Vinland Saga recently brought its second season to a close and cemented its place as one of the greatest anime adaptations of all time. With this year’s San Diego Comic-Con opening its doors, the creator of Thorfinn and this viking world, Makoto Yukimura, had the chance to sit down with us at ComicBook.com to discuss the latest season and what he has planned for the future. With Vinland Saga’s manga ending on the way, you might be surprised what Makoto has in store in the future for the viking universe.
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Vinland Saga first began in 2005 and has continued releasing new chapters from mangaka Makoto Yukimura to this day. In recent interviews, the artist has made it no secret that the end game is approaching for Thorfinn as he searches for a peaceful land to call his own. While a third season of the anime adaptation has yet to be confirmed by Studio MAPPA, there have been hints that we haven’t seen the last of this brutal world.
Vinland Saga: Creator Makoto Yukimura Speaks
In recalling Vinland Saga Season 2, Yukimura discussed the differences between his characters that are based on historical figures and those who were completely born from his mind, “Arneid and Gardar are my original characters. In terms of season 2, you will see characters based on history – Thorfinn, Leif Erikson, Canute, and that is it. The rest are all creations of my own. Usually, I come up with original characters when there is a necessity to drive the story. In the case of Iron Fist, because Thorfinn was a slave, we needed someone to own the slaves.”
Makoto then expanded on the background of the original characters and their purpose in the brutal world, “In terms of Einar, he is a complete victim of the war and slave trade. I needed someone to represent the victim of the slave trade. These original characters are born in order to fulfill a need in life. For Einar, he represents the pain and sorrow, and victimhood of war. He cannot be a strongly built person. As for Gardar, he started his life with status but then loses everything to come a slave. These set-ups become the backbone of each character.”
When asked about the upcoming conclusion of Vinland Saga’s manga, Makoto Yukimura stated that he might revisit an untold story from Thorfinn’s past to continue the universe in the future, “A lot of people want me to write a story about when the group went to Istanbul. In the story, Thorfinn and other characters speak a lot about going to Istanbul, and then the manga cuts to them coming back from it. Fans are maybe slightly disappointed I spoke so much about it without explanation, so I feel obligated to explore the story.”
Makoto also shared a profound message with Vinland Saga fans in the West, thanking manga and anime fans alike for following Thorfinn’s journey, “First of all, I want to say thank you for watching the Vinland Saga anime. It makes me so happy it has reached beyond my manga to be accepted by more fans, by those beyond my own effort. It is really amazing to see my story become an anime and be enjoyed by so many. To those in America, I’d like you to read my manga and answer a question – a question without any answer. I’ve spent so much time thinking about love and war and the meaning of humanity. So please think about this with me.”
You can currently stream the first two seasons of Vinland Saga on Crunchyroll.
