TV Review: "The Witcher" (Season 3, Volume 2)

The conclusion of the third season of Netflix's series shows the power of staying true to the source material.

Well, we’ve now  reached a pivotal point in the history of Netflix’s The Witcher. With the release of the final three episodes of the third season, we must now bid farewell to Henry Cavill as Geralt and brace ourselves for the introduction of Liam Hemsworth in the role. I don’t know whether Hemsworth will be up to the task, or whether the show’s remaining fans will be willing to go along for the ride, but I will say that I’m glad to see the show returning to its roots with this season, rather than wandering too far afield as was the case in the previous one. 

One of the things that I’ve enjoyed most about this season is the extent to which it has focused on Ciri’s growth as a character. Freya Allen has shown from the very first that she has the chops to play this vital character, and now we get to see her truly come into her own, whether it’s facing down magical opponents in Aretuza and Ban Ard or wandering through a desert or overcoming nefarious captors determined to take her to Nilfgaard. Time and again, she has proven to be remarkably resilient, but it seems as if this season might at last mark the moment when she comes closest to breaking, and I was particularly struck by the final shot of the season, which shows her gazing into the distance as the Rats pressure her to tell them her name. At last, with a sinister, glowing look in her eyes, she tells them to call her Falka. It seems that her suffering and the loss of everything she thought she could depend upon has finally sent her plunging over the edge. From now on, she’ll become something far more dangerous than anyone could have expected, and the powerful emotion on Allen’s face is enough to send a glorious shiver of pleasure up your spine.

On the other hand, I will say that it’s a bit disappointing to see Geralt rendered into little more than an afterthought after the coup that topples the mages. It makes sense that he would have to have a confrontation with Vilgefortz, of course, but it would have been nice if these last few episodes could have given him more to do than lie in bed and wait for his wounds to heal, particularly given that these are going to be the last times that we see Cavill in the role. That being said, Cavill does the most he can with the limited material he’s been given, and it’s always a pleasure to see him spar and flirt with Jaskier. His final scene is also a fitting farewell to Geralt, as he engages in a brutal battle with some corrupt and exploitative soldiers from Nilfgaard, before sending a survivor to tell Emhyr that he’s coming for him. Yennefer likewise gets a bit short shrift in this back half of the season, though she does show some remarkable leadership potential after the fall of Aretuza and the collapse of Ban Ard. I do hope they give her more to do in the fourth season, however. 

Of all of the characters, I’ve always felt particularly drawn to Tissaia de Vries. From the moment that she appeared to drag Yennefer out of her life of degradation and into the mystical company of the sorceresses of Aretuza, she has been a constant presence in the series. As portrayed by MyAnna Buring, she has always been a haughty and icy presence, even as it has also been clear how much she cherishes the young sorceresses in her charge. Vilgefortz’s betrayal, however, is the thing that finally proves to be her undoing, and while she does much to defend Aretuza from the onslaught of the Scoia’tael, she ultimately decides that, as she once told her young acolyte, the best thing that a flower can do is to die. It’s a wrenching and beautifully-wrought scene, and it’s one that will clearly continue to have a tremendous impact on Yennefer as she tries to rebuild the shattered and scattered forces of the North. The death of Tissaia is one of those watershed moments in the series, and she will be dearly missed.

Unlike season two, which took some rather remarkable (and sometimes inexplicable) liberties with the original novels, season three has been something of a course-correction, bringing the action back in line with the source material. There are some changes, of course, but for the most part the big moves that take place in the later novels are here, including the assault on Aretuza and Ban Ard, the false Ciri ensconced beside Emhyr, and the duplicity and betrayal of Vilgefortz. It was also a delight to see Sigismund Dijkstra again, played perfectly by my beloved Graham McTavish. He manages to capture the dual parts of Dijkstra’s personality, both his ruthless cunning and his vulnerability, and it’s yet another testament to McTavish’s great talent as an actor (and to his commitment to the fantasy genre. I swear there isn’t a single major fantasy franchise he hasn’t been a part of over the last decade). There are quite a few moving pieces in this season, but the show handles most of them with aplomb. This is fantasy television as it should be done, and it’s a reminder of how The Witcher has the bones of a truly great show, if the creators just manage to have a bit more faith in the source material and less in their own supposed genius. 

Going forward, the creative forces behind The Witcher have some important choices to make. If they have any hope of maintaining the loyalty of those who have long enjoyed both the novels and the games, they’re going to have to make more of a commitment to staying true to the story rather than thinking that adding in subpar fantasy plots–see also: the whole plot about Voleth Meir in the second season–is in any way an improvement. What’s more, they’re going to have to do a lot of work to make Hemsworth believable as Geralt, considering how much of an indelible mark Cavill has left, it’s going to be a heavy lift. However, given how much credit they’ve gained with me this season, I’m happy to give them a chance.