Vinland Saga Has The Biggest Surprise In Anime For 2019

We've been talking about Vinland Saga a lot recently and for good reason. With the finale of the first season giving us an ending akin the Red Wedding of Game of Thrones, the series has thrown a wrench into predictability by throwing the equivalent of a nuclear bomb among our favorite viking protagonists. With Thorfinn finding himself in an extremely different position now from even one episode prior, a second season has yet to be confirmed, but rest assured, that we are pulling for a confirmation harder than ever following the jaw dropping conclusion.

The 24th episode of Vinland Saga focused on Thorfinn, Askeladd, Thorkell, and the Danish Prince, Canutes, as they attempt to slowly overthrow the current king. While Thorfinn is more concerned with gaining revenge for his father against Askeladd, the very man that killed him, Asheladd is all on board with deposing Canutes' father. In a bid to rile up Askeladd, the current king announced that he would be attacking Wales in a bid to make them respect his crown, leaving our favorite Vinland Saga anti-hero in a real pickle.

Of course, the most surprising part of the episode was Askeladd's decision, which he saw as the only way out of his current predicament. Sacrificing his own life, Askeladd straight up kills the king of the Danes in front of numerous soldiers and other royals in a banquet hall. Attempting to paint himself as a madman, the target of Thorfinn's revenge is killed in order to effortlessly transfer the throne to Canutes as well as save the country of Wales from an attack that would surely decimate them.

With the episode ending on a cliffhanger, with Thorfinn losing his chance for revenge and being dragged away, a possible season two hints at the introduction of numerous new characters with the prologue of the season one finale.

What did you think of the final episode of the first season of Vinland Saga? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and Vikings!

Originally created by Makoto Yukimura for Kodansha's Weekly Shonen Magazine, Vinland Saga has been collected into 21 volumes and has more than five million copies in print as of 2018. Kondansha USA Comics has licensed the series for an English release and describes Vinland Saga as such: "Thorfinn is son to one of the Vikings' greatest warriors, but when his father is killed in battle by the mercenary leader Askeladd, he swears to have his revenge. Thorfinn joins Askeladd's band in order to challenge him to a duel, and ends up caught in the middle of a war for the crown of England. From the creator of the classic Planetes manga, comes this epic, highly-anticipated tale."