541 Meters

> Thor [to:r]
> One of the mightiest gods in Norse mythology, Thor commanded the weather and the forces of nature, fought the enemies of civilization and represented law and order.
>
>

**541 Meters** is the second episode of the first season of the Netflix Original Series *Ragnarok*, and the second episode in the series overall.

## Synopsis

Magne and his classmates try to regroup after a tragic loss, while the police seem uninterested in getting to the truth. Gry stumbles on Vidar unmasked.

## Plot

Magne is still grieving over Isolde's death to the point of losing his appetite while having breakfast with his mother and brother. The sticker she placed over his laptop now have become a memento to remember her by. Laurits on the other hand, complained about excessive sugar in Turid's coffee before reminding his brother that they have to go to the school. Turid tells Laurits to put more extra clothes on only for Magne argues it being unnecessary, once again sensing the change in Edda's weather where it would be warmer later on. Worried about Magne because of his sour mood and refusal to put his glasses on, Turid asks Laurits to keep an eye on his brother on her behalf.

Upon arriving at the school, Magne is soon bombarded by his classmates with questions, prompting Laurits to bail his distraught brother out. A memorial has been placed over Isolde's desk, which definitely doesn't help his mood at all as he sits beside it. Headmistress Ran enters the class to announce the upcoming wake of one of the school's bright students and Mr. Eidsvoll's absence which further cements the cancellation of their history lesson for that day. But then, the still-distraught history teacher shows up and reassures everyone he'll handle himself despite his sorrow, wanting to join the school in such event. Mr. Eidsvoll reassures everyone the spring party on the next Friday will be held as planned despite the school's initial plan to cancel it, justifying it to be what his late daughter wanted.

During the wake to remember Isolde, Officer Yngvild reveals the conclusion of the police's investigation where inclement weather being the cause of her death; her paraglider got struck by lightning and worse, she lost her phone as it happened. After imploring the assembly to bring them Isolde's missing phone should any of them found it, Officer Yngvild states that the police have concluded the case before calling in the school's psychologist Sindre for his part in the wake. Stepping into the stage, Sindre encourages the students (Magne in particular) to look for him should they need consolation, though he won't be available in Thursday.

Finding inconsistencies in the official report of the tragedy, Magne rushes to talk to Officer Yngvild about it as soon as the wake concludes, revealing to the latter how experienced Isolde truly was in paragliding along with the fact that she knew the mountains very well. Magne further adds the weather was less stormy back then only to be informed that there's nothing he can do about it. Unknown to the two, Ran watches the unfolding debate between them.

Later at home, Magne watches one of Isolde's YouTube videos in which she personally interviewed Vidar about the pollution in Edda's fjord which obviously had something to do with Jutul Industries A/S' activities after attempting to e-mail the company to no avail. In the same brief interview, the CEO of the company claimed that its factory had fulfilled every official standard before excusing himself for an appointment with the town's mayor. With a sigh, the disheartened Magne closes his laptop.

Meanwhile, Turid has finished her shopping for that day and is about to enter her car when Vidar conveniently shows up with a taxi, startling her to the point of nearly choking on her bread. Composing herself while swallowing her food properly, Turid wonders why the CEO of Jutul Industries A/S doesn't ride his car as usual. Vidar explains that someone had vandalized it with a hammer before putting the matter aside by asking whether she can handle the practicalities with an insurance company. Taking it as a potential job opening for her, Turid informs him to e-mail her about it so she can see the offer thoroughly. As soon as Vidar leaves the scene, she unexpectedly receives an e-mail which, to her shock, contains two pictures which showed the extent of the damage of the former's car that include a familiar-looking sledgehammer embedded into its windshield.

Magne is helping a deliveryman bringing in boxes of his family's belongings from their previous residence while Laurits only watching him instead of doing the same by the time the fuming Turid comes home. Turid confronts her son over the damage he done on Vidar's car with their missing sledgehammer on the other night, showing him printed pictures of it and adding both she and Laurits were watching TV when it happened thus leaving Magne as the prime suspect. As guilty as he is, Magne nevertheless finds the revelation of the sledgehammer ended up smashed through Vidar's car — which obviously far away from their residence — unbelievable (he was by their home's doorstep when hurling it in a fit of rage and sorrow back then). In the ensuing argument, Turid had enough and grounded Magne by sending him to his room to mull over his mistake before buying their replacement sledgehammer.

Still not believing how he did it, Magne takes a look at the pictures, then Jutul family's mansion at the hill far ahead through the nearby window. Using Google Map, he estimates the distance between where he actually threw his grandfather's sledgehammer which just few meters away from his home and Jutulheim, which approximately around 1537 m. It is when Laurits shows up with some papers for Magne to buy the new sledgehammer with.

Now with the new sledgehammer at hand, Magne conducts a small experiment to see whether he can indeed hurl things farther than any known human. Positioning himself in front of the school's sports field, he hurls it over the area sky high as with the previous one before setting out to retrieve it all while measuring the distance between his original position and where it lands with every 1 meter-length step. Finally reaching the sledgehammer, the young man confirms it to be 541 m, over six times of the world record (86 meters).

On the same night in Jutulheim, Ran offers Vidar to join her in sauna to see him still bothered by the sledgehammer that broke his car which she quick to assume to be the belonging of either a fired employee, a jealous husband, or a furious woman. She then informs him about how the mourning at the school went, finding it difficult despite her little sympathy over it (neither of them is mortal like inhabitants of Edda thus bereft of limitations they had) only for her husband confesses that he killed Isolde. This surprised Ran because the deed violated their agreement not to hurt children, but Vidar justifies that he had to in a bid to prevent her exposing their company's secret property beneath the melting glacier and even arranged so it looked like an accident true to the police's reports. Begrudgingly agrees with her husband, Ran states that finding Isolde's missing phone being one last matter to attend to and it's best to keep Saxa and Fjor in the dark about Isolde's assassination. As they begin to make love, Ran reminds Vidar not to get carried away on things like he did while conducting ritualistic hunt in the previous night.

During the lunch break after the class on the next day, Magne and Gry begin their work on the next part of their end-of-the-term group assignment despite their group's members now reduced into two people. Nygaard shows up to check on their progress and, after addressing their deceased classmate by mistake and immediately apologizing for it, offer to put them into any of other groups considering theirs have come too short. Gry declines the offer, reassuring that her group can manage on their own provided that they have more time for it, going so far proposing they may continue their work at the latter's residence after school. Pleased by both their dedication and paper topic, the teacher implores them to be careful so their entire project won't end up about 'old white men being the only one who are destroying the world and causing all the ice to melt', much to his students' amusement.

As soon as he is at home while Turid and Laurits being occupied in rummaging their old clothes which just delivered in the previous day, Magne frantically searches the kitchen in order to prepare for Gry's imminent arrival. Ignoring Laurits' playful remark about Gry being Magne's latest crush, Turid helps Magne calming himself before taking over the endeavor on his behalf. Hilariously, the young man instead freezes on the spot upon hearing the sound of their doorbell.

Against all odds, the two friends continue their group assignment in Magne's room in earnest. It is then Gry notices her teammate stopped wearing his glasses for quite some time. As they begin to bond with one another, Gry reveals her difficulty in knowing Magne at personal level. Hoping to make it easier for her, Magne, after considering it a bit, decides to begin by revealing how he managed to throw a hammer half a kilometer on the other day. Gry's praise aside, he ended up worsens the awkward atmosphere between them, though fortunately not for long as Gry eventually decides to call it a day. Before making her leave, Gry asks Magne whether he will come to the school's upcoming spring party. Magne replies that he won't.

While shopping at the grocery store that night, Turid comes across the still grieving Mr. Eidsvoll. Despite her best efforts to comfort him, the history teacher is still overwhelmed by sorrow over the death of Isolde that he stopped shopping altogether (the sight of his late daughter's favorite mineral water brand proved too much for him). Putting that aside, Turid returns to the cashier Wence to pay for her goods during which the latter informs her about the beginning of a hero's journey, much to her confusion.

Meanwhile at Seier's residence, Magne consults with the internet to see how the weather was back during Isolde's tragic paragliding accident, much to Laurits' curiosity. Magne explains that he's trying to clarify the accuracy of the police's conclusion of the incident and his own accounts as the eyewitness (the lightning indeed started one hour afterward true to the latter) along with his own peculiar changes since the day they returned to Edda. Still not believing his brother's claims, Laurits instead insists Magne to join him in the upcoming party.

The annual spring party in the school is just around the corner with everyone present already look forward to it. This includes Saxa, though her mood for it got soured by the mention of Isolde's memorial near the bridge where she died along with some of her classmates revealed not only talked about it in social medias, but also visited it altogether alongside their respective family members. At the same memorial, Magne visits the area and leaves behind a small bouquet of flowers. His presence there arouses suspicion from Vidar who apparently searched the rocky riverside for quite some time nearby.

Meanwhile, arriving ahead of his brother, Laurits impresses his peers with his plain yet gothic dressing style, Saxa included.

Soon after, Ran commences the school's annual spring party by praising the students for their appropriately presentable appearances and reminding them about both the unfortunate tragedy that took place prior to that night and the event would exclude drug and alcohol as it should be. She then asks everyone to send their collective thoughts to the late Isolde before having Saxa starting her own speech. Contrary to her soured reaction about the latter's memorials, the Jutul describes Isolde as someone who reminded her to the very nature she cherished before singing solemnly only to be interrupted by Magne's arrival.

The party begins at its earnest regardless as Laurits praises the manner his brother made his entrance. Magne soon recognizes the shirt the former wears being one of Turid's old clothes, in which Laurits rightfully points out it no longer fits her. Looking at Gry and Fjor hanging out together, Laurits comments the former already taken when Oscar shows up. Oscar takes Laurits with him as he tells Magne to relax and enjoy the party.

After a while, Fjor asks Laurits what he knows about Magne. Laurits replies by describing his brother as a friendless and dyslexic fat young man before being interrupted by the party's next music which he doesn't like prompting him to see their DJ to deal it. Now in his own devices, Fjor joins his two classmates nearby drinking some liquor they apparently smuggled into the school before being interrupted by the principal herself who silently tells her son to leave her and his friends alone. As soon as Fjor left, Ran unexpectedly (and flirtatiously) asks the two to follow her, and they nervously complies. Back to Magne, he meets Gry who pleasantly surprised by his presence in the party, though his hope to have a dance with her dashed when Fjor returns. Hearing Laurits apparently has the DJ switching their music to the romantic one, Fjor and Gry goes to join the others, leaving the dismayed Magne alone. In his jealously, Magne shatters his emptied soda bottle with his sheer strength by mistake. Not wanting to cause an unnecessary ruckus, the disheartened Magne leaves the party only to catch Oscar drinking a nearby tap water. Not taking Magne's warning about the contamination within at first, Oscar immediately apologizes to his friend upon realizing how much he's still grieving over Isolde's death. But then, he unintentionally slipped up about recurring changes on the police's conclusion regarding Isolde's accident as of late. Unable to get the concrete answer from interrogating Oscar on the spot, the dissatisfied Magne storms off all while passing through Ran and Fjor's two cronies having fun in janitor's room nearby.

Back to the ongoing spring party, Fjor tells Laurits that it's time to turn up the music. After switching it with the one among his collection in his smartphone, Fjor descends from the stage to perform a free dance with Saxa and Laurits joining him. While the next music definitely belonged to the same genre as the previous one albeit more intense, the manner Jutul siblings dance before their fellow students is visibly as sensual as inhumanly jerkish (some of their moves involve audibly twisting their own bones!), seemingly under a trance. Against all odds, Laurits manages to remain in synch with Saxa and Fjor.

Simultaneously, Ran and Fjor's two cronies are secretly enjoying themselves by having sex with one another.

Eventually, Saxa, Fjor, and Laurits conclude their free dance and are applauded by everyone despite their performance's bizarre style. Saxa praises Laurits for his ability to keep up with them while Fjor asks Gry to go with him strolling about the town only to be denied, visibly mixed due to believing her boyfriend ate something in order to achieve such feat beforehand. Disappointed, he takes Laurits and Oscar with him instead.

Magne decides to visit Erik, finding him already sorting through Isolde's belongings. He tells his teacher what Oscar told him earlier and his frustration about it all. An argument ensues between them because of Erik's indifference to the injustice against his late daughter, culminating to the grieving young man angrily storming off and pushing Erik's car aside like nothing, revealing his superhuman strength right in front of its horrified owner in the process. Unsure of how Magne able to perform such feat, Erik changes his mind and ushers the former back in so they can discuss the matter properly.

Fjor, Oscar, and Laurits are strolling about the town with Laurits pleasantly surprised by his and Fjor's common taste in music. The young Jutul shifts the current topic of their conversation to one about Isolde's other memorial built at the place of her death everyone talked about along with her growing sympathizers which irritated him. Just then, they stumble upon the memorial in question which prompted them to stop to take a look at it. The seething Fjor makes his resentment towards their late classmate clear before the mixed Oscar and spitefully desecrates her memorial by urinating all over the candles placed there, including the big one with a rose he correctly suspected to be Oscar's. Upon noticing his friend mischievously posted the picture of him doing such morally reprehensible deed at Instagram, Fjor angrily punches Oscar before coerces him to delete both it and the picture he just taken at once.

Back at Eidsvoll's residence, Erik shows Magne Isolde's collection of newspaper clippings pertaining environmental pollution all over Edda and its surroundings as well as its alleged ties to Jutul Industries A/S' practices. Coupled with the tap water poisoning which killed Mrs. Eidsvoll, Isolde's investigation leaves the two contemplating whether humanity is indeed destroying the world through harming mother nature. Erik then confessed how much Isolde inherited her parents' rebellious side when Magne notices his late dear friend's diary nearby. Believing it's best to let Isolde bring her secrets to her grave, the young man tearfully discards the diary into the trash bin, a decision Erik agrees on before comforting his crying student despite in tears also.

Fjor's crime against Isolde's memory didn't go unnoticed, as Ran informs Vidar about what he did when the latter is feeding Thrym. She showed her husband a screenshot of Oscar's latest Instagram post depicting their son urinating Isolde's memorial at the last moments. Unamused, Vidar reassures Ran that he'll deal the problem in no time.

Gry is having a sleepover with Saxa in the same mansion discussing the former's taste with boys. The former remarks Fjor being rather generic as with others she met so far thus uncertain whether he would be the first boy she sleeps with for real. Upon being inquired by the latter about her opinions regarding Magne, Gry states that they're simply teammates working in the same assignment. Both girls' conversation takes an unfavorable turn when Gry turns out more distant towards Magne than Saxa expected thus had no idea about how close he was with Isolde.

To add insult to the injury when he confronts his son about what he did at Isolde's memorial as soon as the latter returned home, Vidar fumes internally in response of Fjor nonchalantly dismissed his disrespectful deed as a trivial joke. Lecturing his wayward son about their kind's history as higher beings once worshipped by humanity along with their importance in the eyes of inhabitants of Edda despite currently masquerading as lesser beings with notable status, Vidar rightfully points out that they still have standards to follow regardless before beating and slamming Fjor around into pulp. Unknown to them, Gry passes by upstairs while on her way for the toilet and left shaken by what she just saw.

In the next morning, Magne is watching one of Isolde's YouTube videos when Turid awkwardly exits the toilet and asks him for Laurits' whereabouts. That is when Laurits returns home still in his mother's old outfits before entering the bathroom with style, much to Magne's amusement as Turid informs him about Isolde's upcoming funeral.

We then see students of Edda Secondary School accompanied by their relatives attending Isolde's funeral at the town's local church, including the reluctant Fjor and Saxa. Gry is surprised to see Fjor wholly unharmed despite the punishment he received from his father should've leave quite a mark on him. Magne attends the funeral also as witnessed by Vidar who looks on from within his car.

The episode ends with Seier family returns home only to see their residence had been ransacked by an uninvited guest...

## Cast

* Jonas Strand Gravli as Laurits Seier
* Herman Tømmeraas as Fjor Jutul
* Theresa Frostad Eggesbø as Saxa Jutul
* Emma Bones as Gry Isungset
* Henriette Steenstrup as Turid Seier
* Gísli Örn Garðarsson as Vidar Jutul
* Synnøve Macody Lund as Ran Jutul
* Kornelia Eline Skogseth as Hilde
* Karoline Petronella Ulfsdatter Schau as Jenny
* Odd-Magnus Williamson as Erik Eidsvoll
* Fridtjov Såheim as Sindre Schirmer
* Iselin Shumba Skjævesland as Yngvild Bjørnholt
* Geir-Atle Johnsen as Nygaard
* Eli Anne Linnestad as Wenche
* Conrad James Mclean as Kristian
* Johannes Gjessing as Rasmus
* Rozerin Algunerhan as Aicha
* Ylva Bjørkaas Thedin as Isolde Eidsvoll
* Jeppe Beck Laursen as Radio host

## Tropes

* Abusive Parents: A mild example in Vidar because he actually wanted the best in Fjor but, he entered the trope's territory though the way he disciplined his son after finding out that he urinated on Isolde's memorial, more so with the chance of the disrespectful act reveal their family secret.
* The Coroner Doth Protest Too Much: Magne becomes suspicious when the official reason of Isolde's crash keeps changing. At first the police said that she was struck by a lightning despite not being anywhere near a thunderstorm. Later they claim that she crashed into a mountain and so on.
* Cry into Chest: Magne and Erik hug each other and cry when they go through Isolde's belongings.
* Dictionary Opening: The episode begins with a dictionary entry about the Norse god Thor.
* Does Not Know His Own Strength: Magne is still accustomize himself with his newfound supernatural strength as he accidentally shatters a glass bottle between his hands, and later moves Erik's car with his bare hands.
* Everybody Must Get Stoned: Fjor takes over as DJ at the spring party for a moment. The music that he plays does *something* to everyone at the party. Fjor himself, his sister and Laurits start to dance jerkily as if they can't help it while everyone around them looks as if they're in trance.
* Excrement Statement: Fjor urinates on Isolde's memorial after Oscar reveals that he also put up a candle for her there.
* Eye Colour Change: During their dance at the party, Fjor and Saxa's eyes change to their true supernatural yellow.
* A Glass in the Hand: Magne crushes a glass bottle with his hands after Gry agrees to dance with Fjol at the spring party.
* Guyliner: Laurits wears black eyeliner at the spring party.
* Healing Factor: Gry witnesses Vidar beat up Fjor until he is bloody, but when he sees Fjor again the next day there is not a single mark on his face.
* High-School Dance: The spring party is essentially a dance party.
* The Nose Knows: Magne notices that there are two different smells of blood on Isolde's jacket.
* Precision Crash: The hammer that Magne threw at the end of the previous episode flew over 1,5 kilometers before crashing into Vidar's windshield.
* The Reveal:
	+ Vidar and his family are not human.
	+ Vidar confesses to his wife that he killed Isolde.
* She Knows Too Much: Vidar tells his wife Ran that he killed Isolde because she saw something that she shouldn't have.
* Shrine to the Fallen:
	+ There are candles and flowers on Isolde's table in school.
	+ There is also a memorial at the place where Isolde died.
* Teacher/Student Romance: Ran sleeps with two students at the spring party.
* Title Drop: Magne calculates with his steps how far he threw the new sledgehammer: 541 meters.
* Wham Line: "But the humans like us."