War Is Coming
Uhtred and the others prepare to leave by sunrise. With Edward’s men still barring the gates, Eadgifu and Aelswith confront Edward and urge him to follow Uhtred. Aelswith realizes that he’s fearful of trying to live up to Alfred’s memory, but she urges her son to push through that, believing he’s a good and true man.
After leaving Edward to relinquish and allow Uhtred and the others to ride out, She urges that they seize the moment by facing Edward’s army. He has chosen to fight for Northumbria after all, with battle coming to Bebbanburg, the place where it all began. How poetic! ..
Aethelhelm is held up in Bebbanburg, awaiting Constantin’s army arriving. The King shows up from the sea front with his convoy while Constantin’s army march down to meet them. Constantin does not want to wait to attack though and even tells Alfweard not to trust any advisor, mischievously grinning. Aelfwynn meanwhile, contemplates whether to jump to her doom or not. ..
Constantin seems to be seeing his bride-to-be, but she’s not exactly warm toward him. The thing is, Constantin isn’t happy about it either but he’s made a pact and must honour it. He can sense that she’s taken with another, but then so too is Constantin. They agree to be married but without love, just by arrangement, both of them will be free to do as they please but keep up the pretenses all the same. ..
News of Constantin’s arrival reaches Edward and the army who misjudge his timing, believing they had longer than they did. Edward is impulsive (just as Aethelhelm predicted) but Uhtred is there to stop him, deciding on an alternate plan to victory rather than marching and attacking Bebbanburg head-on. After convincing Edward to stay put for now, Uhtred enlists the help of Haesten for this upcoming mission, which includes taking Aelfwynn by having Haesten distract the household guard. He understands this will be difficult and time consuming (not to mention expensive) but Haesten eventually agrees when his terms are met. The thing is, Edward is restless and it would appear that he’s going to strike without waiting for Uhtred.
Haesten’s plan is successful and the guards are distracted long enough for Uhtred and his men to sneak in. They find salt and relics, which Haesten tells the soldiers he has brought from his ship. Constantin allows them to help but warns them of a potential plot against them.
Aethelhelm is brought into the throne room to help warm up. Once here, he finds himself face to face with Haesten. He remembers Haesten from being locked in Alfred’s tomb and as a result, is stuck in a precarious position. He’s eventually stabbed in the gut and killed when he refuses to give up Uhtred.
Uhtred and his men sneak into the city through a weakened area in the walls, and immediately don outfits to blend in. Uhtred notices Wihtgar nearby and tries to get the jump on him, but it all goes awry. Finan is captured while Uhtred just about manages to avoid suspicion.
With all hope lost, Aelswith appears and tries to gain Stiorra’s favour to help. Unfortunately, Uhtred’s plan seems lost when Edward rocks up outside with his vast army, surrounding the fortress. As Aethelstan rides to the gates, he promises to attack and leave no one alive should they choose not to comply.
The Episode Review
Thee Last Kingdom ended with a cliffhanger that left much to be desired. The finale left everything wide open for where this one may go in the finale, with all roads leading to war.
This season has been excellent so far, with plenty of action, drama and bloodshed. Numerous characters have met an untimely demise and the show’s politics work well alongside the action and drama to give this a real air of intrigue and danger.
The finale hints that we’re going to get on final spectacular battle to round out this season, and with Netflix releasing all episodes at once, we thankfully don’t have to wait too long to watch that. Roll on the finale! ..
