Vinland Saga
a review by MiNiSoTaN
a review by MiNiSoTaN
The real story comes with Askeladd, the real protagonist of the series. He is better written, better developed, and better enjoyed than Thorfinn. Unlike his younger counterpart, Askeladd has his story developed throughout the entire season. From the moment he is introduced to the moment he is killed off we are constantly learning more about him and how the story revolves around him. Askeladd has relationships, emotions, and development. Thorfinn has none of this. I enjoyed the arc of Askeladd way more than Thorfinn.
One of the other elements that I wasn't really on board with was the direction of the story. I'm not saying that and anime needs to hold your hand and tell you what the goal/endpoint is for the story from the first episode, but I believe there should be some sort of idea of where the characters are going/what they want to accomplish by the first arc. Vinland saga doesn't do this. There's so much jumping around in terms of plot points that at some points I really didn't understand what was going on. We go from Thorfinn going to war with his father, to Thorfinn wanting to kill Askeladd, to Askeladd sacking cities, to Askeladd running away from Thorkell, to Askeladd picking up the prince of England, to Askeladd joining Thorkell, to Askeladd killing the king and dying. The story shifts in so many different directions it really doesn't show you what they want to have happen until the final arc or so. To some this may not be an issue, but for me personally it was trying to be ambitious and it didn't pay off.
Thorfinn: A one dimensional write off character. Seriously. I did not like Thorfinn. I did at first though. I thought he was going to have a great arc of trying to avenge his father, but they committed character assassination to bring Askeladd to the limelight. I don't know if that was their intention or not, but judging by the main promo image I doubt it. Thorfinn is shown TWICE in the image. Askeladd, the character with more development than anymore is shown off the the side in a SMALLER scale compared to Thors who dies after episode 4. Thorfinn seriously had a lot of potential but he was put aside and given an edgy personality with a Naruto running. His only trait is that he wants to duel Askeladd, nothing else. Really disappointed by the direction they gave him.
Askeladd: As I explained in the previous section, Askeladd is much better written than Thorfinn. The story of Vinland Saga isn't about Thorfinn, it's about Askeladd. They may want you to think it's about Thorfinn judging by all the promo material, but they seriously missed a prime opportunity to promote a "follow the bad guy" kind of story line. He's one half of the only good written characters in this anime. Regardless, Askeladd is shown to be harboring the secret that he's actually only half Norse and he is actually native to Whales. This is something that completely flips the story on its head. He keeps the secret away from everyone because he is really proud and pompous of his Whales heritage and showing that off would get him killed. I loved everything they did with Askeladd which is great because he picks up the slack of Thorfinn.
Thorkell: The second half of the good characters written for Vinland Saga, Thorkell is introduced during the 2/3 of the story but he's someone whos personality sticks with you through the whole series. He has a sort of "goofball" type of charisma, but when he want to he can be extremely serious and intimating. Never before have I seen a character as likable as Thorkell. He's diffidently a breath of fresh air in the shonen anime genre and a saving grace for this show.
Canute: My initial theory with Canute was that he was actually a she and that Thorfinn was going to save her and they'd fall in love. That didn't happen. Canute is't written exceptionally well, but much better than the treatment Thorfinn received. The cataclysmic event that made him change from a scared and timid boy into a man of authority came down to the death of Ragnar. After that, he became decisive and commanding, which was pretty cool to witness. Although I don't think it was executed exceptionally well, it did it's job to move the story along and I can respect that.
All other characters in the show are pretty much meaningless. There are quite a few introduced including: Helga, Ylva, Floki, Leif, Willibald, Bjorn, and a few others. All of them I believe had potential to have some great arcs but sadly the anime decided to solely focus on Thorfinn and Askeladd's escapades. Overall Askeladd and Thorkell are the ones saving the character department.
The art is overall great. The battles are gruesome and do a great job portraying what they need to. There isn't a needless amount of CGI involved which always helps as well. There are a few wallpaper shots you could grab, but overall, no complaints in the art or animation department. I believe Wit Studio created a show up to the standards of modern anime. They didn't reinvent the wheel here, but they used it properly. Nothing much more to say than that, the art isn't where the show has its faults.
The two different OPs and EDs are enjoyable. I (for the most part) never skipped the intro. MUKANJYO by Survive Said the Prophet is the one I found to be the most enjoyable. I loved the transition from subtle guitar picking to an explosion of a chorus. The screaming ending was also incredible, actually gave me chills. The music during the battle sequences are great as well. Never once did I feel like the atmosphere of a scene was ruined by the music which is always a plus. Overall, I think the music is great and did its job well, no complaints here.
If you really read my review you can tell I wasn't the biggest fan of this show. Don't get me wrong, I've seen a lot worse anime, but this one in particular just didn't stick with me. If you read my gripes with really the characters and story you'll understand why. I fell like my frustrations are justified, but you may not. In the end you don't have to agree with me. If you believe the show is a 10/10 masterpiece you're totally in your right to believe that. I'm not in that same mindset, but in the end it doesn't really matter. My main concerns came from the characters and story and unfortunately those are the two biggest parts of the show. You can have an amazing soundtrack and incredible visuals, but if your story and characters aren't up to par, it isn't going to feel right. That's the experience I had with Vinland Saga. It was great in some areas, but struggled in others. The only reason I'm giving it a 6/10 is because Askeladd almost solely carries the show. It's good, but could've been much better. Hopefully season 2 will impress me more.
Favorite Episodes
Ep 1. Somewhere Not Here
Ep 4. A True Warrior
Ep 5. The Troll's Son
Ep 7. Normanni
Ep 11. A Gamble
Ep 12. The Land on The Far Bank
Ep 18. Out of The Cradle
Ep 24. End of the Prologue
Official Scores
Story: (5/10)
Characters: (6/10)
Art: (8/10)
Music: (7/10)
Personal Enjoyment: (6/10)
@MiNiSoTaN
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