Vikings
Will King Ecbert agree to help King Aelle destroy the Vikings in episode 7? Vikings

Rumors promised that episode 7 of “Vikings” would be unforgettable. And boy, were they were spot on. “Blood Eagle” began its jaw-dropping episode with a scene between King Horik and Ragnar Lothbrok. The Viking ruler of Denmark attempted to persuade Ragnar not to execute Borg, despite the Earl of Kattegat’s desire to rip Borg open blood eagle style.

And can you blame him? The cunning Jarl of Götaland’s did threaten Ragnar’s family and attempt to take over his village while he was raiding Wessex.

Horik explained that if Ragnar was to brutally murder Borg then it could deter any potential allies in the future from assisting them in seeking vengeance against King Ecbert of Wessex. With that said, Ragnar promised to wait until he found a new ally before killing Borg.

Fans of “Vikings” then get to see and old but familiar face: King Aelle. He was the disgruntled King of Northumbria who swore to the gods he would wage war against Ragnar for killing his brother.

“Together you and I can save our country,” King Aelle says to King Ecbert. “God save England.”

Episode 7 then jumps to a scene between Floki and Helga. The young maiden reveals she’s with child, but Floki doesn’t give us the reaction we expected.

“Floki the carpenter, Floki the fisherman, Floki the father. Poor child to have such a father,” he started, having a meltdown. “I will be the worst father.”

Helga seemed surprised by his reaction. “Now you’re frightening.”

In response, Floki suggests the pair gets married. “Mary the gods bless us. They surely will.”

Helga springs into wedding plans, suggesting everyone should be invited to their ceremony, including Ragnar. But Floki isn’t keen on the idea. He explains that he’s known Ragnar a long time. “I helped him rise. Now he is earl and our world waits upon him. But he cannot have everything. He can not have you and me,” the disgruntled Viking says.

Following Floki’s exciting news, fans get to watch Ragnar give his son “the talk.” Bjorn begins the conversation by saying he feels as if his father doesn’t trust him because he was not informed of what was happening the night Jarl Borg was captured.

“I sent someone to find you. They could not find you,” Ragnar revealed.

Bjorn explained he was with Porunn.

“You chose to be with her rather than me,” Ragnar said. He then explained that he would be the judge of how much information he would reveal to his son.

“But as a father, think with this,” he pointed at Bjorn’s head. “Not with you.”

Siggy and Aslaug have an interesting moment together in “Blood Eagle.” The pregnant princess admits this is her worst pregnancy yet. She said she believes she’s carrying a monster, or so the gods told her. As if little Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye wasn’t weird enough.

King Horik visits Borg while imprisoned. He comes not to gloat but to discuss Borg’s potential escape.

“I’m told blood eagle is the worst, most painful death of all. But truly astonishing to those who watch,” Borg says.

Horik notes he will take no pleasure in Borg’s death and is actually consider freeing him from Ragnar’s clutches.

Borg bolsters the argument of why he should be freed, saying Horik is hiding in Ragnar’s shadow.

“His fame eclipses yours,” Borg says before adding Horik should free him and then kill Ragnar. You know, “if I were you,” he says.

More exciting events happened in episode 7, including a meeting between Ragnar and The Seer. The blind wise man revealed that Athelstan wasn’t killed in Wessex.

“He’s physically alive but he’s tormented. He is with a man you know. A foreigner. A king..”

After Ragnar’s reading, he attends Kattegat’s feast. He lurks in the shadows as civilians watch games and eat to their hearts content. But the lighthearted festivities take a darker turn when Rollo confronts his brother about Borg. Ragnar says he’s waiting because Horik had given him orders to — and he is king after all.

But that wasn’t the only thing that went down at this shindig. Siggy got the scoop on Floki’s beef with Ragnar, Helga revealed some seriously depressing news about giving “birth to the slaughtered” and Floki gave advice to Bjorn on how to make a woman swoon.

So, back to our English friends! King Ecbert and King Aelle discuss treachery and raids. Ecbert reveals he wants to take over a neighboring village with Northumbria as an ally and divide the conquered land between the two.

“After we have conquered Mercia, what’s stopping you from turning on your smaller ally?” King Aelle asks.

“At the moment, very little. That is why I am proposing the formal marriage of my eldest son, and heir, to your beautiful daughter, Judith. Now then... what do you say?”

“Now I say let us drink to our lands!” King Aelle rejoices.

“Blood Eagle” then shows the differences between a Christian and a Viking wedding, which was pretty interesting to watch. While Floki was getting hitched, the uninvited Ragnar was busy creating new allies. Apparently the earl who was so desperate to join forces wanted Ragnar to meet him out in the woods.

It turns out to be Lagertha. The two get their flirt on and discuss the benefits of becoming allies. With the new alliance, Ragnar has a glimmer of excitement in his eye because this not only means he can raid Wessex with King Horik but now he can finally execute Borg.

“What is a blood eagle?” Bjorn asks.

Ragnar explains that it’s when a prisoner “gets down on his knees and his back is opened with knives. And then with axes his ribs are chopped away from his spine. And then his lungs are pulled out and laid upon his shoulders so they look like the folded wings of a great eagle. And he must stay like that, suffering, until he dies.”

We have to admit, watching Borg get hacked open was almost unbearable to watch. Even folks in the crowd fainted during this brutal execution. Episode 7 ended with Borg split wide open, kneeling in a sea of his own blood while attempting not to scream so that he could enter Valhalla.

What did you think of “Vikings” gruesome episode? Let us know in the comments section below.