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The Last Kingdom

200 replies

CoffeeAndOranges · 22/10/2015 21:10

Anyone watching this? Always wish they would do these things in Old English & Old Norse with subtitles. Matthew Mcfadyen's a bit posh for it. And what was the boy in?

No idea what to expect so hopefully it'll be good!

OP posts:
AnneEtAramis · 27/11/2015 23:11

Just caught up with this tonight. I was chuffed to see Poldark yes and The Musketeers Aramis

Yep, wifey had her chance. You snooze baptise my son against my wishes you lose.

Enjoyed it and can't quite believe it is nearly over. Do we think there will be a series 2? Have the viewing figures been good enough I wonder?

dillite · 28/11/2015 16:48

There have to be another series! It should be against the law not to have another series.

expatinscotland · 28/11/2015 18:44

Mildrith and Uhtred were unsuited to each other but he treated her badly. Although, considering the times, not as badly as he could have. He is fair for the most part, it's not just Alfred he has a problem bowing to, but anyone as a youth, although early on he learns that, for an ealdorman, suggesting a man of such rank give an oath to anyone but a king is insulting and that he swore to be Alfred's man for life of his own free will, it was not forced on him.

He deliberately annoys Alfred, but equally, Alfred slaps him back, figuratively, every time. Uhtred often bridles against the oath he gave willingly to Alfred, but he never truly breaks it, and when he steps out of line, he realises that Alfred's ultimate punishment is to force him to keep his oath. In the end he cannot help respecting him and admiring him greatly. It is one of the best love-hate relationships in modern fiction.

He does get better with age, as most of us do, and is only 20 in the first book and 21 in the second, so quite young.

He tells his own story from the perspective of the very old man (80 or so) he is and leaves the warts off.

expatinscotland · 28/11/2015 20:26

warts on, sorry.

Trills · 28/11/2015 20:39

She was the one who was Caitlin Moran, anyway.

I am on Mildrith's side. I don't often find myself backing the more religious person in a conflict, but Uhtred was just being a dick.

"Teenager" is absolutely the right way to think of him.

Trills · 28/11/2015 20:41

That sounds harsh.

What I mean is that in stories like this it usually goes:
Religious person: Thing that I am told God wants me to do
Non-religious person: Thing that I thought of by myself

Here it is:
Religious person: Sensible reasonable thing
Non-religious person: Anger- and pride-driven unreasonableness

expatinscotland · 28/11/2015 22:21

Oh, he was. He was brutal to her and to his son, too. He's equally mean to another of his sons. It takes a very long time for him to grow up and he does some things with very poor grace, something his daughter points out to him once she, too, is an adult. He has his good points and his bad points, definitely, and it speaks much to the skill of the author that you still find him redeeming. Alfred you cannot help loving, even if you're Uhtred.

Trills · 28/11/2015 22:33

If you believe as Mildreth does, then refusing to have the baby baptised is the worst possible Uhtred could do to anyone.

(assuming here that unbaptised babies go somewhere bad when thy die...)

expatinscotland · 29/11/2015 02:23

That wasn't what it was about in the book. There is no mention of his christening because she most assuredly did it. Uhtred was away as a hostage when the child was born. Alfred had used Uhtred's rank as an ealdorman by birth to make him a hostage and used subterfuge to draw Uhtred to him and then it was sprung on him that he was summoned only to be given as a hostage. Uhtred has a lot of cause to hate Alfred early on and this is part of it. His name as Uhtred, Ealdorman of Bebbanburg was what was passed and accepted by Guthrum as hostage. In the books, Mildrith is a reeve's daughter, below an ealdorman in rank as reeves are thegns.

Once he is saved from death by Ragnar the Younger, who stops Guthrum from killing Uhtred along all the other hostages, he is understandably outraged with Alfred and goes back and tells Mildrith that they are going to live among the Danes. That's what gets her back up. It's only because Ragnar himself becomes a hostage that this does not happen.

Furthermore, Alfred knows that it was Uhtred who killed Ubba and won victory of Cynuit, too many men saw him do it, and he also knows that Uhtred did not participate in the attack against the monastery at Cynuit, that was Svein's work, but still grants trial by combat to him and Odda the Younger's champion, Steapa in the books rather than Leofric, a fact that only comes out later on. It's true that Uhtred settled the debt on Mildrith's land with plunder stolen from other Christians, but as he points out, he did not directly steal it from them, he stole it from other Danes, being Svein of the White Horse.

So early on he does have just cause to be very angry with Alfred.

Alfred also sent him to Leofric to try to humble him, and tells Beocca that Uhtred must be broken like a horse. But Uhtred tells the priest he is not a horse but the lord of Bebbanburg and then laughs and says Alfred wants him to become a meek Christian. Beocca asks if this is such a bad thing. Uhtred telsl him it is, because when the Danes come Alfred will need proper men to fight them. At the same time, Alfred's sheltering him saves him from Kjarten, the man who killed Ragnar the Elder. So early on, there is mutual saving of each other. They both do, numerous times.

There's a lot of backstory, too, because when Uhtred was a child Alfred had tried to make him into a priest. But as Uhtred points out, the Danes made him a warrior, and Alfred needs him more in that respect.

expatinscotland · 29/11/2015 03:02

Uhtred also has, early on, at least two opportunities to kill Alfred by not defending him or directly, when he is not under oath to him, and does not do it. He has multiple opportunities to break his oaths to him and fight against him and never does. He does think about it, flirts with it and even runs away from him, but he never fights against him. And that is telling because the only advise he was given by Ravn is to never fight Ubba, which he does.

AnneEtAramis · 29/11/2015 20:46

Expat, I am really enjoying your explanations. I really cannot wait to read the books.

Trills · 29/11/2015 21:41

I'm enjoying them too :)

quirkychick · 29/11/2015 21:48

Well you convinced me to try the books and I've almost finished the first one. There is more back story, obviously, as on TV we see him suddenly an adult.

We3KingyOfOblomovAre · 03/12/2015 14:18

God, I so love this. Dh thinks its good too. I cant wait till tonight.
But I still think Vikings was better. Sorry.
Oh Uhtred ............

The Last Kingdom
We3KingyOfOblomovAre · 03/12/2015 22:01

Wasn't it good? Really enjoyed it.

RudeElf · 03/12/2015 22:18

Just want to say that brida is hands down my favourite character in the show (havent read books, yet!) i have a real girl crush on her. She is quite fearless in comparison to all the other characters, including even Uthred. Would that have been typical for a woman dane or was she just awesome?

expatinscotland · 03/12/2015 22:18

God, that man is so fine! Where did they find him? He's fucking gorgeous.

RudeElf · 03/12/2015 22:20

He really is expat

(I am surly BTW, just NCed for xmas)

expatinscotland · 03/12/2015 22:37

The chapter where Uhtred and Leofric save Alfred in the second book is absolutely classic because Uhtred is worked up to frenzy killing Danes, not realising who it is they are fighting to save. They just see a gaggle of priests and some women and children and Leofric's whore scolds the two men to defend the little group. So they go down, which Uhtred realises is stupid because they are outnumbered, but they are bored and angry warriors.

Guthrum adored his mother so much he had a bone removed from her corpse and tipped in gold and wears it in his hair. He rides up himself as Uhtred is slaughtering Danes using a horse he killed as a barrier and Uhtred thinks for a few seconds how easy it would be to change sides. And he tells Guthrum how much he wishes he'd met his mother. Guthrum softens. Then Uhtred is just horrible! He laughs and tells Guthrum he'd spit in her ugly face and piss on her soul and all the beasts of Niflheim are humping her bones and she is a whore to dwarves.

Uhtred jumps on the punt and it only has the boatman, Leofric and 'the priest' on it. Uhtred is covered in blood and still screaming insults at Guthrum who is insulting him back and vowing to kill him. And the priest continues reprimanding Uhtred for killing one particular Dane instead of taking him prisoner until Uhtred rounds on him and realises it's Alfred.

And he is pretty horrible to Alfred after that, refusing to call him 'lord', asking him 'King of what?', using his forename only. He still stays and helps him, though.

But Alfred, as ever, always knows how to work Uhtred. He corners him alone one night and charges him with defending his family. Uhtred is arrogant, he knows this so he says yes and then Alfred holds out his hand and Uhtred kneels down and takes it.

It takes him a while for him to realise that Alfred is cleverer than he is, and not weak at all, but he is still quite young in this, only 21.

Treadlightly · 03/12/2015 22:42

Yay, I knew there'd be a thread on here about uhtred son of uhtred!!

I love all your explanations expat, Going to order the books right now.

expatinscotland · 03/12/2015 23:00

Do it, Tread! You won't be disappointed. Uhtred pays very dearly for his service to Alfred, and ascribes all that service to fate, and though he can be quite a dick, especially early on, he grows into a man with flaws but who is ultimately fair-minded. He also recognises early on his own flaws and points them out. He loves Alfred, the respect and admiration he grows to bear him are obvious to all but him, and Alfred loves him, but his character is far too stubborn to admit it other than by continuing to serve him and never changing sides.

expatinscotland · 03/12/2015 23:28

He gives a very touching tribute to Alfred after he dies and, till the end, Alfred knows how to work him to do what he wants.

We3KingyOfOblomovAre · 04/12/2015 06:36

Also loving Expats posts.
I find it quite uncomfortable how controlling and dominant Alfred is over Uhtred, and concerning how Uhtred can't see this. Uhtred isn't THAT dumb, is he?

quirkychick · 04/12/2015 13:56

Loving this too. I am now on the second book, but I have only got as far as Uhtred meeting Iseult.

Love Brida, too. She's very cool (in a tough, don't mess-with-me way). I love that she obviously knew that she wanted to be with the Danes, but Uhtred is more unsure.

expatinscotland · 04/12/2015 16:15

'Uhtred isn't THAT dumb, is he?'

He's arrogant, to the point where, at that time in his life, he doesn't want to see or accept that Alfred is far cleverer than he is. He wastes a lot of time in his youth thinking Alfred is weak, will die soon, isn't worthy of much respect at all. He's scornful of him and unpleasant. He also admits he was never able to resist a stupid impulse. And in the first two books, yes, he's a teenager and then a very young man and stupid.

The fact that Alfred shelters him also keeps him alive. There are many who want him dead - his uncle Aelfric, Kjartan, Odda the Younger, Guthrum (after Uhtread insults him) - and the protection Wessex offers him goes a long way to ensuring his survival.

Ragnar the Younger is a hostage for a long time and every time Ragnar is at liberty, Uhtred is sworn to Alfred, and Ragnar, like Uhtred, respects oaths.

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