Just fyi, Snake said he is a warrior of Miklagard. Miklagard is the nordic name for the city Constantinople. Constantinople was at this point in history the capital of the Byzantine empire, which was basically the continuation of the Roman Empire. This leads me to believe the Snake was most likely a member of the Varangian Guard, an elite unit of the Byzantine Empire that was primarily composed of warriors recruited from the far away north of Europe. The Varangian Guard served as the personal guards of the Byzantine Emperors. That also would explain his exotic sword (and many other things aswell). p.s to confirm - hijalti is dead unfortunately :(
It is not confirmed. We saw Hjalti being taken but we never see him definitively dead. There's an argument to be made that what Gardar saw wasn't necessarily the afterlife, although that is definitely one way they want us to potentially interpret it. I think it's left intentionally vague. The strength of Vinland Saga is in its theming above its actual vocalisation. I believe it's actually more impactful this way, because they allow us that little bit of hope that he's not. Which makes it hurt more, because if we follow the theming of the show, we can pretty safely assume he is. It wants us to believe that the most heartbreaking answers are probably the right ones, but it would never outright tell us that. It's cruelly and beautifully realistic.
@@rainyday_vg well said, but tbh we all know that he is dead even though we have never seen him dying and part of that just cause there's absolutely no reason to show murder of toddler in those ep's like be for real (ep 19 we can clearly see all of them, gardar, arnheid and 2 kids riding in the after life)
Hjalti being Einar is the most tunnel vision theory on the channel 😂 The language used in the prologue of the season was nordic so it was showing Viking life and culture
I know right, the tunnel vision was insane on this one. Once it clicked and I remembered that Hjalti was six, I felt like the biggest idiot. But I thought it was funny and even I get brain mixups. Honestly it’s this heat man, its been 85 degrees in my apartment every day this summer and I’m actually losing my mind. My brain isn’t braining anymore 🤣
First, Snake’s speech reminded me of the conversation between Knut and the priest: "Love is discrimination." Next, "For honor and wealth" Garzar was a very good husband and man to Arneiz. But he was also a foolish and arrogant Nord warrior. He misplaced the priorities of what he really needed to protect. He realized this on his deathbed, but it was too late. I think all he had left in the end was regret for the price he had paid for seeking more wealth and fame than he needed.😢 By the way, You may already know this. Snake said, "I am a warrior of Miklagard." Miklagard was another name for Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which means he was from the area now known as Istanbul in Türkiye.🇹🇷 Sorry for the long comment. Anyway, my thoughts on this masterpiece are always the same. What a beautiful story. What a deep philosophical message. Perfect. Peakland Saga!😭❤
Miklagard is the Norse way of saying Constantinople. It's heavily suggested that Snake may have been part of the Varangian Guard, an elite unit that would serve as bodyguards to the Byzantine Emperor Yukimura and Yabuta wanted to add an anime original episode featuring Snake's backstory but unfortunately they weren't able to fit it in the season
This is Premium anime 💫 The ability to have me weeeeeeppppp from simple storytelling (without major fighting/killing)… is sublime. The fact that I keep getting gut wrenched almost every episode is insane. Master writing and storytelling about Gardar as well. Barely knew of his character, but felt such huge heartache for his story of regret and it being too late, but has happiness in the end with his son🤍 Man 🥹😭 it didn’t help the piano in the background is LETHAL
Facts and very well said!!! It’s simple story telling and the final scenes didn’t have any dialogue yet was so loud and writing/ visuals were so strong. Yeah that dam piano is so lethal, kicking while we’re already down. Not cool 😭
Its absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking. Hjalti was actually shown to be killed in the manga which the anime didnt show for obvious reasons. Arnheid says that Hjalti is 6 years old. Then at the end of the episode we see Gardar being reunited with a 6 year old Hjalti which is in the afterlife because Arnheid isn't there cuz she's alive. So yeah, Hjalti is dead and Gardar reuniting with him in the afterlife is HEARTBREAKING. No matter how many times I see this episode, it absolutely breaks me. And I also think that was Gardar at the beginning of episode 1 with the tattoo. I mean it would make sense right? Also where Gardar says about Hjalti wanting to go adventuring, he actually says the word "Viking" (you can hear it if you listen closely), while saying that sentence but it wasn't written in the sub, so I think what he's actually saying is "When Hjalti grows up, he'll probably want to be a Viking. All boys do. But I won't allow him." IDK why they wrote 'adventuring' in the subs.
It always surprises me seeing people in disbelief that Snake killed a mass murderer even though it's his only job and it's more than warranted at this point
Yeah for sure I agree with you 100% and his job does warrant it. There’s a couple reasons why I was surprised, first being that Snake started to read the Bible to the old man and has shown a compassionate side in other ways. Also being around three great people 24/7 like Sverkel, Arnheid, and Thorfinn, gave me hope that he’d start to make the change. The fact that he was also willing to listen/ conversate with Thorfinn, Arnheid, and Sverkel told me that he wasn’t as ruthless as he led on to believe and that there was a chance at him letting Gardar live. If Snake really wanted to kill him he could’ve done it the moment he got his position but he waited which made me think that he wanted to be convinced otherwise or had second thoughts about killing Gardar. This isn’t much disbelief but more so shock because I was expecting this to be the first step in Snake’s change. We’ve seen Sverkel try to drop some wisdom on Snake lately and it hasn’t been landing so I thought this conversation between the four characters at this pinnacle of circumstance would’ve acted as an intervention in hopes of Snake making his turnaround. My reaction wasn’t surface level in the sense that Snake couldn’t physically kill a mass murderer and he was just doing his job, it was a deeper shock because I thought this was the moment he would’ve made his change like Thorfinn since we we’re just given a great display of how paralleled these characters are. I was shocked from a writing standpoint and not in disbelief of Snakes capability to kill Gardar.
The opening montage represents the Viking ethos. The poem seems to be about violently carving your path through society. We get linked to it in this episode because what happens to Gardar is in pursuit of that ethos. "For honor and wealth." Gardar realizes at the end that it wasnt worth it and led to his biggest regret. He won't allow Hjalti to become a Viking, he mentions. The blood that he wipes on Hjalti's face represents the violence being passed down the generations. This is something Thorfinn mentions to Einar about Norse cultures and fathers sending their sons off to fight.
Snake's logic about his men doesn't really work in any more than an emotional way, because Gardar and Arnheid could totally turn that logic around on him. why do Snake's men matter enough to be protected from the law, and employed despite their crimes, while Gardar and Arnhied are robbed of everything, even though they did nothing wrong? and they're enslaved with the full support of the law. they can be punished, by law, for escaping. Snake is basically a criminal who became a cop in order to pardon himself and his guys, and now he has no sympathy for anyone else that the law decides to torment. if Snake was gonna enforce the law, which sides with abusive rich guys who think it's okay to own people, then he had to know that he and his crew were putting themselves in danger, especially going after desperate people, who are generally prisoners of war, and spend all their time doing hard labor. I don't like that they died, but it couldn't have been that surprising if they did the math.
And here we are, the episode I've been waiting for you to see since the beginning of this season. Between the themes of this show, the story telling, the characters, the passion, the creativity, the realism, and the pure humanity and shared experience of this episode between all who witness this greatness. Its is so rare, but there is nothing else like it. As expected, I bawled watching this episode once more and your reaction was precisely what I hoped for, just another human being in all our Glory, and all our suffering, and feeling for life, in general. Thank you, sincerely. Looking forward to the rest of this season with you♥️🙏🔥
I'm a little late, but my interpretation of the scene with snake thinking "haven't experienced a single good thing huh? no kidding, what kind of monsters surrounded him", is that as things were with warriors at the time, strength brought fame, wealth and status, and to be as strong as thorfinn and not experience "a single good thing", namely the aforementioned rewards he must have been surrounded by people who either outshone him or matched his abilities to blend him in with everyone around him taking away any chance he had at gaining confidence or true understanding of where exactly he could have stood. I mean, he really was in an all-star warrior squadron his entire time fighting, so any feats he had no matter how impressive wouldn't really make him stand out too much especially with guys like thorkell and askeladd around. So even with such abilities that would have given anyone else status, fame and wealth he continually lived as a scavenger on the outskirts of askeladds circle being treated as an expendable work dog.
Something really tragic about Gardar going to the afterlife, we see him laughing and smiling, running home free. And then he sees Hjalti and his face drops. Up until then, Arnheid told him Hjalti is alive, but he meets him here in the afterlife. There's a horrified kind of joy in this moment, where he's happy to meet his son again yet mourning that it was here in the afterlife. Even in death he isn't allowed the chance to put his regrets to peace :')
this was such a masterfully done episode, especially when you know about his death being VERY short in the manga, it wasn’t that emotional and heart wrenching AT ALL
Copy that, thank you Ash!! Yeah I remember not understanding anything in that scene and saw they hinted at this episode. Maybe took it a little far in the discussion but it’s all fun ❤️
So, the beginning shots of the season is basically just the "origin" if you will, of a plot that leads to tragedy, and greatly impacts the storyline of S2, and Thorfinn & Einar's character. It has both personal and thematic importance. Sorry i've been out of the loop on your YT channel for a while, and i'm finally catching up again! I figure that once you get through the move and get settled i'll be caught up, which would be good timing.
I’m glad that I know you zetakari or else I wouldn’t know how to take this 🤣 only for you ❤️ Didn’t know it was you at first since you switched off the Reiner pfp
That’s my brothers smoke alarm 🤣 he left for home and didn’t swap his batteries and he locked his door and I can’t get in 💀 it’s been driving me crazy. Great ear!!
Arnheid is around the same age as Einar. She said Hjalti would be 6 years old in this episode. We saw Einar together with his mom and sister in the beginning. How could Hjalti be Einar when she's the same age as Einar, Hjalti would be 6 years and we saw Einars mother before. I like your reactions but this is kinda ridiculous. Also would be kinda creepy when Einar is in love with Arnheid. Only reason the author made Einar and Garder look alike is becouse Arneid is reminded of Garder a bit when she sees Einar. Which gives another layer to why she likes Einar. She said he had a nice face.
Beast, I’m not gonna lie the heat is getting to me 🤣 I agree, it would’ve been weird which is why I said it would’ve been close to the story of Oedipus. And I quickly realized after I remembered Hjalti was six. Also why I said I was being stupid. Just a little mix up in my brain
@@officialswanii It's alright! You did correct it it too anyway. Usually you're on point and you do make some good theories. Also good to see how invested you are in all the characters, that's what makes these reactions! No faking either. I was just being a little critical of the theory-crafting this time.
I appreciate that big time man, yeah keep me in check! I guess there’s still that piece of me that wants to dig like AOT. This theory mixup perfectly showed me that this show is deep in its meaning and philosophical story telling and not deep in past/present/future theory crafting! I appreciate your attentiveness to the videos Beast, you’ve been one of the OG’s to the channel so I know you mean well
It’s fucked to see Snake kill Gardar, but in my opinion he did what he had to do and I don’t respect him any less for it. Seeing him have a change of heart would have been nice, but in such a tense moment I don’t think it’d make much sense. That’s something you have to build up to like Thorfinn
Man this one always kills me, the reveal that Hjalti has already passed away and greets him in the afterlife.
i was happy to see that he was connecting what he saw in ep 1 and then i got flabbergasted by him like bro what were you cooking 💀
He overcooked for sure xD
I was debating editing it out because I felt so stupid watching that back but it made me laugh so I kept it in 🤣
Lmao I don’t what I was cooking 💀
Yeah lol I mean, not everything needs to have a crazy twist like AoT
We don't do that here
@@officialswanii I def still enjoy watching you cook lol
Just fyi, Snake said he is a warrior of Miklagard. Miklagard is the nordic name for the city Constantinople. Constantinople was at this point in history the capital of the Byzantine empire, which was basically the continuation of the Roman Empire.
This leads me to believe the Snake was most likely a member of the Varangian Guard, an elite unit of the Byzantine Empire that was primarily composed of warriors recruited from the far away north of Europe. The Varangian Guard served as the personal guards of the Byzantine Emperors. That also would explain his exotic sword (and many other things aswell).
p.s to confirm - hijalti is dead unfortunately :(
It is not confirmed. We saw Hjalti being taken but we never see him definitively dead. There's an argument to be made that what Gardar saw wasn't necessarily the afterlife, although that is definitely one way they want us to potentially interpret it. I think it's left intentionally vague. The strength of Vinland Saga is in its theming above its actual vocalisation. I believe it's actually more impactful this way, because they allow us that little bit of hope that he's not. Which makes it hurt more, because if we follow the theming of the show, we can pretty safely assume he is. It wants us to believe that the most heartbreaking answers are probably the right ones, but it would never outright tell us that. It's cruelly and beautifully realistic.
@@rainyday_vg well said, but tbh we all know that he is dead even though we have never seen him dying and part of that just cause there's absolutely no reason to show murder of toddler in those ep's like be for real (ep 19 we can clearly see all of them, gardar, arnheid and 2 kids riding in the after life)
Hjalti being Einar is the most tunnel vision theory on the channel 😂
The language used in the prologue of the season was nordic so it was showing Viking life and culture
I know right, the tunnel vision was insane on this one. Once it clicked and I remembered that Hjalti was six, I felt like the biggest idiot. But I thought it was funny and even I get brain mixups. Honestly it’s this heat man, its been 85 degrees in my apartment every day this summer and I’m actually losing my mind. My brain isn’t braining anymore 🤣
First, Snake’s speech reminded me of the conversation between Knut and the priest: "Love is discrimination."
Next, "For honor and wealth"
Garzar was a very good husband and man to Arneiz. But he was also a foolish and arrogant Nord warrior. He misplaced the priorities of what he really needed to protect. He realized this on his deathbed, but it was too late. I think all he had left in the end was regret for the price he had paid for seeking more wealth and fame than he needed.😢
By the way, You may already know this.
Snake said, "I am a warrior of Miklagard." Miklagard was another name for Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which means he was from the area now known as Istanbul in Türkiye.🇹🇷
Sorry for the long comment. Anyway, my thoughts on this masterpiece are always the same. What a beautiful story. What a deep philosophical message. Perfect.
Peakland Saga!😭❤
Dude ive already cried at this episode once today i cant do this again man 😭
I’m sorry but it’s an inevitability 😭 good luck
@@officialswanii im only like 10 minutes in still cause i keep having to pause 😭its an amazing episode but such a hard watch
Miklagard is the Norse way of saying Constantinople. It's heavily suggested that Snake may have been part of the Varangian Guard, an elite unit that would serve as bodyguards to the Byzantine Emperor
Yukimura and Yabuta wanted to add an anime original episode featuring Snake's backstory but unfortunately they weren't able to fit it in the season
This is Premium anime 💫 The ability to have me weeeeeeppppp from simple storytelling (without major fighting/killing)… is sublime. The fact that I keep getting gut wrenched almost every episode is insane. Master writing and storytelling about Gardar as well. Barely knew of his character, but felt such huge heartache for his story of regret and it being too late, but has happiness in the end with his son🤍 Man 🥹😭 it didn’t help the piano in the background is LETHAL
"crying" that damn PIANO
Facts and very well said!!! It’s simple story telling and the final scenes didn’t have any dialogue yet was so loud and writing/ visuals were so strong.
Yeah that dam piano is so lethal, kicking while we’re already down. Not cool 😭
Its absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking. Hjalti was actually shown to be killed in the manga which the anime didnt show for obvious reasons. Arnheid says that Hjalti is 6 years old. Then at the end of the episode we see Gardar being reunited with a 6 year old Hjalti which is in the afterlife because Arnheid isn't there cuz she's alive. So yeah, Hjalti is dead and Gardar reuniting with him in the afterlife is HEARTBREAKING. No matter how many times I see this episode, it absolutely breaks me.
And I also think that was Gardar at the beginning of episode 1 with the tattoo. I mean it would make sense right?
Also where Gardar says about Hjalti wanting to go adventuring, he actually says the word "Viking" (you can hear it if you listen closely), while saying that sentence but it wasn't written in the sub, so I think what he's actually saying is "When Hjalti grows up, he'll probably want to be a Viking. All boys do. But I won't allow him." IDK why they wrote 'adventuring' in the subs.
It always surprises me seeing people in disbelief that Snake killed a mass murderer even though it's his only job and it's more than warranted at this point
Yeah for sure I agree with you 100% and his job does warrant it. There’s a couple reasons why I was surprised, first being that Snake started to read the Bible to the old man and has shown a compassionate side in other ways. Also being around three great people 24/7 like Sverkel, Arnheid, and Thorfinn, gave me hope that he’d start to make the change. The fact that he was also willing to listen/ conversate with Thorfinn, Arnheid, and Sverkel told me that he wasn’t as ruthless as he led on to believe and that there was a chance at him letting Gardar live. If Snake really wanted to kill him he could’ve done it the moment he got his position but he waited which made me think that he wanted to be convinced otherwise or had second thoughts about killing Gardar. This isn’t much disbelief but more so shock because I was expecting this to be the first step in Snake’s change. We’ve seen Sverkel try to drop some wisdom on Snake lately and it hasn’t been landing so I thought this conversation between the four characters at this pinnacle of circumstance would’ve acted as an intervention in hopes of Snake making his turnaround.
My reaction wasn’t surface level in the sense that Snake couldn’t physically kill a mass murderer and he was just doing his job, it was a deeper shock because I thought this was the moment he would’ve made his change like Thorfinn since we we’re just given a great display of how paralleled these characters are. I was shocked from a writing standpoint and not in disbelief of Snakes capability to kill Gardar.
Man fuck, how does it rain in my bedroom every single time I watch this episode, damn it
The opening montage represents the Viking ethos. The poem seems to be about violently carving your path through society.
We get linked to it in this episode because what happens to Gardar is in pursuit of that ethos. "For honor and wealth." Gardar realizes at the end that it wasnt worth it and led to his biggest regret. He won't allow Hjalti to become a Viking, he mentions.
The blood that he wipes on Hjalti's face represents the violence being passed down the generations. This is something Thorfinn mentions to Einar about Norse cultures and fathers sending their sons off to fight.
Snake's logic about his men doesn't really work in any more than an emotional way, because Gardar and Arnheid could totally turn that logic around on him. why do Snake's men matter enough to be protected from the law, and employed despite their crimes, while Gardar and Arnhied are robbed of everything, even though they did nothing wrong? and they're enslaved with the full support of the law. they can be punished, by law, for escaping.
Snake is basically a criminal who became a cop in order to pardon himself and his guys, and now he has no sympathy for anyone else that the law decides to torment. if Snake was gonna enforce the law, which sides with abusive rich guys who think it's okay to own people, then he had to know that he and his crew were putting themselves in danger, especially going after desperate people, who are generally prisoners of war, and spend all their time doing hard labor. I don't like that they died, but it couldn't have been that surprising if they did the math.
season 2 is just peak
It has absolutely been a peak season 😭😮💨
And here we are, the episode I've been waiting for you to see since the beginning of this season. Between the themes of this show, the story telling, the characters, the passion, the creativity, the realism, and the pure humanity and shared experience of this episode between all who witness this greatness. Its is so rare, but there is nothing else like it. As expected, I bawled watching this episode once more and your reaction was precisely what I hoped for, just another human being in all our Glory, and all our suffering, and feeling for life, in general. Thank you, sincerely. Looking forward to the rest of this season with you♥️🙏🔥
I'm a little late, but my interpretation of the scene with snake thinking "haven't experienced a single good thing huh? no kidding, what kind of monsters surrounded him", is that as things were with warriors at the time, strength brought fame, wealth and status, and to be as strong as thorfinn and not experience "a single good thing", namely the aforementioned rewards he must have been surrounded by people who either outshone him or matched his abilities to blend him in with everyone around him taking away any chance he had at gaining confidence or true understanding of where exactly he could have stood. I mean, he really was in an all-star warrior squadron his entire time fighting, so any feats he had no matter how impressive wouldn't really make him stand out too much especially with guys like thorkell and askeladd around. So even with such abilities that would have given anyone else status, fame and wealth he continually lived as a scavenger on the outskirts of askeladds circle being treated as an expendable work dog.
I saw Vinland Saga, I clicked
I saw comment, I liked
Something really tragic about Gardar going to the afterlife, we see him laughing and smiling, running home free. And then he sees Hjalti and his face drops. Up until then, Arnheid told him Hjalti is alive, but he meets him here in the afterlife. There's a horrified kind of joy in this moment, where he's happy to meet his son again yet mourning that it was here in the afterlife. Even in death he isn't allowed the chance to put his regrets to peace :')
Thank you for showing your emotions man 🙏🏼
Bro im the same way as you during those scenes that just have me bawling my eyes out and i just yell "fuck you whoevers playing that piano"
From the second you press play to the moment the credits start to roll just a pure masterpiece of an episode.
this was such a masterfully done episode, especially when you know about his death being VERY short in the manga, it wasn’t that emotional and heart wrenching AT ALL
Swanii crying gotta be one of my favorite genres fs fs🙏
So glad you revisited the Carve It scene. Don't think about it too much you'll understand it later
Copy that, thank you Ash!! Yeah I remember not understanding anything in that scene and saw they hinted at this episode. Maybe took it a little far in the discussion but it’s all fun ❤️
This anime is something different but special
I absolutely agree, this anime is different but in such a good way!! Definitely something special here! 🔥
The end of the Gardarc 😭
Hjalti was probly like 2 or 3 by the time he was taken by the soldiers. But arnheid says hes 6 because it was 3 or 4 years ago.
So, the beginning shots of the season is basically just the "origin" if you will, of a plot that leads to tragedy, and greatly impacts the storyline of S2, and Thorfinn & Einar's character.
It has both personal and thematic importance.
Sorry i've been out of the loop on your YT channel for a while, and i'm finally catching up again!
I figure that once you get through the move and get settled i'll be caught up, which would be good timing.
Oof and you thought you were just pulling up for a sweet Snake-Thorfinn 1v1 🤣
I’ll say it as many times as I have to. Vinland Saga doesn’t get the attention it so rightly deserves.
Keep up the good work!
ight bro put on a maid outfit
I’m glad that I know you zetakari or else I wouldn’t know how to take this 🤣 only for you ❤️
Didn’t know it was you at first since you switched off the Reiner pfp
❤❤❤
❤️❤️❤️ love you om
Brother, you made me cry@officialswanii🥲
I think I might hear a smoke detector chirping in the background; change those batteries brother!
That’s my brothers smoke alarm 🤣 he left for home and didn’t swap his batteries and he locked his door and I can’t get in 💀 it’s been driving me crazy. Great ear!!
Arnheid is around the same age as Einar. She said Hjalti would be 6 years old in this episode. We saw Einar together with his mom and sister in the beginning. How could Hjalti be Einar when she's the same age as Einar, Hjalti would be 6 years and we saw Einars mother before. I like your reactions but this is kinda ridiculous. Also would be kinda creepy when Einar is in love with Arnheid.
Only reason the author made Einar and Garder look alike is becouse Arneid is reminded of Garder a bit when she sees Einar. Which gives another layer to why she likes Einar. She said he had a nice face.
Beast, I’m not gonna lie the heat is getting to me 🤣
I agree, it would’ve been weird which is why I said it would’ve been close to the story of Oedipus. And I quickly realized after I remembered Hjalti was six. Also why I said I was being stupid. Just a little mix up in my brain
@@officialswanii It's alright! You did correct it it too anyway. Usually you're on point and you do make some good theories. Also good to see how invested you are in all the characters, that's what makes these reactions! No faking either. I was just being a little critical of the theory-crafting this time.
I appreciate that big time man, yeah keep me in check!
I guess there’s still that piece of me that wants to dig like AOT. This theory mixup perfectly showed me that this show is deep in its meaning and philosophical story telling and not deep in past/present/future theory crafting!
I appreciate your attentiveness to the videos Beast, you’ve been one of the OG’s to the channel so I know you mean well
@@officialswanii Wow, i didn't expect such a nice message. Thank you!
The most painful episode😢… yet 😭😭
It’s fucked to see Snake kill Gardar, but in my opinion he did what he had to do and I don’t respect him any less for it. Seeing him have a change of heart would have been nice, but in such a tense moment I don’t think it’d make much sense. That’s something you have to build up to like Thorfinn
Man you are over thinking those scenes are just give a perspective for the poem
I’m always overthinking
Snake did nothing wrong
and thats why gardar saga brutalized humanity
Yeah this one left me down bad 😭 RIP Gardar