Viking Expert Breaks Down Famous Viking Movies & TV Shows

[@Liutgard]

I actually know people who were 'consulted' by the producers of the 'Vikings' tv show. They put together a substantial work on the clothing and material culture, and then EVERYTHING they suggested was ignored. Apparently someone in the higher-ups thought that a post-modern, grungy leather layered with grime look would be more effective. Heads were hitting tables all over. And the thing is, real Viking Age clothes and kit would have been easier to produce and likely at less cost- especially now that there are so many skilled artisans doing replica work. And God help me, but a good wash would have been appropriate! The Vikings were known to be clean and well-groomed, and actually a bit vain. The filth we see on the screen is nothing like.

[@SchmokinJoe]

Gotta love the higher-ups who think they know-it-all!

[@Caladras]

The sad thing is, the higher-ups were proven right by the popularity of the show. Hence the trope of post-modern grungy leather-clad Vikings continues: The Last Kingdom, now Assassin's Creed Valhalla... let's hope that Robert Eggers' The Northman can do better than this!

[@Liutgard]

@@Caladras Thing is, because it wasn't done, we can't know that the authentic costumes wouldn't have been just as popular! The 'Viking bling' with strands of beads and embroidery and stuff for women, and those fabulous wrap coats (kaftan/klappenrock) for the men... my current field is 8th c Frankish, but I can see the appeal of the viking age culture.

[@XortiXz]

I liked the show up to a point but i just cringe at the outfits and the fight scenes sometimes

[@SchmokinJoe]

@@Caladras But they only tried it the wrong way. I doubt the show's popularity came from the inaccurate costumes. And maybe it would've been more popular with authentic, period-accurate costumes. I have yet to watch _Vikings_ because the characters looked so silly.

[@davidesguario2151]

I like his approach. He is able to recognize that a film like the Thirteenth Warrior can get costumes, weapons and war tactics wrong and at the same time nail some pivotal aspects of Norse culture.

[@bjoardar]

In fairness, the movie was based on a romanticezed book of the time, but there are sooo many easter eggs in it that reveal true archaelogical and historical facts, that this movie is criminally underrated imo. Also, the "vikings prayer", while made up, is totally badass xD

[@davidesguario2151]

@@bjoardar I recently read Crichton's novel and I found it very enjoyable and clever in the way it draws from actual anthropological and historical evidence in order to create a fantasy story. And yes, the movie is underrated, although it is gaining a cult following, something which I am glad of. And the prayer is epica af, I actually wonder whether it is actually made up or loosely inspired by some source

[@helentee9863]

@The_Jaguar_ Knight they are not empires,they are world's, and world's based on Norse mythology, mythology being the key word. You, know, as in myths/storys past down by word of mouth over generations, not history. Don't really understand why Thor was included in this video compilation.

[@مقاطعمترجمة-ش8ث]

It was the most accurate Viking movies so far.

[@tobbcittobbcit8899]

@@مقاطعمترجمة-ش8ث not really. It couldn't even get the nationality of its actors right

[@thebatonmaster]

Really nice breakdown. I love his final statement. I think it applies to almost every group of people, including our own ancestors: "They were not heroes at all. But certainly people that should not be forgotten."

[@JB-cx2vk]

I enjoyed that the most out of this whole video. It was a pleasure listening to him as well.

[@whyjnot420]

Sure the actual vikingr who went out to raid and pillage were not people to emulate or stand up on a pedestal. However there are many from the time and places of the vikings that should be. One example, Snorri Sturluson. This one comes a little after the pagan heyday of the vikings, but he is the author (at least of a large portion) of the Prose Edda. He is essentially to vikings what Homer was to the Greeks, with the added benefit of knowing that he was a real single person who actually existed. In general I think we truly can admire the skalds of Iceland. Their storytelling, their complete mastery of it, their proliferation through Europe, since anyone who was anyone wanted them in their courts composing poems about their accomplishments. Is still something that resonates with everyone alive today who enjoys a well told story. And are still influential on modern culture in a way that some possibly mythical sea king like Ragnar Lodbrok could never be.

[@brianl3424]

@@whyjnot420 Yeah Snorri Sturluson should be remembered for his writing, but he's not worthy of emulation. The guy's most famous poem is about his mother's reaction to his first murder.

[@InvisibleJiuJitsu]

@@whyjnot420 agree, his final statement is just some woke bullshit. If we cant admire any vikings at all then we can't admire anyone

[@whyjnot420]

@@InvisibleJiuJitsu One thing that I have always admired about the Viking-Norse culture, is the custom they had of always opening their door to a stranger in need of food and shelter for the night, especially in the harsher months. That is an admirable thing right there. One a lot of us today could learn a lesson from.

[@stepheng9607]

I could listen to Professor Price all day. Looking forward to reading his new book

[@tilemacro]

i like how he is tap dancing around the elephant in the room, conserning the Vikings TV series.

[@tylerlynch2849]

Nothing more interesting and refreshing to hear a genuine academic or expert speak about their passion

[@nolanolivier6791]

Quite interesting how he chooses to focus on the positive aspects...

[@totallynotzokix11_mc21]

Because most viking fiction focuses on the positive aspects.

[@davethebarbarian4419]

@@totallynotzokix11_mc21 I think he means that the video focuses on the positive aspects of each movie/show when it comes to depicting Vikings authentically. The History Channel's Vikings for example, while it can overall be considered an authentic depiction of Vikings, does have, for example, bands of women warriors fighting alonside men, when we have no written sources that attest to that.

[@aboveworld8209]

I think probably because it’s kinda assumed that the rest is kinda shitty

[@3rdreichball525]

Yeah, but i don't think the marvel comics thor should count. They arent norse gods. They are comic book aliens based off of the norse gods. Shouldn't really count

[@marcopolo2418]

@@davethebarbarian4419 The show Vikings kinda becomes too much for me after the 3rd season. I watched up until Ragnar's death then I could not handle anymore lol Still not as bad as some movies or shows.

[@SG-1-GRC]

I am a bit surprised he is so positive about Vikings the TV series a lot of arms and armour historians really knock it for its inaccuracies. But I do appreciate him pointing out the positives in the programmes/films he assesses

[@Rockstroem]

Vikings has a lot of practical issues with anachronistic things and behaviors, but in my mind, as a Swede, it captures a lot of the spirit of Nordic culture, and that goes a long way.

[@Temujin1206]

Yes Vikings is abysmal at portraying the material culture of the vikings and the other peoples they encounter (the clothes, weapons etc.) and they skew the timelines around like nobody's business but especially in the earlier seasons they really drew on historical sources for many instances and occurances which happen in the series, as well as the general culture and attitudes. It's not perfect and there are some truly phenomenal issues but it's actually a lot better than people tend to think.

[@grisflyt]

I believe historians are more annoyed by the depiction of the Viking society as authoritarian, when it in reality was basically democratic. The Vikings did not have divine/absolute kings, like in Christianized Europe, and later Scandinavia as well.

[@Temujin1206]

@@grisflyt Viking age Icelandic (and Greenlandic) society was essentially democratic, but that's not really true anywhere else. Throughout mainland Scandinavia, Britain, Ireland and the Kievan Rus lands of Eastern Europe there were many Viking kings who, while not given the divine connotations of kings in Christian Europe, were absolutely authoritative. Iceland and related settlements were very much outliers, likely because they were founded by Norwegians fleeing the persecution of the King, but the rest of Viking age Scandinavia and associated areas was very similar to much of the rest of Europe, a feudal society with monarchs and rulers who generally wielded pretty solid power within their areas. Also, of course, in the later Viking age Christianisation was in full force and the kingdoms of Norway, Denmark and Sweden had more or less coalesced so there was very much an absolute, authoritiative monarchy with the same divine connotations seen in Christian Europe.

[@grisflyt]

​@@Temujin1206 The thing met at regular intervals, legislated, elected chieftains and kings, and judged according to the law, which was memorized and recited by the "lawspeaker" (the judge). Towards the end of the Viking age, royal power became centralized and the kings began to consolidate power and control over the assemblies. As a result, things lost most of their political role and began to function largely as courts in the later Middle Ages.[5] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thing_(assembly) While I do agree with Iceland as something of a promised land, it is a bit more complicated. On the one hand, women (at least widows) could own land. On the other, women were banned from the thing. Women, to this day, are always one step away from losing their rights. They are wholly dependent on our grace.

[@kevinnorwood8782]

I recently got this guy’s book, “The Children Of Ash And Elm”. Would DEFINITELY recommend it to anyone who is interested in the Viking Age. It’s one of the most thoroughly researched and well-written books on the subject that I’ve ever read.

[@nm-cp4ck]

Is nobody gonna mention those AWESOME Lego ships in the background? That display is worth at least 300 dollars

[@peartree8338]

Nope. He's in Sweden, more like 3.000 dollars. LEGO is crazy expensive here.

[@AtomMyren]

And then read “Valhalla” comics made by Peter Madsen! Every kid in the 80`s and 90`# from Denmark have read it, and its a fantastic way to learn something about the Norse mythologi.

[@runulfrraui6602]

i bought the full box set when it came out in Norway. even got the animated dvd with Quark in it.

[@sirseigan]

"Valhalla" is f*ng amazing!! I read them as a kid at the school library but bought the whole set as a adult, just as good now as it was back then. Very very very well researched and every diviation from the most common storyline (Snorres Edda) is carefully thought through and many times the diviations are very good compromises between different versions of the myths. I was happily surpriced when I realized just how well it was researched. I mran knew it was good, but not that good. The comic "Röde Orm", Red Snake, (based on the novel with the same name by Frans G Bengtsson) is also very good in many aspects. I personally love the way it depicts their view of religion.

[@AtomMyren]

They are amazing! But they may be hard to find outside of Denmark. But you can find some short clips from the movie on KZbin (with Eng subs). Its also drawn by Peter Madsen🤘

[@AtomMyren]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5u2pGemrNSeeck

[@FrostInFreezer]

Yeah, it was awesome. As a kid I even had bed sheets with it. Elskede det!

[@archivesofarda986]

Thank you!! Vallhalla Rising is vastly underapreciated and misunderstood movie

[@HECKproductions]

calling thor a viking movie is like calling spongebob a nature documentary

[@rohansrinivasan4153]

He should have reacted to how to train your dragon as well.

[@ouatedephoque2961]

When I saw Valhalla Rising I immediately had the impression that One-Eye was in Newfoundland (l'Anse-aux-Meadows) and was meeting the Beothuk, a now extinct Native tribe. Great break down Neil.

[@BlackMetalVikingCustoms]

Outlander is the Viking movie you never knew you needed until you see it. So weird, but so good too!

[@spa-peggymeatballs4861]

@JZ's Best Friend gotta remember to tell my kids someday that they’re simply artistic burps.

[@spa-peggymeatballs4861]

@JZ's Best Friend 😭

[@capswingsisles]

This guy just sold me on his book I love the way he chooses to analyze the films 🤘🏼

[@theRealBased1492]

Norse nobility and rich warriors would be donning chainmail or scalemail haubreks but you see 0 of that at all in the Vikings TV show. Just all costume heavy metal leather.

[@kahn04]

Absolutely right about chainmail (maille) however scalemail is something we see in antiquity and the late Middle Ages into the renaissance, but no evidence in the early medieval period (or Viking Age), there is some controversy over a few lamellar plates (2 or 3 if I remember correctly) found at the settlement of Birka in Sweden, at this point most scholars agree that it was likely owned by a foreign mercenary living in the town rather than a native Swede. The difference between scale and lamellar is that with scale the tops of each plate are connected to a shirt of maille for a double layer of protection, where as lamellar each plate is laced to the four surrounding it to create a separate garment.

[@gravitatemortuus1080]

But over all drives me crazy the Vikings went into battle with no helmet and armor in the Viking TV show. . They would of been murdered in real life, but they do it to try to show this unrealistic prowess in battle. What do we expect even from the history channel.

[@kahn04]

@@gravitatemortuus1080 there is a lack of archaeological evidence for armour in period, so it’s understandable that they would take that interpretation, as you say to show heightened prowess, after all it does increase the appeal to the masses. It would have been great to see even one character kitted out in proper war gear, to address just how rare it’s believed to be, especially since one of the two (to the best of my knowledge) identifiable helmets comes from Norway along with the most complete maille shirt. Maybe the costume design team will surprise us with Valhalla when it airs.

[@aaronb1977]

Big difference between 8th century "vikings" and vikings in England in the 12th century

[@totallynotzokix11_mc21]

The Vikings TV show is more historical fiction and drama rather than being realistic.

[@Eirik_Bloodaxe]

Everyone’s like “he was too nice to the Vikings TV series”. And I’m like “he talked about it for like 2 seconds.”

[@suzannehartmann946]

What I have heard about the Vikings is that one of their most important long term impacts on culture was the trading routes they established and defended.

[@yes_head]

I'd say it was that they were the people who settled norther France and became the Normans, who then went on to conquer England and spread French culture into the Anglo-Saxon world.

[@cortexavery1324]

@@yes_head that's hard to put that on the vikings... or the part of responsability that vikings or viking culture had on this specific event is marginal. It has to do with the feudal system and the treaties and family links between the different monarchic political entities in france and england at the time.

[@torfinnzempel6123]

Would have been interesti g to see him talk about Norsemen and Ragnarok.

[@dawnmacdonald7334]

Yes! I was hoping someone would mention these tv shows. I can’t wait for the new season of Ragnarok.

[@le13579]

Norsemen is very funny - black humour. "Do we have to jump off the cliff?"

[@thecomicboss7039]

One of the best, most fair, most nuanced expert break downs I've ever seen. Keep THIS up

[@Darkestdarkify]

I just bought his book yesterday...funny to see this recommended lol

[@hhoi8225]

Yep, that's no coincidence.

[@oak4026]

He was very kind to the Vikings television series its riddled with historical inaccuracies.

[@2Ten1Ryu]

Yeah, his feedback focussed a lot on what was done well, but I would have been more interested in what is wrong. I mean, it's nice he's not bashing anything, but... I myself wasn't able to finish even season 1 of Vikings, there was too much that bothered me and disrupted the immersion I had hoped to find there....

[@Bluebelle51]

I love the show, I also know that it's a well written fantasy using names plucked from the sagas and history. It was never meant to be a documentary, in fact it was never supposed to be a series, just a mini series that was expanded to 6 seasons because of it's popularity. When asked about a well known historical inaccuracy, (Rollo being Ragnar's brother) the writer said, "I wanted to tell these stories, I knew I had one season to do it, so I made them brothers" The costuming is wrong, (Conquistador helmets for the Saxon army? Seriously?) Yet it's all forgivable if all you want is a well written, well acted, and cinematically beautiful show.

[@jakestrand7693]

@@Bluebelle51 I think the show is worth watching for Travis Fimmel’s performance as Ragnar alone. He really carried the show imo

[@Bluebelle51]

@@jakestrand7693 I loved Fimmel as Ragnar, I haven't seen the last half of season 6 yet, I have no idea why they staggered the release, but there are other characters that I enjoyed as much as Fimmel's Ragnar, Linus Roache as Ecbert was stupendous, and seriously under used, and Skaarsgard's Floki, was always a favorite of mine, (again, seriously under used in the last 2 seasons) .

[@jakestrand7693]

@@Bluebelle51 Lol im still on season four no spoilers please

[@codybritton3659]

Just started your book!! I can't wait to see what I learn about my favorite group of ancient civilization

[@lothbroke]

I wish you'd shown the opening sequence of Thor because, believe it or not, it's the best depiction of an apron dress I've seen in a viking movie.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

MARVEL IS THE BEST of the best of the bets of the best. SIR! Men er stadig ikke FAN. Undskyld :-(

[@KennethMoreland]

@@dallesamllhals9161 Boy Captain America over here.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

@@KennethMoreland Men in Black = the bets of the best of the beast!

[@ducomaritiem7160]

More!, More! Very good approach, sir. As a ( nowadays) part-time armourer , also giving lectures about ancient armour, its so astonishing to hear people assuming things like Viking horned helmets and stuff time and time again...so your attempts are much appreciated.

[@char391]

I see that Neil was also a historical consultant for the new 'The Northman' movie!

[@melissamybubbles6139]

That's so cool. My library has Price's audiobook. I hope I enjoy it as much as this video.

[@geofff.3343]

I think the funeral ship is poetic. True not everyone got the full send off, but many people did get a small boat that was burned and set to float. Living on the river was so important to the Scandinavian people of the time that they often carved their babies' cribs to look like boats. So you were born in a boat, you were raised in boat, and then you died in boat. It somehow feels so much more real and integral to the human spirt than I think I can even put into words.

[@MosBaked]

Good video, hope you continue to do these kinds of videos.

[@johnporterfield7523]

I very much enjoyed some of your research and lectures today.... I've enjoyed all those movies and series too. Your knowledge is awsome

[@davididiart5934]

I remember watching the VIKINGS with Kirk Douglas alongside my father, and we kept busting up laughing at that giant horn, since it would start with a slow bellow... and then almost turn into a jazz number. That's way too complicated a tune for something that huge! XD

[@raphaelperry8159]

Another really nice touch in Outlander is that the Spaceman's ship's computer speaks to him in Old Norse to make him sound like an alien from another planet while the actual vikings speak English (having them speak Old Norse for the entire film might have been too difficult for the audience to follow).

[@alisaurus4224]

That’s something i loved and thought was done well about the Vikings show: most of the time when the Vikings speak to each other, it’s in Norse-accented English. When they start traveling to England, English characters speak in subtitled Old English unless they are the POV characters for a shot, when they speak modern English and the Vikings speak subtitled Norse. Same when they interact with the Normans. You get the feel of who can understand whom in a given scene without having to teach the actors all their lines in ancient languages and make the entire show subtitled. It’s also very interesting to me to be able to understand the odd word or even simple sentence in Old English, despite only one semester studying it.

[@raphaelperry8159]

It's just a shame that most of them wore far too much black and had partially shaved hairstyles that would be appropriate if they were Mongolians or possibly even the Rus but not for actual vikings. And then they had the Anglo Saxons using the wrong shaped shields. It just goes on and on and on really.

[@alisaurus4224]

@@raphaelperry8159 i know there are lots of inaccuracies but i liked how they handled the languages particularly

[@raphaelperry8159]

Indeed. The way they handled the languages was a really nice touch.

[@HankyPanky44]

Gave this video a like just because of the Lego ships in the background, the rest was just gravy!

[@alexstewart839]

Gotta respect the work he put into finding something teachable from the 13th Warrior.

[@ChaosToRule]

What he forgot to tell us is that 13th Warrior is also loosly based on Beowulf.

[@Demothones]

I am about half way through the Children of Ash and Elm and it is absolutely amazing.

[@craigthescott5074]

I think in a way the Vikings were hero’s, they were brutal invaders but they were also brave explorers and most definitely it’s believed now that they discovered North America 500 years before Columbus. In fact most likely Columbus received information from his Knight Templar connections that America existed. The most recent theory is Templars were told by Vikings that North America existed.

[@Bagassu777]

when he said that they found a thor necklace with a tiny decorated hammer enggraved with the word "hammer" has reminded me of a deer horn that some viking engraved with the runes for "deer horn" at an Irish museum lol. They seem people who didn't want to be mistaken hahaha

[@roymarshjiujitsu]

This was a really great breakdown. I do wonder why he felt the need to say we shouldn't view them as admirable or call them heroes. You can certainly make that argument but I don't remember seeing that disclaimer when I watch videos about other historic groups (Persian Empire, Mongol Empire, Greeks, Egyptians, Mayans, etc.)

[@TheMcgreary]

I mean probably depends on who you talk to, I've definitely heard that said about mongols and mayans

[@stephenschneider4246]

Perhaps it’s meant more in the sense of not glorifying them. It may be a personal message from Dr. Price, along the lines of other outros from experts in this series. I imagine it gets frustrating to be so deeply embedded in a people’s history only to see them always vilified and revered onscreen. It solves a lot of problems to remember the good and the bad ahead of time with any historical event or group.

[@Johnny-Thunder]

I would agree with the statement 'vikings are not heroes' if we go by the definition of a viking as a pirate. However if we talk about the non-viking Norsemen who travelled over the Atlantic to discover and settle in Iceland, Greenland and Vinland, they certainly were heroic and admirable people in my opinion.

[@stinkybuttrat]

@@Johnny-Thunder definitely better than other european explorers, not slaving genocidal freaks at least

[@SplatterInker]

Probably because Viking culture and history is commonly appropriated by neo Nazis, who glorify them and hold them up as the OG Master Race. Emphasising stuff like the raiding and pillaging. To be honest I can understand issuing such disclaimers with any community or person who've been put on a pedestal where they have become untouchable, especially when used to justify some hainous crap. Like Churchill. The minute anyone criticises Churchill and points out hey, the guy was complicated and we shouldn't treat him like some saint because he did good as a war leader... and even that depends on your POV I mean you should read the comments on creating firestorms in Germany. If EVER you think any side comes out of a war with their hands clean, then you don't really understand human beings, but equally, why should we sweep that under the rug just because they won or were later proven correct?

[@ortezac.5339]

Now I'd like to see him react to Vinland Saga.

[@Generalscorpio]

The thing about Thor is that they're trying to make mythology sci-fi, Thor actually explains it, "Your ancestors called it magic, you call it science, I come from a place where they're one and the same..." - They weren't going for a perfect retelling of the Norse myths.

[@ZeroKami86]

I haven't seen much of it, but I wonder how accurate he'd rate Vinland Saga

[@karinlarsen4251]

I kept finding myself in the middle of an indigenous peoples book. Finally I found your book about my history. So proud to be of Viking heritage. My people were converted to Mormonism by 1860. We crossed the Atlantic from Denmark, found ourselves on the Atlantic coast, made our way to the Mississippi River where we were given a handcart, and told to join the group we are seeking by crossing the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains. Then we were sent to Central Utah To-Face hostile Indians. Here I still am to tell the story. You can't kill a Viking

[@cortexavery1324]

...

[@maki2925]

I would LOVE his opinion on The Northman. What a very interesting video, I could listen to him talk all day.

[@classicpauldanof4u]

Well considering he actually worked on The Northman, I think his opinion would be quite positive.

[@maki2925]

@@classicpauldanof4uOh that makes sense! Now I really want a video of him talking about his work on this movie, I really enjoyed it.

[@kellypedron8388]

Niel - LOVE your book so far (Children of Ash and Elm); I just found out that I am 92.2% Norwegian, so I am more than a little interested in your history.

[@neilwilson5785]

Nicely done. There is a lot to learn here.

[@CyberSystemOverload]

Excellent review and at LAST ...at LAST "The 13th Warrior" gets some recognition for getting bits right. Its a legendary movie! The Vikings tv show is comedy gold for me, its only fun watching youtube compilations of people getting slaughtered, the VFX in that respect is well done. It looks like a live action version of the abysmal game Assasins Creed Valhalla.

[@aw04tn58]

I'm a little annoyed that he didn't go into some of the gross inaccuracies in Vikings. I know it's been covered elsewhere, but I think it should be said over and over because some people tend to think that it is accurate, when we know it's more fantasy than anything else. I appreciate him being kind, but I think the edit needed to include some criticism as well or at at least give examples of what he means by them engaging with recent scholarship.

[@bilbo1778]

Many of the historians I've seen give it a pass with respect to the lousy costumes and some of the other inaccuracies because it's often "historically authentic" which is to say many of the details aren't right but the portrayal of the attitudes and motivations of the characters are more or less in line with scholarly interpretations of the era. Furthermore many of the historical events depicted are reasonably close to what we know from history or the Ragnar Lothbrok sagas - i.e. the 845 Siege of Paris and the events leading up to & including the invasion of The Great Heathen Army.

[@sock2828]

@@bilbo1778 Exactly. Just because a viking is wearing the right kind of helmet doesn't automatically mean you're learning anything important about Norse history or what the Norse valued and were actually like.

[@almanacofsleep]

@@bilbo1778 With all do respect what is "reasonably close" in its depiction of Ragnar Lothbrok participating in the raid on Lindisfarne as a young man then leading the siege of Paris having not aged or Rollo being Ragnar's brother, where talking nearly 100 years difference.

[@FreeLancerLondon]

Very enjoyable video. I really enjoyed the Vikings TV series and the Last Kingdom. As the professor says it gives us a real feel for life in those times, while not historically totally accurate. The early Mediaeval period was brutal and hard for the vast majority of people. 👍

[@Nolanthegardener]

I love these movies, great choices!

[@The1337Duke]

Ya'll missed a great opportunity to compare Thor movies! This is more about mythologic accuracy, but in Thor: Ragnarok, Hela reminisces about the Odin of old, and what kind of character he was in the early days of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it's actually a LOT more on point in regards to the Source material. Hela describes him as selfish, greedy, and War-mongering. Obsessed with seeking knowledge, magic and powerful artifacts. This is more or like what Odin was portrayed in the historically documented myths we have. If the creators of this video sees this, I think that a video where an expert in Norse or greek myth compares the portrayal of gods in movies and games to the source material would be very well received. Gods and myths from ancient Pantheons are usually put through the pop-culture meatgrinder when it comes to artistic liberties.

[@peartree8338]

Yeah. I really wished American Gods didn't f up the series as they did, that one is actually REALLY close to the source. Gaiman's book about norse mythology is a receipt of how serious he went about researching the sagas.

[@LordJagd]

But Odin was seen as exemplary for those things, not flawed. Remember, these are a people who didn’t really believe in a heavenly afterlife, or one that you go to if you’re a good person. To them, all things die but fame endures, so those who live to the fullest (like Odin) are heroic.

[@danh7804]

I would love to here your thoughts on Netflix's Norseman..

[@studentfitness5954]

Yeah be good

[@vergil8833]

It's a Norwegian spoof of the Vikings TV show.

[@TheAurgelmir]

If I recall correctly the "vikings" in 13th warrior went to a Baltic country to learn the language, which is funny since one of the actors is Norwegian... and he still had to go there to get the lessons...

[@calska140]

The Vikings being portrayed, the one's the Arab chronicled, were a far east, Slav-Norse group. The Norman's were similar viking diaspora and they spoke french. An Arab going far enough northwest to run into Scandinavia proper at this time would be truly crazy.

[@vergil8833]

@@calska140 Not at all, we know the Scandinavians proper sailed down rivers to trade with the east through Steppe hubs as far back as the Bronze Age. That is why Scandinavia itself was such a powerhouse during the Bronze Age, long before they had settled in Russia and France and so on. And especially compared to their neighbors like the Baltic, showing that it was actual Scandinavians sailing so far to trade and not middle-man groups. During the Viking Age this was even more common considering Scandinavians and Scandinavian kings often went to Byzantium. Meeting Fadlan in the Steppes would be a normal trip for them.

[@calska140]

@@vergil8833 I won't refute anything you said as I agree. They did follow the river systems into Islam territory to trade. The only points I was making was that the vikings and Slavic people intermingled to some degree while inhabiting common territory and that ibn fadlan would've met this band on the steppe instead of traveling to the Scandinavian homelands. If you're trying to posit that the vikings didn't blend with the people's around the Baltic....well that sort of runs counterintuitive to previous viking behavior.

[@Groaznic]

Argh, I really really wish he included the animation Beowulf. It's better than most movies.

[@peter.t.ljungman]

Ash & Emla ( In Skandinavian Ask & Embla ) is the Scandinavian mythologys version of Adam and Eve. So reading his book would be a pure Joy, When he is so knowledgeable and entusiastisk regarding Nordic Sagas.

[@LordJagd]

There is a curious amount of parallels between the Nordic and Biblical stories. One could say this is a result of christianization, but we also see these same parallels in Indian mythos, which has the same Indo-European root as the Nordic

[@LeCharles07]

[Sees LEGO ships on the window sill] This is going to be a good one.

[@diekje8728]

My archaeology professor watches tv series all the time and the one detail from Vikings that really got him angry was when they build a ship in a too short time span and with too little sheep for the sails wool. I mean... he could’ve picked something else

[@2Ten1Ryu]

I thought that, too. So, Floki found a nice tree. Still standing in the forest. Well, cool, he can use it maybe five years from now when the wood has dried... lol

[@elite_rock_god2292]

I hate most is The damn helmets the english wear, specielly the ones from wessex. I mean those helmets are like hundreds of years wrong 😂

[@whyaretherenoneleft]

Never thought I would be learning Viking history from Eddie the Eagle today.

[@lorenzodemedici6332]

The 1958 Vikings movie is quiet remarcable in my opinion. It gets a lot of the clothing, and architecture wrong. However you can tell whoever wrote it put a ton off effort in to reading the sagas or any historical accounts that were written back then.

[@TerfBashingMFer8021]

thank you sir, good video. Skol!

[@gdulheflljasduhdzccvm9926]

Certainly more admirable than most groups of people i can remember

[@craigthescott5074]

Whats your take on the recent movie Northman ?

[@kiy5278]

Worst thing about this video was that it was only 13 minutes long. I could listen to him all day!

[@LockhartSpain]

I've been in translation situations like that with myself at one end of the chain. It was most struck true.

[@EnFyr]

The "edda poems" are out there for anyone to read, or the "snorre sagaes".

[@patricegarnierlobo25111967]

very good analyse!

[@woooster17]

“A horn from no animal that ever lived” Surely it was just a mammoth tusk? No idea if it was hollow or could be hollowed out though to be used as a horn..

[@selonianth]

And Mammoths would've gone extinct before any piece of that village existed.

[@cynthiaerickson3646]

13th warrior rocked,period

[@Khorney]

Indeed, lovely movie!

[@peterh5165]

Good video!

[@stevenwiederholt7000]

I would place a small wager that the Norse of the viking age would be very pleased that in this time people are still talking about them.

[@cortexavery1324]

... seeing how far away most of it is from reality I'm not sure they would.

[@kamion53]

@6:24 in tthe depiction of the shieldwall I miss the Elves jumping over it from behind. Maybe a berserker would do that in reality, but I think even that is unlikely.

[@cortexavery1324]

berserkers ain't a thing

[@In_The_80s]

For many of us the Nordic Pantheon is not Mythology but truth of the old Gods and their ways of life. Out of all the "Viking" media that has been released, The Last Kingdom is by far one of the best ever made. This was a great video to watch and learn and can't wait to see what else you have to offer us viewers. I would love to see you do a video on how this knowledge of the Gods has spread through other cultures like the Anglo Saxons that adopted their pantheon and worshipped Woden and other similar Nordic gods before the time of Christ. Skàl

[@eddiewinehosen6665]

All gods are Mythology since it's superstitious fiction with no basis in facts or reality. It's fascinating no less how feeble minded we as humans are that a lot of us still think there are gods when everything in our accumulated knowledge debunks the notion of anything superstitious or supernatural!

[@MySerpentine]

@@eddiewinehosen6665 What an awful bore you are. Disgustingly dull. Imagination makes us human, and things need not have happened to be true.

[@FrostInFreezer]

Really? I only watched the first season of The Last Kingdom just when it came out, so I might have missed something or forgotten it, but I thought that was one of the worst things Ive seen about vikings.

[@Catonius]

Look up Dr Price's Children of Ash lecture series on KZbin. You're welcome.

[@DarkShroom]

fantastic video.... now i'd like someone like this to talk about people saying the vikings had battles with the native americans seems too good to be true, and "alt history" people seem to be doing videos on it

[@509Gman]

“Battles” is rather embellished, but there were some tense encounters.

[@FlorianD30]

What you see the "English" doing. Approximation of a "Viking" tactic. Are you serious? They are Anglo-Saxons and they are using the Saxon shield wall, as they have done for ages. They didn't copy it from the "vikings". They are all German tribes and they more or less all used the same tactis, Norse, Saxon, Franks. Religion aside they weren't that different.

[@leighjordine4031]

The Anglo Saxons in the time period would of been considered Norse. Only now do we come to think of them as Germanic but you are right there was very little difference between them until the Anglo Saxons converted to Christianity.

[@cortexavery1324]

Yes ! Thank you ! What the fuck is he talking about ?

[@cortexavery1324]

@@leighjordine4031 And what the... ??? I think you should look up the definition for "norse", cause you'd be lucky to find anything that includes anything below the region of denmark

[@gravitatemortuus1080]

From what I understand three tiers of shields was roman not Viking age. Its not a shield issue its a tactics issue.

[@thumphreybrogart4108]

I'm becoming interested in Norse mythology, can someone recommend me a good book for someone trying to expand our knowledge deeper than pop culture references?

[@binkymagnus]

anything by this guy (Neil Price), Jackson Crawford, Stefan Brink, Else Roesdahl, History of Vikings Podcast (Noah Tetzner and he interviews a lot of really good historians). i have a soft spot in my heart for Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology book.

[@mr.midnight23]

If you want to go deep, the Poetic Edda is great

[@Pull0utPete]

@@binkymagnus can second the Neil Gaimans Norse Mythology book, goes in depth on a lot of Norse Mythology and it's very fun read.

[@Pull0utPete]

can second the Neil Gaimans Norse Mythology book, goes in depth on a lot of Norse Mythology and it's very fun read

[@gustaf3811]

Read the translated version of Codex Regius of the poetic Edda it has everything. If you're too lazy to read then there certainly are some version on youtube.

[@le13579]

Great information, thanks. Shame the Norwegian comedy Norsemen (Netflix) wasn't covered.

[@gamesgrave9180]

That's a lovely shirt this chap is wearing.

[@DavidSzar]

The child of ash and elm is an amazing book

[@ThingsWeSaidToday]

I wish he could have reviewed "The Northman", Robert Eggers newest movie.

[@clockworkkirlia7475]

While we don't have any records of dancing on shields in the history, I'll betcha anything it happened at least once on a boozy winter's night. This was really interesting, thank you very much for the fascinating historical look into these works!

[@n4m31355h4dow]

I want to have his opinion on the anime Vinland Saga

[@sherwanburhan8942]

Most information there's about vikings are from the books of ibn fazlan who was an arab traveler and explorer

[@eddiewinehosen6665]

Written information maybe. I think the archaeological digs conducted everywhere the Vikings lived has given quite an extensive insight into how they lived, what they ate, wore etc.

[@sherwanburhan8942]

@@eddiewinehosen6665 that's also right but you can't get right information and facts just from graves and stuff the problem with vikings is just like Mongols they didn't write there history didn't care about literature most of the info come from the ones that were there enemies

[@mykulpierce]

Shield walls are far older than any viking sources. An interlocking and scale like shield formation was described in Europe used by the Franks against the invading 2nd Caliphate. The franks were well aware of Greek literature and even claimed to be descendants of Trojans (see Gregory of Tours)

[@patrickbuerke1390]

A good point this, but why ought we to stop there? While the Illiad of Homer does not to my mind necessarily provide good historical information on Achaean battle formations- and we might also note that Homer is not in any sense attempting to write a tactical manual- it seems to me that shield walls are described in more or less explicit detail. I take as my text Book IV of Alexander Pope's translation: This, by the Greeks unseen, the warrior bends, Screen’d by the shields of his surrounding friends.

[@lehnrik]

No Flight of the Raven or Shadow of the Raven?

[@funtanjan]

Actually the fjord setting was filmed in Croatia, Lim Fjord. Sorry to disappoint.

[@ecurewitz]

no mention of Immigrant Song??

[@vergil8833]

Why would it be

[@Prospro8]

Try 'Alfred the Great' by Clive Donner, 1968.

[@metalmarcrosser]

I kind of want to watch the vikings, but just haven’t brought myself to yet. I know I’d have to watch it as a fantasy, much like I watch Star Wars knowing that it’s not accurate to space or rather since thats fiction a better comparison would be when I saw Dragon: The Bruce Lee story as a 11yr old kid & thought it was cool, only to learn as I got older it was glitzed up by Hollywood & holds a lot of inaccuracies, so it’s a true historical account layered with “cool” fiction, much like I hear the Vikings show is.

[@MySerpentine]

Loki was so very different from the movies. Red hair, scarred lips, wild, long since thrown away the desire to fit in.

[@Lord_Dranek]

yeah and he was also Odins brother not adopted son.

[@MySerpentine]

@@Lord_Dranek Yeah. Or, like, adopted brother sort of.

[@AnyaKittyMeow]

He should have also looked at the Vinland Saga anime.

[@sandmansevenseven1512]

I was hoping he would address the shield maiden thing. Does anyone know if this was accurate that there were shield maidens ? My understanding was that you had trade , war , and pillage but most of the time it was farming as the core of Viking culture ?

[@Karstoff]

I would really like to hear his opinion on Ragnarök. I really like this series and I am waiting for season 2.

[@dawnmacdonald7334]

Season 2 was released in May of last year. I love this show.

[@RoryStarr]

I hold the opinion that Marvel is probably the most accurate to the spirit of those old norse epics. Why? Because fundamentally the mythos was as much bard fodder said to entertain people at feasts as it was a way of defining ethics and metaphysics in their society. And bards always built their own twists into retelling of tales that better fit it to their audience or kept it fresh. In other words, the Nordic mythos was grandiose storytelling of great journeys by mythic heroes to entertain masses of people in their time and inspire them. I think marvel is one of the inheritors of that tradition and does it well.

[@LordJagd]

I get where you’re coming from with the Bardic tradition, but tbh the Marvel version of the Nordic mythos just feels so corporate and deeply unnatural.

[@RoryStarr]

@@LordJagd naw man, have you read the original epics? They are, if anything, sillier and more absurd. Thor is almost exclusively played for laughs in a lot of them, for example.

[@LordJagd]

@@RoryStarr Yeah but the kind of humor and dramatics in Marvel movies are so low-tier compared to the Germanic stories

[@DOTA_GOAT]

Doesnt the interlocking shield tactic go all the way back to the Greeks and Romans?

[@exoteeelis]

Surprised there’s no mention of Vikings’ (2013) use of certain historically questionable haircuts.

[@Reverendshot777]

Such as?

[@exoteeelis]

@@Reverendshot777 Ragnar’s undercut? Lagertha’s braids?

[@JohnGwinner]

@@exoteeelis I always wondered about the shaved head look. I mean, shaved would be OK but that 'slight stubble' is a modern haircut, I assume. OTOH do we know how long their hair was?

[@kahn04]

@@JohnGwinner I’m not supporting the braided/dreadlock undercut, but shaved heads were a sign of slavery, so that wouldn’t be good either (I think there is a season where they did that). Some sort of undercut may have been popular in Scandinavia based on a male image carved into a cart that was part of the Oseberg ship burial (though it is debated if it’s hair or a hat), from CE 833. The letter from Abbot Ælfric to King Edward, written some time around CE 1000 berating him for “vices such as dressing yourself as a Dane, with bare neck and blinded eyes” is another clue.

[@gustaf3811]

@@kahn04 most likely it isn't a hat but nobody knows for sure. The undercut was certainly very popular among some vikings because of the clear depictions of them. I do think it varied a lot between different groups of vikings, some probably had long hair while others had braids because it is present in depictions. So in conclusion the viking hairstyles were probably not that different from the ones we see in vikings and in The last kingdom. They are probably the most accurate hairstyles on screen today.

[@phillipkilbride9265]

Are we not going to talk about his impressive LEGO ship collection

[@Caladras]

This guy is the author of one of the most renowned books on Norse paganism, "The Viking Way". I can very much recommend it if you found this video interesting.

[@sagebuchanan9725]

I like the Lego Pirate ship in the back