"King of Norway" is the fifth episode of the fifth season of the American period crime drama television series Boardwalk Empire.
The series follows Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, a political figure who rises to prominence and interacts with mobsters, politicians, government agents, and the common folk who look up to him.
In the episode, Nucky meets with Salvatore Maranzano in New York City, while Van Alden and Eli are targeted by Federal agents.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 1.94 million household viewers and gained a 0.8 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
The episode received mostly positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances and directing, although some felt that the pacing didn't help in advancing the storylines.
In September 2014, HBO confirmed that the fifth episode of the season would be titled "King of Norway", and that it would be written by Steve Kornacki, and directed by Ed Bianchi.
The site's consensus states: "With the end of Boardwalk Empire in sight, 'King of Norway' takes great strides in setting up crucial confrontations for its key players with propulsive storytelling and some calculated character beats.
We've essentially gotten five episodes of build so far, though Chalky finding Daughter right there at the end felt like one of the first signs of true story-shock.
Families of all kinds were on display in 'King of Norway,' one of those stellar episodes in which the half-season of setup begins to unfurl, balancing plotlines along a single cunning edge, resurrecting old ghosts, allowing character beats to overlap in ways that mean little to them and everything to us, and building a beautiful dread as it goes.
"[10] Chris O'Hara of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "With friends like that, who needs enemies?
"[11] Tony Sokol of Den of Geek gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "In Boardwalk Empire's 'King of Norway,' Nucky knows where he's going because he knows where the bodies are buried.