Eek! They really are messing with the story line. Poor Ragnar. That was horrible! Didn't like it. I've watched 3 episodes so far and overall liked them all except for three very poor choices: the casting of Skade was all wrong and the actor is doing a horrible job with the role, Uhtred's altercation with Alfred in episode 2 was ridiculous, young Ragnar's death in episode 3 was unnecessary. But, none of that has ruined the series for me and I'm enjoying it a lot so far! I've never thought Dreymon was a particularly good actor, but he's doing a better job so far this season than he did in the first two. His acting hasn't been forced or over done like he tended to do before. He's honing his craft with this series, I think, and has improved quite a bit. He's staying in character much better and I'm enjoying his portrayal of Uhtred very much so far this season.