WiC Binges: The Last Kingdom season 3

THE LAST KINGDOM: SEASON 3, “EPISODE SIX”

“Edward makes a kingly decision. Alfred lays plans for his son’s future reign. Athelwold faces a treacherous task. Uhtred and Brida search for a seer.”

Recap

At Beamfleot, Edward takes command of Alfred’s army, rescuing Uhtred and his company from Haesten’s Vikings. Osferth is badly wounded. Haesten takes his prisoner Skade and retreats with what is left of his forces to join Cnut and Bloodhair.  Uhtred joins Alfred at Beamfleot where the king admits to a sense of impending doom. Alfred asks Uhtred to remain vigilant in his protection of Edward. At Hunstanton (East Anglia), Haesten informs Cnut and Bloodhair that Alfred is still alive, and the Danes despair.

Intending to safeguard Aethelflaed, Uhtred travels to Saltwic with his Danish prisoners in tow. He argues violently with Sihtric, then departs to seek out Ragnar’s burial site. The reeling Dane leaders debate their next move, with Cnut exposing Aethelwold as Ragnar’s executioner. Cnut orders Aethelwold to go to Winchester, kill Alfred and deliver an allied Saxon army. Of course, Aethelwold has other plans.

The angry Sihtric frees Dagfinn and the other Danish prisoners, leading them in an escape from Saltwic. Uhtred visits Ragnar’s grave site and finds Brida waiting for him. After something of a reconciliation, Uhtred and Brida decide to visit Ubba’s old seer, Storri, hoping that he will know how to free Ragnar from purgatory in Niflheim so he can reach Valhalla. Brida later saves Uhtred from Danish assassins on the road.

Alfred asks Beocca to make sure Edward is able to rely on Uhtred in the future. Brida and Uhtred find Storri at Salhford but he tries to betray them. Once Storri reveals how to free Ragnar from Niflheim (wet a blade with Ragnar’s blood and use it to kill his assassin), Brida strangles him to death, since he cursed her before and the only way to break a sorcerer’s curse, according to Brida, is to killing him without breaking the skin or drawing blood. This is the way Uhtred must kill Skade, she says. Uhtred and Brida rediscover their deep affection for each other, though it is no longer romantic.

Our Take

“Episode Six” is a powerful but flawed hour. It begins with a charged moment as Alfred hands command of the army to Edward, who proves himself worthy of the responsibility. The battle of Beamfleot and the rescue of Uhtred and his men is exciting and brutal, another excellent action sequence .

If you’re confused about the late Ragnar’s situation, his problem is that he died without his sword in his hand. Vikings without their weapons end up eternally disgraced in the misty Norse limbo of Nilfheim. Uhtred and Brida seek to save Ragnar from his damnation, and it’s looking like this quest will drive their actions in the near future.

This episode is full of superb moments. Think of Alfred and Uhtred meeting on the ramparts of Beamfleot; these two men have a complicated past but still respect each other deep down, yet neither can admit to it. Instead, they remind each other that they have failed to carry out their life’s missions: Uhtred is further away from Bebbanburg than ever, and Alfred will not live to see the creation of his united Christian England.

Uhtred and Brida dominate “Episode Six,” and their renewed connection is wonderful to watch. Despite all that’s happened, they are still intimately bound together by fate, and here resurrect some of their long-lost playfulness. Of course, it’s all doused in the sadness surrounding the losses of Gisela and Ragnar, but that makes their bittersweet reunion even warmer. The quiet scenes between Uhtred and Brida resonate deeply.

Unfortunately, “Episode Six” also makes an uncharacteristic stumble at Saltwic. It starts with Uhtred’s unwise decision to house Dagfinn and the Danish prisoners inside the great hall. The showrunners have been seeding the conflict between Uhtred and his superstitious men — all of whom are nervous about Skade’s curse — for a while. This tension leads to a huge blowup between Uhtred and Sihtric, but it rings hollow. Sihtric may well be frightened and unhappy, but the vehemence of his argument against Uhtred feels overdone, as does Uhtred’s oath to kill Sihtric upon his return. Uhtred and Sihtric are tight pals. The abrupt, profound split between them adds up to a ham-handed narrative decision slapped on us to move a plot forward.

Despite that speed bump, “Episode Six” moves several storylines along nicely. Once again, the showrunners, given 10 episodes instead of eight, allow more time for characters to breathe. The time spent with Uhtred and Brida at Ragnar’s grave is haunting and their long journey a breath of fresh air. And Brida’s killing of Storri sets the stage for the episodes to come: Uhtred will find Skade and “kill” her curse upon him, then gather blood from Thyra to wet his blade while Brida works to discover the identity of Ragnar’s executioner.

Random Impressions

• Edward is now becoming inextricably linked to Uhtred, as was his father.
• Haesten’s constant retreating should really earn him a beheading from his fellow Danes — he’s lucky Ubba isn’t still around. Haesten doesn’t look like he’d stand a chance against Bloodhair.
• Poor Finan, stuck in the middle of that bizarrely dangerous Uhtred/Sihtric brouhaha.
• Aethelwold seems out of his depth again in the company of Cnut and Bloodhair; he looks like a rabbit locked in a cage with hungry dogs. He’ll probably find a way out of it, but for the time being: squirm, Aethelwold, squirm.
• Hild has been largely absent lately. We hope she has a lot to do later on.
• Alfred still seeks to convert the baptism-proof Uhtred to Christianity. The king is persistent, you gotta give him that.
• Uhtred and Brida, now scarred warriors rather than enthusiastic youngsters, back on the trail together was this episode’s greatest gift to us.
• Uhtred pledged again — this time to Brida — to give everything he’s got to find a way to rescue Ragnar in the Underworld. Bebbanburg, who?

To  Sum Up: Despite sputtering with the Uhtred/Sihtric/Saltwic storyline, “Episode Six” contains some of the finest and most beautiful scenes of the season so far. Grade: A

Quote: “We are one, you and I. From the moment I took your hand on the steps of the great hall of Eoforwic we were bound as one. You may dislike me, hate me if you wish, despise me at times, but love is immortal; it goes on.” (Uhtred, to Brida).