Analyzing Titles

Assignment

Vikings / History Channel I feel this title sequence is special for a number of reasons. Firstly I love the mood/time period which it depicts. "Vikings" is an episodic drama on the history channel that depicts the raids/reign of Ragnar Lothbrok, the most notorious Viking to have ruled. The show is about expansion/exploration along with the ominous carnage that this expansion leaves behind. The shows mood can be seen within its palette and imagery. The viewer is taken from a tumultuous ocean, under the waves into the figurative beyond. Following scenes depict flash imagery of the grim reaper and lightning, followed by an unknown dead viking sinking to his watery grave. Along with the bodies, also falling are weapons and coins from the dangerous raid above. Flash imagery also consists of scenes of a women depicting violent/sexual movements while submerged under the water along with a crow that represents death in Norse tradition. The sequence finishes with the viwer catching a glimpse, above water of the ongoing raid reaching the shore miles ahead. The song the sequence plays to is perfect (Fever Ray-If I had a heart). Depicting an ominous dark nature which the show holds dear to its mood. The type is serif which seems to fit perfectly into the dynamic 8x8 grid, washing neatly over the screen with a slight ripple/wave effect with each name that is revealed. Excellence. One neat discovery I made can be seen in the 2nd frame (0:06) where the designer snuck in this ominous figure in a field. Along with the flash of lightning that makes him barely visible to the viewer, the ghoulish figure only occupies about a .25th of a second within the sequence. It's little details like this that seem to make a dramatic difference for the overall work. Much respect goes to Rama Allen and his team for creating this title. Excellence.