The upcoming fourth episode of “Vikings” Season 4 might be Travis Fimmel’s last episode as King Ragnar’s demise is now in the offing.
Ivan Kaye returns in the March 10 episode of the historical drama as King Aelle and it looks like he will be responsible for the pagan king’s death.
The official synopsis of the episode suggests that King Aelle’s visit to Wessex during the holidays will be met with some animosity as he will not be impressed with the development of family relations.
Meanwhile in Paris, the future of Rollo, played by Clive Standen, depends on whether he can win over his new bride as a papal delegation arrives to arrange a divorce.
In the preview for the upcoming episode entitled “Yol,” an angry King Aelle shouts that he will kill Ragnar Lothbrok and it sure does look like he is hell bent on doing it.
The reason behind King Aelle’s interest in murdering the King of Denmark is still unknown at this point, but historical accounts claim that he is responsible for Ragnar’s death in real-life history.
The leader of the Vikings was captured in Northumbria and King Aelle had him thrown into a pit full of venomous snakes which ultimately killed him.
Historically, Ragnar quipped ‘how the little pigs would grunt if they knew how the old boar suffers’ as his last words.
Ragnar’s terms of endearment for his sons were apparently ‘little pigs.’ They were able to avenge their father’s death by launching a 14-year-long invasion in England.
Fans know that Fimmel’s character will be saying goodbye this season and that the show will move forward without him. Although they were probably shocked to learn that it came earlier than expected.
Speaking to Radio Times, series creator Micheal Hirst said that although he is sad that Ragnar will say farewell, he also anticipates the storylines of Ragnar’s sons because many of them became as famous, if not more famous than he was.
Reports say that when Ragnar dies, Alexander Ludwig’s Bjorn Ironside will be the main focus of the show possibly taking over his father’s throne. Historically, Bjorn sailed around the Mediterranean and went to Iceland and Greenland.
During the last episode, George Blagden made a shocking return as Athelstan, the priest who was killed by Gustaf Skarsgard’s Floki last season.
Athelstan appeared as a vision to Ragnar and Linus Roache’s King Ecbert delivering a special message to them which pertains to mercy, which is also the title of the episode.
Fans were ultimately surprised by Athelstan’s re-appearance as they did not see it coming. Speaking to Zap2it, Hirst said that it was always his plan to bring back Blagden’s monk character into the show.
Hirst says that Athelstan’s presence was too visceral especially for Ragnar and Ecbert that’s why he knew the priest needed to come back.
He adds that the priest was a vital persona to Ragnar and Ecbert and that he was the perfect person to transcend the message to the other.
In Athelstan’s vision, the King of Denmark ultimately made up his mind to free Floki while the monk’s visit to the king of Wessex served as an emotional note for Ecbert that he has already passed away and he has to accept that fact.
Hirst also teased that fans might see more of Athelstan in visions especially with Ragnar’s death along the way. The series creator teases that his vitality to Ragnar might come in handy any time this season.
In the last episode, Bjorn also proved his strength as he obsessed over killing a bear that has managed to escape his traps while Ben Robson’s Kalf hires a Berserker to assassinate Bjorn on King Horik’s son’s behalf.