The midseason finale of History Channel’s Vikings is a strange one. Sure there is a battle, and it’s pretty epic.
However, there are parts of it that leave the viewer with an unknown quality by the end. After all, what was with those scenes between Ivar and Bjorn?
Were they real or merely a stylization to convey some sort of final story between the two? Honestly, I’m not sure. But, here’s everything that went down in the latest episode!
After the discovery the Rus were infiltrating the region in the last episode of Vikings, Bjorn Ironside (Alexander Ludwig) is planning the battleplan for when they finally attack.
King Harald Finehair (Peter Franzen) seems to think that Bjorn is overthinking everything but, let’s face it, if Ivar the Boneless (Alex Hogh Andersen) is involved, that’s probably not the case.
When viewers get a look at Ivar’s battle planning, we discover that Bjorn does need to overanalyze everything because Ivar has come up with a plan to scale mountains to surprise the hell out of what he will assume (correctly) is Harald’s vacant stronghold.
Viewers also learn that many kings are not in support of Harald and that massive army Bjorn was hoping for isn’t eventuating.
In Kiev, Katia (Alicia Agneson) is trying to get freaky with Ivar, who literally can’t, but is also hesitant because Katia’s husband is likely to kill him if he does.
Katia also lets Ivar know that she is aware of Ivar’s plot with Prince Dir (Lenn Kudrjawizki) and that she is totally Team Ivar. However, the look she quietly gives Prince Oleg (Danila Kozlovsky) who is spying on them, makes me think they are setting Ivar up.
Hvitserk (Marco Ilso) might also be planning to f*ck sh*t up with Ivar. It’s hard to make a call with him, though, because he was all, “I’m going to kill Ivar,” until he actually saw his brother, and now they are besties again. I think this storyline will come to a head when Vikings returns.
In Kattegat, battle preparations are well underway, and Gunnhild (Ragga Ragnars) is freaking out at the thought of being a Christian Viking if the Rus defeat them.
This means that she is doing way too much lifting during her pregnancy, so it is no surprise that she goes into labor early. Unfortunately, the child doesn’t survive, and Gunnhild has to bury her infant in a heartbreaking moment.
King Harald is coveting things that aren’t his once again. This time, he is bitching to Olaf the Stout (Steven Berkoff) about how Bjorn doesn’t deserve the awesomeness that is Gunnhild.
He approaches Bjorn’s second wife, Ingrid (Lucy Martin), and offers her the chance to become the Queen of all Norway alongside him.
She says no. So, Harald rapes her, and I am not okay with that. I start actively hoping for Harald to die during the battle.
Now, the Rus are arriving, and Gunnhild is telling her husband that she will see him again, and that single line scares the hell out of me! Nothing good can ever come from a goodbye like that.
The battle itself is a good one, but it has moments that see Bjorn and Ivar sitting quietly on the beach, apparently after the battle has been completed.
They talk of many things, of how Bjorn will win against Ivar, of how Ivar believes that the gods have abandoned Bjorn, their father’s legacy, and how Ivar used a Christian army against his people. However, all of this is some strange part of the story that doesn’t quite fit together.
By the end of the episode, I can’t work out when the pair could have possibly had this conversation.
So, back to the battle. Things are going well for Bjorn — to start with, anyway. He has managed to pre-empt Ivar, and it looks like this could be an open and shut case of how the Rus shouldn’t try their hand against the Vikings.
However, the tides turn eventually, and Ivar’s plan to go upriver and then climb the cliffs works, leading to chaos.
During the battle, Harald appears to be injured and falls, but we all know how that worked out last time for him and, I think he will be just fine. However, Erik (Eric Johnson) pinched his crown, and I hope that Harald never gets a chance to wear it again, even knowing that his real history says otherwise.
Then, Bjorn is stabbed and falling…
At first, I can’t believe it because it looks like he is dying. And, then, he is dying and I am totally not sure what to make of it all.
Is Bjorn really dead? How did he have his conversation with Ivar if he falls now during the battle and not afterward? Is it a dream, or are the conversations between Ivar and Bjorn the dreams?
Honestly, I have no idea what to make of it all, and if Bjorn is dead, then I feel kind of short-changed on whether I should weep or not.
Ivar and Hvitserk appear then, apparently after the battle and celebrating their victory, which makes me feel like Bjorn really is dead.
Finally, a lone sword on the beach.
Bjorn’s sword.
And, I can finally cry.
No release date has been announced yet for the Season 6 return of Vikings to History Channel.