Vinland Saga - Vol. 16 Ch. 109 - The Fettered Tern, Part 9

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May 25, 2018
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This was easily the worst arc, in my opinion. I need to get this off my chest.

It started with what should've been a heartwarming meeting, turned into his ogre of a sister knocking him unconscious upon first seeing him. Just for the gag. The author's Japanese is really starting to show here; we just watched Thorfin take 100 blows from a trained warrior but then the ever powerful housewife is the one that knocks him unconscious with a single strike. Hilarious.

Now for this arc, we have the insert-black-haired-girl who refuses to be a wife and wishes she were a man. We get that (women can do anything a man can do, even better!) shoved down our throats every day in society, why insert it here? Even the loaner's wife, constantly nagging about how men need to listen to women; the moral of this arc is that if the loaner had just listened to the woman, all would have turned out better.

Thorfin, the ex-viking who now refuses to kill. Canute, the ex-Christian who has to bear the weight of his crown to seek a better world. And now 9 chapters of this girl who doesn't want to be a housewife, but a sailor. Equally engaging and riveting. The last arc of the slave woman was a great example of female character development. This girl is the opposite.

Here's hoping that it gets better.
 
Fed-Kun's army
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@Juke
Your free to have your opinion about this being the worst arc but your criticism i find lacking.

"It started with what should've been a heartwarming meeting, turned into his ogre of a sister knocking him unconscious upon first seeing him. Just for the gag. The author's Japanese is really starting to show here; we just watched Thorfin take 100 blows from a trained warrior but then the ever powerful housewife is the one that knocks him unconscious with a single strike. Hilarious."

The meeting between Thorfinn and his family was heartwearming. He met his mom who recognized him immediately which was nice and Ylva came around too once she had proof of Thorfinn being Thorfinn. Also the "gag" was a natural reaction to finding out your brother (and first born son) had abandoned you and been off who knows where and while you were busting your ass all alone with your sick mother (keep in mind she had no idea what Thorfinn has been through yet). Also as we learn later both Ylva and Thorfinn are related to Thorkell and as we can see Ylva takes after Thorkell quite a bit so it isn't that outrageous for her to one shot Thorfinn (especially when he has his guard down).

"Now for this arc, we have the insert-black-haired-girl who refuses to be a wife and wishes she were a man. We get that (women can do anything a man can do, even better!) shoved down our throats every day in society, why insert it here? Even the loaner's wife, constantly nagging about how men need to listen to women; the moral of this arc is that if the loaner had just listened to the woman, all would have turned out better."

Gudrid's character has nothing to do with women being better than men at all and i don't know how you came to that conclusion. She represents women who don't fit into the traditional roles women are assigned and how unfair it can be to be forced into those roles and denied being able to do the things you want to pursue in life. The manga doesn't mock women doing those traditional roles and most women are satisfied being in those roles and in fact portrays women in those in roles in a good light, but there will always be those outliers among women who want something different with their lives. We even see later in the manga a man who isn't satisfied with participating in the traditional role of men which again doesn't portray those role as negative but that the role isn't suited for him. If Halfdann had listened to his wife things most likely would have turned out better and i really don't see the problem with that? Do men always have to be right and women wrong? I view this more as a man's thinking can't solve some problems while a women's thinking can which i can agree with, neither sex is perfect and the different ways of thinking can cover the other's weakness. While i will agree that this manga does show men more in a negative light than women overall it's only natural seeing the time period we're in with men being at the forefront at this time while women are in the support role.

Just to make to make it clear i'm not hating on your opinion but just critiquing your critique. Also i'm not some SJW who loves the "Yas Queen slay" women archetype we see in media nowadays and i revile it but i don't see that here. also anyone please feel free to respond because i would to hear your opinions on the matter
 
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Couldn't agree more with @Juke. This is stupid. Woman on that era wanting to be like a man who could travel all around the world, and yet explicitly said "please take care of me" like little girl often said. Fook, I hate it. Didn't expect the stories would turn this lame by cast idiot character like this woman.
 
Fed-Kun's army
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woman with free will in a time period where women are relegated to be sitting in a 2 mile perimeter of their home for their entire lives and married to men they don't even know and the occasional getting raped and enslaved when a local warband passes by? noooo....

god sometimes i just want to tell woman from the 11th century where her place is :mad:(((
 
Fed-Kun's army
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Couldn't agree more with @Juke. This is stupid. Woman on that era wanting to be like a man who could travel all around the world, and yet explicitly said "please take care of me" like little girl often said. Fook, I hate it. Didn't expect the stories would turn this lame by cast idiot character like this woman.
The phrase she used there ("yoroshiku onegaishimasu") is common in Japan when starting a new job or meeting someone new for the first time and is used by both adult men and women. Try to incel a bit harder next time :)
 
Double-page supporter
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Couldn't agree more with @Juke. This is stupid. Woman on that era wanting to be like a man who could travel all around the world, and yet explicitly said "please take care of me" like little girl often said. Fook, I hate it. Didn't expect the stories would turn this lame by cast idiot character like this woman.
Im so happy you’re not having fun fr fr
 
Dex-chan lover
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I actually like this because it fits into one of the themes, I think that's the right word for it, of going against the natural order. Some people in the comments complain about Gudrid and that she wants to be a sailor, but she should be able to choose her own path. Thats another important thing in this story, being able to choose your own path.

Canute wants to fight against God's natural order, to create a paradise on Earth. To do it he'll trample over the lives of many others. His means is through violence.

Thorfinn wants to go against the natural order of war and slavery. To create a land free from it, where people can live in peace. At this time, war and slavery is the norm to many people living there. The strong demolish the weak and either become subservient or die. You all know that.

Gudrid, the new girl, wants to go against the gender roles. Lief said that the roles are natural a few chapters ago, that she will realize it when she grows older. It is constantly repeated how its natural for women to be in an inferior role to men. Over and over. Here, rather than accepting it and being submissive, she fights back.

Everyone fights back against this natural order and choose to do so in their own ways.
 
Dex-chan lover
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First time reading this.
What Asrid said should be obvious and this arc is perfectly in line with this series.
Dude views himself and this great thinking and strategist and everyone around him as paws, but what Gudrid did was so obvious that it's absurd that he couldn't predict.

Gudrid isn't a domesticated animal what would be held by his chains.
 
Double-page supporter
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Kind of disappointed with the route they took this arc
i knew the girl was gonna join but the way they choose it’s really bad
it could been like hey I know your only marrying me to get to vinland how about a deal I won’t marry your son but we will still get you to Vinland let me team up with thorfinn
but I gusss the series needed a new big bad chasing them still for someone who wants peace thorn keeps mking bad choices
also the dudes wife I like her she keeps calling him out but ya feel bad for the families now she screwed up 2 possibly 3 families
 

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