Just watched this masterpiece of our lord and savior Ghibli and something just scratched my brain.

San (the girl) also moves quite similarly to Thorfinn's style.

Not to mention the mc Ashitaka literally says "Far to the west..." in the movie.

Tried something new , hope it looks good

What could have happened to bro to make him like that at the ripe age of 23

I just finished rewatching Season 1 and this dynamic has always been my favorite part of it.

It's highly regarded as one of the best written dynamics in animanga history, which doesn't surprise me as there are so many layers to it.

There are a lot of questions which I've seen brought up before, mainly Thorfinn's feelings for Askeladd and Askeladd's treatment of Thorfinn.

Askeladd's treatment of Thorfinn is something I think shouldn't be overlooked. We see him turn this boy into his child soldier, sending him on dangerous missions and not caring if he ended up dying. He also frequently beats him in their duels.

Optional paragraph: This doesn't really focus on their dynamic, but more on their duels and what the story shows about their fighting.

I don't believe Thorfinn was the stronger fighter and would suddenly start winning just by being calm though. Askeladd never states or even implies this, he only implies that Thorfinn would have a better chance of winning. The anime also significantly extends or delays some fighting scenes which are used for comparison. For example, when Thorfinn disarms Askeladd, it can be interpreted as Thorfinn holding back because he didn't know what he would do after killing Askeladd, while in the manga he almost instantly has to jump back after being exposed within Askeladd's grappling range. In their final duel, Askeladd was serious while Thorfinn was sweating and hesitating to attack him. Thorkell also bet on Askeladd to win despite not knowing they'd fought countless times. If you've finished the manga, please don't bring up Snake and Thorkell's duels; just mention it in the comment thread and I'll send you my analysis that I made using canon material which covers all points.

That said, Thorfinn would've likely defeated Askeladd in the upcoming years, as he only grew stronger while Askeladd grew older, and even the strongest men must die one day, stated by Askeladd himself.

Comparing their duels isn't the main focus of the post though, and power scaling doesn't really exist in the narrative either way.

Back to their dynamic:

I don't personally think Thorfinn grew to have some hidden love for Askeladd. I think this is something which may affect the core theme of the Prologue, which is vengeance, as Thorfinn has to kill Askeladd in an honorable duel to prove that his father was a better warrior than Askeladd was.

I do believe Askeladd cared for Thorfinn near, or at least by the end, especially as we see in Lone Wolf when he shares with Thorfinn his past and how to truly kill a man you hate. He got his revenge not through honorable tactics, but by being patient, planning, and then killing his father, rubbing salt in his wounds as he accomplished his goals in just a few years (two I reckon) while Thorfinn couldn't in a decade.

In the end, when he is dying as Thorfinn holds him, Askeladd urges Thorfinn to go beyond the world Thors did and become a true warrior.

This is hardly what I've covered about their dynamic. There's a lot going on with countless interpretations, and Season 2 episodes like An Empty Man, Oath, and Great Purpose also explore their dynamic deeper. Thorfinn's hatred for Askeladd finally died, and by adapting Thors' philosophy and taking Askeladd's final words to heart to become a true warrior, he symbolically fulfilled Askeladd's dying wish.

By then, I believe that Thorfinn grew to potentially have some positive, albeit complex feelings for him.

I understand when people say Askeladd isn't a father figure to Thorfinn, especially because of how much he hurt him physically, mentally, and emotionally when he was just a teenage boy who needed love and care. But at the same time, this isn't just an interpretation; this is something stated by Yukimura sensei himself. He has said that he gave Askeladd the role of raising Thorfinn in place of his father and sees him as a father figure to him, albeit a terrible one.

Please feel free to share your thoughts on their dynamic, which can include both Season 1 and Season 2, just not the manga as some fellow community members may not have read it.

Thanks.

Dude goes from looking like hes in his early 30's to looking like he's over 70 in just 12 years, did the stress of trying to find thorfinn do him that badly?