NORSE CODE北歐傳奇
《Vikings》第五季劇情緊湊，一名君主的兒子們繼承父親的遺志，繼續南征北戰。撰文：馬樂民視屏·視評 In the tense fifth season of Vikings, the ruler’s sons continue to conquer new ground. By KEVIN MA
FOR THE PAST four seasons of Vikings, the warriors from the land of ice and snow have been fighting their way to the western shores. The series not only turned fashion model Travis Fimmel into a television star – it also established the History Channel as a serious player in the new golden age of television.
The departure of Fimmel, who played Viking ruler Ragnar Lothbrok, at the end of season four left fans uncertain about the show’s future. But it gave creator Michael Hirst – who is also working on a series about Julius Caesar with Martin Scorsese – the chance to move Vikings into a new phase by expanding the scope of the story.
In the fifth season, Ragnar’s sons are in charge after avenging their father’s death by defeating Ecbert, King of Wessex. They spread out geographically: eldest brother and heir apparent Bjorn decides to leave England for the Mediterranean; youngest brother Ivar, who murdered another brother, Sigurd, in the season four finale, quickly redeems himself with a successful invasion of York. Meanwhile, Bishop Heahmund (series newcomer Jonathan Rhys Meyers) arrives in Wessex to pick up the pieces and plot revenge against the pagans.
Covering at least five parallel plot strands, the fifth season amps up the tension as mistrust grows between characters. New alliances are forged and new landscapes are explored. Each episode of the expanded season is so densely plotted that Fimmel’s absence is barely noticed.
Along with Game of Thrones and the new Star Wars films, Vikings shows that Ireland has become the location of choice for TV and film productions requiring timeless, sweeping countryside. The fifth season expands its production to Iceland and Morocco, but the show’s home remains in Ireland’s Ashford Studios, a facility built in County Wicklow specifically for it. It’s impossible to travel back to the age of the Vikings, but the country’s breathtaking natural beauty provides the next best thing.
劇集《Vikings》過去四季都在講述一群來自冰天雪地的武士，一路攻城掠地、不斷西進的故事。劇集不但將模特兒出身的演員
Travis Fimmel變成真正的電視明星，同時亦令歷史頻道成為電視新黃金時代裡舉足輕重的一員。
飾演維京人領袖 Ragnar Lothbrok 的
Fimmel於第四季結束時離去，令一眾劇迷為劇集的前景擔心。不過，這個變動亦讓劇集的創作人Michael Hirst（他現正與導演
Martin Scorsese 合作一個關於凱撒大帝的劇集）有機會擴充《Vikings》的故事，將劇集帶進全新的階段。
劇集來到第五季，講述 Ragnar 的幾個兒子打敗了Wessex 國王 Ecbert，為死去的父親報仇後的故事。他們四散各地：將會繼承王位的長子Bjorn 決定前往地中海一帶，最年幼的兒子Ivar於第四季大結局時殺死哥哥Sigurd，但立即作出補償，成功攻陷York。與此同時， Heahmund 主教（由新加入劇集的 Jonathan Rhys Meyers 飾演）來到 Wessex收拾殘局，並計劃對異教徒進行報復。
《Vikings》第五季的故事最少有五條主線同時進行，每個角色之間互不信任，猜忌日深，令各人關係愈來愈緊張。隨著劇情發展，出現了新的結盟關係，以及劇中人物未曾探索過的新地方。新一季經過擴充後，每一集的劇情均十分緊湊，即使
Fimmel不再現身，觀眾亦無暇留意。
跟電視劇《權力遊戲》及最新的《星球大戰》系列電影一樣，愛爾蘭遼闊壯麗、充滿靈氣的風景，亦成為《Vikings》取景拍攝的地點。第五季雖然亦遠赴冰島和摩洛哥取景，不過主要的拍攝場地仍然是愛爾蘭的
Ashford Studios 錄影廠；這座位於威克洛郡的錄影廠特別為拍攝本劇集而設。現在當然已不可能回到維京人的年代，不過愛爾蘭令人讚歎的自然風光足可取而代之。