Norsemen

Vikings meet Monty Python and The Holy Grail slightly but highly-visibly influenced by the Black sw.. I mean, Blackadder in the character of Orm. And surprisingly, the problem is not that it wouldn't be funny, but rather that it's often a bit long, especially in the first half. And it won´t make you laugh all the time. After all, it won´t make you laugh too much at all, it is not trying to be funny at all costs, the situation comic or visual gags are completely absent. The movie itself, it is actually pretty good, serious (ehm, ehm) historical series (with absurd characters and dialogs though) about a difficult Nordic life accompanied by magnificent music, which flows calmly at its own pace and two or three times per episode (or in the case of fourth and sixth parts all the time) intrigues you with a scene or dialogs, which have the potential to become legendary and to be place in the hall of fame of absurd humor. So, it´s above average with occasional flashes of utter genius. This can´t be said about the second season, which learned from the mistakes of the first one, addresses every single shortcoming, so it can match, without any exaggeration, the best episodes / series of the Blackadder. Partly because the film makers put in great efforts. This is simply the best possible dry absurd British humor that takes itself very seriously. This kind of humor is rarely seen even in Britain. But this one is only in Norwegian way and in the form of a continuous story. I can't think of better praise. The third season is a step back. Literally. The story line directly precedes the first season. So what at first seemed to be a stylish prologue lasts all season. The first ten minutes are gripping, basically it could make the whole episode, but not the season. It´s just forced padding with occasional flashes of crazy laughter. But just a few, though. PS: Although the series is being created in both Norwegian and English versions at the same time, the Norwegian version seems to fit the actors more in terms of speaking, so you will get the feeling that the comedy timing is better. However, some plays on words in the English version are simply refined, so even this version is worth watching. | S1: 4/5 | S2: 5/5 | S3: 3/5 (20/09/2017)

Amazing series. A little bit Blackadder, a little bit Monty Python, a little bit Office... A war meeting can suddenly look like a classic Monday meeting with the week's plans; the condemned to die can wonder about the logic of sacrifice, talk it out with the executioner, and then get executed feeling good that they at least spoke up; the newly arrived slaves can complain about the meager pay. In addition to being wickedly funny, however, Norsemen is also quite sly – that's when the viewer discovers that incidents like the Ättestupa or the Holmgang, for example, which have already made him or her laugh to tears once, were actually not merelyisolated episodes, but the creators are happy to use them again to provide a second, even better punchline. I was entertained every half hour, and I was also interested in the characters and their (often quite unpredictable) fates. (09/06/2019)