Having known the history of this great figure, it was interesting to see his portrayal as a broken and jealous man, exiled and close to death, rise up, as the Seer predicts, to become such a legendary hero for his new homeland. Clive Standen and thwe writers do a wonderful job keeping this character interesting and sympathetic.
Totally agree.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/
Standing ovation.
Now waiting for the onslaught of the Trolls.
The middle initial is S standing for Sarcasm.
Rollo is a name that resonates strong in European history.
But again it's a compression of historical events. Rollo became Duke of Normandy in 918. Ragnar sacked Paris in 845. Once the Duchy was established they became Normans. The Frankish Kingdom of West Marcia would become France. Rollo's descendants would eventually conquer Sicily and take part First Crusade.
Rollo's great grandsons were Robert and William. William became the Conqueror. While Robert was King of Sicily and established the Duchy of Antioch after the First Crusade.
You forgot Robert II king of France via his daughter Geirlaug/Adela. Henri, his son will marry a third wife (ah the quest for the male heir is not limited to Henry VIII) who was a Rus Viking princess. All the ensuing kings of France are their descendants.
The middle initial is S standing for Sarcasm.
Meh. Making Rollo the viking and Rollo the Duke the same person was always too out there in fictionland to me. lol Rollo role in this show is becoming less significant. Betting series 5 will be his last.
shareWell that would make sense as Rollo would be quite old by Season 5. Pretty sure Season 5 would be the last for most of the first gen characters. And Rollo the Viking and Rollo the Duke were the same person in real life so...I'm not sure what you're getting at? I mean Rollo and Ragnar weren't brothers in real life but I'm just saying "Rollo the Viking" and "Rollo the Duke" in history were the same person, a Viking who became a Duke(or more accurately technically probably a count)
shareYes, it was to take longer to make his dynasty ducal but these were the days where dux really meant he who leads armies whereas a count was having different responsibilities as regarding the area of its rule which is why you had counts who were dukes and the opposite around.
Same for marquis
was certainy not the effete Versailles later version but hardeneded war leaders who protected the borders/marches.
The middle initial is S standing for Sarcasm.
I agree. I think they've done a great job of portraying his journey, I just wish there was more of it. :)
shareLove the character and his patience with his reluctant wife. I can't imagine the historical Rollo behaving that way.
He reminds me of my grandfather. My grandma was very feisty, and would sometimes be really disrespectful to him, and instead of becoming angry, he always laughed and looked at her like she was the cutest thing in shoe leather.
I could be a morning person if morning happened at noon.
Yes, his story became the best example of a viking rising to greatness and living a life of honor and purpose and protection instead of endless and empty conquests.
Heck, Id bet even XXPO loves the guy now but just doesn't want to admit it.
"Obamacare: It only works if you don't!"
Noooooo!!! Do not wake her/him up!
The middle initial is S standing for Sarcasm.
Clive Stanton is so good as Rollo and the writing is superb that it makes you forget how vicious he could be. He turns into a sympathetic character who finally gets his chance to be someone more than Ragnar Lothbrook's younger brother, who is also a great warrior.
Someone posted a screed that Rollo was stupid because he could have come home from Paris a rich man. But wealth is not what Rollo has always wanted. He wants to be Someone in his own right -- and as the Duke of Normandy and the son-in-law of the Emperor Charles, the grandson of Charlemagne, he is. Furthermore, I think he is genuinely in love with his young wife, Gisla.
It's amusing and very true-to-life when this Princess is forced to marry a "barbarian", no better than a wild beast etc. and goes to the altar crying her eyes out. And that she had a knife with her on their wedding night makes perfect sense. Rollo surprises her by not attempting rape and saying that the knife "tickles " him, although she can't understand him. When she finally demands a divorce ( as the marriage us not consummated ), he walks over the table ala barbarian and Count Odo is sent to pacify him.
His attempt to show Odo that he wants to learn their language and when Odo says "They'd find a teacher soon" and Rollo says "now"!
is delightful. He must have a linguistic talent like Ragnar because he learns to speak fluently in a very short time. Too short but the story demands it. Once he can communicate with his wife, she falls madly in love with him --- like a teenager with a huge crush.
The best scene of all was the one wear he gets his hair cut in the Frankish style and new clothiers but looks so awkward that Gisla breaks into hysterical laughter and her friends ( ladies in waiting ) join her. It is infectious, very well-acted, and increases sympathy for Rollo.
Her passion for her husband is very typical of young women ( girls ) who were inexperienced and then have this really incredible experience. It is a romance. When he says "I will not betray my wife." he means it. Also, he is, I suspect, flattered by the adoration of a Princess of such high lineage in a place that is incredibly civilized next to anything he has ever seen before. She had loathed him, ridiculed him -- so her wild passion for him is even more flattering. Whoever called her "a spoiled brat" must have missed the entire siege on Paris when Gisla is the braver than anyone else. She comes up with ithe idea of displaying a sacred rug supposedly bathed in the blood of Christ and has it taken out on the roof where the fighting is intense. And she goes with it crying out to the soldiers to fight to the death, knowing that this sacred relic would inspire them.
I don't think these are the actions of a spoiled brat. Furthermore, a spoiled brat would not be forced to marry a barbarian. When you're spoiled, you get what you want. I think she is charming.
His attempt to show Odo that he wants to learn their language and when Odo says "They'd find a teacher soon" and Rollo says "now"!Why do people continue to say this? It was about a year. A year is plenty of time to learn a language if you are immersed in it every day and you have no one to speak your own language with.
is delightful. He must have a linguistic talent like Ragnar because he learns to speak fluently in a very short time. Too short but the story demands it.
Not great but lucky!
If it wasn't for Siggy and Ragnar he would've been long dead, or a dead drunk. Which would have served that traitor well.
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No, you're not wrong, you're just an a$$hole!
Agree!
shareI agree. He is one of my favorite characters.
share