Viikingit

After Camelot, few people trusted Hirst anymore. Besides, who would watch something that at first looked like a fiction documentary? Well, that was a mistake. Out of nothing on an unfamiliar television came a spectacle unlike anything I've ever experienced. Even if the whole thing existed just for the possibility of raiding Paris, it would be worth it. In addition, of course, a trip to the 9th century and the legends of the time also has its value. (08.03.2013)

The pilot was undeterred. Jessalyn Gilsig as a Viking queen? Yes, please! Overall, it's the kind of show where if you want to make your wife happy, you take her along on a pillaging expedition and she's thrilled :) Ragnar Lothbrok for president! (09.01.2019)

The 3rd Season is even better than the previous one, which was slowly becoming impossible to hope for. Yet the combination of raids on seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and on Paris, together with domestic stories in which no one is sure where reality ends and the games of the Asgardian gods begin, is a joy... (09.01.2019)

Season 4 is once again very delicious, with no special innovations this time, except perhaps just a minor fascination with China. But all the good things remain the same, and our old friends in the North, in the French Empire, and in the British kingdoms are with us. Athelstan's martyrdom also takes on a new dimension. After the midseason, Vikings become a slightly different show and a lot changes generationally, but that's life... Queens change, and Ivar wins. Who knew? (09.01.2019)

The 5th series has a logically different atmosphere than the previous series, which described the life of Ragnar Lothbrok. Now we are a generation on, watching a civil war waged by his sons. The battle for Kattegat becomes one of the highlights, and the second half of the series is split between adventures in Wessex, Iceland, and the Viking heartland. There are still great shield-bearers and brave warriors, and one of the most interesting new characters is Bishop Heahmund, played by Hirst's favorite actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers (King Henry VIII from The Tudors). There’s a lot to think about, and it's very interesting to try to trace the sources that inspired Hirst's final scripts. I'm also glad we're not losing both of Hirst's daughters. Helga was great, but Torvi is an even more interesting character. (10.09.2020)

Season 6 went in an interesting direction. The first episodes were weaker, but then things evened out again. The stories from Heptarchy were replaced by Kiev, strangely enough there was also time to return to Iceland, we said goodbye to Lagertha... It is nice to perceive that this could go on forever, voyages of discovery to the west, Greenland, new experiences on the Silk Road to the east. We'll see if the current restrictions cancel the planned continuation of Vikings: Valhalla. (05.01.2021)