If you’ve ever considered growing a beard and dressing entirely in leather and fur, Vikings: Valhalla is the show for you.
The series is a sequel to Vikings, the History Channel series that launched the careers of Travis Fimmel and Katheryn Winnick and proved historical drama could be mystical, sexy, and action-packed. Vikings: Valhalla picks up the heavy axe a century later where Vikings left it.
The series is set to return for its third and final season on July 11. The first two seasons are available to stream on Netflix now.
If you need a refresher, here’s what happens in Vikings: Valhalla Season 1.
Vikings: Valhalla is set approximately 100 years after the events of Vikings and follows a new set of historical figures as they fight for political and religious dominance in early 11th-century Europe.
Generations after the conquest of England depicted in Vikings, the English have had enough of the Vikings’ presence in their country and attempt to drive them out, starting with a massacre in a Viking village. So Viking leaders King Canute of Denmark (Bradley Freegard) and Princes of Norway Harald Sigurdsson (Leo Suter) and Olaf Haraldsson (Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson) lead an underdog army in an invasion of England. Canute installs himself as King of England and plans to build an empire uniting all of Northern Europe. As the political situation in England grows more complex, Harald and Olaf both seek to become King of Norway.
Meanwhile, siblings Leif Eriksson (Sam Corlett) and Freydís Eiríksdóttir (Frida Gustavsson) arrive in the Viking stronghold of Kattegat, Norway, with a small group of friends seeking revenge on the man who raped Freydís. They came from Greenland, where their infamously brutal father, Erik the Red, was banished for murder.
In Kattegat, these outsiders who grew up isolated from the rest of Vikingdom connect with their Viking culture and heritage, though in very different ways. Leif becomes a prominent warrior who helps lead the Vikings to victory against the English. He enjoys the respect of his fellow Vikings because it means he’s stepped out from under his notorious father’s shadow. A follower of the pagan Old Norse religion by birth, he’s experiencing a crisis of faith and finds himself drawn to Christianity.
Freydís, on the other hand, becomes an even more devout believer in the Old Ones as the season progresses. Her assailant was a Christian Viking who carved a cross into her back, so she’s wary of Christians. She makes a pilgrimage to the Viking temple at Uppsala, where the Seer (John Kavanagh) tells her of her destiny as the Last Daughter of Uppsala, protector of the old ways.
They both develop bonds with Harald. Harald and Leif become such good friends that they call each other “brother.” And Freydís and Harald fall in love, despite his Christianity.
The first half of the season is about the lead-up to the Viking conquest of England, and the second half follows what happens after.
The story starts when King Æthelred (Bosco Hogan) orders a purge of Viking settlements from England, starting with a massacre on St. Bosco’s Day in which Harald and Olaf’s brother Sten (Wolfgang Cerny) is killed.
One year later, Canute, Harald, and Olaf assemble an army with the intention of conquering London and killing King Æthelred. The army is made up of both pagan and Christian Vikings, which leads to tension. After Freydís kills the Christian who raped her — Olaf’s right-hand man — Harald negotiates a deal: Freydís is held for ransom, while Leif serves in Canute’s army until the siblings’ debt is deemed paid. The Vikings set off for England, while Freydís goes to Uppsala to learn more about her faith.
When the Vikings get to England, they find out Æthelred has died of illness and his teenage son Edmund (Louis Davison) is now the king. Leif’s plan to take the city by destroying London Bridge works. But rather than take revenge on Edmund, Canute decides that they will rule England together. Harald is angry, but he gets over it when Canute promises to support his claim for the crown of Norway over Olaf’s. Canute marries Æthelred’s widow, Queen Emma of Normandy (Laura Berlin), Edmund’s stepmother and a brilliant political tactician.
When Canute is called away to battle, his father Sweyn Forkbeard (Søren Pilmark) steps in to rule in his absence. Godwin of Wessex (David Oakes), a ruthlessly ambitious nobleman and royal adviser, kills Edmund and tries to make it look like an accident, but Emma is onto him.
Emma outmaneuvers Canute’s other wife, Queen Ælfgifu of Denmark (Pollyanna McIntosh), when she tries to claim the queen’s throne. Ælfgifu uses her command of Canute’s naval fleet as leverage, but Emma, Forkbeard, and Godwin trick Ælfgifu into giving up her advantage, leaving England under Emma’s sole control.
On the road to Uppsala, Freydís makes an enemy of Kåre (Asbjørn Krogh Nissen), an insane Viking raider who wants to eliminate all pagans from Norway. In Uppsala, Freydís learns of her destiny as the protector of those who worship the Old Ones. Upon returning to Kattegat, she joins an order of shield-maidens to protect the town from Christian invaders.
Kåre wipes Uppsala off the map, then turns toward Kattegat, teaming up with Olaf, who also wants to make Norway a Christian nation. Harald spies on Olaf and tries to pass his attack plan to Leif, but Olaf anticipated his half brother’s betrayal and gave him false information, leaving Kattegat exposed. During the battle, Freydís beheads Kåre and escapes into the wilderness with a wounded Harald. Olaf fatally stabs Leif’s lover Liv (Lujza Richter), leaving Leif mad with rage and distraught over his hesitation when Liv asked him to promise to join her in Valhalla when his time comes.
Olaf is victorious, but his reign will be very short, as Forkbeard is coming to reclaim Kattegat with Canute’s fearsome fleet he took from Ælfgifu.
The season ends with every character in an uncertain place. Fortunately, you can immediately hit play on Season 2 to find out what happens next.
