Canute’s plan backfires a bit in Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12, as he didn’t predict the battling prowess of Thorgil, son of Ketil. Let’s see what went down in this review!
Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 Overview
Vinland Saga Season 2 is an action, adventure, and drama that serves as the sequel to its highly acclaimed and fan favourite Vinland Saga Season 1, which aired in 2019. The series is based on an award-winning manga written by Makoto Yukimura. Read the review of the previous episode of the series here!
The show’s second season is being animated by Studio MAPPA, a different studio that the one which did its previous season in Studio WIT. However, most of the personnel behind the series have been retained. Director Shuuhei Yabuta, of Inuyashiki and Attack On Titan fame, is returning to direct the series.
– Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 Review does not contain spoilers –
Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 Review- For Lost Love
This was a great episode where a lot happened in a very short period, and it made the time fly by while you watched it. You couldn’t expect or anticipate much while getting into it, for the exact details of Canute’s plan were unknown to us. However, you knew that it wasn’t going to be good for Ketil and Olmar, both of whom were at risk of losing everything they ever owned, including their lives. Based on that, what actually happened was a miracle compared to what the possibilities were.
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Despite being a Viking king himself, Canute underestimated the fighting spirit of the Vikings under his command, as he didn’t factor in Olmar’s older brother, Thorgil, getting involved in the skirmish. Not only did he get involved, but he spread violence and chaos, the likes of which we had yet to see from this season and hadn’t seen in the show altogether since it stopped featuring Thorkell as much. If he were here, he would have absolutely loved seeing Thorgil chop off head after limb of anybody who dared step up against him. He would have also killed Thorgil, but that’s another story.
In a way, this was the perfect way to mix the worlds of Thorfinn and Canute again, the impact of which we will only notice in the upcoming episodes. It makes that a king like Canute and a lowly slave like Thorfinn can only really interact when Canute needs something from somewhere Thorfinn is associated. Not only that, but Thorfinn’s freedom now depends solely on how things end up at the end with Ketil and Canute, taking away the little agency he thought he had in this world. Thorfinn is in a bad place, but he has been through worse.
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The story that the show told in Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 was good, but there was something off about it. It was the same thing that has felt awkward about this whole season so far- the story has been a compelling one, but the characters the show has chosen to tell that story with are not. The family of Ketil lacks what the previous focus characters had in charisma and personality traits, and with Thorfinn deliberately being brought to serenity and sanity, these characters aren’t enough to make the show as interesting as it used to be.
The show is trucking along the path that it chose, and things are finally picking up, but a new lick of paint is needed to get it back to the heights where we know it can reach. Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 was a great episode, but it also served as a showcase of how good the show can be when it is focusing on characters that are still going to retain the meaning that has been bestowed upon them for more than half a season. The Ketils are fodder, and the show will be better served when these guys aren’t the ones at the front and centre.
Verdict
Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 was an action-packed and bloody episode that saw things get serious for the first time in a while. The next few episodes are going to be very interesting.