Paul Levinson's Infinite Regress

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George Santayana had irrational faith in reason - I have irrational faith in TV.

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Vikings 5.14: Fake News in Kattegat

An excellent, taut Vikings 5.14 just on. Before we get to the meat of this episode, we learn at the beginning, just as I suspected (see my review of episode 5.13), that Hvitserk was not Ivar the mad king's sacrifice. It was a woman whom he said was Lagertha. Fake news, Viking style. (Fake news indeed goes back a long way in history, see Fake News in Real Context for details.)

So we know now, over and over again, that Ivar is a clever and demented warrior and King. So it's no surprise that he also puts the Seer out of his misery, when the Seer tells Ivar he will bring his people to ruin. Actually, that's also close to happening back in England.

This was an excellent English hour, with all the trimmings. King Alfred's brother can't bring himself to kill Alfred. And Magnus is recognized as Ragnar's son by Bjorn, while Ubbe doesn't buy it. So we have a double, maybe quadruple, brother against brother in this episode.

The problem with Vikings, intrinsic and endemic to all historical dramas if they're true to history, is that we know, or can easily discover, the results of the tensions and contests and battles we see building up before us in the drama. Young King Alfred is none other than Alfred the Great. That name in itself told me that Alfred's brother would not follow through in the plan to kill him. And it tells us Alfred will succeed in his battle against Harald.

But the story is being so well told and acted that it is still has immense appeal. I'll see you here next week, when we know more of how big history unfolds on our smaller screens.