Death Strikes 'Reign,' Ragnar Makes a Bold Move on 'Vikings'

The CW

In the fallout of Francis’ illness on “Reign” Mary seized power to congeal Scotland, fearing that if Francis were to die, Catherine would stop the flow of French troops to Scotland. That, and if Francis lived, he would have stopped it out of revenge for her betrayal.

Mary’s guilt was present, though diverted by her desire to secure her country. While Conde quickly absolved them of wrongdoing, Catherine dressed Mary in royal fashion, admonishing her for her culpability in Francis’ illness. There was little in the way of redemptive damage control for the young queen.

Although she showed signs of remorse and seemed determined to not further her betrayal by the episode's end, she refused to take sole accountability for the destruction of her marriage. She even went so far as to say that she wished they could undo the harm they’d caused each other.

t is quite frankly bewildering that she believes Francis is guilty of any of this. Whatever role he played in the events that led to her assault was unintentional. All of the hurt she has caused him has been deliberate. The injured party appears, ent and it’s a party of one.  

Side Notes/Burning Questions: Francis liv, es but for how much longer? It was disturbing that Bash so easily extinguished the life of poor Clarissa, whose fate was horrifyingly tragic. Even creepier was the nurse’s calm demeanor as it happened. “Reign” dug into its supernatural treasure chest and conjured up two. Can you say episode MVP? Will Claude ever grow up? How does Mary live with herself? Francis keeping his word to protect Scotland further solidified that he was the better person.

[Image by HISTORY]

Vikings | As has been evidenced over three seasons, the Vikings have a lot of traits that make them ferocious warriors; one of those attributes is persistence. After failing in their first attempt to conquer Paris, they were at again and met with more success than last time. However, they still didn’t manage to defeat the Parisian forces.

The battle sequences were incredibly well done -- intense, brutal, and gripping. Back at base camp, Ragnar was still attempting to overcome his battle injuries and, during that struggle, became “born again.” The symbology heavily alluded to Ragnar’s closing request, which was still quite surprising.

Whether Ragnar’s conversion to Christianity is his ultimate revenge on Floki or a genuine way to stay with his friend in the afterlife remains to be seen. It is strange why Rags would rather spend eternity with his best friend than with his already departed daughter and the family members destined to join thee. The aftermath of his decision will have repercussions for seasons to come (if he sticks to it). How it is handled in the season finale will be incredibly compelling to watch play out.  

Side Notes/Burning Questions: Where has the wanderer guy collecting all of this intelligence on different cultures been this time? Certainly, Ragnar would have been utilizing him similarly. Hopefully, he sticks around. He’d be a very interesting character to explore further.