Einar (Vinland Saga)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Japanese
Shunsuke Takeuchi - English
Ian Sinclair (Crunchyroll dub), Alejandro Saab (Netflix dub)
| Einar | |
|---|---|
| Vinland Saga character | |
 Einar, as drawn by Makoto Yukimura | |
| First appearance | Vinland Saga chapter 55: Slave |
| Created by | Makoto Yukimura |
| Voiced by |
|
Einar (Japanese: エイナル, Hepburn: Einaru) is a fictional character from Makoto Yukimura's manga series Vinland Saga. Introduced in the series's second story arc, Einar is a former farmer from Northern England and becomes a slave when his family is killed by soldiers. He is bought by Ketil, a major landowner, to work on his large farm in southern Denmark; there, Einar is partnered with the protagonist Thorfinn. Across the series, Einar and Thorfinn befriend each other and share the same goals of becoming free, eventually desiring to create a utopia in Vinland once they are free from slavery.
Einar was created by Makoto Yukimura in order to create a supporting character for the manga in order to assist Thorfinn and help him come to appreciate his vitality. The staff from the anime adaptation decided to alter part of their story but keep his characterization intact which led to several discussions with his Japanese voice actor Shunsuke Takeuchi.
Critical response to Einar was positive for his kind portrayal and the brotherly bond he forms with Thorfinn even at their lowest. This bond is especially notable for how both seek to avoid the cycle of violence; the setting is used especially when deciding to form the utopia in Vinland.
Introduced in the manga's 55th chapter, Einar is an Anglo-Norse farmer from Northern England who, following attacks on his village, was sold into slavery and eventually ends up on Ketil's farm.[1] As a result, he is outspoken in his hatred of war and injustice. Einar meets fellow slave Thorfinn at Ketil's farm, and the two become close friends.[2] Despite being slaves, Einar and Thorfinn are victims of violence as the owners treat them poorly.[3] Einar has little skill in combat but proves a loyal companion. As Einar and Thorfinn think about what to do once obtaining their freedom, Einar is conflicted since the woman he loves, the slave Arnheid, has no desire to leave the farm. Eventually, Einar and Thorfinn betray Ketil's forces to help Arnheid escape with her rebellious husband, Gardar, but the mercenary Snake kills him.[4] Arnheid is then brutally punished by Ketil in the next days, which causes her death alongside her unborn baby.[5] This causes Einar's rage and desire to kill Ketil, but Thorfinn stops him from committing murder, afraid he would become a sinner like him. Einar and Thorfinn promise to make a utopia in Vinland so that people like Arnheid would not suffer. Once the farm is free from King Canute's might, Thorfinn's friend Leif takes him to his country, Iceland. There, Thorfinn's mother of Helga adopts him as part of the family after learning of what happened to them.[6][7][8]
After resting in Iceland, Einar joins Thorfinn's journey to finance the ship to Vinland by money in Greece through a deal with merchant Halfdan.[9] Across their journeys, they find several allies but are targeted by Vikings who want Thorfinn. Wishing to face Thorfinn in combat again, mercenary Garm kidnaps Einar, Leif, and the sneaked Gudrid to take his enemy's attention, leaving behind Leif's adoptive son, Bug Eyes, to use him to communicate with Thorfinn. They are imprisoned in the Jomsborg stronghold of Jomvikings forces of warriors. Although Einar and Leif are free by Jomvikings Baldr, they fail to bring back Gudrid resulting in Thorfinn's quest to find her.[10] After Thorfinn manages to disband the Jomvikings that went out of control, his group is allowed to continue their journey to Greece.[11]
Years later, Thorfinn and Einar's group returns to Iceland with their new project to find Vinland with the money they obtained in Greece and business with Halfdan.[12] Following their arrival, the group befriends natives through Thorfinn's leadership.[13] However, when natives demand their departure from the land, Einar clashes with his sworn brother, believing they should fight back, as Thorfinn instead believes running away is the safest way.[14] When Thorfinn is missing after being taken by natives, Einar replaces him and joins forces with his allies to fight while their youngest and most innocent people start escaping. The returning Thorfinn recognizes that Einar has killed but finds himself unable to judge him. Instead, the two make peace and agree to form a truce to end the war. However, an angered soldier, Stryk, refuses to let his comrades die in vain and tries to attack the natives. Einar stops him but is stabbed in the neck, suffering major bleeding. Thorfinn grabs Einar in shock, with his friend wondering what he could tell Arnheid about the afterlife now that he has killed.[15] In the aftermath, Thorfinn buries Einar alongside a statue from Greece lamenting that he kept suffering war too.