End of the Prologue (Vinland Saga)

End of the Prologue is the 24th and final episode of season one of Vinland Saga.

Plot
As the Imperial Council continues, King Sweyn unearths a horrifying plan to invade Askeladd's home, Wales. As he stands to be rewarded for his actions, he puts everything on the line to achieve his dreams while Thorfinn is allowed out of prison and a chance to go back to Iceland with Leif.

Why it Rocks

 * 1) The team behind the anime really pulled all the stops with this episode, considering how much story happens in it and how much changes as a result, choosing to make it a potential finale to the series rather than another cliffhanger.
 * 2) Just about every part of the series comes full-circle in this episode, the character development, the worldbuilding, the consequences of the characters' actions, and the overall story. Just about every character either achieves their purpose or finds a new one, and it does so by leaving very few loose ends for the next season due to there being a lot more source material left, but it also ends in almost the exact same way as the manga chapter did.
 * 3) King Sweyn is finally punished for his heinous previous actions and intended future actions, and Askeladd also receives punishment for his own heinous actions throughout his life while Canute and Thorfinn are both given a new lease on life as a result of the latter's action as they had both been saved from doing something truly unforgiveable and still remain likeable characters.
 * 4) Plenty of minor villains are also punished, like Floki, who's more or less demoted as a result, a fate worse than death for the one most responsible for Thors' death.
 * 5) On that note, in a touch of irony, Thorfinn doesn't achieve his revenge, but that also helps to support the overall theme of the consequences of vengeance and preventing this allows for even more character development and Thorfinn to find a new life outside of vengeance, which is absolutely touching.
 * 6) Canute's character development also comes full-circle as he is crowned the new king of the Danes and ends the constant wars the Vikings are waging against England and other countries while preparing them for a life of peace, which is a wonderful conclusion and excellent way to bring the themes of the rest of the series to a potential close. He also shows how much he's become a king by doing what is necessary and leading the country not for himself like King Sweyn, but for his ideal of heaven on earth.
 * 7) Although the fight scenes aren't really the point of the episode, they are nonetheless, as always, very well done and awesome to watch.
 * 8) The music, especially towards the end, is absolutely phenomenal, with new tracks performed that give the audience an excellent sense of closure.
 * 9) The episode sends a bittersweet message about how a quiet life may be preferable to one filled with war and that peace is truly beautiful and can help to erase the damage done to the world in the long run. It also does an excellent job of this by dedicating most of it's time to the consequences of Askeladd's actions rather than the actions themselves. It's also a very bittersweet moment to see Askeladd, of all people, tell Thorfinn to think about life after he's gone and to pursue what he wants rather than what's been controlling him for most of his life.
 * 10) An absolutely bittersweet and phenomenally satisfying moment where Thorfinn finally learns to relax and abandon revenge by dropping his dagger, which shows many moments throughout his life (and the season) in the blade and then sweeping out throughout the world and showing many other new characters (who the audience doesn't yet meet) going about their own lives, foreshadowing the utter transformation Thorfinn has gone through as a result and the life without war.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) Some may feel that the ultimate end to the episode is a little rushed and should have a little more. It's not bad by any means, but it mostly just ends with the clips and other things before showing Thorfinn's discarded dagger, leaving some parts up to audience interpretation rather than showing them.

Reception
The episode received 9.9 out of 10 stars on IMDb, becoming the highest rated episode of the series so far.