5 out of 5

Hardcover collection of tankobons vol. 23 and 24

What a recovery.

Vinland Saga, being mostly a tale of, like, peace and farming, has to occasionally toss in some action to keep things more accessibly exciting, and though I think Yukimura does a good job of tossing in PTSD-esque nightmares of Thorfinn’s for some good tension, sure, we have some battles now and then, though that can result in less affecting arcs overall.

With a long one of those out of the way, volume 12 can take its sweet time clearing some final pieces for Thorfinn’s first legit outing to Vinland: Sigurd’ return home; Thorfinn’s return home.

I really don’t know if I’ve read a more well-affected character evolution than that of Sigurd’s. Though sort of a joke antagonist at first, shifting him into not only a sympathetic role, but also a fully-fleshed out character with his own motivations has been masterfully affected, and his squaring off against the judgments of father Halfdan, here, are perfection. Yukimura steps through father / son stereotypes – along with the values and family expectations of the time – and finds a way for Sigurd to assert himself without it going unrealistically against those limitations. The creator employs overblown manga drama effectively, partly for comedy, with Halfdan’s flowing-haired, austere reactions, and partly for some more story spice – father and son square off in battle – and then balances it out with the emotional storybeats. I initially loathed that Sigurd’s part was being dragged out as a baddie it just seemed so generic – but his turnaround has made it all worth it.

A time jump of two years then sets us up with Thorfinn, now fully family-ed to Gudrid, and working with Halfdan to secure some resources for the Vinland venture, while also trying to convince the locals that, yes, he’s serious about this no-fighting business.

…Which Yukimura does not make easy for him. While Thorfinn has flip-flopped into something of a Mary Sue-esque protag, his idealism has always felt hard-earned, and the writer never just lets him swing people to his side with one simple conversation. Thorfinn keeps having to convince people, and we see seeds planted for future problems in this regard. But the forward momentum towards his goal is so compelling- for him, for us – that we’re excited to see the little victories he makes.

The time jump also helps the evolution of his relationship with Gudrid, which I otherwise felt was rather sudden. Overall, I’d still offer that criticism, but inserting the gap in their coupling here makes it more acceptable at this point, and their interactions are often the greatest mix of being funny and cute.

While I had some more critical thoughts regarding the character of Cordelia, and how they might be viewed from a modern perspective – Yukimura perhaps playing into some unfortunate visual tropes that are common to manga and anime – I think the fact there there is no real joke made counters that, alongside how everyone interacts with her in a rather blase fashion. There’s also some argument that the tropes employed are purposefully done so that Cordelia (as a character) was able to fit in amongst her peers. I don’t know. But I find it more of an interesting thing to discuss in this case than an icky one (“icky” meaning those times where I feel like the representation starts from a bad place), and that ultimately left me with a good feeling.

Such a perfect encapsulation of how good this series is and can be, both in standalone elements, and in storylines that’ve taken these many volumes to build up to. Includes some bonus comics regarding the Assassin’s Creed viking game (weird, but okay) and the Vinland Saga anime.