February 3, 2020March 3, 2023

Vinland Saga vol. 11

Savor this volume.

Not just because it’s good, but because it’s likely the last we’ll see of this series until late 2021. That’s if we’re lucky and mangaka Makoto Yukimura keeps to what has been a slightly-faster-than-annual-release of new volumes in Japan. At least vol. 11 doesn’t have a cliffhanger in store for us as we wait. It concludes the (very) long-running “War in the Baltic” arc as Thorfinn settles all but one account. While I very much enjoyed this wrap-up to the arc, this volume isn’t without its problems and I’ve got some thoughts on a lot of things it touches upon below.

You may have picked up on the fact that Yukimura has something of an anti-war stance with this series. There are three points where he artfully communicates that fact through the actions of some nameless vikings in this volume. One is reflecting on his situation before he’s executed, another awaits his reward in Valhalla as he dies with sword in hand on the battlefield, and two are sharing some bread as the sun rises. The first two are grim, but their melancholy takes the edge off of what could’ve been some awfully blunt messaging. As for the third, it takes a roundabout way to show the futility of war with a punchline that may not exactly be funny but does make a lot of sense.

While we’re on the subject of Yukimura’s feelings about war, it’s worth noting that the characters who love it all appear to have a screw loose at the very least. I’ll come back to Garm, but I did want to talk about Thorkell here. It’s worth noting that the one character in this series who revels in the glory of battle is also its most cartoonish and least realistic one. Thorkell’s very existence may be at odds with the mangaka’s overall message, which is likely why we haven’t seen a whole lot of him in the series in the years before this arc. Still, there’s no denying that he brings an incredible energy to the series and to see him do his best “HEEEEEEERE’S JOHNNY!!!” and fight a goddamned Bigfoot were highlights of this volume. I guess the people who war is best for are also the most fictional. There’s a message in that somewhere…

Thorkell also brings more than a little funny to the series. You know who else brings (or is at least intended to) the funny to this series? Sigurd! Gundir’s would-be husband has been something of a running joke in the series ever since his introduction back in vol. 7. Though cravenly selfish, he’s also hard to hate because he’s so hapless at whatever he does. In vol. 11, that includes sneaking into the Jomsvikings fort, taking part in a “sneaking mission,” and trying to die a heroic death. Sigurd fails miserably at all these things and winds up being more entertaining to watch than he has been in a while. Part of that’s down to the screwball absurdity of seeing his comic actions in the midst of deadly serious battle — a combination that makes more sense than you would think.

While I generally love Yukimura’s art and how it can effortlessly split the difference between endearing caricature and the deathly serious. Vol. 12 has one point where he can’t quite get it right: The part where Thorfinn confronts Floki. We’re meant to see the former’s pupil-less rage as a sign that he’s lost control… And yet the only thing I could think of when I saw him like that was, “Is this Super Saiyan Thorfinn?” Maybe that’s just me. I was glad to see the mangaka redeem himself a few pages later when Thorfinn comes back to reality.

Speaking of our erstwhile protagonist, much of this volume is still “The Thorfinn Show.” The likes of Sigurd, Gundir, and Baldur do get some good character arcs in this volume, while Einr has to sit nearly all of it out and Hild is stuck doing her one job. Even though I still think it’s baffling to introduce this many regular characters and not turn the story into a proper ensemble, I can’t deny that Thorfinn gets some of the best moments he’s had in a while. From the aforementioned scene where he gets his rage under control, to the realization he has while dueling Garm, and his final orders to the Jomsvikings, we get more than enough reminders as to why “The Thorfinn Show” continues to be worth following.

Of those three moments, the best is the realization he has while fighting Garm. Sharp-eyed readers may realize where Thorfinn’s mid-fight strategy is coming from before he ruefully remembers it in the following chapters. It’s a thrilling reminder of the fact that the character really has two dads: His biological one and the one who actually raised him.

As for Garm, we finally find out why he’s the way he is in a post-fight flashback/dream sequence. It explains a lot and manages the tricky task of making the character appear sympathetic and yet utterly deranged at the same time. There are echoes of Thorfinn’s youth in these flashbacks, so perhaps we’re meant to see Garm as what our protagonist would’ve been like if he hadn’t had a good family around him. Even so, I don’t think the moment of understanding Yukimura is shooting for between these characters quite lands after this sequence. Garm comes off as too broken to be seen as any kind of potential ally.

I generally liked the bargaining and political maneuvering that was featured in the concluding chapters of this volume. One way or another, everyone gets what’s coming to them. The main exception would be the handling of Gundir’s confession in front of Thorkell. Said confession is in regards to something that should’ve been obvious to everyone who’s been paying the slightest amount of attention to her character. It’s also a one-sided thing where we hardly get any reaction from the person on the other side here. If Yukimura does want to turn this romance into something genuine then he’s got a lot of work to do after this lacklustre start.

So there you have it. A years-long saga wraps up in a satisfying fashion. It delivers on its core themes while providing some exciting action and even comedy along the way. The full package, in other words. All of the dramatics may not have landed as effectively as planned, but this is a good enough finale to the arc. It also bodes well for Yukimura as he has said that the next leg of “Vinland Saga” will be its last. That doesn’t mean you have to worry about it ending anytime soon, however. The next leg of the series will likely take years and over 1,000 pages to tell, so “The Thorfinn Show” will be with us for a good long while yet