Season 1 |
Season 2 |
Season 3 |
Episode Guide
Episode 1 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 2 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 3 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 4 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 5 -| Review Score – 2.5/5
Episode 6 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 7 -| Review Score – 3/5
Episode 8 -| Review Score – 2.5/5
Vikings: Valhalla happens to be the spin-off of the History show, Vikings which focuses on the early Viking legend, Ragnar Lothbrok and his family. Well, following its massive success, we got the Netflix Original, Vikings: Valhalla which is set in the same universe but a century later, as it follows Harald Hardrada, the last ruler of the Viking Age, sibling explorers Leif and Freydis, the first Europeans to get in contact with the North American continent and the Viking English king, Canute, the only ruler of the North Sea Empire.
Sounds fascinating, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, Netflix cancelled the show with Vikings: Valhalla Season 3 being its last season. Well, to be fair, they initially ordered a 24-episode run aka 3 seasons with 8 episodes each and then never got around to renewing it further. Disappointing since fans definitely did not want it to end.
In fact, we can argue that the story was just beginning. All of the low points of season 3 can be due to the fact that the writers had to cram history, entertainment and action that span decades into 8 short episodes.
To give you a better understanding, Vikings: Valhalla Season 3 picks up 7 years later with Harald and Leif serving in the Byzantine Empire and making a name for themselves via their military achievements. However, Leif gets a reality check and decides to find himself by searching for a land he had once seen as a child. Harald plays with fire as he has enough gold to secure the Norwegian throne but he continues to stay for Byzantine Empress Zoe aka Eleana.
Meanwhile, Freydis and the Jomsvikings have to give up their peaceful solitude when Olaf’s son, Magnus decides to avenge his father. Elsewhere, King Canute seems to be dying but is unable to pick an heir as his and Emma’s children from their previous marriages vie for his throne. It doesn’t help that his best advisor, Earl Godwin has his own plans for England.
With Vikings: Valhalla Season 3 getting only 8 episodes, the writers try their best to give everyone closure while still keeping it open-ended since these characters are all historical figures who go on to achieve even more fame for their acts way after the timeline in which the show is set. This leads to a disbalance in the pacing as all of these characters are on different paths but need to arrive at the same destination for fan service and a satisfying finale.
We can’t exactly have Freydis and Leif running off to America before seeing Harald who is stuck in Constantinople now, can we? And so some of the sub-plots drag such as Freydis vs Magnus and the Constantinople arc while others have too much going on like Canute’s family drama and Leif’s journey.
But had the Netflix Original gotten its time to shine, we could have had a breathtaking saga with one season focusing on the Byzantine Empire, another on Leif’s exploration and another on the succession conflict of the English throne and so on.
And that’s because apart from the pacing problems, the show excels in all other aspects such as the beautiful camera work and the adrenaline-filled and well-choreographed action. All of the actors including the leads – Leo Suter, Frida Gustavsson and Sam Corlett deserve a separate shout-out since they are not afraid to get dirty as they commit to their roles and portray these larger-than-life warriors.
Well, if viewers like us can see the potential, why can’t network execs, giving such an ambitious project only 3 seasons? When did art and entertainment become all about numbers and money? Do these guys don’t realise how many iconic cable shows had bad beginnings before they became huge? In fact, the original show, Vikings had a pretty average season 2 but if it had been cancelled we would have never gotten the iconic Ivar the Boneless in season 4.
Patience has always been a virtue. But no, Netflix would rather greenlight shows like Riverdale for 2863874 seasons with their dragged-out plots than give good shows a chance. In fact, two of Netflix’s viral shows – Money Heist and Dark blew up in their final seasons. But guess they don’t care about making quality content anymore.
Well, enough of the Netflix’s decision sucks rant. Vikings: Valhalla started off as a promising spin-off with the first season being a success. It did hit a snag in the later seasons but the stories have always been intriguing. A shame that it did not get a chance to explore its potential.
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Verdict - 6/10
6/10