Oh boy. Where do I begin.
Welp, Lets start with the Rating (Refer to my Artistic Scale)
6/5
ITS A MASTERPIECE
Now then. an introduction:
Vinland Saga is an Anime produced by Studio Wit
It follows the story of a Young boy:
Thorfinn, Son of Thors
Who grew up in Iceland and had a peaceful Childhood.
He hated his boring life and wanted adventure. He wanted to be strong and tough so he can experience the world and kill his enemies.
His flair hit a critical mass when armed ships arrived at his home village and declared that the Kingdom of Denmark was at war with the English, and that they need volunteers.
Caught in this, Thorfinn wanted to go but his Father was against it. He volunteered to go himself, as he was forced to, so Thorfinn snuck on his ship and accompanied him.
So the anime actually starts with Thors beating the absolute crud out of some people along ships and then sinking into the sea and running away.
When the armed ships came, a decade had passed and it turns out Thors is leader of the Jomsvikings
An order of Viking Warriors in service to the Nordic Pantheon that served the King of Denmark.
It is the Iron Centry (966 - 1066 AD) and it was this time when the Scandinavian Danes absolute HAM on England. They conquered it and instituted a rule of Law known as the Danelaw, it would be a long time before England would rise up and be independent once more (before being conquered by the Normans under William the Conqueror)
So the Jomsvikings were at the center of it. They had the strongest Warriors in the North, and Thors was their best. But Thors decided to retire after having a Family
Now Jomsvikings only retire when they die, so Thors deserted instead.
Thors was married to the Daughter of the Leader of the Jomsvikings and led a peaceful life in Iceland away from the War.
Now Folki, the new top dog at the Order, is in charge and he found out where Thors is hence he paid him a visit via Armed Ship. Thors refused to return to the Order so Folki forced his hand when he announced to his village of the War.
Now SPOILERS but this stuff is a dead give away from the start so call em Soft Spoilers
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Highlight it to read it
.
.
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
..
.
.
ahem..
Now Folki had paid a mercenary, Askellad, to ambush and kill Thors. Thors was undefeated and unstoppable, but one of the guys took Thorfinn Hostage. Thors challenged Askellad to a duel, if he won then Thorfinn goes and if he doesn't then the Victor did as he wish.
Thors won, and as the deal went Thorfinn was let go. In exchange, Thors gave his life in payment of a guarantee that the Mercs won't go after Thorfinn or the others he was with.
Askellad, Son of Olaf, honored it. Thorfinn however saw his father killed and saw Askellad as responsible (even though Folki hired him to do it)
Now here comes
The Actual Protagonist of the Sto-
*blast*
ahem..
Nuff said but the Story follows Thorfinn and Askellad, but while Thorfinn seems to be stuck in time trying his revenge on Askellad (which he wants to do in a fair straight duel instead of assassination) so Thorfinn kept following him. Askellad is the most cunning man in the world, I kid u not, so he promised Thorfinn he would honor a duel if he works for him and earns it. So Thorfinn, surviving by himself, joins Askellad and works to earn his duel (by taking the head of the enemy commander or by doing something huge or even saving his life)
ANOTHER SPOILER
.
.
.
.
..
..
.
..
.
.
Jk I aint ruining this XD.
.
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Hence he continues in servitude until he can get his duel and win.
The story follows Askellad as he goes about plundering as a Company of Mercs.
This goes to a head until the Siege of London where the English have Thorkell the Invincible on their side in a losing war.
The King of Denmark was there with his younger son: King Canute
who is Christian and quite literally a Wimp coddled by his Retainer Ragnar.
CANUTE IS THE NEXT PROTAGONIST
and oh boy he gets his development
absolutely Crazy
.
.
.
.
So anyway that's enough about the Anime
Lets discuss why its a Master piece
1: It isn't focused on a singular character. The 3 Characters: Thorfinn, Askellad and Canute drive the story but all the side characters are also developed.
Thorkell the Invincible, King Swyen of Denmark, Ragnar, Thors, Haelga, The Two Brothers in Askellads crew, Askellads Best Friend the Giant Gorilla dude xD
Yea, the names escape me cuz I'm bad with remembering names
Anyhow.
The Characters are well developed and the entire cast gets you engaged into the series and how the world and setting will treat them
Which brings me to the next point:
2: The Worldbuilding is BREATHTAKING. It develops the world like a History book, like this stuff is real. This stuff happened, yes its dramatized with fictional elements for the sake of story telling. But historically this stuff was happening
The World is build wonderfully and feels lived in. We have English, French, Danes, Icelanders and what not going about their lives and how the Iron Century Vikings changed everything and how life was. It is truly a treat to see amazingly matured characters in a World so clearly built and made, it truly made this anime larger than life.
3: Ideology
The idea of Vinland is painted as an escape for the endlessly hopeless masses from the Invincible Thors down to Slaves and Peasants, and all in between. Everyone is simply taking a strike at their fortune, and not many end up lucky. At the end of it, people just want to go to Vinland. A place far beyond the Horizon where there is no war or famine or slavery or cruelty.
There is also the Mortality of Life, Whereby most adventurers are in it with their lives at stake. Either they strike rich and live well or die and be forgotten. It's a cruel world where nobody lives forever and where the Strong rule over the Weak. Hence those who grow old often look towards life itself. Askellad mused over this as a prophecy of the end times, King Swyen thought of his inheritance and the fate of his Kingdom after he goes.
In contrast there is Value of Life as well, where we have Thorkell who doesn't think about it and lives in the moment by staking his life and enjoying the thrill of the near death and fighting tough opponents. Thorfinn is in it for revenge, Vengeance who swore on the one who murdered his father. Canute only ever wanted to be a merry child leaving a quiet and loving life with a loving family and Ragnar.
However, one has to Facing the Ramifications of Life
King Swyen through his plotting schemes sought to sort out succession to his preferred son: Harrald instead of Canute
Thorfinn eventually is forced to face the question of what he is going to do after he has had his revenge from Askellad
Askellad sees his twilight years come close and ponders over the Prophecy of his ancestors and of the Promised King of Britannia
Canute matures into a King through one of the Greatest pieces of Development I have witnessed (Other than Eren Jaegar from Attack on Titan, he currently wears the Crown for the Greatest Character Development of all time)
Which brings me to my final piece, My absolute Favorite
4: The Theme of Kingship
Kingship, Monarchy by Divine Right. For the longest time, man has known to rule itself through a Divine Mandate given to a Select individual: The King.
The King is Chosen by God to lead his people, and after him his blood flows through his Children who take the mantle by inheritance. This timeless concept has existed as long as man has, thus an exploration of this is warranted.
Too many pieces of Entertainment Romanticize or Criminalize or Politicize this in media. Especially since after The Great War (WW1) Monarchies faded from the World as the new World Super Power: The United States set the precedent for Democracies to be the norm through Woodrow Wilson's 14 Points involving Self Determination of a peoples nation state.
Hence, few media look at the subject of Kingship properly in a Philosophical and Holistic aspect.
When they do, they take parts that suit their needs
King Arthur and the Camelot Mythos is the greatest example of this.
Canonized by writers over the Centuries, there are many interpretations.
Most glorify Chivalry, Set the Precedence for English Kings, Knights and can be seen as a Microcosm of Medieval Europe in its Fantasy.
Yet few realize that King Arthur does not have concrete Historical Evidence that proved he existed. We have evidence that suggested those that match the Legends of Camelot, but they are all pointing at different people and sources.
Thus, it is assumed to be Fiction by most. This Fictional Piece is often the lens used to view Kings through. Those who did not fit this bill were scrutinized through Politics and Institutions such as Republics and what not
Therefore, a Good Investigation would be one that not only looks into Kingship as a System yet also investigates the Figure that is to be King. One that aims to define and characterize the Archetype: King
Shakespeare has wrote Tragedies on Kings, Songs sing of Great Deeds by Kings, Literature arguing for the removal of Kings and the institutions they represent are endless.
Yet a look at What makes a King Great, or What is a King meant to be are often Questions that aren't properly tackled
What does it mean to be a King?
This is by far my favorite question in History.
For most Religions it is agreed that Man is Imperfect, hence any Man Made institution is rigged to fail due to its imperfections.
Monarchies, Republics, Plutocracies, Technocracies, Dictatorships, Autocracies, Socialist Nations, Democracies, Theocracies and Chiefdom's
All have been attempts by Man to find a way to Live with one another.
Social Structure and Hierarchy are inevitable in a World of Inequality, and that is true for man and life itself.
Therefore, it is argued that only a System approved by God, or The Divine can work for Man for God is Perfect
throughout history this has given Theocracies and Monarchies the Thumbs up.
From Babylon's King Gilgamesh, to Ancient Israel's King Solomon, to the Great Kingdom of Egypt, Alexander's Hellenic Empire, to the Roman Empire (blessed by the Roman Pantheon), to The Great Empires of China in the Tang, Qing and Ming. The Holy Roman Empire of Charlemagne, The Islamic Caliphates, The British and French Empire and Finally the United States.
All Great Powers of their times have one thing in common, save for the exceptions, they all instituted a Divine Mandate of a Sort into their Ruling Structure.
The King of Babylon was given the Blessing of the Babylonian Pantheon to be crowned, and the President of the United States is sworn into Office whilst keeping a Hand on the Bible.
While that dissuades from the point of Monarchies, my argument here is that it is often the case that a System favored by the Divine is most likely to succeed through History.
Nowhere has this been more true than it has been with Monarchies which have dominated most of the World's History from the Fall of the Roman Empire to the World Wars.
So, when a piece of Media attempts to answer this Question. It is truly an appreciation. And one that is done well, is not only rarest of the rare but a Spectacle to Behold!
So Moving to Vinland Saga
How did this approach the Question: What does it mean to be a King?
Drawing other examples:
Fate Series has tackled it as follows
The King of Knights: "A King is He Who Protects His Subjects no matter what, Hence a King is a Martyr and a Servant to those His Subjects"
The King of Heroes: "A King is He Who Owns His Subjects like they are His Property, and will do whatever it takes to elevate Himself for the Subjects work for the Glory of their King"
The King of Conquerors: "A King is He Who Dreams the Greatest. His Ambitions are Greater, Larger and Grander than the Hopes and Desires of all His Subjects Combined. Therefore, a King is not Alone. For His Will is that of all of His Followers Combined and then some. He is the Culmination of everything His Subjects want to Achieve"
Magi has tackled it as follows
The Wise King: "A King is He Who is the Wisest, and the one Who completely Understands His Subjects, and thus Acts in their Collective Interest"
The King of the Seven Seas: "A King isn't just anyone, He is one Born to Rule. One Born above others, and thus the King is responsible for Leading those beneath Him"
The King of the supposed Rome: "A King is He who represents God's Will, therefore He must Act to carry out the Will of God"
The King of Man: In Magi the Djinn choose their own Candidates, so each Djinn has their own Philosophy like:
"A King is He Who is Undefeated, The Strongest"
"A King is He Who Loves, The Kindest"
So How did Vinland Saga Approach this?
Canute's development from one who rejects his lot his life, to one who embraces it with complete Fluidity and Duty shows us an insight:
"A King is He, Who Shall Build a Heaven on Earth. One who shall sow only Love among-st Man. A King is He, Who Gives Meaning to the Life and Death of His Subjects"
In my years of reading and investigating this myriad concept of Kingship
I found an answer that can perfectly explain a Good King
So, What makes a Good King?
A Good King is He, Who Gives Meaning to the Life and Death of His Subjects
Vinland Saga not only developed to this, it build and executed this.
Among the Greatest Kings of Mankind, King Solomon is regarded as the Greatest King of Man
He had the Super Natural at his Command, Beasts, Spirits and Man all bowed to Him. He was graced by God to wield unparalleled Wisdom and sense of Justice.
By making him a model to sketch by would mean a Ruler is Wise is a Good ruler
The Problem is, Wisdom is judged by Hindsight.
What might appear to be a foolish decision might pay off and end up as Wise:
Winston Churchill urging the Allies to Fight on against the Nazis
And What might appear to be a Wise Decision might end up back firing and hence goes down as Foolish in History:
The Hindenburg (Hydrogen filled Zeppelins) and Titanic (The Unsinkable Ship)
So judging a King to be Good or not based on Wisdom is not easy especially in the Now.
Being Just does not equate being Wise, for being Just simply means carrying out Law. What is Lawful isn't always Wise (Punishing Criminals for Crimes rather than addressing the Core Concern of what led them to it) (Tbh, History shows that not doing latter is costly like how the American Revolution Exploded) and because it depends on how Perfect the Justice System is and what culture it is from.
So what else?
King Solomon had vast Knowledge that earned him the Respect of everyone.
So being a Smart Person means you are a good King?
Having a lot of Knowledge but not knowing how to use it Properly is a Text Book Example of an Incompetent King
So what is left?
If we delve into the Philosophy
we see that King Solomon did something that lines in with our definition
He gave meaning to the Life and Death of His Subjects
He never squandered Lives, not without a meaning meriting the value of their Life. (such as going to war to quash Injustice and Cruelty abroad)
This applies to a great list of Successful Rulers
Augustus Caesar gave meaning to the Deaths of His Legionnaires by pushing Rome to its greatest Extent. He used the Tax paid by the Citizens, not on Himself but to build Aqueducts and Infrastructure to enrich the Realm. He Build Roads and Developed Rome and by Extension Europe.
Akbar the Great gave meaning to His Subjects Life by instituting Meritocracy, and gave meaning to their Deaths by formalizing Pension Systems and Waging War not to Subjugate or Enslave but to Pacify and Stabalise external threats that wished his Domain Harm.
Napoleon Bonaparte did something Similar. He gave his Subjects meaning by spreading French Culture and the Principles of Enlightenment far across Europe. He Built the Grand Army and French Nation State so the people would toil towards something they believed and were proud of during their Life. Even in their death he sought to settle for Peace that would ensure later Generations would not have to suffer the same Hardships and Tragedies
The Rashidun Caliphate is an example as well, for how they sought to give meaning to their Subjects Life by Establishing an Empire where the core tenet was what the said Subjects believed in: Religion as in Islam. They fought the Romans to the extent of Securing themselves, they Fought Persia in Response to their aggression. They gave meaning to the Deaths of their Subjects as well by Ensuring that in their stead a Golden Era would be left for those that Follow.
Don't get me wrong
I am not here to debate who is right and wrong, you are entitled to your own opinion (as am I)
but what I have observed that
A King Who Strives to Give Meaning To His Subjects, is Most Likely to be a Successful Ruler. Therefore, what makes a Good King is His Stride to Give Meaning to His Subjects
And Vinland Saga has developed, and Portrayed that perfectly
Through Canute
and Through Askellad.
Askellad grew up believing the Prophecy of King Arthur
That He Would Come back from Avalon and Save England when it is in Despair
You can argue, that the Idea of King Arthur is what Drove him to do what he did towards the End of the Season.
You can look it up yourself but it is a MAJOR SPOILER FOR THE SERIES
I strongly recommend you don't google it, and watch the series yourself and then Judge.
I have said my Piece.
Vinland Saga is a Thematic and Artistic Masterpiece for the Work and Effort it has put into Develop Characters, World-Building, Narrative and Thematic Focus.
A STRONG 6/5
And now Finally, I would like to end it with my Usual Explanation of each of the Stars
Enjoyable: Vinland Saga was thoroughly enjoyable. I admit it was largely due to the fact that I am a History buff and an Anime on Vikings with amazing Fight Scenes and Narrative set in the Iron Century was something that had me hooked.
BUT DAMN
The Developments in the Story and THE ABSOLUTE FIRE OPENING SONGS and the most Calming and Soothing Ending Songs ever. I couldn't skip a Single Second of this start to finish
Artistic: This is probably my biggest rant ever where I have explained the Artistic Genius of Vinland Saga in the realm of Narrative Strength, Character Development, World Building, Ideological Discourse and Pacing as well as Tension Handling and Climax
This is an Absolute Masterpiece of Art
Recommended: I RECOMMEND THIS TO EVERYONE, ANYONE, EVERYONE.
THIS THING HAS NO FAN SERVICE, it only has blood and gore and some Dark Themes. Which means its fine if you watch it with fam, they won't see no Hentai Here. Just Muscular Men going through Life's Horror
Re-Watching: Oh Hell yes. This is the Best Example I have of a piece of Entertainment doing Justice to the Ideal of a Good King. I will be watching this again and again for years to come
Perfect: ABSOLUTELY, at first I had my own ideas on how it might have been better. But after what happened in the last Episode of Season 1, I have no doubts. I can't imagine the series executing this any better than how they did it. I find it flawless. Everything you might hate about it:
The Toxicity of Thorfinn
The Absurdity of Thors
The Rampant Craziness of Thorkell
The Actions of Askellad
Trust me, ALL OF IT HAS A MEANING
Its there for a reason. It's all planned out for a Big Payout.
Simply put its there to make you hate it, which makes the events later on MUCH MORE IMPACTFUL
An Example is of how Thorfinn is eventually going to end up following His Fathers Path of how He Became the Greatest Warrior. But First, he needs to be the most hated Toxic Piece of Crap in Existence, and then slow burn that over the course of an entire Season
Masterpiece: YES YES YES YES YES
Conclusion: 6/5 -> All 24 episodes stay on my Hard Drive as a sort of Hall of Fame Decoration. A testament to How Good Season 1 of Vinland Saga is
Now Note this was all for Season 1
We don't know if Season 2 will be as good, but have Hopes!
If you have read everything thus far, I thank you. I thank you so very much for being the most amazing Audience.
If I might say, I hope I made this Article worth your time by educating you on the Ideal of a King and who it is inexorably linked with the Human Condition and Mankinds History.
THANK YOU!
No comments:
Post a Comment