The first five chapters of the third season of Netflix's The Witcher do not hide a fundamental shift in the series. It is a farewell, the end of an era in the mythology of the production. Therefore, every word and action, even the frequent travels of Geralt of Rivia—portrayed for the last time by Henry Cavill—, have a symbolic meaning. The monster hunter who began his journey as a hostile adventurer must now face the responsibility of Ciri (Freya Allan).
Something that complicates various scenarios—both magical and human—and turns the princess into a point of tension within an increasingly confusing panorama. As will be remembered, the appearance of Voleth Meir, the Immortal Mother, led to a shakeup in the political foundations of the Continent. It not only forced Francesca of the elves (Mecia Simson) to make a decision that twisted the intention of a possible resurgence of her race. It also caused Fringilla of Nilfgaard (Mimi Ndiwen) and Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra) to make decisions out of desperation.
Ciri's enigmatic fate becomes more violent than ever in the new chapters of The Witcher. Especially when the White Flame of Nilfgaard is actually her father Dunny (Bart Edwards), which makes the young woman the center of future intrigues. Geralt has only one path: to protect the princess even at the cost of his life. To fight against all kinds of enemies—in the third season there are dozens and they are better represented than in previous ones—and to understand a complex idea. That each step of his life has led him to the journey that now makes him the line that separates Ciri from death.
The first episodes of the third season of The Witcher, on Netflix, focus on tying up loose ends from the previous one. From the origin of Ciri's (Freya Allan) power to the way the political map of the Continent has changed. The result focuses on the relationship of Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) with his spiritual daughter and his new purpose of protecting her. The series improves its pacing, with a tone closer to the book from which part of its argument comes. This gives greater substance and order to the narrative. With a much more elaborate technical section, it substantially improves its story and identity. The Witcher stops being a generic series and starts to have more personality.
A Difficult Hero to Understand
This fact changes the way Geralt had perceived himself until now. Far from his central purpose as a mercenary and closer to a paternal figure, his decisions have a new purpose. To give the young woman the opportunity to nourish, cultivate and strengthen her budding gifts and prepare her for a future goal. Ciri, who has so far trained with witches, needs different guidance. Now a long journey begins that will allow her to understand the man who accompanies her—a complete enigma for her—and the strange story that binds them.
Geralt of Rivia in the third season of The Witcher
As it seems, The Witcher is set to order the pieces for a major event. Henry Cavill's portrayal has never been more vivid and introspective. Beyond the poor dialogues of the first seasons, the third provides the character with more space and allows him to grow. Not only because of the display of his powers—there are many more action scenes better elaborated—but also because of his political intuition. The witcher, presented as a twilight figure halfway between a mercenary and a sage, now shows his dimension.
Emotional father of Ciri and aware of the pursuit of all those who wish to kill her, Geralt must understand that his commitment to the law of surprise goes beyond ancient magic. It is also a sentence of the place to which the enigmas of his life lead him, in which everything is about to change forever.
The Witcher Returns to the Origin
In fact, one of the most singular points of the third season of The Witcher is the evident change in its way of narrating the story. Which, at times, gives the sensation that the series subtly ignores everything that has happened previously. Not because it lacks importance, but because it must traverse a path that will lead it to points different from the previous installments. The production had been heavily criticized for its lack of objective, for jumping from one adventure to another without much coherence. On this occasion, it resumes the central story and adds an element that is already present in the books: the sense of predestination and the perception of the inevitable.
An element of great interest in an enormously complicated universe. The great conflict that will be narrated in the third season of The Witcher has a direct relationship with fate. From the intention of the elves to reclaim their place in the world, to the reconfiguration of power on the Continent. Everything goes through the conception of an evolution that focuses on the possibility of its central characters to find a home.
A Series that Shows its Maturity
This may seem simple, until it is linked to the concept of security, faith, and love that writer Andrzej Sapkowski incorporates into his world. On the Continent, everything is related to the inner landscapes. With fear, hope, or the absence of both. Therefore, in the third season of The Witcher, the idea of chaos magic and its relationship with emotions is more present than ever.
Whether with Ciri showing her power or with a Geralt more aware that he must teach before he kills. Even in the concentrated and neat expression of knowledge of a much more mature Yennefer. The Witcher improves in pacing, in its elaborate conception about the passage of time and in the struggle for an ideal.
Ciri and Geralt must finally face the dilemma of traversing the conflict-ridden territories. To fight against enemies who stalk them in all places and in dozens of different ways. Geralt, more imposing, but at the same time more human than at any other time in the story, shows dimensions of his spiritual world. The witcher is not the same man who lost his horse or who murdered one of his friends. The change comes from an invisible space in his spirit, related to the young woman who is now an integral element of his journey to the end.
The Witcher's Last Mission
Much of the third season explores an element that directly connects it with the book Blood of Elves. Which substantially improves the sense of order and narrative coherence. At the same time, it gives greater meaning to the decisions of its characters, after two installments that tended to a certain disorder.
Geralt must put Ciri in the hands of Yennefer for her training. The princess has ancient blood, which makes her the incarnation of a prophecy destined to be fulfilled. After the murder of Francesca's Redanian children, the entire Continent burns in the announced war. The young woman could be—or not—the answer to the search by various factions for an element that unifies them.
Hints of a Farewell
Immediately, a series of events are triggered. The sorceress of Vengerberg, desolate and empty, will find in Ciri a way to console her torments. Although it will stir up her doubts about the future. Where should Yennefer's loyalty remain? With the sorceresses? With the center of power on the Continent? In the love she feels for Geralt?
Summary
I was an intern at the editorial office. When I saw their ad for a freelancer, I decided to come back. I'm a fan of series and movies, I spend my weekends at the cinema and my nights in front of Netflix
