The Witcher is getting ready for its big summer premier of Season 3. There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the new season, from Henry Cavill leaving the show to rumors and claims about the writer's room dislike of the source material. Yet, despite all that, the show seems to be gearing up to finally start the main conflict of the show. From the Scoia'tael to the escalation between the North and Nilfgard, it all begins with the Thanedd Coup, an event that Season 3 will be bringing to the screen.
Season 1 of The Witcher was fairly dedicated to the books and explored many of the stories from The Last Wish and The Sword of Destiny. These short stories helped set the stage for the story of Geralt and Ciri and introduced newcomers to the world of the Continent. The second season went almost completely off book, which upset a lot of fans. The Witcher Season 3 is promises to be a one-to-one adaptation of the books, which means that the Thanedd Coup will show the devastation of the mages and the beginning of Geralt's true story in the show.
The Witcher's Thanedd Coup Will Create War
Thanedd Island is a part of the Sorceress Academy of Aretuza, and it is during a conclave of sorceresses and mages that death strikes from the shadows. In the books, The Emperor of Nilfgard is furious after the losses he suffered at Sodden Hill against the Northern mages. He employs a secret agent within the inner circle of the mages to weaken them and draw them all into a trap. The agent tricks everyone into coming to Thanedd for a banquet and that is where the trap is set. At this meeting there was a mixture of Northern and Nilfgardian supporters.
Unknown to the Northern supporters, the Scoia'tael and Elven warriors were ready to ambush the Northerners and Geralt. When the Northerners attempted to arrest the Nilfgardian supporters, Francesca Findabair and her Scoia'tael launched their attacks while the Nilfgardian mages dropped the magical defenses of the tower and began their own attack. This Coup caused all confidence to be lost in Mages. They were no longer trusted in royal courts, and they were hunted in many kingdoms. The power shifted in the Continent and Nilfgard's hunt for Ciri became more important and more intense.
Geralt of Rivia Is in More Danger After the Thanedd Coup
Nilfgard wants Ciri, and they took Cintra in order to try and get at her. Geralt is the only person standing in the way of Nilfgard and Ciri. While he has the help of a few mages, he is ultimately her lone protector. Now that Nilfgard has broken the mages, their power grows stronger. The Elves are working for them, some mages, which allows them to spread their power and influence even farther. The main conflict of the show takes place between the mage that betrayed all other mages and the hunt for Ciri. Without the Thanedd Coup, Nilfgard wouldn't have been able to gain the upper hand in the Northern War.
The Thanedd Coup is one of the most pivotal events in the entire Witcher saga. It kicks off the creation of many alliances, and events that lead Geralt and Ciri down their paths. With Season 3 finally bringing this huge moment to the screen, it's entirely possible that the show is getting back on track. Yet, the opinion of many fans is that it may be too little to late as some consider The Witcher Season 3 to be the last without Cavill in the lead role.
The Witcher Season 3 Part 1 airs on June 29, 2023 on Netflix.
Magic is a core element of The Witcher franchise, and when it was revealed in Season 2 of the Netflix series that Yennefer lost her power during the Battle of Sodden Hill, it was a devastating blow as fans wondered if she'd lost her magic forever. For a sorceress like Yennefer of Vengerberg, magic empowered her in ways she couldn't have imagined before Tissaia de Vries brought her to Aretuza. Her magic was chaotic, however, fueled by an overwhelming amount of emotion that Tissaia encouraged her to set aside. When she finally came into her power, Yennefer was nigh unstoppable.
She took the world by storm for centuries, taking whatever she wanted and making it her own, but in time she realized that wasn't enough. In order to achieve the power she craved, she made great sacrifices, including her womb and fertility. At the time, she didn't care about the cost, but as she moved through the epic life she designed for herself, she realized something important was still missing. Yennefer had never known real, unconditional love, and more than anything, she wanted a child. She wanted someone to love her with no strings attached. Destiny doesn't always answer in the way one might expect, but it had plans to give her a daughter that she nearly sacrificed to regain her lost power.
A key figure in the disastrous Battle at Sodden Hill, Yennefer's frustration and emotion grew as she watched her friends and colleagues suffer at the hands of Nilfgaardian forces led by former Aretuza alum and sorceress Fringilla Vigo. When it seemed all would be lost and their efforts would fail, Tissaia rescinded her advice to set her emotions aside and told Yennefer to give in to Chaos. Allowing Chaos to pour through her, she channeled one of the most forbidden elements of magic: fire.
In the end, fire magic may have won the Battle of Sodden of Hill for the Sorcerers, but Yennefer paid a heavy toll for giving in to Chaos. As fans discovered at the beginning of Season 2, Yennefer was not only captured by Fringilla, but she lost her magic as well. Because she believed magic was the only thing she could truly count on in life, she would go to disastrous lengths to get it back -- even making a deal with a dark entity to sacrifice a young girl.
When Fringilla's party was captured by elves, they were brought before elven sorceress Francesca Findabair. Together, the three sorceresses encountered a powerful demon known as Voleth Meir, the Deathless Mother, who presented herself differently to each woman. In exchange for their heart's desire, they would each have to do her bidding. The deal she struck with Yennefer promised the return of her power if she captured Ciri and delivered her to a black door outside Cintra. In the past, Yennefer had rarely thought about the consequences of her actions, so long as they served her desires, but her affection for Geralt and Ciri made her waver. Even if it meant never regaining her power, she changed her mind and stopped Ciri before she got too close to the door, but not without potentially damaging her relationship with Geralt forever.
When the party returned to Kaer Morhen, Yennefer followed, and it was a good thing she did. Ciri was possessed by Voleth Meir, and the demon went on a rampage that killed several witchers. Yennefer did everything she could to help during the fight, but without her magic, she felt useless. She offered her body to Voleth Meir to free Ciri, and after traveling through a portal to the demon's home, they released it. Voleth Meir joined the Wild Hunt, and upon returning to Kaer Morhen, Yennefer discovered her power had returned.
Does Yennefer Lose Her Powers In the Books?
Andrez Sapkowski's Witcher books tell a much different tale than the Netflix adaptation when it comes to Yennefer. During the Battle of Sodden Hill, she didn't lose her magic but was instead blinded by Fringilla Vigo. Her vision was restored later, but she suffered nightmares and anxiety about the incident for the rest of her days. Yennefer also didn't happen upon Geralt and Ciri by coincidence at the Temple of Melitele in the books but instead was (begrudgingly) invited by him to help Ciri learn to control her abilities after Triss Merigold's efforts at Kaer Morhen failed. Voleth Meir did not even appear in the books, but Yennefer would go on to prove herself to both Geralt and Ciri before all was said and done, becoming a mother figure to the girl and finally recognizing her destiny.
What Happens to Yennefer's Powers In the Game?
In CD Projekt Red's trilogy of Witcher games, Yennefer almost seems like an afterthought until the third game: The Wild Hunt. She is occasionally mentioned, but for most of the first two games, Geralt suffers from memory loss. In the second game, Assassins of Kings, there are brief vignettes of memory when he remembers the pair of them running with the Wild Hunt, but they aren't actually reunited until The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt. During the game, Yennefer's powers are at their peak, and there is no mention of her having lost them at all, which makes perfect sense considering the game was released more than three years before the Netflix series.
The Witcher Season 3 debuts Part 1 on Netflix on June 29, with the rest of the season debuting on July 27.
The first teaser for The Witcher season 3 has been released, but the response to it might not be good news for the already announced season 4. The universe of The Witcher continues expanding over at Netflix, and after the failure of the prequel series The Witcher: Blood Origin, this universe is going back to its main series with its highly-awaited third season. The Witcher season 3 will introduce new and exciting characters and will hopefully answer the biggest questions left by season 2, but most importantly, it will be Henry Cavill’s final season as Geralt of Rivia, the title witcher.
After coming across a bunch of obstacles, The Witcher season 2 finally brought together Geralt, Ciri (Freya Allan), and Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) in its final episode, but as Ciri is now being hunted by half the Continent, they will have to stick together in season 3 in order to be safe. In addition to that, The Witcher season 2 revealed that The White Flame is Ciri’s supposedly dead father, so there’s a lot season 3 and season 4 have to cover, but after the reaction to the trailer, this season might be The Witcher’s last.
The Witcher Season 3's Trailer Response Highlights A Season 4 Problem
The first trailer for The Witcher season 3 doesn’t reveal much in terms of its plot but it does give the audience a good taste of the action and drama they can expect this season, as well as a look at old and new characters, most notably the Wild Hunt.
The big reveals made at the end of The Witcher season 2 add to the anticipation for season 3, but also the fact that this will be the last time the audience will see Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, and that could end up dictating the future of the series. The most common reactions to the trailer were all about season 3 being Cavill’s last, with many viewers stating they will stop watching the series when Cavill leaves, even though a fourth season is already confirmed and Cavill’s replacement has already been announced.
Liam Hemsworth has been cast as the new Geralt of Rivia, and reactions to this were mostly negative. The feeling continued now that the trailer for The Witcher season 3 is out, which isn’t good news for season 4 as the series is risking a big drop in popularity.
In addition to Cavill leaving after season 3, season 2 was heavily criticized for making too many changes to the source material and for how certain storylines were handled, particularly that of Yennefer,
so The Witcher doesn’t have the same popularity and success as it did with its first season, and Cavill’s departure and the response to season 3’s trailer are only bringing more trouble for season 4.
Why The Witcher Season 3 Might Be The Show's Final Season
Unfortunately, The Witcher season 4 already has too many things against it, which could lead to season 3 being the series’ last. As mentioned above, the many changes to the source material in season 2 drew a lot of criticism, the prequel series Blood Origin failed to expand this universe in an exciting way, leaving even more questions, and Cavill’s departure after season 3 has led to a lack of interest in season 4, no matter what season 3 sets up. It wouldn’t be surprising, then, if Netflix decides to cancel season 4 and The Witcher ends with season 3, so the series would have started and ended with Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, thus not having to deal with a drop in viewership and popularity that would only hurt the legacy of The Witcher.
