This Game of Thrones-style series is based on the fantasy book series by Andrzej Sapkowski, it is a story of fantasy, fate, and family. Geralt of Rivia (Cavill) is a solitary monster hunter who struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts.

Created by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich for Netflix

The Witcher timeline:

Starring:

Henry Cail as Geralt of Rivia, The Witcher

Freya Allan as Ciri

Anya Chalotra as Yennefer

Mimi Ndiweni as Fringilla

Eamon Farren as Cahir

MyAnna Buring as Tissala

Wilson Radjou-Pujalte as Dara

Adam Levy as Mousesack

Lars Mikelson as Stregobor

Summary of episode 2:

1210 Yennefer is sold to Tessaia

1210-1249 Gerald becomes “The Butcher of Blaviken”

1249 Gerald evokes “The Law of Surprise”

1263 Gerald and Ciri meet

Yennefer trains at the magical academy at Aretuza

She manipulates her way to court mage at Aedirn

Her cohort at the academy, Fringilla becomes mage at Nilgard instead

Geralt meet a travel companion nambe Jaskier

Triss Merigold enlists Geralt’s help to kill a dangerous Striga that’s been terrorizing the town - there’s an unexpected connection to King Foltest

Questions: ****Eric: please place questions that you want me to ask to push the program along. The content is so dense and with so many names and things going on i won’t be able to catch up to speed despite efforts to read summaries and rewatch the episodes.

Q1: What do you think of the character of Yennefer? Is she likable ? what about this Harry Potter-esque introduction to our 3rd main character.

Q2: What do we think of the way the show, and story, uses magic? Too confusing or inconsistent? Or just right.

Q3: There are several other characters introduced in this episode. The Bard: Jaskier, Filavandral-Elf King.

Q4: Is Geralt’s story doing a good job of explaining to us who he is, with motivations and personality.

Q5: Do we like Ciri’s story and her on-the-run/refugee narrative.

Q6: Do we like this ep better or worse then the first episode. How do we rank it to the rest of the season.

Witcher timeline

Creatures of The Witcher

*** Notes and Questions for Ep3

Boy is shown with large claw wounds across his chest; a Witcher is shown pursuing a creature (scream); the Witcher is killed upon investigation by Garald - it's a Skreager. Takes the other Witcher’s liver and heart. The creature is a princess, a female - hypothesis. Gerald meets with the king, alone. The king’s sister was murdered. The girl’s father, the princess, “why not kill the creature?” The king won’t say; Orders Gerald to leave his kingdom (what significance does this scene have in the overall story?) Gerald doesn’t leave instead he hunts her. Why does he care? Relationship to Ellie? The king asks, “will my daughter be normal” and “will this work” Who is Gerald interrogating? Tied up?

Q: What did you think about the mystery surrounding the death of the unidentified Witcher?

Q The king’s daughter?

Q: Was the creature (“Striga”?) terrifying enough for you?

Q: there's a lot going on in this sequence, what did the average viewer miss?

***high point of the episode*** The battle with the Striga is epic. The image of the creature - old woman mixed with an ugly horrifying entity. Potion? (parallels with Yennef’s transformation is great visually and narratively Gerald get underground/coffin and the creature is left outside - significance? Gerald is bit by the healed once-monster and appears to pass out. He awakes - woman (??) helps her. Who’s Renfry? Vortex of faith surrounding each and everyone of our choices. Something out there waiting for you, something more - Ciri is pictured next.

Q: As battles with horrifying creatures go how did this rate?

Yennefer prepares for the transition - to beauty. The leader of the mage counsels her. Imagine the most powerful woman in the world. Open your eyes, she’s stunning.

The Chapter (?? ring of leaders, the Mage) of elders? Agree to send Yennefer to the NIlfgard because she’s an elf which the Nilfgard hate.

***high point** Yennefer and ? debate - I want to be powerful; you want to beautiful with everyone watching; get what I’m owed - no amount of power will get you what you want.

There is a sacrifice to be reborn - you will bear no more. Yennefer is transformed in to a beautiful woman after the ceremony.

Q: Is Yennefer’s motivation believable?

Q: What is the deeper meaning behind her transition - its more than wanting to be beautiful?

Q: did you have any issues with the dialogue? Because I did. It was a lot of gibberish that didn’t make sense or was just meant to sound cool.

Eric’s take: This is my favorite episode of the season. It concludes Yennefer’s origin story and also foreshadows the show’s jumbled timeline as well as her advanced age. Her transformation was...interesting, and powerful, but I’m not entirely sure im sold on what it was trying to say or accomplish. Ciri is non-existent in this episode and I like that. Her story isn’t going anywhere and the show needs to set up its more interesting characters.

Which is why this is my favorite episode. Geralt’s preparation and fight with the Striga is the penultimate story of the witcher. He is just looking to pay to get his horse back, and this leads him into a complicated “quest” that ends in him delving head-first into a scandal with King Foltest and his cursed daughter. It does an excellent job of laying out the story and building tension. Really this story could have been an excellent movie on its own. The battle with the Striga is amazing along with the pacing of the story and the conversation between Geralt, Foltest, and becomes the tale that a bard would defenitly sing about.

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