Norsemen

TV review by Mark Dolan, Common Sense Media
Norsemen Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Violent, raunchy Viking comedy is a hilarious sendup of GOT.

Netflix Comedy 2017
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Parents say

age 18+

Based on 5 reviews

Kids say

age 18+

Based on 1 review

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Norsemen is a raunchy and violent comedy from Norway about everyday life among a clan of Vikings. Much of the humor is based in the anachronistic behaviors of the Vikings as they deal with relationship problems or work politics using modern language and contemporary social attitudes. There are jokes about sexual organs and a number of references to the raping (and pillaging) that happens during Viking raids. Older teens who have an appreciation for absurd humor in the vein of Monty Python will definitely enjoy this.

Community Reviews

Psnow
Psnow Adult
October 18, 2021
age 18+

not for under 18

The show started out funny (for about half an episode) and we thought it might be worth watching, but it really turned quickly to inappropriate for non-adults. It’s not just that there’s sex and violence - but the way they are handled. Jokes about raping monks, castrating them, penis size, and a very graphic first scene of a dream about an orgy that end with two men (outside the dream) urinating on another. Violence and torture also depicted as humor. Coded gay character and his masculine wife used for jokes. All in all not worth watching even for adult viewers, it quickly got too gross and superficial.
Dudeism
Dudeism Adult
August 11, 2020
age 18+

Some humor to start with.. still dark but then goes downhill quite fast

But it quickly gets nasty and the jokes are for the immoral. Starts off with some mild violence of a guy getting punched but making it someone comical. Then goes to a guy who decides to end his life because it is tradition for elders to do so in order to ease the burden on their people. The rest of the people watch the first guy do it, for honor, and then decide that's not for them. Going forward to the part where I turned it off; the guy on the boat who got punched has some words with a guy he just met. The fellow he talked to didn't like what he said so he sticks his finger in his own butt and pulls it out with poop on it and puts it in the other guys mouth. I could only imagine it gets worse but that is too much. Completely disgusting and inept of morals in light of getting a few laughs from people who have very little.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 5 parent reviews

What's the Story?

NORSEMEN takes place in the year 790 and follows a clan Vikings as they go about the mundane activities of everyday life in their village waiting for the next raid. Among the characters we meet are: Arvid (Nils Jørgen Kaalstad), a good-hearted but dim warrior who feels like he needs to settle down; Rufus (Trond Fausa), a worldy Roman slave and thespian who can't believe how terribly slaves are treated; Orm (Kåre Conradi), the chieftain's petty brother of who longs to rule the village, and Freya (Silje Torp), Orm's warrior wife who has little respect for her husband's lack of raiding experience. We watch these characters deal with universal issue like marital relationships, funerals, and conflicting management styles, using contemporary language and progressive social attitudes, yet in the end problems are often solved using era appropriate violence. Nosrsemen is essentially a comedy of manners among a group of rather brutal people.

Is It Any Good?

Funny, raunchy, gory -- yet still well-meaning at its core -- this is an absurd, Python-esque look at the lives of a village of Vikings. Filmed like a very serious period adventure piece, like Game of Thrones, and not like a comedy, only adds to the humor, much of which is grounded in the anachronistic behaviors of the Vikings as they deal with relationship problems or work politics using modern language and contemporary social attitudes. In what seems like the show trying to offer something for everyone, their are also a number of physical comedy bit that come off as quite low-brow in contrast to the rather subtle, behavior-based humor of the rest of the show. Ultimately, no matter what kind of comedy you like: slapstick, farce, black, social satire, mannered, mean spirited or good-hearted, Norsemen will deliver at least a couple of laughs in that style.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about pain-based comedy. Why Is it acceptable to laugh at someone, for example, getting hit in the head with a shovel when we know how bad that would hurt? When does it go from being funny to being mean?

  • Is Norsemen an accurate portrayal of how Vikings lived? What makes anachronisms funny?

TV Details

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