Thorfinn vs. Garm: Who Won the Fight & Is He Really Stronger?

Even though season 2 of Vinland Saga hasn’t had the same kind of action that season 1 had, fans are still excited about the possibility of seeing more action in the future, especially with the introduction of Garm in the later arcs of the anime. Garm is set to serve as one of the antagonists Thorfinn and his friends must go through to achieve their goals. That’s why Thorfinn and Garm fought each other in the anime despite Thorfinn becoming a pacifist. So, who won the fight between Thorfinn and Garm?

Thorfinn won the fight against Garm. The fight between Thorfinn and Garm was very close because they are almost evenly matched in their strength, speed, and skills. However, Thorfinn’s intelligence and maturity allowed him to win when he used Askeladd’s tactics against Garm by provoking him and making him lose his temper.

It might be true that Garm is strong enough to defeat Thorfinn. However, Thorfinn won in a way that reflected his character growth and personal experiences. In that regard, it was fitting that he used the same tactics that Askeladd always used against him in the past. Now, let’s look at this fight in greater detail to understand why both characters are so evenly matched.

Size

Thorfinn’s size has always been one of the things that the characters in Vinland Saga notice first because of the fact that he is an incredibly small young man by Viking standards. Despite being related to the 7’7” Thorkell and the large Thors, Thorfinn stands around 5’1” and has never been a great man in terms of his physical stature. He was a skinny child during the first season but ended up gaining muscle mass in season 2 because he spent his days working on Ketil’s farm.

Garm isn’t exactly the biggest guy in Vinland Saga, but he isn’t exactly small as, well. He is around 5’9” and is quite lanky in his build. Even though he is lanky and skinny, he can use his frame to his advantage, especially when using his favored weapon. Garm’s height also allows him to use his spear effectively in a fight, as he can add to the reach of his weapon while staying mobile enough to outflank his opponents.

The truth is that the sizes of both Thorfinn and Garm play crucial roles in their fighting styles, as they are both known to be quick and agile fighters that use their smaller frames to their advantage. However, being the taller fighter gives Garm a slight advantage over Thorfinn.

Thorfinn 0, Garm 1

Strength

Thorfinn’s strength was never his strongest suit as he was never known to be a physical brute, unlike most Viking warriors at that time. Instead, he was more of an agile fighter that used his small frame and speed to his advantage. However, working on Ketil’s farm while still a teenager allowed Thorfinn to develop strong muscles that made him much stronger without taking away his agility. In that regard, Thorfinn became strong enough to throw people away with a single punch and knock them out with one hit.

Despite his lanky build, Garm is actually deceptively strong and has always been unusually strong ever since he was a child. He was already strong enough to knock grown men out using a wooden sword when he was still just a child. As a grown adult, Garm eventually developed enough strength to mutilate the body parts of his opponents with multiple spear strikes. So, while he may not be as strong as the other Vikings, he is still strong enough to hold his own against them.

Thorfinn may not be the strongest warrior, but he is slightly stronger than Garm, whose lanky and less muscular build wasn’t meant for strength. Nevertheless, both of these fighters never relied too much on their strength. 

Thorfinn 1, Garm 1

Speed

The one thing that Thorfinn has always relied on was his speed and agility. Due to his smaller size, Thorfinn made use of his agility to win different fights against incredibly strong and powerful opponents. His small size, incredible speed, and quickness made him a tough fight for Thorkell, the strongest man alive during his time. Thorfinn could blitz his way through a fight as he is agile enough to move from one spot to another to hit his opponents with fatal strikes before they could even react.

Garm was always used to being faster than his opponents as he is known to move so fast that he can mutilate his opponents with countless spear strikes before they could even react. At one point in their fight, Thorfinn described Garm as being “too fast,” as he has never faced anyone with the speed and agility that Garm possesses. That means that Garm is likely the fastest character in the entire world of Vinland Saga.

The fact that Thorfinn admitted that Garm was too fast is what gives him the speed advantage. Thorfinn never faced anyone faster than him before he fought Garm, and that says a lot about how fast Garm is. And Garm was so fast that Thorfinn couldn’t even dodge his attacks.

Thorfinn 1, Garm 2

Fighting Skills

Thorfinn doesn’t use his size and power to his advantage, unlike his father and grandfather, because he was never blessed with the same size and strength. Instead, he uses his speed and agility in a fight as being a quick fighter is more in line with his small stature. As such, Thorfinn prefers to dual-wield a pair of knives that may not be impressive in terms of their ability to hack through armored fighters but are deadly in the hands of Thorfinn because he uses them to strike a person’s vital parts with so much accuracy and speed. As such, he is known to blitz through an entire battlefield just by using quick movements and precise attacks that could take out grown men in a hurry.

Garm is the strongest spear user in the entire world of Vinland Saga and is known to use his custom spear in a deadly manner that allows him to use spear thrusts that are so precise and quick that he can hit a person countless times in a second. He can also split his custom-made spear into two to use shorter spears in a fight against someone that could close the gap. And while he didn’t use his custom spear in his fight against Thorkell, he was so skilled in using his spear that he injured the strongest warrior in the world.

Thorfinn and Garm are both equally strong and deadly with their chosen weapons and fighting styles. Garm may have the advantage regarding his reach, but Thorfinn is deadlier when he closes the gap between him and his opponent. As such, we can’t really say who is more skilled.

Thorfinn 1, Garm 2

Intelligence

Thorfinn’s intelligence came from his experience as a mercenary who started fighting at six. He was thrown into the battlefield at an early age as he learned the ins and outs of war by working with and for Askeladd. On top of that, Thorfinn matured during his stay on Ketil’s farm as he learned how to handle his emotions better and is now calmer during a fight. That means that Thorfinn is more logical and level-headed than he was when he was still just a teenager working for Askeladd.

Even though he is a gifted warrior, Garm is more of a psychopath than an actual fighter because he looks at fighting and killing as a game. Unlike other warriors that have to fight because they need to, Garm fights because he wants to. Despite that, he is a naturally gifted fighter who understands how to analyze his opponents and take advantage of any openings he can see. So, while he may not be the most level-headed person, he is certainly a genius on the battlefield.

The truth is that Thorfinn’s emotional intelligence and maturity allowed him to win his fight against Garm, who had the advantage in many areas that make a warrior strong. As such, this round goes to Thorfinn.

Thorfinn 2, Garm 2

Thorfinn vs. Garm: The Bottom Line

The fight between Thorfinn and Garm was extremely close because Thorfinn didn’t have the usual speed advantage that he would have against other opponents. In fact, Garm proved to be faster than Thorfinn in their fight. But, in the end, Thorfinn used his experience and maturity to his advantage by using the same tactic that Askeladd always used on him in their duels in the past. 

Thorfinn provoked Garm and made him lose his cool. The fact that Garm had lost his temper made him easier for Thorfinn to defeat, as that was what Askeladd always did to him back when he was still younger. But if it weren’t for Thorfinn’s maturity and experience, Garm would have been too much of a challenge for him.