Vikings: Valhalla Season 1 Review
Vikings: Valhalla retains the same rage, tactical superiority, and powerful story of History's Viking Series.
Vikings: Valhalla is a 2022 Netflix TV Series that is a sequel to History's Vikings Series and is set centuries after the first Viking invasion in England. Vikings: Valhalla takes us through the journey of Ragnar Lothbrok's descendants and how they navigate a changing world as Christianity creeps in, even amongst the Vikings themselves. The old Norse ways and religion are in danger and someone must defend Nordic culture against Christianity.
Vikings: Valhalla Season 1 Review and Summary
💡 This post is both a summary and a review of Vikings: Valhalla Season 1. That is to say, it may contain spoilers.
Prince Harald
Prince Harald Sigurdsson of Norway, played by Leo Suter, has a brother Sten, who lives in England under the Danelaw. The English opted to give Vikings a place to settle in England to ensure peace, with some of them becoming naturalized. Things change, however, after King Aethelred of England decides that the Vikings must be exterminated. A massacre ensues and all the Viking settlements in England are burnt down and the Viking families killed. Prince Harald is lucky and gets out just in time.
Jarl Olaf
Prince Harald's older brother Jarl Olaf, played by Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, is a Christian and the apparent heir to the throne of Norway. He promises his brother Harald that he will be next to ascend the throne. Things get complicated, however, after the Viking massacre in England, and both brothers join King Canute of Denmark to avenge the murders of Viking families.
Jarl Olaf is boisterous and is the half-brother of Prince Harald. He is very sly and has plans of his own. He even makes a wild request of King Canute to allow him to conduct a "mass conversion" of the army to Christianity before they leave Kattegat.
King Canute
King Canute of Denmark, played by Bradley Freegard, gathers all Viking tribes from all over to Kattegat where he puts together an army to sail to England and avenge the Vikings who were killed in England. Canute succeeds and they head out to England, with one intent and one intent only, to bring back King Aethelred's head on a pike.
Leif Erikkson
Leif Erikkson, played by Sam Corlett, is a Viking from Greenland who's in Kattegat, at the same time Canute has called for all tribes, with his sister Freydis, played by Frida Gustavsson. Leif and Freydis are accompanied by their friends and are in Kattegat for vengeance of their own. Freydis is looking for the man who raped her and cut a cross across her back. As the tribes arrive, she spots the man and she, her brother, and their friends plan an attack against him.
The Debt of Freydis
The man is a close associate of King Olaf and when the time comes, Freydis exacts her revenge and cuts a cross across his chest. Olaf is up in arms and demands her head. Harald intervenes and suggests that since the man had attacked Freydis that she be indebted. Through Jarl Haakon, the leader of Kattegat, Freydis is ransomed to her and her debt is to be paid by her brother Leif, a good fighter and ship captain, who is to fight alongside Canute's army in England.
Attacking England
The Vikings reach the shores of England and plan an attack against London. By this time, King Aethelred is ailing and dies, with his young son Edmund, played by Louis Davison, crowned as the new king. His stepmother, Queen Emma of Normandy, played by Laura Berlin, is the tactical brains behind the English defense of London and is assisted by Goodwin, played by David Oakes, one of the former king's advisors.
Bringing London Bridge Down
Leif has always wanted to come out of the shadow of his father, Erik the Red, a berserker known for being murderous and who'd escaped to Greenland after being wanted for his crimes. Leif gets his chance and together with his friends, they come up with a plan to tear down London Bridge. The idea had come after he and Harald had sneaked their way to the bridge and saw it being lifted to let a ship pass. They noted that at that point the bridge could be brought down and went on to plan its downfall.
When the day comes, King Canute lures young King Edmund to the other side of the bridge and Leif and his counterparts begin axing it. They axe a good part of the wooden structure and tie the rest with ropes that are to be pulled by boats captained by Olaf. They succeed and the bridge falls down. King Edmund is caught on the other side and he cannot escape to the inside of the defensive walls of London.
Eadric Streona
Eadric Streona, played by Gavin Drea, is the Earl of Mercia, one of the Shires of England who King Edmund is relying on to attack the Viking army from the back, on the other side of the bridge. When Eadric and his army reach the bridge and find it destroyed and King Canute winning, he stands down and vows not to waste any good men on an already lost battle.
London is Taken
King Canute takes London after winning the battle. When Prince Harald is about to cut off the head of Edmund, after realizing that his father is dead, Canute stops him. Canute tells him that he must "sacrifice vengeance for power" and promises him the throne of Norway. Canute tells Harald that it is not guaranteed that his brother will give him the throne and that Olaf will give it to his son, who Harald did not know about.
A Viking King of England
King Canute has other aspirations himself and assumes the throne of England. He makes sure to execute Eadric Streona, after Eadric expresses his interest in the throne. As the new king of England, Canute says that he will rule alongside Edmund, who is saved by his sway of the Saxon nobles. King Canute also goes ahead to marry the former king's wife Queen Emma. He manages to save her children from Olaf, who'd kidnapped them and was asking for King Aethelred's treasure as their ransom.
Changing Tides
King Canute, however, gets a message from Denmark, his kingdom, which is under threat from one of his rivals who seeks to dethrone him. He quickly heads there and to war, leaving his father King Sweyn Forkbeard, played by Søren Pilmark, to rule England alongside his new bride Queen Emma.
Things also get complicated once his wife, Queen Ælfgifu of Denmark, played by Pollyanna McIntosh, comes to claim her rightful place as his queen in England. Forkbeard and Emma hatch a plan to send her to Mercia after Goodwin plants the idea that she could prove useful to Forkbeard if she brought the rebel shire, Mercia, in line.
Uppsala
Back in Kattegat, Freydis is sent by Jarl Estrid Haakon, to Uppsala where she's to discover her destiny. On her way there, she is attacked by a berserker who kills some of her counterparts but she manages to kill him. She goes on for her pilgrimage and there she meets the seer who tells her that she is "The Last".
Jarl Kåre
The man she'd killed was one of Jarl Kåre's men and Jarl Kåre himself comes after her. He is a leader of Christian berserkers who kill pilgrims on the way to Uppsala. Jarl Kåre feels very threatened by her, especially when he learns that she is "The Last", but releases her with a message for Jarl Haakon. He tells Freydis to tell Haakon that he's coming for Kattegat.
Jarl Kåre, played by Asbjørn Krogh Nissen, then goes on to kill all the priests of Uppsala and burn the temple of the old gods there. He massacres everyone and leaves the place burnt to the ground in a move to cleanse the old religion and pave the way for Christianity. Jarl Kåre is keen to cleanse the land of the old Nordic religion and puts together an army to go attack Kattegat.
Taking Kattegat
Jarl Kåre wants to take Kattegat and build a huge church there with its "spire reaching up to the heavens". He is joined by Jarl Olaf, who is also keen on taking Kattegat and the kingdom of Norway along with it, making his claim as the King of Norway. By this time, Harald and Leif had been back from England and were in Kattegat. Only one of Leif's friends had survived, Shiv, who now becomes Leif's lover. Freydis and Harald also become romantically involved.
The Battleplan
Harald joins Jarl Kåre and Olaf as a way to spy on their battle plan against Kattegat. Harald arranges a parley between them and Jarl Haakon to try and broker peace, but the parley doesn't work. Jarl Kåre and Olaf are keen on attacking and Jarl Hookan will defend Kattegat with her life.
During the parley, Harald shares that Jarl Kåre and Olaf plan to attack by sea and with another force on land. The plan, however, isn't followed as Olaf chooses to have Jarl Kåre attack Kattegat on his own and plants the idea of attacking from the sea as a way to split Kattegat's forces and make it easier for them to be defeated.
The Last Daughter of Uppsala
Jarl Kåre goes after Freydis and his men attack Jarl Haakon injuring her badly. Haakon tells Freydis that she must survive for she is "The Last Daughter of Uppsala". Freydis goes one-on-one with Jarl Kåre and defeats him in a fight to the death. She uses a sword given to her by a priestess in Uppsala to behead him, leaving his dismembered body in the great hall of Kattegat. This is where they fought and where her ancestors, including Ragnar Lothbrok, celebrated their numerous victories and thanked the gods.
Turning Tides
Jarl Olaf waits for Jarl Kåre and his army to invade Kattegat. Once they do, and with them almost defeated, he sweeps in and takes an easy victory. By this time, King Forkbeard, who'd sent Queen Ælfgifu to Mercia as a way to distract her as he looked for the Danish army she'd brought with her, found the army and sailed with it and his grandchildren to Kattegat. When Olaf thinks he's just taken the throne of Norway, one of his men spots hundreds of Forkbeard's ships arriving and Olaf and his men scamper away.
Viking or Christian?
Leif had gotten a cross from a young girl when he was in England and he believed it had protected him and even Shiv when he gave it to her while she healed from battle wounds after they brought down London Bridge. Shiv is badly injured in Kattegat and while she dies she asks him whether he'll join her in Valhalla.
In essence, she is asking whether he is now a Christian or whether he still believes in the old gods. Shiv dies before Leif can bring himself to answer. He goes in a mad rage and kills some men who are there to pillage. As King Forkbeard and his men arrive, one of his grandsons notices a commotion and goes to check, there he meets a roaring Leif with his axe in his hand.
Our Rating
Vikings: Valhalla retains the same rage, tactical superiority, and powerful story of History's Viking Series. The series is a brilliant sequel that brings back the magic and war of Vikings, bringing it to a newer and pre-modern age where the Old Nordic ways are under threat by Christianity. We absolutely loved the series for its extensive action, superbly told story, and the twists along the way. We give it a 9.5/10 and you should definitely watch it. Enjoy!
FAQ
Is Vikings Valhalla a Sequel to Vikings?
Yes. Vikings: Valhalla is a sequel to History's Vikings Series. It is set a century or two after the age of Ragnar Lothbrok.
Is Vikings: Valhalla a Good Watch?
Most definitely. If you loved Vikings, you will enjoy the TV series Vikings: Valhalla just as much.
Even though Vikings: Valhalla isn't better than the original Vikings, it retains some of its charm and wit and is a continuation of the impeccable story of Vikings and their exploits of war to conquer other kingdoms.
Will there be a Season 2 of Vikings: Valhalla?
Yes. As a matter of fact, Season 2 of Vikings: Valhalla is already out and was released on 12th January 2023. Read our review of Vikings: Valhalla Season 2 below.
David Mania
Will there be a Season 3 of Vikings: Valhalla?
Yes. Gladly there will be a Season 3 of Vikings: Valhalla and hopefully, there will be even more seasons of the amazing show.
