Vikings finally came to an end, and everything Ragnar and Bjorn fought for was left to Ingrid, a nobody that had to use witchcraft to make herself queen of Kattegat. Leaving Kattegat, the home of heroes, to the likes of Erik and Ingrid was one of the most annoying parts of the epic historical drama's ending for most fans.
It is normal for fans to be dissatisfied with the end of a great TV series like Vikings, but in this case, many felt like the creators hurried to wrap it up and did lots of disservice to their favorite characters. Not every part of the ending was annoying, though. The final victory for king Alfred and the death of Harald and Ivar were welcome events.
7th Season: Rollo's Fate
Ragnar loved Rollo and saved his life so many times, but all Rollo did was betray him. He was still considered one of the great heroes, which is why his fate meant a lot to most fans. The show never served any justice to Rollo for his betrayal of both Ragnar and Bjorn.
He was partly the cause of Ragnar's death and later the fall of Kattegat into Ivar's hands. However, after being such an important part of the show, Rollo just faded into thin air. There was no talk of how his trade agreement with Ivar worked and whether he was affected in any way by the death of his brother, his former lover Lagertha and his possible son Bjorn. He just stopped existing.
Perfect End: Harald's Death
Harald Finehair was unlucky at many things, and becoming a great man was one of them. He tried to fit in the shoes of heroes like Ragnar and Bjorn, but he just didn't have it in him. He was still a good politician and a better option to lead Kattegat compared to Erik and Ingrid.
His betrayal of Bjorn was one of the reasons why other kings of Norway failed to show up to fight the Rus, which caused the death of Bjorn and Olaf. He had also killed his brother Halfdan and he had to pay for it at one point. His death didn't bring any good to the Lothbroks or Norway, though.
7th Season: The Fate Of The Viking Army In England
Ivar managed to rally the Vikings to raid Wessex one more time in what seemed like a doomed endeavor from the start. He was winning the battle, though, with his idea of paralyzing Saxon soldiers and using catapults on Alfred's army, inflicting huge damage on the Saxon army.
There was no explanation for the change in the direction of the battle that led to Alfred winning; neither was there an explanation for what happened to the second Great Heathen army. It was one of the stories the show cut short while most fans believed that it would help Ivar finally take over large parts of England to agree with historical facts.
Perfect End: A Democratic Norway
Elections could never be held in Ragnar and Horik's Norway, where the power went to the strongest man, and that wasn't negotiable. The people were lucky, though, because they had competent leaders like Ragnar. With the age of the heroes gone, the show redeemed the Vikings by bringing democracy, a practice that the show had not adopted before.
Elections were held to choose the king of all Norway, a vote that Harald cheated and won. Another election was held to elect the queen of Kattegat, and Ingrid was obviously winning. Democracy was a good idea, but it failed to get a good leader each time it was used, leaving more questions on whether it was even necessary.
7th Season: Ingrid As The Queen Of Kattegat
Ragnar had to kill king Horik to become the king of Kattegat, a position his family guarded with their lives. That throne was a key part of the show and definitely deserved better than Ingrid. There was the option of Ubbe returning to take his father's place or leaving it to Hvitserk after Ivar's death but the final season never gave enough time for that.
Time had definitely passed between the time Alfred won the battle and the time Hvitserk was baptized by the look of his grown beard, meaning his conversion to Christianity wasn't spontaneous. So with all those options, why would the creators leave the most important throne in Norway to Ingrid?
Perfect End: Alfred's Victory
King Ecbert chose Alfred to be his heir despite the fact that he was Athelstan's son. Aethelwulf considered him a bastard, so he wouldn't have made him his heir, but he died, and Judith fulfilled Ecbert's wish. Alfred's success as king was the only way the show could bring some justice for Athelstan.
Ivar had also committed many crimes against his own people and stained the legacy of Ragnar Lothbrok. Ivar losing at the hands of Alfred wasn't just a win for Ecbert; it was a win for everyone that fought for good in the show.
7th Season: Hvitserk's Fate
The character of Hvitserk was one of the most mismanaged parts of Vikings. He had just buried his brother and promised to meet him in Valhalla when the finale brought him back as a humble Christian named Athelstan. It was a waste of such a huge character who never got the chance to contribute to Ragnar's legacy.
Vikings gave each son of Ragnar enough credit, with each of them displaying at least one of Ragnar's many traits, but nothing was spared for Ivar. After being Ivar's puppet for so many years, Hvitserk deserved some actual purpose now that his brother was dead. He was Ragnar's son and the best remaining option to become king in Kattegat, but the creators never contemplated that. They just wrote him off.
Perfect End: Ubbe In The Golden Land
Bjorn and Ivar became the most famous of Ragnar's sons, but none of them fulfilled Ragnar's ambition. Ragnar wanted his sons to be great and famous, but he also wanted the people of Kattegat to find fertile land to settle and farm. Finding a good land to farm was the main reason why Ragnar left his farm to raid England in the first season.
It would have been unfair to Ragnar's memory if none of his sons fulfilled his ambition. Ubbe in North America with Floki and Torvi, away from the fighting and death on the other side of the Atlantic, was a perfect end for the show. They were the only heroes that didn't die in the madness of the old world.
7th Season: The Fate Of The Crown Of Norway
King Olaf became the hero of the final season in a way when he facilitated the union of all of Norway under one crown. It was very unfair that the idea didn't come from Lagertha or one of Ragnar's sons. It was sad that Bjorn didn't get to win that election but having one king for all of Norway was a welcome development in the show.
For that crown to have a purpose, it needed to have a holder. However, at the end of the show, Ingrid was only crowned queen of Kattegat; there was no talk of the leader of All of Norway. So, why would the show come up with such a good storyline only to let it slide into thin air?
Perfect End: Ivar's Death
According to History, Ivar the boneless conquered huge swaths of land in England, which is why most fans expected him to win the final battle of Wessex and become a king. Ivar wasn't the best of kings in Vikings though if his rule in Kattegat is anything to go by.
It would be sickening to imagine the god Ivar on the other side of the North sea. He had made many mistakes and needed to pay for them at one point. Dying at the hands of a nobody in that final battle was perfect justice for Bjorn and everyone Ivar hurt.