Vinland Sagais a heart-pounding series filled with some of the deepest themes found in anime. It’s a much deeper series than the first season would put on, leading to one of the best character arcs in Thorfinn Thorsson’s evolution. While Thorfinn puts up his blades to lead a life of peace in the second season of the show, the first season is filled with some of the best fights in anime. Thorfinn is a bolt of lightning on the battlefield, darting through enemies like a flash of light.
While the protagonist, Thorfinn, is involved in a lot of the series' best fights, he’s not the only one familiar with a blade. One of Vinland Saga’s greatest strengths is in its side characters, like Thorkell and even Thorfinn’s father, Thors. While they don’t appear on-screen for long, they’re devastating when they do, destroying mountains of enemies forsome of the best fights inVinland Saga.
10Thors vs. Enemy Soldiers
The Troll of Jom Earned His Name
Thors is one of the most exciting characters inVinland Sagato never get much screen time. His death sets the events of the series into motion and happens early in season one, but before he was murdered by Askeladd, his skills were put on display. Thors was known as the Troll of Jom for his viciousness in battle. He was a walking one-man army and could take on scores of soldiers by himself. When he and Thorkell were fighting on the same side, there wasn’t much for their enemy to do.
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In a prequel scene explaining how Thors retired from the battlefield,Thorfinn’s dad is seen fighting dozens of enemies on top of boats.He’s flying around the battle, slicing through people like they’re butter and his sword is a hot knife. This battle makes it easy to see where Thorfinn gets his skills from.
9Thorfinn vs. Drott
Thorfinn Has No Enemies
Thorfinn has taken countless lives on the battlefield and has no interest in fighting anymore. When Canute’s army comes to Ketil’s Farm to requisition it, Thorfinn wants to speak with him to stop the massacre. Canute’s forces won’t let him, but a soldier called Drott proposes that he will let him through if Thorfinn survives taking 100 punches.
In one of the most emotional moments in the series,Thorfinn shows his resolve by taking 100 continuous punches without retaliating once.It’s one of the best fights in the series internally more than externally, as it shows Thorfinn’s resolve and growth. At the start of the series, he was a rabid boy focused on revenge. Now, he’s a calm man focused on peace.
8Thorfinn vs. Askeladd 2
Thorfinn joined Askeladd’s group withthe sole intention of getting his revengeagainst the man who killed his father. Askeladd never thought that Thorfinn would be much of a threat until the day that he was. During their second official duel, Thorfinn got closer than ever to avenging his dad. Askeladd accepted his challenge and took the boy on in front of a group of excited onlookers.
Thorfinn opened up the fight with a series of quick, explosive strikes. Askeladd had to take a few surprising steps back, realizing Thorfinn had grown much more powerful than he thought. Once Askeladd realized that Thorfinn had a chance at beating him,he decided to get into Thorfinn’s head, a tactic that worked all too well. He made Thorfinn angry, causing the boy to throw his strategy to the side and attack Askeladd recklessly.
7Thorfinn vs. Guard Captain
Thorfinn Took on a Dozen Guards at Once
Thorfinn was a killing machinein the first season ofVinland Saga.With a dagger in each hand, there weren’t many people that could take Thorfinn on in battle. He’s tasked with taking a fort and thinks that one of the best ways to do it would be to kill the fort’s captain. In one of the most exciting moments in the series, Thorfinn rushes straight toward the fort in the middle of the battle and climbs straight up its walls with his knives. He stands atop the wall with a dozen soldiers standing between him and the enemy captain.
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From a well-animated first-person perspective,Thorfinn rushes through the enemy guards straight toward the captain, slicing everyone in his path. He eventually gets to the captain, decapitating him and jumping into the water with his head.
6Thorfinn vs. Thorkell 2
Thorkell Was Looking Forward to This One
Thorkell is a very entertaining character inVinland Saga.He doesn’t seem to care about much more than fighting,and his unquenchable thirst for violence is seen best in his second fight against Thorfinn. In their first encounter, Thorfinn landed a few attacks on Thorkell, much to the giant’s surprise. It’s not often that someone lands a blow on Thorkell in battle, leading Thorkell to want to face the young fighter one more time.
Their second fight was quite a contest in the snow. Thorfinn relied on his smaller stature to run in and out of combat in an attempt to defend himself against Thorkell’s massive power. Thorkell fought with a giant axe in each hand and was strong enough to chop down entire trees with a single swing. With a well-timed distraction from Askeladd,Thorfinn was able to knock Thorkell out with a swift kick to the jaw.
5Askeladd vs. King Sweyn and Royal Guards
Askeladd Laid Down His Life To Get His Revenge
Askeladd is a twisted character inVinland Saga.On one hand, he’s the dishonorable man who killed Thorfinn’s father. On the other hand, he’s also theman that stepped up to be a solid father figureto young Thorfinn, teaching him many valuable life lessons. When it’s revealed that he’s actually the descendant of a Welsh king, the series is turned on its head. Askeladd declares himself king in front of King Sweyn andpromptly decapitates the tyrant.
Askeladd’s victory is short-lived, as all the castle guards descend upon him quickly. He does well against a lot of them, killing them with ease, but he can’t survive against them all. He’s eventually killed, never finishing his duel with Thorfinn before he dies. It’s a bittersweet death that leaves Thorfinn incredibly dissatisfied ashe now searches for a new means of quelling his anger.
4Thorgil vs. Canute
Thorgil Is One of the Most Vicious Characters in the Series
Thorgil is a berserker if there ever was one. He’s a character inVinland Sagawho loves battle more than most. When he had the opportunity to assassinate a king, he couldn’t help but take it. Canute came to his father’s farm and attacked, giving Thorgil the perfect reason to kill him. Thorgil knew that Canute couldn’t be reached from the front, so he came up with a plan toswim around his main force and assassinate the king from behind.
Thorgil rushed towards Canute, decapitating his two guards in an instant. He then swung his sword at Canute’s head, an attack the king was barely able to block. Even though he blocked Thorgil’s attack, Canute’s sword was broken, and his wrist was sprained. If it wasn’t for Canute’s quick thinking and huge pool of guards,Thorgil would have killed him in a flash.
3Thors vs. Askeladd
Askeladd’s Underhanded Victory Set the Tone forVinland Saga
Thors vs. Askeladd is a hard fight to watch. There’s no honor in the fight, as Thors is taken advantage of by the cowardly Askeladd. The beginning of the fight is great,as it showcases Thors and Askeladd fighting with all of their might.Even though Askeladd opens up the fight by trying to land a sneak attack on his opponent, Thors has the upper hand almost the entire fight. Askeladd realizes he has no chance against Thors in a fair fight and thus takes his son hostage.
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In one of the most heart-wrenching moments in the series, Askeladd then commands his archers to fire down at Thors. The rain of arrows impales Thorfinn’s father numerous times, killing him slowly.It’s a terrible death for one of the best characters in the series, and it sets the tone for the rest ofVinland Sagaperfectly.
2Thorfinn vs Thorkell 1
Thorkell’s Overwhelming Power vs. Thorfinn’s Unreal Speed
Thorfinn’s first fight against the giant that is Thorkell broughteverything that made Vinland Saga work to life. It features Thorfinn running at full speed against his biggest threat yet in Thorkell. The pair meet on a bridge and fight each other with the full intention of killing one another. While Thorfinn has fought a lot of powerful people, he’s never fought someone like Thorkell. When other men use swords or axes in battle, Thorkell can use entire trees to devastate his opponents.
Thorfinn starts their fight by running straight at Thorkell. He learns why his opponent is so confident through the very first punch, as Thorkell’s massive fist lets Thorfinn know how close he is to death. Thorfinn lands a few smart attacks before Thorkell catches him andstarts throwing him around like a ragdoll.
1Thorfinn vs. Snake
Even Unarmed Thorfinn Is a Threat
Thorfinn vs. Snake is one of thebest fight scenes in anime.It features two characters much stronger than they appear to be finally revealing the extent of their abilities. Snake is an ex-soldier looking forward to a quiet life on the farm. When his men start getting killed by Garter, a man searching for his wife, Snake has no choice but to execute him. Thorfinn is friends with Arnheid, Garter’s wife and a fellow slave on Ketil’s Farm. He decides to defend the man against Snake, choosing to fight for the first time in years.
However, Thorfinn has also decided that he will renounce killing whenever possible, so he’s fighting against Snake barehanded and withno intention to kill. Both fighters are masterful at their specific fighting styles and bring the best out of each other. Even without his knives, Thorfinn is incredibly dangerous against Snake, who fights with a type of sword Thorfinn has never seen before. The result is something more akin to a martial arts duel than the clashes of battle-hardened warriors thatVinland Sagamade its fans used to.
