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Vikings: Valhalla continues on from Vikings, 100 years after the events of that series concluded… although when I first wanted to check out this new series, I didn’t realise this, and I haven’t seen it. D’oh.
Anyhoo, it’s the time of 11th Century Europe, and as we’re informed with some onscreen text:
- “The exploits of the geat viking Ragnar Lothbrok have faded into legend.
In the 100 years that followed, vikings left their northern homelands and settled across Europe, many in England.
But as these settlements prospered, they became a threat to their Saxon neighbours, and the English King, Ethelred II was urged to find a solution to the viking problem…”
We join the new cast on St Brice’s Day, and Harald Sigurdsson (Leo Suter) is going away, far from where they live now, but suddenly, the King of England turns up and wants to exterminate all the Vikings, after which comes up another piece of text:
- “The St Brice’s Day Massacre purged all viking settlements from the English shores…
But the slaughter did not go unnoticed in the North, where King Canute of Denmark sent out a call for all Vikings to gather in Kattegat, and form an army… of revenge.”
So, the remaining Vikings set sail across the ocean to Kattegat, including heading over a huge wage that’s not quite as big as THAT one from Interstellar, but it’s enough for them to be dealing with. And once they find land, they meet Greenlander Leif Eriksson (Sam Corlett), who’s looking for a Viking with a particular cross.
Early on, as the characters are established, Harald is trying to crack on to Freydis Eriksdotter (Frida Gustavsson), and there’s a mutual attraction, plus it’s safe to say there’s some nudity, but certainly no female breasts, or anything South of the Equator for either of the pair, so it’s not a massively graphic show. For a different individual, however, she has vengeance in mind.
Overall, in watching this opener, with a bit of well-choreographed swordplay includes, Vikings: Valhalla shows that every man has a beard, and everyone seems very angry with almost everyone else. It appears it’s the Greenlanders against the Vikings, or can they finally find some common ground?
However, this wasn’t a drama I could get into. I’ve never been one for Game Of Thrones, and based on clips I’ve seen, this all feels like the same kind of thing, so if that’s your bag, then you’ll be pleased that eight hours’ worth of drama await you.
Thanks to our friends at Netflix for the screener prior to release.
Vikings: Valhalla is not available to pre-order on Blu-ray or DVD, but is on Netflix from Friday February 25th.
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 55-60 per episode (8 episodes)
Release date: February 25th 2022
Studio: Netflix
Format: 2.00:1
Series Directors: Steve Saint Leger, Hannah Quinn, Niels Arden Oplev
Producer: Mark Murdoch, Cait Collins
Creator: Jeb Stuart
Writers: Vanessa Alexander, Declan Croghan, Eoin McNamee
Music: Trevor Morris
Cast:
Queen Ælfgifu: Pollyanna McIntosh
Freydis Eriksdotter: Frida Gustavsson
Olaf Haraldsson: Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson
Harald Sigurdsson: Leo Suter
Leif Eriksson: Sam Corlett
Earl Godwin: David Oakes
Emma of Normandy: Laura Berlin
Jarl Haakon: Caroline Henderson
King Canute: Bradley Freegard
Jarl Gorm: Julian Seager
Jarl Kåre: Asbjørn Krogh Nissen
Arne Gormsson: Pääru Oja
Earl Of East Anglia: Gavin O’Connor
Hallbjorn: James Ballanger
Astrid Olofsdotter: Álfrún Laufeyjardóttir
Liv: Lujza Richter
Toke: Jack Mullarkey
Prince Edmund: Louis Davison
Kolbein the Strong: Ethan Dillon
Earl of Sussex: Mark Huberman
Aethelred ‘the Unready’: Bosco Hogan
Johan: Jaakko Ohtonen
Gytha: Henessi Schmidt
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.