From phrases dripping with emotion to trinkets imbued with deep meaning, there are plenty
of seemingly small things with big implications in the second part of "The Witcher" Season
3.
The world of "The Witcher" features many different groups, all with their own unique history,
cultures, and allegiances, so audiences could be forgiven for sometimes having difficulty
tracking them all.
One of the groups that have risen to prominence in Season 3 is the Scoia'tael Army, a group
of elven fighters led, at least at first, by the warrior Gallatin, played by series
newcomer Robbie Amell.
The Scoia'tael work alongside Francesca Findabair, the queen of the elves, though her obsession
with capturing Ciri puts Francesca at odds with Gallatin.
While this army of skilled warriors officially goes by the name Scoia'tael, viewers might
notice that they are often referred to as squirrels.
The nickname might seem strange at first, but its meaning comes from "The Witcher" novels,
particularly "Blood of Elves."
In the novels, the Scoia'tael are a group of fighters consisting primarily of elves,
with some dwarves and halflings, who aim to ensure freedom and safety in the Northern
Kingdoms for all non-human races.
The word Scoia'tael translates to "squirrel" in Elder Speech, a name they were given for
their tendency to wear squirrel tails on their hats.
The sixth episode of the third season is packed with shocking moments bound to leave fans
gasping.
One such moment takes place after Nilfgaardian troops manage to sneak themselves into Aretuza
and begin attacking the mages who are there for the conclave.
The mages refuse to go down without a fight, though.
Several of them, including Tissaia and Artorius, erect a magical barrier to halt an onslaught
of arrows coming in their direction.
Unfortunately, the move does nothing to slow the arrows, which pierce right through the
magical wall and kill several mages, including Artorius.
Tissaia is quick to note that the arrows were tipped with dimeritium.
In the universe of "The Witcher," that's a unique type of metal known to suppress magical
abilities.
Since the arrowheads are coated with dimeritium, they're able to pass through the magical barrier
with ease, even though that same barrier can stop most other materials.
This scene actually isn't even the first time dimeritium is used in the episode.
Earlier, Sigismund Dijkstra, the Redanian spymaster, uses handcuffs made of dimeritium
to hold Vilgefortz and his followers captive.
Gamers may also recognize the fictional metal from the video game "The Witcher 3," where
the ore is a collectible crafting material used to make special gear.
The wizard Stregobor wasn't exactly a sympathetic character throughout his three-season run
on "The Witcher."
He was greedy, manipulative, and had a deep-seated hatred towards elves and students with elven
blood.
But in his final moments, he willingly sacrifices himself, using the all-consuming fire magic
to help protect the mages of Aretuza by destroying a large force of elven and Nilfgaardian invaders.
His final words to the elven invaders,
"Falka will be waiting for you."
…not only highlight the character's long-standing prejudice towards elves but also hint at the
important role that Falka will play in the final two episodes of the season.
Following the events of the battle, Ciri begins to see a hooded figure who both taunts her
and gives her advice on surviving.
Viewers of "The Witcher: Blood Origin" might immediately recognize the voice as that of
Falka, a revolutionary with elven blood, known for her violent nature.
Stregobor had actually fought during Falka's rebellion and ended up losing both of his
hands, using illusions to make it appear as if he still had them.
The line also ties back to Stregobor's history of obsessing over curses.
Falka was famous for the curse she placed on those that killed her, so it makes sense
that she would be a fixation of Stregobor, who also had a fascination with the famous
curse of the Black Sun.
The seventh episode of the season is unique in that it focuses almost entirely on Ciri,
with only brief glimpses of Geralt of Rivia.
The episode picks up in the aftermath of the Battle of Thanedd, which ended with Ciri destroying
Tor Lara, also known as the Tower of the Gull, and being sent through the portal inside.
Unfortunately for Ciri, the unstable portal teleports her into the sky over an arid stretch
of inhospitable desert.
A student of geography, Ciri notes that Mousesack used to refer to this place as The Frying
Pan.
In the universe of "The Witcher," The Frying Pan is a nickname given to the Korath Desert,
a large sea of arid sand dunes with few living inhabitants.
The Korath Desert is far to the south of The Northern Kingdoms, where the majority of the
story of "The Witcher" takes place.
It also lies to the east of Nilfgaard, the kingdom under the rule of Ciri's father, Emhyr.
While Nilgaard has no control over the neighboring desert, it is still the closest geographically
that Ciri has been to her father's kingdom in all three seasons.
It's no secret that Jaskier is a fan-favorite character, and his interactions with his fellow
leads are among the funniest in the show.
After spending time bonding with Geralt in Season 1 and Yennefer in Season 2, the third
season of "The Witcher" finally gives Jaskier some valuable time with Ciri, building the
relationship between the two.
This leads to several comedic scenes, including a particular standout in the fourth episode.
While Geralt and Yennefer speak alone, Ciri and Jaskier watch from the bushes nearby,
and make up their own dialogue for the conversation.
When Geralt and Yennefer finally kiss, Jaskier jokes,
"Is there a unicorn nearby, by any chance?"
At first, this quip appears to just be Jaskier's sense of humor, but it's actually the show's
clever way of subtly foreshadowing an important character that Ciri meets later in the season.
After being teleported to the Korath Desert, Ciri is alone and forced to survive with only
what she has on her.
Luckily, she happens across a nearby unicorn, whom she nicknames Little Horse.
The two help each other survive, and she even rescues him from a sand monster.
After Little Horse is poisoned, she heals him by tapping into fire magic.
The unicorn becomes afraid of her, and runs away, leaving Ciri alone once again.
During his climactic fight with Vilgefortz, Geralt is grievously injured and near death.
His back is broken by the traitorous mage, leaving him unable to walk.
Luckily, Geralt is brought to Brokilon Forest, the home of the dryads, which viewers may
remember from the show's first season.
While Geralt is brought inside as a friend to the dryads, access to the forest is forbidden
to most outsiders.
This becomes an issue when Jaskier comes to the forest, hoping to see Geralt.
He's denied entry, but the tricky bard has an idea that will help the dryads see that
he's a friend.
He begins to sing a beautiful song in Elder speech that the dryads call "Enchanted Flowers."
Readers of "The Witcher" books might recognize this song by another name, "Elaine Ettariel,"
an elven ballad that appears in "Time of Contempt," the novel that is the basis for Season 3.
The ballad tells the story of an elven heroine named Ettariel, who gives the writer of the
song a beautiful and enchanted flower after they fall deeply in love with her.
In the book, "Elaine Ettariel" translates to "Ettariel the Beautiful," rather than "Enchanted
Flowers."
Players of the first "Witcher" video game may also recognize the song from the remixed
version in the game's fourth chapter.
Geralt may be the only familiar face that Jaskier sees after entering Brokilon Forest,
but viewers will recognize another character: Ciri's elven friend Dara.
After parting ways with Ciri, Dara becomes a spy for Dijkstra and Phillipa Eilhart.
He initially joins Francesca's elves to gain information but then chooses to really support
their cause.
After Scoia'tel decide to side with the White Flame, Dara makes his way to Brokilon forest
with several other refugees, ultimately deciding to stay with the dryads to avoid future violence.
This isn't the first time that Dara has been to Brokilon Forest.
In Season 1, he and Ciri find their way there while on the run from Nilfgaard.
After being shot by one of the dryads, Dara is healed and made to drink the waters of
Brokilon, which will kill anyone with evil intent toward the forest.
For those pure of heart, drinking the waters will help them numb their pain and eventually
forget their troubles.
Dara is happy in Brokilon and wishes to stay, but after Ciri is forced to leave, he follows
her out of Brokilon.
So it makes sense he'd want to return.
In the season's eighth episode, Tissaia, unable to cope with the loss of Aretuza and racked
with guilt, sadly chooses to take her own life.
Not only is Tissaia one of the most important characters to die so far on "The Witcher,"
but her death also has a major impact on Yennefer, who views her teacher and mentor like a mother.
Losing Tissaia is also a major blow to the remaining sorceresses, but it also helps unite
them in a common cause.
Tissaia's death scene fittingly includes several callbacks to the beginning of her relationship
with Yennefer, whom she addresses in her final letter.
She refers to Yennefer as Piglet, a nickname that she used for the young sorceress back
when she was a student at Aretuza, and has rarely used since.
She also writes, referring to one of her early lessons for Yen,
"Sometimes a flower is just a flower, and the best thing it can do for us is die."
She also takes her life by slashing her wrists, the same fate from which she saved Yennefer
years earlier.
It takes some time for Yennefer to visit Geralt in Brokilon Forest after he's injured fighting
Vilgefortz.
Once she does arrive, their scene together is very sweet.
She apologizes for not visiting him earlier and brings the bad news that she wasn't able
to recover Ciri.
Geralt acknowledges that Yennefer must leave to help the remaining sorceresses and that
it is his job to recover Ciri.
At the end of their conversation, Yennefer says,
"Tell me this isn't the last time I'll see you."
This may be a nod to the behind-the-scenes issues rather than fiction.
With several seasons to go, Geralt and Yennefer will undoubtedly see each other again, but
it is the last time Anya Chalotra and Henry Cavill will share the screen as these characters.
When they next meet, Geralt will be played by actor Liam Hemsworth, who is taking up
the mantle of Geralt of Rivia following Henry Cavill's departure from the show.
Henry Cavill's final scene as Geralt is certainly a memorable one.
As he and Jaskier look to sneak past a Nilfgaardian checkpoint, Geralt offers an expensive pendant
as a bribe to a guard.
Jaskier tells him not to give it up, knowing how much it means to him, but Geralt lets
it go anyway.
The Nilfgaardian soldier lets them through, but Geralt turns back after seeing a group
of elves in trouble.
He slays all of the soldiers but one.
While he no longer needs the bribe to get past the checkpoint, he still chooses to leave
the pendant.
That pendant belonged to Renfri, a princess Geralt fell in love with in the series' first
episode.
He eventually had to kill Renfri to save the town, and he never forgave himself for her
death.
He held on to her pendant as a reminder of his feelings, as well as his own perceived
failure to save her.
Giving up the pendant and willfully leaving it behind shows that Geralt has finally moved
on.
It's a perfect link from Henry Cavill's first episode to his last and may be a nod to a
Geralt entering a new chapter of his life.
The phrase "never lost, always found," is one that viewers will hear quite a few times
throughout the third season of "The Witcher."
The in-universe explanation has to do with Ciri's talisman, which Yennefer uses to place
a locator spell that Ciri can deploy to help Geralt find her.
Whenever she is lost, she utters the phrase, and Geralt and Yennefer are drawn to her.
The phrase, of course, is much more than just some magic words to activate the locator spell:
it's more or less the theme of the entire season, and in some ways, the series.
While Ciri spent pretty much the entirety of Season 2 by Geralt's side, Season 3 splits
the two up far more often.
Ciri is regularly separated from Geralt and Yennefer and often has to use the locator
spell to bring them back together.
She also mentions to Yennefer that the only thing she really cares about is that the three
of them stick together.
By the time the season wraps, Ciri has once again been separated from her found family,
taking on a foreboding identity.
"Call me Falka."
But Geralt assures Jaskier that he will find Ciri at any cost, showing the audience that
the theme of "never lost, always found" will continue in the seasons to come.