SPOILERS Series 5 - scroll down for my thoughts - please add your own to the reviews or PM me as you have been doing - I am so glad to see that there are other fans as obsessed by TLK as me!

And my thoughts on the series - I thought you all might like an interlude from a terrible time young Osthryth is about to go through in some imminent trials.

Series 5 - I am enjoying a lot. The series has moved on, Aethelstan is in Uhtred's care, and they are just north of Brunanburh - Chester, at Runcorn.

They did SUCH A LOT in this series - I noticed that the episodes are 56 minutes long rather than 43 minutes in previous series, so we get another 130 minutes, whch is basically another two episodes!

First off, I miss Beocca...Pyrlig has taken his place to some extent, especially giving Uhtred advice.

It seems to be following the books so far as interlinking of Uhtred with Brida's attack on both Uhtred's son, and daughter at Eoferwic. In the books, Aethelflaed tells Uhtred of her cancer herself, rather than have Eadith tell Finan to tell Uhtred in a bizarre game of Chinese whispers. And Uhtred still went to Eoferwic leaving her behind.

The knitting together of all of the pieces to both satisfy history and satisfy the canon is magnificent.

Is Bebbanburg and Aethelstan's challenge to Constantine supposed to be compensation for not seeing him siege Dunkeld when Aethelstan invades Alba by land and sea, when it is his reign? I can't see how they are going to fit Aethelstan's arc including Brunanburh into a 2 hour film when this has taken ten...

Stiorra - she is SO Uhtred's daughter! She mirrors Aethelflaed with her father Alfred, very kick-ass, but risks becoming Brida with no direction, even now he has Bebbanburg.

Eadith, though. It seems that a wife cannot be simply that, as she was in the book, as they would have been at that time - to be legitimate and on the "good" side a woman has to have a purpose, so they have given Eadith the job of a healer/doctor. Contrast that to Aelfflaed, Edward's second wife, who is portrayed as ditsy, empty-headed and her efforts to network for her family and reach out to saintly signs are played in a poor light. Plus "healer/witch" trope, and being 2D with no character other than helping out Aelswith/Aethelflaed or anything else she is asked to do.

Wow - Haesten has lost weight! I hardly recognised him! What did I miss that he has now become a "good guy"? He sacrifices himself for Uhtred's dream, and does not give away the plan. On the other hand, he probably figured he was going to be run through no matter what he said, so he might as well lie.

Aethelstan and Aethelweard when Aethelhelm confesses to Aelfflaed's death - they will probably have Aethelweard simply yielding the Wessex crown to Aethelstan, as in the books, Aethelhelm has the influence to bring a lot of men to Aethelweard against Aethelstan at Mercia, a second battle in London before Aethelstan is crowned. Yet, Aethelweard is his father's son as much as Aethelstan, and there has to be some sort of battle in my opinion, because there is such a dearth of information about Aethelstan's reign, anything mentioned about him is bound to be included to fill his reign up with something!

Again, Aethelstan is associated with Tamworth, and I don't think in this series Aethelstan's fix to Mercia has been hammered - maybe this will start the film.

Eadith and Uhtred, staying at Bebbanburg to heal...very good that she is her own person. Yet, I can't forgive Uhtred for what he willed in the books when he was bringing Benedetta, the slave he rescued in London after Aethelstan was crowned, back to Bebbanburg. He was truly selfish to the last.

Sorry, Alexander Dreymon, you have very tiny ears!

Aethelflaed wants to go back to Aylesbury - yet she is famous for having her court and bringing up Aethelstan at Tamworth, hence the battle at Tettenhall in 910, it being in her vicinity, unlike Aylesbury, which is about sixty miles away. She was also buried at Gloucester. I wonder whether it was the scope of the production to introduce yet another location. Similarly, Aethelstan is associated with Malmesbury, but that has yet to be mentioned either, and whether it will in the film, "Seven Kings Will Die", it remains to be seen. All I can say is there is going to be a lot to fit into one film: we have not even met Egil Skallgrimmrson yet!

Brida at Eoferwic - there seems to be a few ends not tied up by going along a different path to the books. Brida takes and holds Eoferwic, and is far more evil than she is made out to be in this series. She has no children, and she tries to seize Stiorra's to make them into "seers" which Stiorra thwarts and ends up killing Brida in the books, whereas in Series 5, Stiorra and Sygtryggr have no children. While I can see that they changed it - actors' contracts, perhaps, after Brida has just castrated young Uhtred (who Uhtred hates with far more loathing in the books than in the series), Uhtred lets her go...this is the weak point, that I can't get around in the series narrative, because there is no reason for him not to, not even for her child falling to her death.

Yet, he does still love her, and she him, and Stiorra did it in the end. They are right to bring it to the end at the end of this series, so loose ends can be tied up or let go and a fresh start can be had.

And the younger son - Uhtred said he was lost as a baby, yet it is Uhtred who is by his side all the way, to Bebbanburg and beyond in the books because of his hatred for his older son, Uhtred. Lots of Uhtreds... even his cousin is Uhtred - thank goodness they called him "Wihtgar" in the series. So glad it is Hild was able to bring him the best present in the world - his younger son, who has been kept safe after all these years.

All Uhtred's women: "Divorced (Mildrith), Beheaded (The Cornish Queen), Died (Gisela)..." After that, the rhyme diverges, into book women and series women.

Brida also says about young Uhtred not needing his "crown jewels" because he is a priest - priests not marrying did not become a "thing" until much later, and was not put across as an idea until at least Saint Dunstan's time, (Bishop Dunstan of Winchester who was beside all of Alfred's descendents down to Aethelred the "Badly Advised" (Unraed)) with Eadgifu: Edmund, Edgar, and so on. Conn Iggulden's book "Dunstan" is very good for slightly after Aethelstan's period.

Very sad about Osferth...in the books, he was last seen commanding men in Manchester, married to Wihtgar's wife, who they abducted in the books on attempt no. 1 on Bebbanburg.

Is Cynlaef the same actor who played Hvitserk in Vikings? No, but he looks like him.

A little criticism (gasp: no!) Too many uses of the word, "Arseling", to the verge of it being overused. We know Leofric used to call Uhtred that, but other characters who had never experienced that, when talking to others seems a bit gratuitous.

I liked the way Eadgifu was introduced, as she does become Edward's third wife. There is a genuine show of affection between them. Nothing is mentioned about how Aelfflaed died in reality - it's plausible how it is done in this series.

Eadith's wig...at least they sorted this out from the last series. It was clear in S4 she was wearing a wig, this time, she looked more natural for a non-redhead, it's hard to pull off, with a wig or with the dye bottle.

Edward's wig does suit the actor, though - it is as if his own grandfather Wulfhere (but from the "Vikings" series, about series 2?) has suddenly walked on. Very touching how Edward spoke to Aethelstan.

What did Sihtric do to annoy the producers this season? He barely has a line!

A lot of the history is still there, Aelfwynn being stolen away probably by Edward, probably to smooth a path to a union between Mercia and Wessex, which is why the Mercian nobles also "disappeared" in real life, too, rather than factions like Aethelflaed said about when Aethelred was ill and there was instability in the kingdom and therefore weakness. Where does she end up at the end of S5? Obscurity with Cynlaef? Or brought into the alligance mess that is Brunanburh? Yet, Aethelstan's first kill was at a battle between Mercia and Wessex after Aelfwynn's abduction, not before.

Aelswith's summing up of the situations every so often, with confidence and knowing - to be proved wrong! She had grown into her role as matriarch, and comes to life in series 5.

Yet...Sygtryggr marries Aethelstan's twin sister - remember, there were twins? - at Tamworth under Aethelstan's guidance, where he becomes a Christian, though where she ended up afterwards, records do not say, nor is mentioned her name. BC does not mention this, which is a pity, as she is skipped over, almost in history, and completely in TLK. Clearly this is a dead end in the series/books.

I look forward to a (hypothetical) historian writing the book as a companion to this that explains the nuances and puts more detail onto the "historical note" at the end of each book. I am convinced there will be at least 2 by the end of the film.

Brida crying while speaking to Pyrlig - in the books, she was too far gone to pagan madness to have doubts within herself about God. Perhaps Uhtred and Brida were destined to face off one another.

I like that Aelswith is still there, reminding us of the times past, and opening her heart to Uhtred. And Osferth has definitely got older. The scriptwriters have definitely got Osferth and Aethelstan to have a bond, as did Aethelstan and Aelfweard...if only fate had been different...

And Edward picking up the kingliness in Aethelstan when he rebukes Aethelhelm, apologising afterwards, but his leadership was shown, and the clap on the shoulder when Edward finally walks into the fabled Bebbanburg.

BC has said he will write no more of Uhtred's line, e.g. in the future, yet it was a "Uhtred" who was mentioned as a rebel to William the Conqueror, and possibly contributed to the genocide of "The Harrying of the North".

Aelfwynn marrying Constantine of Alba - I didn't see that proposal coming, but I suppose it makes sense. The Saxon bloodline was saved after 1066 when Malcolm Canmore married the last of Alfred's line, and changes to the Roman church and gives up the Irish (Celtic) church. So, in a way, the Saxons went into the Gaelic nobility bloodline, up to the Stewarts (who were Stewards of the throne - caretakers).

Who is it Constantine is in love with? Beyond the scope of BC's world - he answered my question on his web page about doing a history of a parallel with Constantine, and Ireland, tying in Finan. The "God of History Fiction" said the idea was "intriguing", which means, I'm guessing, not going to happen.

Kick-ass Hild again!

I am so glad this is Netflix now - the discussion of the church juxtaposed to the pagan gods played out side by side, as from what I can see BC intended. Had the BBC still had it, I feel decisions would have been made to minimise this, and so many other things. I think they would have ruined the association between the kingdoms and the current United Kingdom countries as well. It is so refreshing to see that while something is happening here, say Mercia, this is happening here, in Cymru and here in Alba...

Maybe Netflix has a bigger budget than the BBC.

Uhtred's "Saxon/Dane" speech from "Warlord" (book 13) to inspire those to join Edward's thwarted attack on Bebbanburg here, book 10.

Finan...he had a different back story in the books...to see him crying when he couldn't save the Danes at Runcorn was heartbreaking. Think how it would have been for him when he got himself into trouble with the Ui Neill family shortly after Osthryth left Ulster. A massive hole which I am working towards filling.

Glad that Finan found someone - though it fits with books 11-13 where BC is championing the integration (as happened) of Danes and Saxons (and Angles, Jutes, Norse...) and had a child, though it seems a little forced to make the point. There is not much chemistry between them.

Of course, like all Saxon sagas, each story becomes different in each telling. For me, it's "Finan and Osthryth, sitting in a tree..."

Plot twist right at the end - Northumbria is not to be part of Englaland...Uhtred blows Edward off, setting up "Seven Kings Will Die". Which give such depth to the look between Edward and Constantine - Edward thought, that though he had lost many in the battle, he had a united Englaland; Constantine knew better. Yet, Constantine will never give up on that dream.

Another path forked off if you follow the books, and after Edward's death, which is where I think, "Seven Kings Will Die" will begin:

1. Edward (to begin Aethelstan's reign)

2. Aethelweard (who challenges Aethelstan)

3. Hwyl Dda

4. Owain of Strathclyde

5. Cellach - Constantine's eldest son

6. Constantine (survives Brunanburh, abdicates in favour of Maelcolm, son of Domhnall)

7. Aethelstan (at the end of the film)

The montage at the end, compressing the best bits of everything from all of the series.

As far as TLK TV series, where it ended, it began, at Bebbanburg.

Hold on, while I go back to Series 1.