I don't hide possible spoilers, so anyone who is offended by show speculation should stop reading here. OK … everyone gone? Great. Jonathan Rhys Meyers is a high-dollar actor. He won't be cast in a minor part. Hirst has already tipped we'll see him near the end of Season 4. Here are a few things we know: It will take…

I'll miss Ragnar, but I'm sufficiently attached to the remaining original characters and a few of the new ones to stay. Plus we'll meet new characters over the balance of Season 4 and into Season 5.

And nothing is a spoiler if you don't have a copy of the script. ;-)

Ecbert isn't an idiot. He and Ragnar completely understand each other's nature. He won't be surprised when the Norse show up in Wessex, if he lives that long.

Yup, we haven't seen anything of Ireland yet, and it will be a Norse kingdom. I wonder if this is where the Magnus character will go, if Hirst develops him. But the Norse will persist in the Danelaw until they become indistinct from the rest of the English population.

I think you're right. Next episode should be the end of Ragnar, and it will be sad to see Travis Fimmel go. But the character has said all that needs to be said now. All that remains is to light Ivar's fuse and put the invasion of Britain into motion.

I really, really have enjoyed Linus Roache. His character will die this season, which is a shame. I agree the chapel prayer was powerful, and I took the dialog as Ecbert reflecting on Ecclesiastes, not his own words. So very appropriate to his dark night of the soul.

I'm warming up to Ivar. And judging from the promos, he'll be the first Norse character to wear a helmet. So he'll be extra deadly. ;-)

Yeah, I agree. That's the only scene in the series that rival's the impact of Ragnar and Ecbert together. I hope and expect Vikings will go on without Fimmel for several more seasons, but it's hard to imagine we'll be as heavily invested in characters as much as this pair.

And Ubbe and Sigurd, too. :-)

Nope, he's unleashing hell and conquering Britain by proxy. He knows the Norse will stay for good afterward.

I worry that it will be difficult for the series to ever top the emotional impact of Ragnar and Ecbert's long dark night of the soul. Two great performances that felt like a finale for both characters. And some of Hirst's best writing.

I wasn't impressed at all with the first half of the season. But, yeah, it's good again. Night-and-day difference after the long summer break.

I'm a fan. Even with the silly back scabbards and strange costuming. ;-)

It was something like "Hurry and get on board — we've got a tide to catch." I'm only certain of the last part.

It appears from the promos that Lagertha is going to take Kattegat back, but I'm not sure Aslaug will be killed. It looks as if she surrenders Ragnar's sword to someone (Lagertha?). I've always thought she'll replace the Seer.

He would be, but I bet they survive. Sigurd and Ubba, at least, should end up with the Great Heathen Army. Then again, Hirst takes liberties …

I'm having fun with this show. It reminds me quite a bit of the original Mission: Impossible. Could have legs if each episode is as good as this one.

I keep hoping that the series — having shown how society fell apart in repetitive detail — would move towards exploring how it might come back together again, and why. Surely the laws of physics kick in at some point and the zombies deteriorate. As their numbers decline, the survivors begin clearing safe zones, then…

I assume the real reason Robert Carlyle cut is hair is he was working on Trainspotting 2 concurrently with OUaT …