The grand finale of The Last Kingdom begins with a straw arrow shot in Aethelstan’s direction, symbolizing a staunch refusal to surrender. Aethelhelm, played by Adrian Schiller (Beauty and the Beast, Suffragette), decides that they should play for time. Unfortunately, Constantin, played by Rod Hallett (Ant-Man, The Hitman’s Bodyguard), refuses to bend to Aethelhelm’s will.
Wihtgar has a plan to use Aelfwynn, played by Phia Saban (House of the Dragon), as bait to lure Edward and his army towards them, but he’s thwarted by Uhtred, played by Alexander Dreymon (American Horror Story: Coven), who shows up and attacks Wihtgar, played by Ossian Perret (The Witcher), urging Aelfwynn to run away. Uhtred also finds out about Haesten’s death.
The massive siege commences and Edward, played by Timothy Innes (The Favourite, The Sense of an Ending), watches from afar. Hot oil stops the Saxons in their tracks, and Constantin’s army approaches on the horizon. As they do, Uhtred overhears that the enemy intends to come up with a plan to trick Edward into thinking they’re surrendering.
So, does Edward fall for Constantin’s trap? The answer, unfortunately, is yes. Uhtred tries to urge Edward to not advance, but they’re met with a sea of arrows, and everything that the men worked for is lost. Edward and his men have been pushed even closer to the sea.
As the battle continues with Uhtred and Edward’s remaining combined forces. Constanin opts to burn the fortress to the ground. In the wake of this chaos, Edward is wounded and Uhtred sees Wihtgar on the ramparts and chases him down. Meanwhile, Aethelstan, played by Harry Gilby (Tolkien, Just Charlie), finds Aethelhelm and demands that he confess about the queen’s death in front of his grandson.
Aethelhelm confesses the truth to Alfweard, who’s ultimately shocked to hear of this betrayal. So dejected by this situation, Aethelhelm takes his own life, claiming he will die a “man of honor.”
Despite all of these deaths, the battle continues, but it must come to an end. Uhtred bargains with Constantin for the release of his commander in exchange for the men that he’s taken hostage. Constantin wants Uhtred to swear fealty to Scotland, but he refuses, insisting that the land will remain as Northumbria and not part of England, even as Edward wishes. Uhtred opts to hold the land and tells Edward that he’s not fit to be the king that leads England forward in unity. While he’s inevitably angry, Edward agrees to let the Danes live in peace.
As the episode comes to a close, Uhtred trains with Aethelstan who bests him in sword fighting while training. This is foreshadowing for what’s in store (in history, it’s written that Aethelstan became the great Anglo-Saxon king of our time). Uhtred glances at the horizon, whispering “destiny is all” to himself, reflecting on his life’s journey that’s led him to this great moment.
This was a grandiose finale for what’s quite an extensive and grand period drama to begin with. The series finale is definitely bittersweet, with The Last Kingdom overall being a visually and mentally enthralling story. Although this episode wraps everything up into a nice little bow in terms of resolution, there is still potential for possible spin-offs in the future, not to mention the upcoming movie. Viewers will all just have to wait and see.
Rating: 9.0/10.0