‘Vikings” season 4, episode 8 review: Kwenthrith faces death, Ragnar’s drug habit darkens
With Rollo’s victory on the last episode of “Vikings” Ragnar has decided to retreat, but a lot of that likely has to do with the fact that he is taking an absurd amount of drugs and not able to come up with any kind of plan right now. As a leader, Ragnar is fairly useless, but we saw that Bjorn has started to figure out that something is wrong with his father… he just doesn’t know what yet. Will he figure it out and help him kick his drug habit?
Wessex: King Ecbert returns home and tells an excited Queen Kwenthrith that the war is over and the Mercia is back in good hands, but fails to mention that he now has the crown jewels. Kwenthrith tells Ecbert that she is with child and it belongs to his son, but that Judith doesn’t know. When she tells Ecbert that she is going to return to Mercia as Queen, he informs her that she is no longer the ruler and that he is now the king and has the documentation to prove it. Kwenthrith tells Judith about the baby and about Ecbert’s betrayal over her kingdom asking for Judith’s help in her escape from Wessex, but Ecbert is a step ahead of her and makes sure that Kwenthrith knows that she and Ragnar’s son aren’t going anywhere. She comes to Ecbert’s bed chamber and threatens his life, but before she can kill him, Judith stabs her and Kwenthrith dies.
Ragnar: Instead of retreating, he sets up camp below the cliffs after he comes up with a new plan which includes carrying the boats up the cliff, through the mountains, past the forts and slide them back into the river without Paris knowing so that they can stage another attack. Watching the viking crew heave those massive ships over the cliff was an incredible sight! Ragnar still can’t function without his drugs, so when Yidu refuses to give it to him, he kills her and takes it, but his two sons witness the whole scene and now know what the real issue is behind his strange behavior. Our hope is that one of them will tell Bjorn or Lagertha what the problems is since this drug addiction has gotten quite dark for Ragnar.
Rollo: The emperor of Paris is happy with the success Rollo had against Ragnar, but Rollo tells him that as long as his brother still lives that they cannot get too comfortable. The emperor gives the impression that he may no longer need Rollo to protect them, but Gisla reveals that she’s pregnant and that her husband isn’t going anywhere. The emperor decides to execute Odo and he is whipped to death, which is quite fitting considering his tastes. He tells Rollo that he is completely trusted with the defense of Paris now.
Aslaug: She learns that the wanderer is sleeping with all of the viking wives in the village after Sigurd shows her and she’s none to pleased about the situation to say the least. When she confronts him about his betrayal he says that he doesn’t love these other women as he loves Aslaug, saying that everything he does with these other women is holy and god’s work. She doesn’t buy into what he’s saying and he tells her that he cannot be possessed before he leaves once more.
The highlight of the episode for us was seeing the Yidu character killed by Ragnar, since she has been the weakest part of the season. Ragnar is someone that has always been on a spiritual journey of growth and she has held him back from that after helping feed his drug habit. We are hoping that with her death and the end of his supply of drugs, he will be able to find his way back to the man he once was and start his journey again. Episode grade: B-
What did you think of tonight’s episode of “Vikings”? Leave us a comment below and share your thoughts.