As ‘Vikings’ season 4 finale nears, how long could series last?

Tonight, History is going to be bringing you the season finale of “Vikings,” and given the stakes, we imagine that this episode may feature one of the most epic battles that we’ve seen on the show to date. It would certainly continue a great precedent that was established at the start of the season, and one that’s continued throughout. Even if it was true to history, we’re still impressed at the guts it took to remove their main character of Ragnar, and by association the show’s biggest star in Travis Fimmel, from the equation. However it seems that with big risks come big rewards since this season of “Vikings” has posted some great ratings as well as some impressive stories.

Now that we are at the end of the season, this does feel like the right time to start to look towards the future of the show. Just how long can the show really last? The good news is that we know that there are at least 20 more episodes coming up. The show and cast have been working hard on season 5, and they aren’t all that far from being done with filming them. (We still don’t know how creator Michael Hirst is able to write 20 episodes a season, or how the cast is able to keep going without passing out from exhaustion.)

Beyond that, the show’s future is uncertain — while there may be plenty of stories out there regarding Viking history, this show specifically was set up as the tale of Ragnar and his sons. This story will have an end date, and it all depends on how quickly the show decides to progress.

The lives of many of these people are incomplete. We know that with characters like Bjorn and Ivar, they have so many more adventures ahead of them (they are actually more famous then Ragnar in viking history), but there is a point years down the road where they start to disappear from history. If they died, they did so in a far-from-legendary way. If they lived, they lived in a way that was not recorded. What does the show do from there? We don’t think it’s a great idea to start making story up that is not there in the records, especially for The History Channel.

If we had it our way, our feeling is that there may be enough great material for two more seasons of this show; following that, it would be nice to see Hirst take on another era or empire that is out there for another season. He’s proven himself to be a master of period storytelling, and there are many other untold stories in history he could explore.

How much show do you think “Vikings” has left entering the finale? Share in the comments, and head over here to get some other news on the show, including a preview for the finale episode! If you haven’t had a chance to check out our exclusive CarterMatt interview with Alex Hogh Andersen (Ivar the Boneless) then be sure to click on the link here. (Photo: History.)