The Witcher Season 3 Volume 1 Ending Explained: Who Was Really The Dark Wizard?
The Witcher is one of the best biggest on Netflix, today The Witcher Season 3 Volume 1 aired on Netflix. As it adapts to the popular novels by Andrzej Sapkowski, which became even better known with the video game version. The series starring Henry Cavill has now returned with season 3. However, only a few episodes have been released, so the end of volume 1 has left the audience on the edge of their seat. From the start of the show, the narrative technique used by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich and the rest of the writing team can be confusing (especially for those unfamiliar with the original story), as they mix up different timelines and character arcs. This installment was based on the latest events of “Blood of Elves” (“Blood of Elves” in Spanish) and the beginning of “Time of Contempt” (“Time of contempt”), although the television adaptation has taken certain licenses in the course of events.
The Witcher Season 3 Volume 1: Summary Recap
Winds of war are blowing on the Continent: the shadow of the emperor of Nilfgaard, the White Flame Emhyr var Emreis, hangs over the weak kingdoms of the North, while the militias of the Scoia’tael continue to conduct their relentless raids after the death of the son of the elf Francesca Findabair. Meanwhile, at the court of Redania, the master of spies Dijkstra and the sorceress Philippa plot to get their hands on the young Ciri, heir to the throne of Cintra, and marry her to the inept king Demawend. The two cunning conspirators, however, are not the only ones on the trail of the young protégé of the witcher Geralt of Rivia: hordes of assassins and mercenaries hired by the mad fire wizard Rience hunt her across the continent, and also the elves of Francesca hope to capture her and bring her to their side to fulfill the arcane prophecies related to the Old Blood.
A mystical legacy which, as if that weren’t enough, has also attracted the attention of the supernatural Wild Hunt, always ready to pounce on the girl. To protect her from all these enemies, Geralt and Yennefer find themselves forced to put aside the quarrels and wander relentlessly, to the ruins of the ancient city of Shaerrawedd: here the three will ambush Rience, in an attempt to thwart his threat once and for all. But who is the mysterious instigator who hired the sinister fire wizard? To discover his identity, our heroes will have to head to the island of Thanedd, where the magical academy of Aretuza di Tissaia de Vries is located. Once they arrive at the Torre delle Swallows, Yennefer hopes to make Ciri take the path of magical arts to keep her safe, but the young woman does not have at all the same opinions. Meanwhile, retracing the footsteps of Rience, Geralt will come across an increasingly dense network of conspiracies…
The Witcher Season 3 Volume 1 Ending Explained: Who Was Really The Dark Wizard?
On June 29, 2023, the first 5 episodes of season 3 premiered on Netflix, starting with the chapter titled “Shaerrawedd”. Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri left Kaer Morhen so as not to put the rest of The Witchers at risk now that all the kings of the continent were looking for the princess of Cintra. Therefore, they must live in hiding for a long time, while the skilled magician tries to teach Ciri to control the great power that she has inside. The trio must move from one side to the other, going from the coast to the snowy mountains. Meanwhile, the bond between them grows stronger. However, the enemies eventually find them when Rience uses Ciri’s blood for a beast to track her down. At that moment, Geralt decides that the best strategy is the offense, since Rience will never leave them alone, so he decides to set a trap for her.
The showdown turns out to be bigger than they bargained for when Francesca and Filavandrel’s elves seek to capture Ciri, after being informed by Istred that she was the Old Blood and the way to find a home for her people. Rience tries to escape, but Geralt follows him through a strange portal to a mysterious castle near a mine. It is then that they realize that the magician who wields the fire is being protected by someone much more powerful. Ciri and Yennefer must go their own way, to the Aratuza academy, where Tissaia can help them learn to control their powers. Meanwhile, Geralt sets off on his journey to unmask the dark wizard. It doesn’t take long for their paths to cross again, as The Witcher visits the mysterious castle and discovers an experiment carried out on the bodies of some women. Also, he finds a young woman who is under some kind of mind control and thinks that she is Ciri. However, she reveals that she had previously been captured from her room at the magic school, so Geralt realizes that Aratuza is not safe and rushes to the rescue of the princess of Cintra.
What Was the True Goal of the Wizard Conclave?
Although Yennefer put on a great performance in front of the Brotherhood, to convince them to spare her and call a conclave to unite the northern kingdoms, she had an ulterior motive. He needed Aretuza to be a safe place for Ciri and with the dark magician running free at the academy, he would not be able to continue his studies to control his powers. Although Episode 5 was a bit confusing due to the narrative structure they used, they were hoping that the ball would be their chance to find the wizard who was hunting them and unmask him in front of everyone.
Why Does it Make Sense that Vilgefortz is the Dark Wizard?
From the first season of “The Witcher”, it was clear that Vilgefortz was hiding something and that he was a traitor. Let’s remember that during the battle of Sodden against Nilfgaard when he woke up, he killed one of the wizards of the North, the side he was supposed to be fighting for. Since then, she has been under the magnifying glass of the audience but managed to stay away from suspicion until Aretuza’s young apprentices start to disappear and the false Ciri indicates that it was “a man and a woman with a strange voice” who kidnapped her. Giving Stregobor responsibility for these experiments on the half-elf girls was too obvious and the perfect plan so that no one would catch Vilgefortz. Fortunately, Geralt and Yennefer begin to connect the clues Philippa gave them, most notably the fact that she indicated that Lydia had been consumed by poison and that Tissaia was heading the same route.
Which Side Will Dijkstra Be On?
Once Geralt and Yennefer find out that Stregobor is not the culprit and that they must stop Vilgefortz, a showdown has already started on Thanned Island, where the guests of the conclave were resting. Henry Cavill’s character runs into Dijkstra, who threatens him with a gun and tells him that he ” should have chosen a side. “Originally, in “Time of Comptent”, Dijkstra and Phillipa had planned a coup, having ambushed several wizards including Vilgefortz. However, considering that there have been several differences between the book and the series, they may not follow the same path and what is about to happen should be revealed in Volume II of this installment. However, the King of Redania’s advisor might be on Geralt’s side, only to fight Nilfgaard’s allies. Dijkstra has always been against creating alliances with Nilfgaard because he knows that they can betray him. Furthermore, he and Philippa seek to secure their power as the ones who run Redania in the shadows. Considering the messenger he sent, to prepare the warships, was killed (and whose fate Ciri anticipated), the advisor will need allies now more than ever.
Will Geralt be hit by Dijkstra’s knife?
The discovery that Vilgefortz was a traitor had consequences for Geralt. He and Yennefer learned that Vilgefortz was behind the recent kidnappings. It fell to Dijkstra to seek out Geralt for a reckoning. In the final moments of the last episode of the first part of the season, Dijkstra puts a knife to Geralt’s throat. Dijkstra and Philippa, leaders of Redanian Intelligence, were at that revealing ball and responsible for unveiling what Geralt and Yennefer so wanted to know. They wanted to know who the traitor among the members of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers was and, until then, they believed it was Stregobor.
Dijkstra’s reaction is symbolic, as Geralt and Yennefer are supposedly attacking a Brotherhood ally. The battle that started in Aretuza demonstrates the inability of Redanian Intelligence leaders to observe who is betraying the allies. The answer about whereabouts of the knife will be answered in the continuation of the third season of The Witcher, being a very important hook for the next part.
Why Did Dijkstra Put the Knife to Geralt’s Throat?
Geralt’s neutrality is directly tested when Dijkstra takes the step of putting the knife to his throat. Geralt always wanted to use the wall strategy as a way to solve his dilemmas. Therefore, Dijkstra’s attitude demonstrates a direct reaction to what Geralt has been doing. Dijkstra began to see Geralt with different eyes when he decided to stay neutral in the fight for Redania. Even though he claims not to be on the side of Nilfgaard, Geralt’s neutrality is seen as indirectly supporting the other faction. Therefore, Dijkstra’s knife represents that Geralt must take a stand or he will lose his life.
What Will Be Geralt’s Fate?
The answer to this question is not in the series but in the books. Geralt must not be hit by Dijkstra’s knife. On the other hand, Geralt will lose his sight through the spell of a mage who will be in the place. This way, Dijkstra and Philippa will be able to seize the opportunity to imprison him. When Geralt regains his sight, he realizes that Dijkstra and Philippa are plotting for Ciri to be kidnapped and become an important political figure in the court of King Vizimir II. Geralt will escape finding Ciri and have the long-awaited meeting with Vilgefortz. All of this with an important detail: in the middle of the wizards’ civil war and with Geralt running away from Dijkstra’s allies at all times.
