From shape-shifting gods to lighting-shooting dragons, it wouldn't be "The Witcher" without
some interdimensional monsters. On that count, "Blood Origin" doesn't disappoint.
Played by "Good Will Hunting" star Minnie Driver, Seanchai doesn't give us many clues regarding her
nature. Her first action is to save Jaskier on a battlefield after freezing the soldiers
in time. Seanchai later emerges from the shadows looking like Jaskier himself, only to switch to a
monstrous appearance and finally take the form of an elf to calm the bard. She denies being
a Doppler or a shape-shifter, but she clearly has very similar abilities. At the same time,
Seanchai seems to have some level of control over time and, as Driver said on Twitter, space. The
actress sees her character as a collector of stories, someone who retrieves long-forgotten
tales and brings them back to musicians to share with people when they need them the most.
"The elves need a story lost to time. One of the few who
overcame the many. The story of the seven."
Telling Jaskier the story behind the conjunction of the spheres and the
creation of the first witcher may not seem to have a clear purpose unless we
connect it to the events that take place in Season 2 of "The Witcher." During this time,
several monoliths are used to open portals to other worlds. This frequently leads
to several monsters crossing into the continent and wreaking havoc.
Their arrival is expected to bring even more chaos to this world, after all,
the first conjunction of the spheres leads to the end of elven rule as well as to the creation
of the now-famous monster hunters. With such desperate times waiting for them in the future,
the different inhabitants of the continent may need to remember how this all began in
the first place and learn that they should remain hopeful regardless of the chaos. In that sense,
Jaskier's new song may just become the most powerful weapon at their disposal.
Most monsters in "The Witcher" are based on real folklore. The Doppler, for example,
is a variation of a mythological creature from Finland and Ireland. The djinn, on the other hand,
comes from ancient Middle Eastern folklore. Nevertheless, some creatures have a much simpler
nature. Monsters like the Arachnomorph and the Endrega look like overgrown spiders and scorpions,
and something very similar happens with the giant centipede, a creature that is referred
to in the books. The giant centipede makes an appearance in Season 2 of "The Witcher," although
with drastic changes to its design, and it's a common enemy in "The Witcher III: Wild Hunt."
In "The Witcher: Blood Origin," the heroes encounter their first monster when opening
a portal to approach the city of Xin'Trea. They enter a new world,
not very different from their own, except for its inclusion of a beautiful flower
that ends up being the lure of a giant white centipede, which proceeds to hunt
them. They manage to escape by jumping back to their world and closing the portal while
the creature is still crossing. The Pale Widow is probably one of the few monsters in "Blood
Origin" that's easily identifiable as it's part of the bestiary of "The Witcher III:
Wild Hunt." Despite its relatively simple nature, however, it ends up becoming an important resource
for the heroes, increasing their chances of victory and changing one of them forever.
Probably the most intriguing creature in the mini-series, the monster brought by Balor from
another world is very difficult to classify. It has insect-like legs and wings, can fly,
has the shape of a dragon, and shoots lightning capable of turning people into mist from its three
arrowhead-shaped tails. It's this ability that allows Balor to execute the king and the heads
of most warrior clans almost instantly, paving the way for his allies to take over the empire.
"In that moment, the elven world had changed forever. A
thousand years of monarchies, kingdoms, and clans were erased."
As a result, both the empress and her soldiers adopt the three arrowhead-shaped tails as their
coat of arms and wear the symbol on their armor. However, the confidence in their
capacity to control anything on the other side of the portals proves to be their greatest weakness.
Balor's monster eventually falls and becomes the first creature slain by a witcher. But
having tasted the power of chaos magic, Balor sacrifices Fenrik, the only person he cares about,
to acquire an immense amount of power. When he returns to the palace, though,
he tests his new abilities on Syndril and Zacaré, who use their power to redirect the energy to
the monolith, destroying it in the process. Tragically, rather than solve their problems,
this causes multiple portals to open, an event known in the books as the Conjunction of the
Spheres, leading to the arrival of both humans and monsters to the continent. This is the end of the
empress' delusions of conquering other worlds and, eventually, the destruction of elven civilization.
The process of creating a witcher is complex and intensely painful. Prospects go through a series
of chemical treatments that leave them infertile and relatively emotionless. On the plus side,
the process also grants them enhanced sight, resistance to poisons and illnesses,
increased agility and strength, and the ability to wield a small but useful amount of magic.
Some of these changes may seem random, but one of the things "Blood Origin" makes clear
is how necessary some of these features are when creating the perfect monster slayer.
Finding themselves close to the empress' castle, but with no way in, Fjall turns
to a dangerous ritual that uses potions and spells to fuse his body with a slain monster.
The painful process almost kills him, but also gives him enormous strength, as well as a high
level of aggressiveness and a deep desire to hunt. When he's finally brought to the castle,
he loses control after seeing Éile being hurt by Balor's creature. This puts him in a sort of
berserker state where his skin turns gray and his muscle mass
grows to monstrous levels. He uses this strength to slay the creature,
but he loses control of his emotions and ends up attacking his friends who are forced to kill him.