‘Vikings’ Season 5 Episode 17 Preview: King Alfred Confronts His Mother And Bjorn Negotiates With King Harald

With three deaths in the past three episodes of History Channel’s Vikings, what does the next episode have in store for viewers?

The past few episodes of Vikings has seen some pretty significant deaths. And, as Carter Matt points out, with Episode 17 holding a title like “The Most Terrible Thing,” it seems possible that this crazy and deadly ride could get worse as the series rushes towards the finish line. So, here’s what viewers can expect to see in the next episode of Vikings.

History Channel provides the following synopsis for Episode 17, titled “The Most Terrible Thing.”

“An unexpected turn amongst the settlers leaves Floki powerless. King Alfred confronts Judith. In York, Bjorn must strike a deal with Harald. Wessex is once again threatened by a Viking force, but who will lead the Saxon army to defend the Realm?”

As seen in Episode 16 of Vikings Season 5, Floki (Gustaf Skarsgard) sets out to help Eyvind’s (Kris Holden-Ried) exiled group. Now, it appears that this might have been some sort of set up according to the above synopsis. Has Eyvind managed to lure Floki into a trap? Viewers will have to tune into Episode 17 of Vikings to find out for sure. However, the trailer for the upcoming episode also shows some sort of dispute arising between one of Floki’s people, Ketill (Adam “Edge” Copeland), and Eyvind’s wife, Rafarta (Donna Dent). So, perhaps this is what the synopsis is alluding to in the upcoming episode of Vikings.

As previously revealed in the Inquisitr‘s recap of Episode 16, the last episode of Vikings ended with the shocking death of Aethelred (Darren Cahill) at the hand of his own mother, Judith (Jennie Jacques). It seems that Aethelred’s brother, King Alfred (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), has found out about this murder and will confront his mother in Episode 17 of Vikings.

Bjorn Ironside (Alexander Ludwig) is determined not only to find out what happened to his mother, Lagertha (Katheryn Winnick), but to take back the kingdom of Kattegat for her as well. Episode 16 of Vikings saw Bjorn speaking to King Harald Finehair (Peter Franzen) regarding an alliance. It appears that these negotiations will continue in Episode 17.

Finally, the synopsis suggests that Wessex will come under a further Viking attack in the next episode. According to the trailer for Episode 17, Ubbe (Jordan Patrick Smith) is determined to lead King Alfred’s army into the attack against his own kind. It is unclear whether Alfred will allow this, though, and viewers will have to tune in next week to find out more.

You can view the trailer for Episode 17 of Vikings Season 5 below.

Vikings returns to History Channel on Wednesday, January 9, at 9 p.m. ET/PT.