Ragnar and crew are back in Northumbria England to see what they can pillage. The King's brother's army sets up camp near them so they can plan an attack. Really bad idea. They know what ferocious fighters the Vikings are. Why did they make it so easy for them? The Vikings attack at night and kill most of the soldiers. They take the King's brother hostage.
They have a meal with the King. Would Vikings really do that? I'd be afraid of a poisoned dinner. The scene with the Vikings eating like barbarians while the English waited to say blessings was funny. Ragnar wants 2000 lbs in gold and silver in exchange for Aethelwulf. The King agrees but one of the Vikings has to be baptized as Christian first. Rollo volunteers.
Meanwhile back at home, Lagertha is wisely settling disputes amongst the townspeople. Siggy tells Lagertha she wants to be her servant. She is at first hesitant but finally accepts after Athelstan suggests that its an honor to do so. I assume Siggy would be shunned if Lagertha didn't take her in. I still don't 100% trust Siggy though. In the last scene Lagertha suffers a miscarriage. How sad.
Back in England, Rollo is baptized. That was a funny scene too. Floki does not approve and says Rollo has angered Odin. The king tries to trick Ragnar. Instead of paying the ransom his men attack. Most are killed by the Vikings. Rollo is especially vicious due to Floki's comments about his baptism. Ragnar kills the brother and sends his body back. The king finally gives up the money and the Vikings sail away. In the last scene, King Aelle vows revenge on Ragnar.
Travis Fimmel's acting makes Ragnar a very compelling character (even if he does kill a lot of people). I could watch him read the phone book. In fact all the actors are excellent. The only one that drives me crazy is Floki (but he's supposed to).
From Wikipedia:
The Vikings set up a fortified camp, assault the Northumbrian besiegers at night and capture the king's brother Aethelwulf. In a meeting with the king, Ragnar demands 2,000 pounds of gold and silver as a price for the Vikings' departure. Aelle agrees but demands that one Viking be baptized a Christian, and to Floki's scorn, Rollo agrees. Home in Scandinavia, Lagertha rules in Ragnar's stead. She accepts Siggy's offer of service, and suffers a miscarriage. Instead of paying the ransom, Aelle has his men attack Ragnar's camp, but they are bloodily repelled. After Ragnar sends Aethelwulf's corpse to Aelle, the king at last pays the ransom, but swears vengeance upon Ragnar as he watches the raiders depart.
Grade: 3 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). I liked the episode (as always). There were a few instances though that didn't seem realistic to me...but hey what do I know? I'm not a Viking. There are only two episodes left in season 1.
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