When it comes to debates over the 'real' main character of Vikings, most fans are focused on Lagertha, Ragnar, and Ragnar's sons, but Floki deserves a spot in the lists too - not least because he outlives basically everyone else from the first season! This Vikings trickster is (possibly) descended from Loki himself, and he is with Ragnar, and later with his sons, on all their journeys.
Is this enough to make him the main character, though? If it's possible for someone who isn't part of the Lothbrok line to take that crown, then he would definitely fit - and for so many more reasons, too.
In More Episodes Than (Almost) Everyone
Floki is in more episodes than almost anyone else, with only Lagertha and Bjorn appearing in more - and this is despite the fact that when Floki disappears from Iceland, he isn't on the show for a surprisingly long time. In essence, he is in basically every episode, outside of this disappearance. And while screentime alone isn't enough to determine the main character of a show, it definitely is a factor to consider.
Survives From Pilot To Finale
As well as being one of the characters with the most episodes under his belt, Floki is one of the only characters who actually survives from pilot to finale - and appears in both. While the other major characters of the first season either die (like Ragnar, Lagertha, and Bjorn) or are forgotten in a distant land (like Rollo), Floki remains part of the story from start to finish.
Is A Fan-Favorite
Deciding who is the fan's ultimate favorite may be impossible, but there's no denying that Floki is a beloved character - despite all his flaws and poor decisions (and murdering Athelstan).
From the start, there is just something about this joyful, loyal, talented Viking that draws people in - and that does matter when it comes to a protagonist. It's hard to consider someone like Ivar 'the main character', given that he's so vicious and murderous, but Floki, is so easy to like that fans forgive him anything.
Makes All Of Ragnar's Exploration Possible
From the first season, one of the main parts of the Vikings storyline is the journey from Kattegat to explore what is across the sea to the West - and this exploration of the wider world is at the core of the series from start to finish. However, none of this would have happened if it weren't for Floki. His genius as a builder is what allowed all of the exploration to happen, which in turn launched most of the battles and new settlements. Without Floki, the series simply doesn't exist.
Has One Of The Best Story Arcs
While most of the main characters in Vikings have complex and carefully thought-out story arcs, Floki's may well be the best of all of them. His journey through spirituality, fatherhood, betrayal, violence, and all the way to a new understanding of his faith and the discovery of a new land - it manages to touch on every major theme in the show, as well as creating something that is just a phenomenal story in and of itself.
Is In A Majority Of Raids And Battles
While exploration (and the exploration of faith, not just land) is a key part of the series, there's no denying that the battles are hugely important, too. And while Floki is not in the final battles to defend Kattegat or to take on Alfred in Wessex, but he's front and center throughout all the major fights in the early seasons.
His genius is also instrumental in the battle for Paris, and he is a brilliant (and unique) hand-to-hand fighter, too.
Is Closely Connected To Every Storyline
Becuase Floki is both a fighter and a builder and a deeply religious man, and because he is so close to Ragnar and his sons, he is connected to more characters and storylines than possibly anyone else - especially because he is the driving force behind the settlement of Iceland and Ubbe's eventual journey to North America. He is even the person closest to Ivar, at least for some time, and one of the few who really humanizes him.
Travels More Than Anyone
Floki isn't just connected to the most storylines and characters, he also travels more than anyone else - even if the Sons of Ragnar get the credit for the most exploration. As already mentioned, it is Floki's boat-building skills that allow for this exploration in the first place, and he not only follows Ragnar to England, into Spain and beyond, but is the first to set foot on Iceland, and the first Viking in North America. Bjorn and his journey into Africa just don't really compare.
Is The Most Devoted To The Viking Way Of Life
The name of the series is, after all, Vikings - and of every character, Floki may be the most visibly devoted to the Viking gods and the Viking way of life. He is so passionate about retaining the Viking culture that it even leads to him murdering Athelstan, and the rift that this causes between him and Ragnar.
He Appears As A Kind Of Narrator At The End
In the final episodes, after fans may have assumed he was killed in Iceland when a cave collapsed, Floki finally reappears - in North America. And here, Ubbe and Torvi realize that he is not just teaching the Indigenous people the Viking language, but that he is starting to pass on the entire story of the series. As Ubbe walks past Floki's carvings, he sees carvings of the battles, of Ragnar, and of their way of life. His appearance here acts a little like a narrator - or as someone carrying the story that the audience has been told into a new world.