said he shared with his father. Later, Canute’s young son found the still bloody Leif in the barn.
Yes, Canute’s children by Ælfgifu accompanied their grandfather Forkbeard to Kattegat. When Olaf mentioned during his meeting with Ælfgifu her Mercian origins, I wondered how the show would utilise that. Through Godwin’s skillful manipulation, apparently. Emma pretended to be surprised that her brother Richard was at court, supposedly to take her back to Normandy. Forkbeard declared that for the good of the kingdom, he would acknowledge the existing marriage between Canute and Ælfgifu, and invalidate his marriage to Emma. The declaration was done at court, a full show, which telegraphed that it was indeed just for show. Emma and her children by Aethelred were seen sailing away.
Even after that, Ælfgifu refused to tell Forkbeard where Canute’s fleet was. She said she did not promise him access to the fleet, only that it would not aid his foes. The next step was Godwin’s; he persuaded Ælfgifu to show Forkbeard that she was an ally, that she could add value to the kingdom. Ælfgifu told Forkbeard that as a daughter of Mercia, she could persuade its leaders to give the new Viking leadership their full support. Forkbeard agreed to allow her to go to Tamworth, but she needed to take Godwin.
At Tamworth, Ælfgifu offered herself as Mercia’s strong advocate at court, and secured their support as promised. But, when she arrived back in London to happily report her news, she found Emma ruling as Queen.
It was all a ruse. Forkbeard just needed time to locate Canute’s fleet. He took Ælfgifu’s children with him in his quest to punish Olaf for his treachery. Olaf had just entered the hall in Kattegat to celebrate when the alarms were sounded. At the sight of Forkbeard’s approaching ships, everyone, including Olaf’s trusted second Hallbjorn, deserted him.
So here we end the first season. Leif began as a brother trying to support his sister in her vengeance and a son struggling to get out from under the shadow of his father’s crime and character. He ended as a berserker like him, bathed in blood, with the woman he loved on the way to the Valhalla he no longer believed in as strongly as he did before. Freydis started in search not just for justice but for her destiny. She ended defeated in battle but with the certainty that she was meant to carry the embers of a dying faith. Harald began as a prince enjoying his privilege and waiting, with good intentions, to become King. He ended with what looked like a serious wound from battle, on the run, outsmarted by his brother, perhaps for the first time in his life away from all the comforts of birth he was used to. Emma started a Queen who ruled England, she ended up still a Queen who took down her husband’s wife. And there was Godwin, still wearing the face of the good servant, whispering to the ears of those who held power, pulling at his little strings as he danced the perilous dance of survival at the court of a growing empire.
See you next season!
Strays
⚔️When Jarl Haakon presided over a human sacrifice ritual before the battle, Freydis looked really into it, Leif, not so much.
⚔️Jarl Haakon died of her wounds, but before she did, she reiterated with Freydis that she was ‘the last’.
⚔️Arne died fighting for Kattegat, which was a better death than fighting Leif.
⚔️Thank you so much for joining me on this trip back to Viking-land! This is quite a belated coverage, but we got there eventually. I appreciate you all!
Rating: B
Writer: Eoin McNamee
Director: David Frazee
Original Air Date: February 25, 2022