"Vikings: Valhalla" Season 2 comes to an explosive end,
but the futures of Freydis, Harald, and Leif are anything but ensured.
The events of this season have forever changed the fate of the Vikings.
The first episode of "Vikings: Valhalla" Season 2 introduces the Jomsvikings, a group of Viking
mercenaries and pirates, feared in equal measure for both their battle prowess and ruthlessness.
They were a real group of historical Vikings, or at least a real Viking myth, and at one point,
Olaf Haraldsson actually references one of their historically-attested leaders,
Thorkell the Tall. In the series, however, they are led by the fictional Lord Harekr,
who ensures the fierce raiders rigidly adhere to their own selfish, merciless code,
that is until Freydis arrives in their capital city of Jomsborg.
Following Freydis' arrival, her preceding reputation and her subsequent string of valiant
deeds combine to earn her a place as the religious head of Jomsborg, and then eventually its
undisputed leader. After many lengthy conflicts with Harekr and his most loyal Jomsvikings,
including multiple attempts on Harekr's part to murder Freydis and kidnap her newborn son,
Freydis prevails, earning absolute faith and respect from Jomsborg's citizens and
the remaining Jomsvikings. This represents a complete 180 for Jomsborg and its people,
who until then had only known pillaging and marauding as a means of survival. Following
Freydis's ascension to the head of Jomsborg, the people jump at the chance to live peacefully.
When Season 2 begins, Freydis and Harald bid each other a solemn
goodbye as they part ways on their own missions. Unbeknownst to Harald,
Freydis became pregnant with his child just before his departure and chose to hide the news,
knowing that Harald would abandon his quest if he knew. The mission to rally an army and retake
the capital city of Kattegat is too important to be abandoned, even for the sake of their
future family. From the moment Freydis learns of her pregnancy, the child brings trouble to her,
Harald, Leif, and many others in the Viking world, and it only gets worse once he's born.
The boy, named Harald after his father, is kidnapped mere moments after his birth and
used as a political pawn, and that occurs despite his existence being a secret to
all but the people of Jomsborg. If his true lineage as the son of the Prince of Norway
and claimant to the throne were to leak, his life, along with all of those nearest to him,
would be in even greater danger. Despite being aware of this, Freydis brings him before Queen
Ælfgifu and uses him as a tool herself to invoke the Queen's sympathy and win a promise of peace.
"You have my word. Mother to mother."
At the end of "Vikings: Valhalla" Season 1, fans likely considered Godwin,
the Earl of Wessex, as little more than a scheming sycophant,
due in no small part to the way he ruthlessly murdered a defenseless child who considered him
a close friend. Season 2 gives us a closer look into the depths of Godwin's soul, and by its end,
it may have won the majority of fans over, and he has Queen Emma of Normandy to thank for it.
Throughout Season 2, we see Godwin head over heels in love with Aelfwynn,
one of Emma's attendants. He's tender, loving, and genuine, but all of this comes to an
abrupt halt when Emma suspects both he and Aelfwynn of a conspiracy to assassinate her.
"We must keep these visits a secret from the queen. If she
found out about us, she would send you away."
She tortures Aelfwynn for information, inadvertently pushing too hard and killing
her in the process. In consolation, and to prevent political turmoil, Emma's husband,
King Canute arranges a new marriage for Godwin, this time to his niece, Gytha. Then,
even knowing she was wrong in her suspicions, Emma can't resist one final strike against Godwin. She
tracks down the ring that belonged to Godwin's disgraced father, mounts it on a necklace chain,
and orders Gytha to wear it always so that Godwin will forever be reminded of his past.
Season 2 features several major triumphs on behalf of the main trio of Freydis, Leif,
and Harald, much to their delight and certainly also to the delight of fans. Among those,
one of the purest and most emotional is how Leif is finally able to begin shedding some
of his deep-seated, animal rage. Throughout Season 1, Leif's barbarian rage consumed him
whenever he or his loved ones faced danger, and for all the good it did in saving their lives,
it also ate away at his soul. More than once, he found himself suddenly in control of lost senses,
literally covered in blood and unable to easily control himself. In Season 2,
Leif grows beyond some of this, and it is all thanks to Mariam.
Leif meets Mariam in Novgorod, and she joins the party journeying to Constantinople. During
their travels, Mariam and Leif become closer and closer, eventually growing to love each other. As
Leif gets to know her, he discovers she possesses remarkable intelligence. Miriam teaches Leif math,
astronomy, and how to read and write in multiple languages, including Arabic, Greek,
and Latin. Through the art of learning, Leif discovers that he can evolve and better himself
and that there is much more harmony and beauty in the world than he could have ever imagined.
Similarly as Season 1 of "Vikings: Valhalla" concluded with a battle for control of Kattegat,
Season 2 ends with a climactic fight for control of Jomsborg. In addition to the geopolitical
importance of the conflict, it's also the culmination of a personal vendetta between
Freydis and Olaf, and a major turning point in the battle between Christian Vikings and Pagan
Vikings. The momentous occasion ends with Freydis the victor in every aspect, but the opposite would
have come true if not for the actions and sacrifice of the Jomsviking named Jorundr.
Jorundr is an important, but odd figure in the architecture of the season. He first appears
in Episode 1 and brings Freydis to Jomsborg, setting in motion her whole arc. After that,
he's forced to play both sides of the conflict between Freydis and Harekr for the political
and religious control of the city. Because of this, major players on both sides label
him a traitor and even go so far as to cut off his hand and banish him from the city forever.
In an incredible twist of fate, he happens to run into Olaf while he's sailing to take
Jomsborg and kill Freydis, granting Jorundr the opportunity to sabotage Olaf's fleet and save the
lives of Freydis, baby Harald, Jomsborg, and potentially the entirety of Pagan Vikingdom.
A huge part of Freydis's role in Season 2 is her transformation from a deadly Shieldmaiden
to an inspirational prophet, or as she comes to be known, the Keeper of the Faith. It's one
more big step on her long journey from unassuming, backwoods Greenlander to legendary Viking ruler,
and naturally, it means trading in some of her swordplay for statecraft. As Season 2 ends,
however, we get one more look at the cunning, ferocious Shieldmaiden Freydis we got to know
in Season 1, and it leads to the total destruction of Olaf's fleet and army.
"Where are her people? Who is she waiting for?"
"Me."
Building off of Jorundr's sacrifice, which gave Olaf and his fleet the false impression
that they were clear to enter the bay of Jomsborg, Freydis calmly allows the fleet to fill the bay,
even letting them pull up to the city's docks. Then, her brilliance begins to reveal itself as
a series of submerged urns begin to open and the waters of the bay begin to turn black.
Unbeknownst to Olaf and his men, the waters in which they float are now slick with oil, and with
one casual flick of a lit torch from Freydis, the entirety of Olaf's fleet burns to cinders. It's
refreshing to see that the new, pious Freydis is every bit the tactician she used to be.
On the one hand, Olaf is a nuanced, compelling character and we want to
see him in as many "Vikings: Valhalla" stories as possible. On the other hand,
however, Olaf has been a callous monster who murdered Pagans wholesale and tormented Freydis,
sometimes just for fun, and we are more than justified in craving his comeuppance. Paying
off the story that began back in the first episode of the series,
Olaf does indeed receive his just desserts, and it's a suitably grisly series of assaults.
With his ships burnt and his men dead, Olaf engages Freydis in one-on-one combat.
He's an expert fighter, has a substantial advantage over Freydis in size and strength,
and has the added edge of Freydis's weakness after having given birth so recently. Nonetheless,
she beats Olaf, killing him by running a spear through him sideways, skewering his heart and
lungs in the process. Her vengeance is sweet and long overdue. As much as we'll miss Olaf,
the ending of Season 2 is better for providing closure to such an extended storyline.
Hundreds of miles from the Viking territories of England and Norway,
Leif, Harald, and a motley crew of sailors and slaves brave the
Dnieper River to travel from Novgorod to Constantinople. The journey is a long one,
filled with deadly ice flows and even deadlier enemy raiders, and many of those that set out with
Leif and Harald don't survive for long. Those that do survive, however, form strong bonds,
and in the case of Harald and the nobleman's daughter named Elena, the bond turns into love.
Despite Harald's relationship with Freydis, and perhaps partially because she kept their child a
secret from him, the Viking eventually falls for the young Elena, making love to her and sharing
several intimate moments. Though Harald had assumed Elena a relatively unimportant figure
politically, she is revealed as the exact opposite just as the crew is about to reach Constantinople.
Harald is unexpectedly greeted by the great city's Emperor, who reveals Elena to be his new Empress.
She reveals herself to Harald, holding herself proudly and shining in extravagant jewelry and
robes. For Harald, who made the difficult choice to betray his love for Freydis to pursue Elena,
the news that she's to be married to one of the most powerful people
on the planet comes as a heavy blow, one that is unlikely to heal any time soon.
With Freydis in charge of Jomsborg, having transformed the city into a haven for Pagan
Vikings, and raising the son of the Prince there, the city has rapidly become a major power in the
Viking world. Though not of a similar size and population as cities like Kattegat and London,
Jomsborg has become as important and influential as the rest due to
its religious significance and the royalty that calls it home. Despite its importance,
the newly-reworked version of the city is very young, and that makes it vulnerable.
In her final act in Season 2, Freydis secures peace for Jomsborg, and the level to which
her mission succeeds will undoubtedly set the stage for a potential Season 3.
In what might go down as the single smartest strategic move Freydis ever makes, she spots
the young Svein, son of King Canute, among Olaf's forces and coaxes him into debarking from his ship
and watching her battle with Olaf up close. In doing so, she saves him from burning in her oily
trap, thereby saving herself and her people from becoming enemies of the mighty Canute.
"What does it say on your sword?"
"It says, 'The keeper of the
faith.' It is my destiny to protect those who worship the old gods."
Her brilliance continues when she escorts Svein to his mother,
Queen Ælfgifu, in Kattegat, granting her the gift of her son's life in exchange
for a promise of peace between the fledgling Jomsborg and the tremendous might of Norway.
Though Season 2 ends with a breath of fresh air, several factors threaten to punch our
protagonists in the gut and knock that wind right out of them sooner or later,
and Freydis and Harald lie at the center of almost every one of them.
Freydis won a huge victory when she killed Olaf, but he was Harald's half-brother. For
all the animosity between the two men, they both live within the Viking ethos,
meaning both care deeply for their honor and that of their family. Harald may not take
the news of his half-brother's death lightly, especially when it is combined with the fact
that Freydis just secured peace with Kattegat, the exact city that Harald is set on conquering.
Adding further wrinkles to their relationship are Freydis' decision to hide Harald's son
from him and Harald's infidelity with Elena. Elena has made it very clear to Harald that,
despite her marriage to the Emperor, she wants their affair to continue,
which if discovered, could quickly turn the mighty Constantinople from friend to foe.
Even if none of these potential disasters come to pass, and Freydis and Harald once again become
a united front against Kattegat, that still pits them against King Canute, Queen Ælfgifu,
Queen Emma, and the combined might of most of the Viking world. That makes the ending of "Vikings:
Valhalla" Season 2 the calm before one cold, catastrophic storm or another.