Is anyone watching the Viking series?

[Baitball Blogger]

It seems like major revisionism is going on. From what I remember of history their main strategy was the element of surprise. After that it was rape, pillage and plunder.

In the series they are showing acts of kindness, before plundering. And in the case of rape, a female viking tried to stop one of them from raping a villager and when he turned on her to try and rape her, she killed him.

And then, they showed the Roman military strategy of "tanking" together with shields held up to stop the arrows.

Sounds like a lot of wishful thinking.

[jakeXT]

1. I only know this one...

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

2. I find it hard to believe the Viking leaders didn't know where England was ...

... as if sailing west out of Norway would take them off the edge of the world.

England had been pretty much taken over by Angles and Saxons, whose original homeland was near Denmark. Rape, pillage, and plunder may be the most photogenic of their activities, but I'd guess they did enough drinking, talking, and singing to distribute news of a whole big complex of islands. Sheesh.

I keep hoping they'll start the SPAM song.

[harmonicon]

3. I tried to watch part of one episode and found it to be unwatchable.

I can't even remember what my particular gripes were with it. I just remember that it was bad.

[hopemountain]

4. too dark and gory

your observations seem accurate, baitball blogger. read the historical novel "greenlanders" years ago .... and my hubby was of viking descent. my threshold of grunters has been met.

[MiddleFingerMom]

5. I've only seen quick bits and pieces of it... and my only impression was that...

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.... the production values seem pretty good.
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Why do you seem to be expecting historical accuracy from a hoped-to-be popular "History" Channel show? The
best thing I've read about that is "The History Channel is doing to history what MTV did to music".
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Enjoy it for what it is -- just don't expect to pass the final on your History 101 exam because you watched it.
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[grasswire]

6. I am watching it pretty carefully.

I have learned this year that I have Viking ancestry, and I have been interested to watch this as an addition to all the studying I have been doing. Their Ragnar Lothbrok parallels my 36th great grandfather.

Even if they are taking liberties with history, I still think it's useful.

Last episode tonight. I predict that Ragnar will die in Northumberland King Aella's snake pit.