Vinland Saga’s second season has been over since June 20, 2023. Its protagonist Thorfinn’s journey from revenge-obsessed boy to wisened and violence-averse man declaring he has no enemies has been praised across the internet as an example of great character writing, especially in the rejection of violence as a solution.
Plenty of shonen and seinen anime, especially action-oriented ones, have protagonists that pursue personal goals like revenge, vengeance, and the pursuit of godhood in some cases. This article will go into the ways Vinland Saga’s protagonist broke the mold when it came to anime protagonists.
Disclaimer: The following article contains Vinland Saga spoilers for the recently ended season 2 of the anime and the manga.
Rejecting violence and authoritarianism: How Vinland Saga’s Thorfinn breaks the mold of typical anime protagonists
Bloodsoaked origins
Thorfinn, who was born in Iceland in 996 to a former Jomsviking named Thors, grew up unaware of his father’s past. He subsequently witnessed the latter’s death via the mercenary Askeladd and vowed vengeance against him. He later spent 11 years in service to Askeladd’s band of mercenaries, waiting for an opportunity, but never got his chance on that score.
As it turned out, Askeladd was killed per Prince Canute’s plans to take power. Thorfinn was dumbfounded by this and spent more than a few years adrift as a slave when he attacked Prince Canute. His life seemingly had no purpose, no ambition, nothing after Askeladd died.
In other words, Thorfinn was so focused on vengeance that he shut down after Askeladd died. His prior attempts at dueling his seemingly fated enemy failed three times. The latter’s surprise demise caught him off guard and started his character arc on a more peaceful path.
A much different type of arc
While there are many types of protagonist in anime and manga that seem to undergo this type of arc, not many of them have the main protagonist fail at getting revenge. Finding out it’s a hollow task, sure, but not outright failure. That’s not even going into Thorfinn’s development as a protagonist.
Many avenging type of characters either find themselves stuck in a rut (Sasuke from Naruto), thinking that the only solution to everything is genocide even if not by choice (Eren Yeager in Attack on Titan), or sometimes lose themselves in the rage and violence and need to be pulled back (Ryuko from Kill la Kill).
Even in Berserk, things between Guts and Griffith become so strained and broken that they fight each other on more than one occasion. However in Vinland Saga, Thorfinn and Prince Canute don’t reach that level of conflict. The two instead have a war of ideology, a spirited debate of a sort about violence.
“I have no enemies”
These arc words are first said by Thors to his son early in Vinland Saga, then by the latter himself. It’s a testimony to how Thorfinn changed over the course of the story. It wasn’t a quick change, however, as it involved him becoming a slave, then a farmer, and then a merchant. Years went by before he’d ever get to that point.
He was so broken by Askeladd being killed that it took Einar, Snake, and Sverker to get him out of it. Even then, he had to be taught how to fish, trade, and farm because he was never taught anything else other than fighting. Thorfinn started to really ponder what life truly meant, whether he was merely a weapon or something more.
As for his enemies, Askeladd died via Canute’s hand and there wasn’t anything to be done about that. Hild eventually forgave Thorfinn for her father’s death after years. His mother never truly hated him. Canute and Thorfinn were on opposite sides ideologically but were never violent enemies. Even Floki, the true cause of Thors’ death, was spared the sword and exiled from the Jomsvikings.
A rare breed of protagonist
In Vinland Saga, Thorfinn goes from a kid obsessed with vengeance to a dull-eyed slave believing in nothing, to a farmer and later merchant attempting to find peace in his life and put the past behind him. This sort of story has rarely been told in many anime, and is usually the realm of side characters.
The caveat is that the main character must have been some sort of brutal murderer or killer, either plagued by remorse over his killings or personally abstaining due to a change in life. The only other main characters that immediately fit that description are Guts from Berserk and Kenshin Himura from Rurouni Kenshin.
This presents a rare dynamic for the main characters in anime, especially violent ones. Ones that put their swords down, or realize that the fighting is pointless and that revenge doesn’t fill that hole left in them and in fact creates more problems. It may not be to everyone’s standards, but Vinland Saga carries that message with the utmost sincerity.
Thorfinn’s journey in Vinland Saga has been messy, as a life honed through violence often is. There’s merit to this type of story, where most anime either have a character that fights without choice, avenges without comment afterward or continues on a violent path despite the consequences and tips into villainy.
Vinland Saga shows the futility of violence and war, the realistic aspects of all the horrors coming to crash down on those that meted it out. With Thorfinn and others, it shows the only path forward is to get aid out of the violence and go forth in peace. Any other thoughts or opinions that readers might encounter in their minds while reading are welcomed in the comment box below.
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