Servant (Vinland Saga)

Servant is the Seventeenth episode of Season 1 of Vinland Saga

Plot
Torgrim launches his mutiny against Askeladd, demanding he give up Canute to Thorkell. While Thorfinn and Bjorn desperately try to protect the prince, Askeladd engages in a one-man battle against his former allies for his beliefs, and Thorkell is just a few steps away from catching up to them.

Why it Rocks

 * 1) This episode gives a great deal of character development to Askeladd and brings more meaning to his heinous actions in The Light of Dawn and After Yule, and also shows more of his backstory and the foundation of his beliefs, as well as finally revealing some of those beliefs. He doesn't quite redeem himself (not that he could, realistically), but he does prove he's not as evil as those previous beliefs lead viewers to believe.
 * 2) Said backstory is pretty touching, showing how he came to hate the Danes for what they did to his beloved mother and how she told him the legend of King Arthur, who would save them from suffering.
 * 3) The episode finally brings a great deal of progression to the plot as Askeladd is betrayed by his vikings whom he betrays in turn and punishes for their many heinous actions. It also shows how he secretly did not think of them as comrades, but simply a means to an end. This helps to turn many of the vikings in said group turn from reluctant allies to enemies, giving a satisfying twist to the story.
 * 4) Plenty of them are also punished by Thorkell, who sees no point in letting them live since they betrayed their master, and though he gives them a chance to die fighting and go to Valhalla, many of them die anyway without fighting, giving them more satisfying deaths.
 * 5) Torgrim is also given his commeuppeance for his actions and betrayal by being absolutely terrified into paralysis by Thorkell and allowed to live without the chance to go to Valhalla.
 * 6) We're finally shown a greater limit to Askeladd's skill and power as a fighter. While he could previously go toe-to-toe with Thors and beat Thorfinn with ease, now he's shown to be anything but all-powerful, and how even he can't single-handedly stand against an entire small army.
 * 7) An excellent battle scene between Askeladd and the rest of his party (with the exception of Bjorn) that shows both his skill and the limitations therein.
 * 8) Bjorn finally gets to shine in battle once again, with the anticipation of his battle against Atli being brought up by his eating another Berserker mushroom.
 * 9) Thorkell and Thorfinn finally meet once again, setting the stage for their epic rematch standoff. It also gives Thorfinn another chance to shine in battle once again before that epic standoff.

Reception
The episode has received 9.4 out of 10 stars on IMDb.