Characters of Æskan

***Æskan*** is a Velkanian teen drama web series created by Elín María Hreimardattir. The series uses a rotating cast of characters, with each season focusing on a different central character and the entire main cast graduating after eight seasons, subsequently being replaced by a new "generation" of characters. The series premiered on VNT3 in 2012.

## Central characters

### Generation 1

#### Unnur María Óðinnsdattir

**Unnur María Óðinnsdattir** (born (1996-04-22)22 April 1996), portrayed by Ólöf Jóhanna Hlérsdattir, is the central character of season one. Raised in Hersingborg by a single mother, Unnur and her younger brother move to Narísandur to live with their father after their mother is sent to rehab following a suicide attempt prior to the beginning of the first season. Upon moving to Narísandur, Unnur struggles to fit in as she begins to adapt to her home country that she hasn't lived in since she was a toddler. A bubbly party girl, Unnur ultimately befriends classmate Lóki and his group of friends. Over the course of her season as the central character, Unnur struggles with her relationship with her father, fitting in with other Velkanians her age, mental health issues such as depression, and self-isolating from those close to her. At the end of season one, she moves out of her father's house and in with Ingibjörg Guðmarsdattir.

Unnur remains a main character in all seven subsequent seasons of the first generation, the only character to do so. In season three, she begins a relationship with Samúel Bjarki Magnússon, which causes tension within the group due to her immense jealousy and insecurity in the relationship. Frequently lashing out at friends Kaja and Pála due to their friendship with Samúel, she eventually fights with Ingibjörg as well after Ingibjörg confesses to Unnur that she is in love with her, and she moves into Samúel's house. In season five, Unnur becomes pregnant with Samúel's child, which causes tension in their relationship as she believes she wants to keep the child but Samúel does not. Eventually, Samúel breaks up with her, and Unnur decides to have an abortion after speaking with her mother for the first time since her suicide attempt. She then makes up with her friends and moves in with Ingibjörg again. At the end of season eight, Unnur graduates from Narísandur Academy with a junior college diploma in general academics, and decides to enroll in the University of Reyklíð to study visual arts.

Ólöf was nominated for Best Leading Actress in a Drama at the 2013 Velkanian Television Awards for her performance in the role of Unnur.

#### Lóki Erlingarson

**Lóki Erlingarson** (born (1996-03-01)1 March 1996), portrayed by Jóhann Pétarson, is the central character of season two. Born to a wealthy and highly-educated family in East Narísandur, Lóki is an only child and the sole heir to the family fortune. The "golden child" for his entire life, he still has a strong relationship with his parents despite pressures on him to succeed. A friendly, intelligent, and ambitious person, Lóki dreams of becoming the Prime Minister of the Velkanian Isles. Over the course of his season as the central character, Lóki begins to come to terms with his sexuality as a gay man and begins the process of coming out to his friends and family. He additionally begins a relationship with transfer student Rúrik Jón Kasparsson. At the conclusion of season two, he comes out to his parents, who accept him, and refers to Rúrik as his "first love."

Lóki is additionally a main character in seasons one, three, four, six, seven, and eight, being demoted to recurring status for season five. Throughout the remainder of his tenure on the show, Lóki continues his relationship with Rúrik until they break up in season six. In season seven, Lóki begins to distance himself from the friend group after beginning to believe that they are "growing apart," but later returns to them following Marselína's hospitalization. At the end of season eight, Lóki graduates from Narísandur Academy with a junior college diploma in social sciences, and decides to enroll in the University of Velkania to study law.

Jóhann won Best Leading Actor in a Drama at the 2013 Velkanian Television Awards for his performance in the role of Lóki.

#### Kaja Sif Rafnarsdattir

**Kaja Sif Rafnarsdattir** (born (1996-08-14)14 August 1996), portrayed by Sigurbjörg Ísidórsdattir, is the central character of season three. She is first introduced as the best friend of Pála who is in Lóki's friend group, depicted as a spunky and outspoken individual. The youngest of four children born to a musician father and a businesswoman mother, Kaja developed a love for music from her father. She has a tense relationship with her mother and elder siblings, believing that her father is the only person who understands her creative spirit. Over the course of her season as the central character, Kaja struggles with her parents' divorce and begins to be torn apart by both sides. While she has a close relationship with her father, she begins to realize that he cannot provide for her alone and also lacks any sort of ambition or desire to improve due to his immaturity, meanwhile despite her tense relationship with her mother she begins to understand that she does have her best interests at heart. At the conclusion of season three, Kaja confronts her father and he moves out of the family home, strengthening her relationship with her mother and maturing in the process.

Kaja is additionally a main character in seasons one, two, four, six, seven, and eight, being demoted to recurring status for season five. Throughout the remainder of the series, Kaja continues to improve her relationship with her mother and further her burgeoning music career. Kaja comes into conflict with Unnur heavily in seasons three and four, when Unnur begins to accuse Kaja of flirting with her boyfriend Samúel; their friendship continues to implode, until they make up at the end of season five. In season six, she signs a record deal and drops out of school in order to pursue music full-time. However, when the label later drops her, she is left uneducated and unemployed, after which she finds work as a disc jockey at local nightclubs, where she steadily builds up a following. At the end of season eight, Kaja celebrates her friends' graduation with them, and says that she's moving to Dollchester in order to pursue a career in electronic music.

#### Ingibjörg Guðmarsdattir

**Ingibjörg Guðmarsdattir** (born (1996-07-20)20 July 1996), portrayed by Jóhanna Guðrún Karlsdattir, is the central character of season four. She is first introduced as the best friend of Lóki who is in his friend group, depicted as a dark and brooding individual. A troubled punk rocker, Ingibjörg was born to a single mother who died when she was an infant, and thus she was subsequently raised by her grandmother in North Narísandur along with her elder sister. Over the course of her season as the central character, Ingibjörg must come to terms with the death of her grandmother, and how she can move past it. She begins to confide in her roommate Unnur about the situation, whom she also begins to fall in love with. After confessing her love to Unnur and being rejected, their friendship self-destructs and Ingibjörg begins to struggle with her depression even more. At the conclusion of season four, Ingibjörg faces a near-suicide attempt but ultimately decides not to after realizing that her grandmother wouldn't want her death to end her granddaughter's life.

Ingibjörg is additionally a main character in seasons one, two, three, six, seven, and eight, being demoted to recurring status for season five. She doesn't make up with Unnur and become roommates with her again until the end of season five. Ingibjörg's sexuality isn't further discussed until season six, when she tells Klara that she thinks she's bisexual but does not want to come out publicly. This was done, according to Elín, for realism, as "not everybody's journey to discovering their sexuality has a happy ending." In season seven, Ingibjörg comes into immense conflict with Marselína, and their friendship does not recover. At the end of season eight, Ingibjörg graduates from Narísandur Academy with a junior college diploma in natural sciences and mathematics, but doesn't make plans to attend university as she wants to take her life "one step at a time."

Jóhanna was nominated for Best Leading Actress in a Drama at the 2014 Velkanian Television Awards for her performance in the role of Ingibjörg.

#### Samúel Bjarki Magnússon

**Samúel Bjarki Magnússon** (born (1995-01-10)10 January 1995), portrayed by Vilmundur Ólaf Ölnirsson, is the central character of season five. A popular and athletic footballer, Samúel begins a relationship with Unnur in season three, which causes tensions in the friend group as Unnur begins to feel jealous and insecure in the relationship. Over the course of his season as the central character, Samúel discovers that Unnur is pregnant, which creates a mental conflict for himself over whether he is ready to be a father. In the process, he begins to feel uneasy over abandoning his friends and football in order to devote himself to Unnur and their child, which leads him to request that she get an abortion. At the conclusion of season five, Samúel breaks up with Unnur after she confirms that she wants to keep the child and marry him, stating that he wants nothing to do with her or the child ever again.

Samúel is first introduced as a recurring character in season three, also appearing as a main character in season four until his departure from the series at the end of season five. Samúel's presence in the friend group is controversial, as Unnur begins to experience delusions of her friends Kaja and Pála wanting to steal him from her, which results in her lashing out at them and eventually being distanced from the group. He and Unnur move in together at the end of season four. Samúel does not appear with the rest of the cast at the end of season eight. Instead, he off-camera graduates at the end of season six, as he was a year ahead of the other central characters in school.

#### Klara Bergmarsdattir

**Klara Bergmarsdattir** (born (1996-10-19)19 October 1996), portrayed by Stefanía María Jóhannsdattir, is the central character of season six. Initially briefly introduced in season one as a popular girl and childhood friend of Kaja who is dating the popular footballer Kristján Kristjánsson, she appears in only two episodes and does not reappear until season five, when she is promoted to main character status. As the girlfriend of Kristján, whom is a close friend of Samúel, Klara appears frequently throughout the season in Samúel's friend group, but confides in him that her relationship with Kristján is far from perfect. By the end of the season, she ends her friendship with Samúel in order to befriend his ex-girlfriend Unnur and her group of friends. Over the course of her season as the central character, Klara begins to witness the destruction of her relationship with Kristján as she begins to favor her new friend group over him and her old friends. With their breakup, Klara begins to struggle with her self-identity, and things become even more confused for her when she begins to fall in love with a girl, Freydís Guðveig Raknarsdattir. At the conclusion of season six, Klara publicly comes out as bisexual and begins a relationship with Freydís.

After appearing for only two episodes as a recurring character in season one, Klara becomes a main character in season five and remains one until season eight. Over the course of the remainder of the series, Klara gradually develops an aesthetic of her own, abandoning her previous preppy style for one that is more grunge-inspired. She additionally further reunites with her childhood best friend of Kaja, after several years of not talking to one another. At the end of season eight, Klara graduates from Narísandur Academy with a junior college diploma in social sciences, and decides to enroll in the University of Narísandur to study psychology.

#### Marselína Liljá Vilhjálmardattir

**Marselína Liljá Vilhjálmardattir** (born (1996-07-04)4 July 1996), portrayed by Hildur Gunný Eiríksdattir, is the central character of season seven. She is first introduced as a member of Lóki's friend group, a wild party girl who enjoys going out and having casual sex with different boys in school. Over the course of the series, she begins to develop a reputation around school for being a "school slut," which starts to cause some controversy in her friend group. Over the course of her season as the central character, Marselína is sexually assaulted by an acquaintance at a party after she continuously rebuffs his advances. This experience goes on to significantly impact her well-being, and she often takes it out on her friends while remaining silent on the situation. As she begins to descend into alcoholism and a depression to cope with her trauma, her friendships also begin to implode. At the conclusion of season seven, Marselína is hospitalized due to alcohol poisoning and is subsequently sent by her parents to a rehabilitation clinic in Resha. Never having come forward about her sexual assault, her relationship with her friends became irreparably damaged.

Marselína is additionally a main character in seasons one, two, three, four, and six, being demoted to recurring status for season five. Initially identifying herself as someone who prefers to "stay out of the drama," Marselína began beginning numerous conflicts with her entire friend group during her descent into depression in season seven. She does not appear with the rest of the cast at the end of season eight, instead being confined in a rehabilitation clinic in Resha for her alcoholism. Marselína's plot lines throughout her central season received some negative critical feedback, but series creator Elín dismissed the criticism, stating that "Marselína's story is one that is seen too often in real life. As a writer, I don't always write happy stories, I write real stories, and hers is surely real. Not everything we *want* to happen *should* happen in fiction."

Hildur was nominated for Best Leading Actress in a Drama at the 2016 Velkanian Television Awards for her performance in the role of Marselína.

#### Pála Hvönn Kristgeirsdattir

**Pála Hvönn Kristgeirsdattir** (born (1996-09-28)28 September 1996), portrayed by Kristín Björk Ásgrímardattir, is the central character of season eight. She is first introduced as the best friend of Kaja who is in Lóki's friend group, depicted as a neurotic, uptight, and type-A overachiever. Often featured as the series's comic relief, Pála has described herself as the "black sheep" in a family of "anxiety-ridden control freaks," oblivious to the fact that she is no different from this description. Over the course of her season as the central character, Pála attempts to balance the stress she puts on herself to succeed in everything she does, the expectations her family has on her to succeed, and the constant worries she has regarding whether she's actually happy. At the conclusion of season eight, Pála realizes that she cannot go off to university in her current mental state, and pledges to take a year off in order to travel the world and "ground" herself "in reality."

Pála is additionally a main character in seasons one, two, three, four, six, and seven, being demoted to recurring status for season five. Frequently coming into conflict with Marselína for their differing viewpoints on life, Pála also comes into conflict with Unnur throughout seasons three and four due to Unnur's immense jealousy in her relationship with Samúel. At the end of season eight, Pála graduates from Narísandur Academy with a junior college diploma in business and law, and ultimately decides not to attend university, against her life plan and her parents' wishes, in order to spend a year traveling the world.

Kristín was nominated for Best Leading Actress in a Drama at the 2016 Velkanian Television Awards for her performance in the role of Pála.