With Vikings: Valhalla Season 3 setting sail in 2024, Erik the Red is making a comeback but it seems he will be introducing a huge plothole in the Netflix series. The character was introduced in Vikings season 6 but Valhalla confirmed a major shift in the character’s story which makes his arrival interesting. The character is still the Viking father of Leif Eriksson (Sam Corett) and Freydis (Frida Gustavsson) but his doomed fate in the original show, as well as the fact the sequel takes place over a century after the events of Vikings, makes his reappearance questionable.
Despite the confusion surrounding Valhalla’s Erik the Red, The Boys star Goran Visnjic has joined the cast to play the character who has been mentioned many times in the series by his son Leif and now fans can meet him. The character which is based on a real person is important to both Freydis and Leif’s stories and fans of the show are in for something new and exciting with his arrival. This piece aims to explore the plothole that comes with Vikings: Valhalla‘s Erik the Red.
Erik The Red Already Appeared in Vikings Season 6
While Vikings and Vikings: Valhalla have different characters (with The Seer as an exception), some of them are connected, including Emma of Normandy (Laura Berlin), who is a descendant of Rollo, and Erik the Red who is Leif and Freydís’ father. Vikings season 6 introduced Erik the Red as Erik Thorvaldsson – he earned his other name from the color of his hair. Played by Eric Johnson, Vikings‘ Erik was a mercenary who later became an outlaw but rendering his services as a warrior changed his story for good.
Erik Thorvaldsson saved Björn (Alexander Ludwig) from Harald’s men who were sent to kill him and led Björn’s army to kill Rus soldiers in their numbers while fighting to protect Tamdrup. When Björn died and Kattegat needed a new leader, Erik took the throne after manipulating Gunhild and Ingrid, eventually making Ingrid (Lucy Martin) his queen. His association with Ingrid became the death of him as she made him blind through sorcery, thus, he lost his sight as well as the throne.
Ingrid and a slave in her service named Nissa (Victoire Dauxerre) came up with a plan to kill Erik and the pair succeeded with Nissa stabbing the King of Kattegat to death. From the get gi, it is safe to say that Vikings: Valhalla‘s Erik the Red is a whole new character from the Erik in the parent series as Leif and Freydís’ father is implied to still be alive. Another reason for this conclusion stems from the fact that a century has passed since the events in Vikings took place and Erik Thorvaldsson was killed in the season finale.
Vikings: Valhalla’s Best Bet Is Ignoring Erik’s Appearance in Vikings
With the big inconsistency between these two shows being quite obvious, trying to retcon the appearance of Erik the Red will not make sense. While fans await the release of Vikings: Valhalla season 3, it is important to note that plotholes are bound to happen, though often avoidable, however, the show should not try to reconcile Valhalla‘s Erik with the one in Vikings. The plot should be allowed to move forward without referencing the original period series, as an attempt to retcon Erik the Red’s appearance in the Netflix series would ruin the magic.
Technically speaking, Erik the Red is yet to make his appearance in the series but fans of the show already know that he is among the cast of Vikings: Valhalla season 3 and Goran Visnjic is bringing the character to life. Even in his absence, Erik the Red has earned enough mentions in the series and his looming appearance is taking a toll on Leif who wants to build his own legacy devoid of his father’s ugly past. As such, Erik the Red’s appearance in a world that turned its back on him after so long gives audiences something exciting to look forward to and the character seems to fit in better in Vikings: Valhalla.Vikings season 6
Follow Us
