Warning: Spoilers for the newest Season 5B episode of History's _Vikings, _"The Lost Moment," lie ahead.
Well, that was unexpected. Ivar murdered not just one but two shocking people. Picking up where last week's episode left off, Vikings took viewers back to Kattegat where Ivar revealed an unexpected victim of his ritual human sacrifice. If that wasn't enough, he later committed another surprising murder, and both should have lasting results.
Faux Lagertha
The mystery person underneath the hood was a young blonde woman whom Ivar identified as Lagertha. Some in the crowd correctly shouted that it was not the former Queen of Kattegat. Ivar insisted the woman was Lagertha and he'd had her sacrificed, publicly claiming that he had avenged his mother's death. With that, Vikings delivered an unanticipated death.
Our Lagertha is not dead to us, obviously. She is all the way in Wessex, continuing her romance with Heahmund. But, as far as Ivar's Kattegat is concerned, she is no more, which is exactly what the dastardly king wants everyone to believe. This is a development that should have a ripple effect moving forward.
Ivar killing "Lagertha" was an unforeseen move on his part, especially when he knew not everyone in Kattegat would be convinced. While Vikings gave viewers hints that Ivar was going to kill Hvitserk, everything fits now in retrospect. How Hvitserk or the audience could have figured the semi-twist out is anyone's guess.
The good news for Hvitserk is that he lives to die another day. That is, if he even wants to keep living. The guy clearly has a death wish of some sort, as he continued to challenge Ivar openly in the latest Vikings installment. That is something that has tended not to go over well with Ivar. For whatever reason, though, he is continuing to let it slide for now.
The Seer
Someone who did not get off the hook this time around was the Seer. While he was not the one who was sacrificed at the beginning, Ivar ended up murdering him at the end of the episode anyway. What brought about this decision?
Well, before Ivar murdered him, the Seer told Ivar that he was not a god. He also seemed to reference Ivar's wife Freydis, when he told Ivar that a "snake" had settled into his skull. She has certainly worked her way into Ivar's life very thoroughly. After a bit more ranting on the Seer's end, Ivar murdered him by striking him with an ax, which leaves us with another character from the first season gone.
Ivar's motivation for the murder seemed to be a culmination of him not liking what the Seer said and also possibly believing it anyway. The Seer denied everything Ivar has come to think, and Ivar was faced with confronting that or killing the messenger.
The murder did not appear pre-meditated -- instead, it was the result of another of his infamous rages. That is not the first time Vikings has shown Ivar kill for such a reason.
There was an extra edge to this kill, though. Ivar seemed to be annoyed by what the Seer was saying, as if, somewhere deep down, he knew what the Seer said was true. He definitely planted seeds that may continue to grow as Season 5B continues. Ivar's rage hints that the Seer's words could have made a long-term impact.
Find out if it does and how Ivar explains the Seer's death when Vikings Season 5B continues. New episodes air Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on History. The series is among many that have returned this fall and will continue airing new during winter.
