Vinland Saga 2×1 | Slave | REACTION/REVIEW

Lets go abi Vinland is back!

GOATLAND SAGA has returned!!!! I am typing this out before watching the reaction but wanted to give my opinions on the episode, the series itself and a few random things I learned since this episode aired yesterday. First off my opinion of the premiere is that it was excellent, perfectly reintroduced to the world and time which we find ourselves in while at the same time introducing an entirely new character with Einar in a way that got me invested in his future development considering the events of the episode obviously. Second, I just love Vinland Saga as an anime only and really hope this season is what helps it explode to ensure we continue to get this story animated.

Lastly the two little things I learned, so the first half of the episode is anime original content, which I both loved those scenes with Einar his mother and his sister before and after learning this. Also the very opening scenes right after the OP plays were spoken in Old Norse. Happy to see you reacting to season 2 as it airs Abi and as a fellow anime only am so excited to see where this season goes, specifically very excited to see how Thorfinn and Einar influence one another!

Season 2 of Vinland Saga has been slated for 24 episodes according to Blu-ray pre-ordering/listing information.

Thorfinn is still the protagonist of the series, but Einar is definitely the deuteragonist of this arc.

So something for anime-onlys to keep in mind. After season 1 (i.e. the Prologue arc), the Vinland Saga series stops being anywhere as near battle-focused, action-heavy, or concerned with political intrigue (at least politics focusing on monarchy). It becomes much more character study focused and historical fiction focused (for those not in the know Thorfinn is a fictionalized version of a real 11th century explorer/trader of the same name, who’s main primary sources come from two Icelandic Sagas histories).

Also fun bit of trivia, this arc is often called the “Farmland Saga” arc of the series. But in addition to Wineland, one of the other common translations for the Norse word Vinland is literally “Farmland”. i.e. the most common name of this arc is literally just the series name but in modern English.

Another bit of trivia about this episode, the first-half of it is an anime-original creation/expansion of Einar’s backstory (that is told largely by a couple pages of dialogue in the manga).

Also in the manga the buyer who was looking for more “cute looking men” to buy as a slave actually copped a feel of Einar’s genitals (as part of the “inspection-process”). It was after that in the manga, that Einar made his first escape attempt.

Oh and if you’re planning on reading along with the manga, this episode adapted all of chapter 55, which is collected in the English edition of Volume 4 (an FYI the English volumes of the manga collect two Japanese volumes in one, in case anyone was confused looking up information about the manga).

For anyone curious, I am 99% certain that Thorfinn was sold into slavery as a result of his attempted assassination of Canute.

Canute didn't want Thorfinn to be executed, but he still couldn't let him off free.

2 things, EVERY culture (or at least most cultures) have been terribly violent throughout history. No need to apologize for being interested in Vikings.

2nd thing, when u read along with the arc, one of the differences u will notice is Einar's journey has a bit of a lighter tone to it (him making silly faces when stealing and when being touched by one of the potential buyers), changing this to a more somber tone works to the adaptation's benefit, at least in my perspective.

Welcome to the glory that is the legendary, "Farmland Saga"

Peak fiction

abi gets it. "what an interesting start" best reactor around! And ur looks and style are always so different and unique!!!!

This is a good season for mappa animators not so much action packed some sad and awesome character development arc

This episode only covered Ch. 55, the first half was anime original stuff. Also the opening part was in Norse, I love stuff like that.

King Sweyn(Svhen) of Denmark offered Askeladd a stark choice: the security of his homeland Wales, or the life of his master, Prince Canute(Can-oot). Askeladd's answer was immediate: He struck off Sweyn's head. The meeting of military leaders erupted into chaos after this act of regicide(the action of killing a King), but Canute recognized the play at hand, and killed Askeladd himself, thereby accomplishing Askeladd's aim. Canute immediately took the throne. But after witnessing the end of his father figure, Thorfinn was left empty inside. He was eventually sold into slavery to work on a farm.

I am not going to go back and comment this under every single reaction I watched and left a comment under but I really enjoy your reactions (yes I am rewatching yours as well as others reactions to this episode, don't judge me lol) and so I feel now that most of the reactions for this first episode are out on YT I wanted to come back and bring this up since I didn't in my original comment. I really only noticed one reactor pick up on this and discuss it in their review (FilmBuff), definitely something a viewer (especially reactors) could kind of gloss over in their heads as it happens but I think given this is a Seinen story and how consistently it has been written thus far I feel this should be something at least in the back of every viewers mind.

Einar when he gets to the farm (maybe even for all his narration scenes) and is narrating, it is easy to think of all of that as internal monologue or thought but he is very clearly speaking in the past tense. This tells us two things when he is speaking what his mental and emotional state was at the time and how it was the first time he and Thorfinn met. Firstly it tells us that again the narration happening is from Einar, obviously somewhere in the future (how far? no idea, not even sure what year we are currently, 1014 was last year shown in anime S1) which also suggests the second thing that he is speaking to at least one other person in whatever time and place he is currently at when narrating.

Obviously I think this will circle back, either by the end of this season of basically being an Einar story time ordeal or it could be a reveal for later on in the series like in what would be Season 3 assume the anime continues on after this season. Again, love your reactions and discussions and can not wait for the rest of this season as a fellow anime only. I spend way too much time thinking about this stuff but good stories will do that to you lol.