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⬢⬡⬢| Vinland Saga Season 2 |⬢⬡⬢
img100%(https://i.imgur.com/oCfuwTZ.png)Four years have passed since Canute took the throne, and Thorfinn has had plenty of time to become a new man. In spite of oppression, injustice, and violence he is understanding what it truly means to have no enemies.
Overview:
- Story: Continuation of season 1, shedding much of the action in favor of dialogue especially in the first half of the season (8/10)
- Characters: Heavier focus on character development with Thorfinn a changed man and a handful of new (and old) faces (9/10)
- Visuals: Some nice shots, muted colors, the visuals seem to be there just to tell the story and nothing more (7.4/10)
- Audio: Nothing special, has good OST and ED and voice acting is solid (7.2/10)
- Bingeable/Hype: Every episode is better than the last (7.5/10)
- Enjoyment: I like it about as much as season 1 even though it is a change of pace, but a nice one (8.7/10)
⬢⬡| Plot |⬡⬢
(8/10)
It is very character development heavy, and the focus is on Thorfinn reflecting on the past, while trying to get through the present time. He struggles to end the violence around him with nonviolence, something easier said than done. The story is a change of pace from the first season, though a necessary one. It slows down and sheds its action-packed exterior in favor of a more mundane, dialogue driven story, though that's not to say there's no action or it's boring. Part of the reason is that the season seems to be split into two halves of before and after Ketil leaves the farm, where the first half establishes the setting and introduces new characters, and the second half climaxes into the conflict of this season and fully develops Thorfinn's character arc.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/Ukme6qX.png)
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⬢⬡| Characters |⬡⬢
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(9/10)
As I mentioned, the story is very character driven, and I always find it difficult to separate the two. The focus is mainly on Thorfinn, but there is also a heavy focus on new characters Einar, Ketil and his sons, Snake, and Arnheid, as well as Canute later in the season. Einar mirrors a younger Thorfinn which causes some problems especially at first, but soon the two become very close. There is less focus on the development of other characters, but they are still very important to the plot, especially Snake and Arheid who cause the first big conflict, and then Ketil and his sons Omar and Thorgil later. I will say, Omar does have a small character arc which I enjoyed.
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\* Thorfinn vs. Einar vs. Canute arcs \*
Spoiler, click to view
There's a lot I could say about pretty much every character in the show, like my pity for Arnheid, Omar's character development, Leif's commitment, or Thorgil's warrior spirit, but I want to focus on the differences between Thorfinn, Einar, and Canute because they embody the theme of the anime.
Firstly, Thorfinn, everyone's favorite tiny viking. Last season was all about him being a slave to revenge, and now that he's escaped that he is ironically an actual slave. We left off thinking now that he's lost the one thing that was keeping him going, what is to become of him now? What is his reason to live? And for four years after we see that he really doesn't have one. When we're reintroduced, he's just a melancholy individual that doesn't really care about his life. When Fox is going to kill him, he just takes it, saying what reason is there to go on living? But as the story goes on, he starts to care again. He's tormented by his past as he realizes he's done terrible things, but he also finds joy in life as he cares about those around him. Before, he was driven by people, by his hatred for them, namely Askeladd, but now he is also finding meaning in life because of people, but for opposite reasons, his love for them. He finds a reason to keep going for them. He has a dream of Vinland, a nation he wants to establish because of his love for those oppressed and in pain, a land absent of hatred.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/L1G8BDH.gif) img40%(https://i.imgur.com/vkamDqz.gif)
His character arc was the realization of what his father told him. "You have no enemies." If only it were that simple. During the escape attempt with Gardar and Arheid, Snake stops them and Thorfinn imagines Askeladd beside him asking what he will do. What better reason to fight tan to help someone else? Only, Snake has just as good a reason to fight; what is the correct choice?
"Will you keep your oath to never hurt anyone again? Or unleash that long repressed fury of yours to help someone in need? Which road leads to becoming a true warrior?" Later, when he seeks an audience with Canute, he endures 100 blows without fighting back. Why would he fight them when none of them are his enemy? It's because of this, that despite not fighting back, the warriors around him recognize him as a 'true warrior.' This is the way Thorfinn wishes to build a paradise.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/msy3PmE.gif) img40%(https://i.imgur.com/Fhdg78j.png)
Canute on the other hand wants to build a paradise by any means necessary. He knows humans are contradictory, fighting and killing, while asking for forgiveness. Canute wants to build a land of peace by conquering. For that to happen though there would have to be forgiveness. The warriors who conquered would have to be forgiven, and to forgive themselves. But Canute doesn't even ask for forgiveness for himself, like he doesn't quite understand. But, he decides to listen to Thorfinn and leaves Ketil's farm and is better off for it, making the land more peaceful.
Honestly, the story is subtly about forgiveness. You cannot live with hatred in your heart; you must forgive. We see this with Einar, who is like a younger Thorfinn. He's quick to anger and fighting, and wants revenge on those that hurt him and those he cares about. But Thorfinn shows him that it's a vicious cycle of hatred and revenge does nothing but repeat the cycle. If they want peace, they have to cut that cycle.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/lVi4vnl.gif) img40%(https://i.imgur.com/x2u7RlJ.gif)
But it's hard, and even if you don't want to fight, others do. You can only break the cycle on you side. This is what Thorfinn struggles with. Is there a better way? I don't think he has the answer yet. But he's trying to find it. Violence is only the last option, there's must be something else you can do first. Vinland is as much a state of mind as an idea or country.
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⬢⬡| Visuals |⬡⬢
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(7.4/10)
If you remember the first season you will recall a lot of beautiful still shots, but also some action shots that were more moving pictures than animation. This season has less of both, with less static scenes, but also less quick and dynamic animation, not to say there is none, there's still plenty especially in later episodes. This is in part due to the nature of the show, which has calmed down and communicates the story more heavily through character interactions. It still looks good, especially the still shots of the landscape or sky. The color palette is a bit muted, which I'm not sure was done to add more realism, or to communicate the mundanity or contrasting peacefulness compared to the last season of some of scenes. While there were definitely some cool parts, overall it felt like the visuals were just there to facilitate telling the story, like the story could have been told without them, but the animation was just added as the medium to better get the point across and nothing more (if that makes sense).
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/atKudg6.png)
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⬢⬡| Audio |⬡⬢
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(7.2/10)
Great opening and ending themes, but aside from that nothing really stood out. I watched most of it dubbed and the voice acting was pretty good, and the little bit of subbed I watched also seemed solid. In fact, everything was really solid, but nothing that made me go "wow!" To be fair, i wasn't really paying attention to the sound design, but then again nothing jumped out at me. Overall, slightly above average because the quality was uniform throughout.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/bzudi4K.gif)
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⬢⬡| Bingeability/Hype |⬡⬢
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(7.5/10)
Every episode was better than the last and I was honestly hooked. Ironically, I did take a break from anime mid-season so I actually didn't keep up the whole way through, but once I hopped back in I binged the rest. But because of that gap I rated this aspect lower than I otherwise would have. Still, high hype, high bingeability, two thumbs up.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/5LYF7kQ.gif)
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⬢⬡| Enjoyment |⬡⬢
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(8.7/10)
You've heard it said once, I'm going to say it again, this season was a lot different than the last. But, it also was similar, it kept the core messages, just presented in a different way. It was honestly a genre change, which I didn't mind, but I know is like one of the most common criticisms of this season. I'm not going to say it made it better or worse than the first season, just different. But, like every sequel, it's practically impossible to rate without bringing up the original. I would say there were parts I liked more, and parts I liked less than season one,, mostly shifting from less in the first half, to more in the last few episodes. But, I also think the strength of this anime lies within the culmination of everything before it so it's hard to judge. Overall though, I liked it a lot but maybe a little less than season one. Just a little though.
img40%(https://i.imgur.com/Nh5iYi9.gif)
