Fantastical Musings

 Now THAT is how end a SEASON! I mean, was that a great finale or was that a great finale? I don't know about you but I felt that we got the perfect mix of tying up loose ends and setting the scene for future seasons in this episode. The siege of Winchester is over and Uhtred's family and friends are dispersing to their individual duties and homes. Looking forward to next season, we can anticipate that Uhtred will be raising Æthelstan , Brida will be raising her own murderous child, and there will be no end of political infighting in the courts of Wessex. Fun, no? But, that's for the future. For now, let's dive into talking about this episode. First of all, we HAVE to talk about Stiorra's romance with Sigtryggr. I mean, if you can call it a romance. There were very few romantic scenes between them, which is a little disappointing from my point of view. I'm not doubting that they're into each other, but I think the audience needed one or two more scenes to re...

Edward really is an idiot isn't he? Seriously! I'm amazed he's managed to survive as king as long as he has. He has no sense; and he certainly doesn't have fashion sense either. Charging the walls of Winchester like an angry toddler was the absolute height of foolishness. I continue to be disappointed by him in this season. How did Alfred's son get to be so stupid?  On the other hand, almost everyone else is impressing me.  My girl Eadith was AMAZING in this episode. Have I mentioned before how much I like her? The way she killed that Dane and freed Uhtred and the guys was so incredibly brave. I could never have done that;  come to think of it, I don't think I would even have thought of that. I'm not good with ideas under pressure. Eadith did let herself down a little bit because she revealed who she was, but that was a difficult moment for her, so I'll forgive it. I imagine she's going to get through this alive because she NEEDS to reunite with Fina...

Every time I watch this show, I'm reminded of how tough life used to be for humans. Don't get me wrong, life is still tough for many humans around the world, but you don't get bands of marauding Danes with fire arrows anymore, do you? I know that we've had almost four whole seasons of violence on this show, but I still find that I can be amazed by the level of brutality that characters produce. It's simply jaw-dropping, isn't it? Like, that river of fire almost made me want to cry, and I'm not even rooting for the Welsh in this show!  Plus, Brida was just a SAVAGE in this episode. Don't get me wrong, I sort of love that about her. If we've learned anything, it's that women have to find ways to defend themselves on this show. But, her execution of that Welsh nobleman was a masterpiece of cruelty. I mean, he definitely deserved it, but I shudder to think what will happen to Uhtred if Brida ever finds him again.  The feud between Uhtred and Brida is...

Well, things move fast in Mercia, don't they? To be honest, I had a hard time following all the coming and goings from Aegelesburg and who was ploting against whom, but I think the end result is that everyone is more-or-less back where they were a few episode. The notable exception is that Edward has finally decided to behave with *some* degree of logic (although his hair and clothes still look dumb, if you ask me) and Uhtred is on his way to becoming Lord of Mercia, which doesn't really seem to be his style. Don't get me wrong, I think he would be a great ruler, but there's nothing that really binds Uhtred to Mercia, except Æthelflæd. Speaking of Æthelflæd, I really felt for her in this episode. She's had a tough couple of weeks! I hope she has some time to hang out with her daughter and relax. Although, the Danes seem to be invading again, so she'll probably have to be on the battlefield again in an hour or so.  Talking about the Danes, I am glad that Brida FI...

 Well, that was STRESSFUL! Let me count all the opportunities for disaster we had in this episode. 1) The literal plague, 2) a succession crisis, 3) near misses and failed meet ups, and 4) THE DANES ARE BACK.  I don't know about you, but I think the plot and the political drama have really been heating up in the past couple of episodes.  This episode really focused on the political crisis that is developing in Mercia. Edward's choice for king has fallen through, the aldermen are beginning to resent his interference, and the heir to the throne might be dying of the plague. Meanwhile, the king's widow is in the wind, and it's just been revealed that the old king was actually murdered. Not looking too promising, is it? Most of this episode switched back and forth between Uhtred traveling with his warriors and a gaggle of royal children and Edward trying and failing to come to term with the disaster brewing in Mercia.  Watching Uhtred and his team stomp through the ...

Man, was that ever DRAMATIC! Maybe this is going too far, but I think this was my favorite episode of season four so far. It gave me anxiety and it made me angry, but I feel like the plot is really moving along now, and all of those things are good when it comes to television, right? First of all, I have to give some props to my girl Stiorra (I believe that means Star, by the way. It's a great name), she's kicking butts and taking names and doing it all with a fabulous hair style. It's too bad that the laws and norms of the time wouldn't allow Uhtred to make Stiorra his heir because she's super smart and clever, and I bet she would be a great leader. So, basically, a chip off the old block, right? Out of all Uhtred's children, I think she's the most like him. While we're on the subject of Stiorra, I want to take a minute to chat about the theme of the episode, which I think is women trying to take control of their own lives. As we've learned, ninth c...

Well, we're making progress. Cnut, whom I hate, is dead. Aethelred, whom I hate, is *almost* dead. Not too shabby, huh? Now, I just need someone to knock off Edward's father-in-law, and we'll all be peachy-keen. But, seriously, this was a really good episode. It almost felt like it could have been the season finale because soooooo much happened. Like, we had a major battle, the death of a major character, vengeance for Ragnar, and sundry political negotiations all in one episode. Those show writers do not slack off! I have to say that I really enjoyed this episode. It kept me on my toes the whole time, although I always assume that Uhtred will win every battle that he's involved in. Speaking of the battle, I'm glad that Brida had the chance to kill Cnut. Hopefully that gives her a little closure, but I have a feeling that she's going to be suffering for a while. Maybe Uhtred should have killed her. It might have been kinder, but, on the other hand, she...

Well, that episode was jam packed! I actually felt like I was watching it for hours and hours because so many BIG things kept happening. First of all, Uhtred escaped from Bebbanburg. I think we all knew that was going to happen. The rest of season four would have fallen pretty flat without him. More importantly (at least from an emotional perspective), however, Beocca is killed as Uhtred and his men escape. I gotta be honest, that was a hard pill to swallow. I kind of felt like sitting with Uhtred on that hill top and having a good cry about it. Beocca has been with us since episode one, and he really is one of the only truly good guys on the show. To see him die in such a brutal fashion is really hard to accept, although at least he got to return to Bebbanburg before he died. Also, as Finan says, he is at peace with Thyra. Now, THAT really brought a tear to my eye. Overall, I thought this was a very emotional episode. Obviously, the whole thing was shadowed by ...

Wow, was that ever melodramatic. I mean, I guess that's The Last Kingdom's specialty, right? I didn't expect Uhtred to be able to reclaim Bebbanburg easily, but even I am mildly shocked by the sheer level of disaster that he got himself into. I mean, if this was real life, all of Uhtred's men would be dead in about five seconds! This is a TV show, so I expect that most of them will pull off miraculous escapes, but it's still an utter DISASTER. I mean, I do feel bad for Uhtred in this situation because there was no way he could have known that his cousin was alive (and seems to be taking fashion advice from the cast of Pirates of the Caribbean , by the way). If it wasn't for Wihtgar, I think Uhtred would the lord of Bebbanburg right now, but, unfortunately, his cousin out maneuvered him. I'm also disappointed that Uhtred didn't get to kill his uncle. I think he deserved that after all his years of suffering. Although, I have to say that the uncle...

YAAAS! Uhtred of Bebbanburg is back! Words cannot express how excited I am that The Last Kingdom is back for another season.  Season three ended on such an emotional note, and I really missed the show. Plus, the current lockdown is the perfect time to binge it. Anyway, it looks like season four is off to a strong start. In this episode, Uhtred kidnapped someone, seduced a princess (to be fair, he had done that before), and started a new quest to reclaim his homeland...so, it was a pretty uneventful episode, right? I have to say that, as always, I'm a sucker for romance, so my favorite scenes of the episode were the moments between Uhtred and Aethelflaed. They have this whole doomed love thing going on that I both love and hate. Like, I just want them to be together, okay? Is that too much to ask, Netflix? Speaking of women I love on this show, my girl Brida is looking real good in this premiere. I think she got a new look or a haircut or something becau...