Ep. 9 — "The Bounds of Reason" with Anita and Karolina of Witcher Kitchen (Part 2)
Anita & Karolina of Witcher Kitchen join Alyssa from GoodMorhen to discuss the second part of the first short story from Andrzej Sapkowski’s Sword of Destiny, “The Bounds of Reason.” Very important bits include: the at-odd feelings of love and longing that complicate the relationship between Geralt and Yennefer, Torrent tricks with a jobless golden dragon, and a second unexpected dissertation: this time on Polish swearing.
This episode is available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher.
In this episode
[00:00] Cold Open
[00:00] Introduction
[00:00] Discussion
[00:00] “Tidings from Toussaint”
[00:00] Discussion
[00:00] Outro & Credits
Relevant Links
Transcript
Cold Open
ALYSSA: Inclining its head, the dragon spread its wings, dazzingly—dazzingly—oh, my god—dazzlingly.
ANITA: Dazzlingly!
Introduction
[Breakfast in Beauclair theme music by MojoFilter Media]
ALYSSA: Welcome to Breakfast in Beauclair, a global Witcher Podcast. My name is Alyssa from GoodMorhen, and I’ll be your host as you, I, and our international hanza accompany Geralt of Rivia and his destiny, Cirilla of Cintra, across The Continent.
[10,000 Downloads!]
Last Tuesday, November 25th, Breakfast in Beauclair, crossed 10,000 downloads! After 8 episodes. In under 4 months. Wild.
I want to extend a thank you to our past guests: Chris, Charlotte of Vengerberg Glamarye, Cyprian, Oleg, Jess, Crisanto, and Anita & Karolina of Witcher Kitchen as well as all of our future guests. Thank you to Lars from Witcherflix for being a rockstar correspondent. A huge thank you to each patron on Patreon and every member of our international hanza—including you! Thank you for reviewing and supporting the show; thank you for sharing it with your friends and family; thank you for sharing your stories and passion with me. This project has been more than I could have imagined.
To commemorate this milestone, I want to spotlight some of the other Creators of the Continent. Along with Witcherflix, Vengerberg Glamarye, and Witcher Kitchen, who you all know and love, I want to introduce you to Brett from the Whispers of Oxenfurt podcast; Sofia, Lorena, and Ana of the Escuela de la Golondrina podcast; and Alejandro of Academia de Oxenfurt and Mahakam Workshop.
[About Whispers of Oxenfurt]
[About Escuela de la Golondrina]
[About Academia de Oxenfurt & Mahakam Workshop]
[Episode Discussions in r/thehanza]
As I’ve been meeting more of you and getting to know each of you personally, it’s become clear to me that a lot of you are interested in getting involved in the community and you’re looking for the opportunity to talk to other people about the Witcher and the podcast. One of my dreams for the show is to create an engaged, international company of friends.
So! Let’s start a conversation! Beginning with Episodes 8 and 9, which cover “The Bounds of Reason” there will be an open discussion on our subreddit, r/thehanza, for each episode. Head over to r/thehanza after listening and jump in with your thoughts, reactions to the episode, or bring up new themes and ideas that we didn’t cover—the floor is yours! I’m looking forward to bringing our community together in this new way.
[Patron Announcements]
Speaking of community—I’m excited to introduce Will P. and Brandon, two members of our international hanza, who have become our newest patrons on Patreon as producer-level patrons!
Shout out to the very first patron of Breakfast in Beauclair, Jamison, who upgraded his pledge to join our producer-level patrons: Luis of Kovir, The Owner of The Churlish Porpoise, Coolguyhenry, Arix the Godling, Katie (The Redhead of Toussaint), Jacob, Mahakam Elder Joe, Julie, and Sylvia of Skellige.
As Producer-level patrons, they receive an introduction shoutout, a spot on the website, monthly bonus content, stickers, a tee-shirt, an exclusive Producer gift, and producer credits in each and every episode.
If you’d like to explore becoming a patron of the show, head over to patreon.com/breakfastinbeauclair.
[Episode Details]
As for this episode, we’re joined by our Polish friends, Anita and Karolina of Witcher Kitchen, to discuss the first short story from Andrzej Sapkowski’s Sword of Destiny, “The Bounds of Reason.” Together, we’ll explore themes such as the at-odd feelings of love and longing that complicate the relationship between Geralt and Yennefer; Torrent tricks with a jobless golden dragon; and a second unexpected dissertation: this time on Polish swearing.
During the mid-episode break, Lars from Witcherflix returns with his biggest segment yet, recapping interviews with the cast and crew and analyzing the titles of the upcoming Netflix episodes.
Without further ado, let’s get to this episode’s short story, “The Bounds of Reason.”
Discussion
[Breakfast in Beauclair stinger by MojoFilter Media]
ALYSSA: Hey, everyone, welcome back from the break. I'm here with Anita and Karolina of Witcher Kitchen discussing “The Bounds of Reason” from Andrzej Sapkowski’s Sword of Destiny. When we left off, Geralt had joined the hunting party stalking a dragon near Barefield. Amongst the party are Dandelion, his former love, Yennefer, another sorcerer, dragon hunters knights, and a mysterious man named Borch and his Zerrikanian escort. In Part VI, the entire hunting party marches toward the Kestrel mountains. While crossing a bridge in the wilderness, a landslide scatters the party, endangering the witcher and sorceress who are saved at the last second. You know, as we've talked about in the last part, we see a lot of the animosity toward Geralt and Yennefer from other members of the hunting party here.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: For example, Gyllenstiern, who's like the lord who's beneath King Niedamir, he basically speaks for Niedamir on more occasions than not. He and Geralt start talking as they’re on the road. And he basically tells Geralt, you know, “Why are you even here? What are witchers doing? When I was younger witchers didn't have two pennies to rub together. And they did whatever they were asked. Now, witchers have moral scruples. And it's absolutely ridiculous.” It’s the brunt of what Gyllenstiern says to him, which, you know, obviously upsets the Witcher. And then the Witcher doesn't get a break, because Dorregaray sides up behind him. And he starts spouting druidic theories to Geralt about, like, the world’s in equilibrium. Everything's as it should be. Nature will kill itself. And we'll kill each other. And everything should be protected. It's very like this hippie dippie vibe. Even though he's a sorcerer, he, apparently, has a lot of moral influences from druids. So, we do see that, and the characters even amongst themselves make a note of it. You know, while this is happening, Yennefer rides up and interrupts Dorregaray’s insistence that we shouldn't be hunting dragons. And Yennefer says, “Dragons are the natural enemy of man, because, even though there are other creatures that may slaughter humans, dragons are the only ones that can wreak havoc on entire towns. They're the only ones that can threaten a woman who's meant to carry a natural life cycle of childbirth.” And this is where we start to see that Yennefer has her own insecurities about her own infertility.
ANITA: Yes, of course.
ALYSSA: Dorregaray upsets her by saying all this stuff about childbirth in Yennefer's argument. Geralt knows how angry she is by saying, “Yennefer, like most sorceresses, was barren. But unlike most sorceresses, she bemoaned the fact and reacted with genuine rage at the mention of it, which goes back to everything that we're talking about in the last part.
KAROLINA: Dorregaray, if I say correct.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: Doesn’t know that Yennefer so will revenge.
ANITA: Yes. Yes.
KAROLINA: She didn’t like when someone talk to her like this.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: Yeah. He's definitely putting himself in a bad place.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: Exactly.
ALYSSA: And I think she says that she's like always gonna get it. Like—
KAROLINA: Yes. This looked like I will kill you soon.
ALYSSA: As the convoy is kind of going along, Geralt eventually finds his way to Borch. And they have a brief conversation about purpose. Geralt is, I think, a little upset, you know, although he hides that. He's continually been told by Gyllenstiern, then Dorregaray, then Yennefer that he's just kind of there as “servile golem.”
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: He brings it up in his conversation with Borch. Borch tells him, like, you're not a servile golem. And he's kind of like trying to pep the witcher back up. And the Witcher asks, “Do you have a destination at the end of the road?” And Borch says, “I do.” Geralt says, “Lucky for you.” Borch says, “It's not a matter of luck, Geralt. It's a matter of what you believe in and what you serve. No one ought to know that better than a witcher.” It's definitely about the journey.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: And not the destination.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: But it's also a matter of values I think especially.
ANITA: Yes. This whole journey is , let's say, told in some background, not directly.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: This whole story is not directly told rather it's more – I don't know how to say it. But—
KAROLINA: And, you know, the end of the story, create the whole view—
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: —and another point in the story.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: If you understand it fully and you understand all the quotes they do, and why they tell it, what is the background because here the direct reports are not the main meaning of this.
ALYSSA: Mhmm. Yeah. There's a lot of beauty in reading and rereading the saga. I mean, obviously, all three of us really adore it. But I do have people that asked me like, “Oh, how many times have you read it?” I was like, “Honestly, I think I've read Baptism of Fire cover to cover at least a dozen times, because it's my favorite.” It's like I feel like every time you read it, there's, you know, more and more to be unearthed.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: And it's always just a good time. It's very funny, which I think surprises people. But, yeah, like, even going back and taking notes for the podcast, even though I've read these stories a ton of times, I'm rereading it. And I'm just like, “Oh, crap. I missed that.”
ANITA: Yeah.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Like the first, second, third time. And it makes it a very rich—
ANITA: Yes. They're very deep.
ALYSSA: Yes.
ANITA: And there's always something new to this discovery when you—
KAROLINA: Yeah. You can discover, you know.
ANITA: —when you read it. I remember to read it when I was a little child. Well, maybe not little, but I was a teenager.
KAROLINA: I was 12.
ANITA: Yes. And I don't remember many things to be honest from it, because the last time I played games and it's somehow different from the books.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: So, it's not exactly the same. And they adapted it to the needs of the game. Sometimes, I'm just curious about the things I've lost during the last years when I wasn't reading the book. And I'm discovering it again.
KAROLINA: I remember – I remember when I first played the game. Well, this is not in the book. Yeah.
ANITA: Mmmm. Or was it? Or it wasn’t.
KAROLINA: Yeah. I remember exactly. And I have problem with that.
ANITA: Yes. So, it’s always very nice to discover something new and remember the things you've lost over the years.
ALYSSA: Yeah. Yeah. So, the chapter continues. And, as they're talking, they're interrupted by members of the party who, you know, have stopped. The reason being is that the convoy has hit a bridge in the middle of the wilderness that Sheepbagger, who's a local from Barefield, insists that they cross. And Gyllenstiern is like, “Why should we take this? It doesn't really look stable. We should take the longer route. We should take the trail.” And Sheepbagger insists, “This way is shorter. The king wants to go there.” Like, hmm. So—
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: They decide to take the bridge. While this happens, Borch tells Geralt to go. At first, he tells him to stay. And then he tells him to go. And Geralt asks, “Why?” And Borch says, “Just go. It'll be better that way.” So, Geralt rides to the front of the convoy. And, as they're getting people across the bridge, suddenly a landslide starts to happen. The whole convoy scatters. Some people make it across the bridge, The Reavers, the dwarves, the king, Gyllenstiern. Geralt’s horse rears up, and Geralt falls off. Dorregaray tries to save him, but Geralt turns back around when he realizes that Yennefer’s horse had also kicked her off.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ALYSSA: So, he goes back to save Yennefer. And there's just rocks raining everywhere. She protects him with a magic sphere. And they start to run across the bridge. As they do, the bridge collapses out from under them. And they're just falling in freefall toward a river at the bottom of the ravine. Geralt takes a knife, stabs it between the timbers of the bridge, and they're just dangling there. Yennefer's, I think, holding on to his back or to his belt. She's just a deadweight for Geralt. And he's trying to hold on to them. Dandelion is asking people to throw them down a rope. And everyone just stands there and is like, “Well…” They're like, “If we wait until Yennefer falls off, we'll just pull the witcher up.” And, you know, obviously, that upsets them all. Geralt is trying to talk to Yennefer. They, obviously, both think they're going to die in this moment. Geralt asks Yen for forgiveness. And she says, “No, never,” which is harsh.
ANITA: Even in – yes.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: Even in such a moment, “Never. I won’t forgive you.
ALYSSA: And, when this happens, there's like a golden magical rope that comes down, and it pulls the pair up. And that's the end of Part VI.
ANITA: Yes. And they are luckily saved.
ALYSSA: Mhmm. So, in Part VI, the company bickers amongst itself and the witcher declares he’s leaving, when the group is interrupted by Sheepbagger and a scouting party from Barefield. They peer over the landscape and see a golden dragon, previously thought to be only fabled. The dragon, Villentretenmerth, roars—
ANITA: Oh, that was nice.
ALYSSA: I think I got it.
ANITA: Yes, you got it.
ALYSSA: Villentretenmerth. The dragon, Villentretenmerth, roars out to the company, speaking in the Common Tongue and addresses them intelligently and by name, telepathically. The dragon challenges them to a duel. Eyck of Denesle rides out against the dragon under Caingorn. Although the knight rides well, the dragon slaughters the knight’s horse and quickly throws him from his saddle. So, there's so much here. These last two chapters, like, really pack a punch. Eyck starts going on this huge tangent where he tells everyone, “One should act against evil, O King, with a pure heart and conscience, with head raised! But who do we see here? Dwarves, who are pagans, are born in the darkness and bow down before dark forces! Blasphemous sorcerers, usurping divine laws, powers, and privileges! A witcher, who is an odious aberration, an accursed, unnatural creature. Are you surprised that a punishment has befallen us? King Niedamir! We have reached the limits of possibility! Divine grace is being sorely tested. I call you, king, to purge the filth from our ranks.” Dorregaray interrupts saying, “I think you were exaggerating a little, Sir Eyck, although no doubt for noble reasons. I regard the making known of your view about sorcerers, dwarves, and witchers as quite unnecessary. Although, I think, we have all become accustomed to such opinions, it is neither polite, nor chivalrous, Sir Eyck. And it is utterly incomprehensible after you, and no one else, ran and used a magical, elven rope to save a witcher and a sorceress whose lives were in danger. I conclude from what you say that you should rather have been praying for them to fall.” And Yennefer questions, “Sir Eyck. Why was that? I’m blasphemous, but you save my life?” And Eyck says, “You are a lady, Madam Yennefer. And your comely and honest face permits me to believe that you will one day renounce this accursed sorcery.” And Boholt, one of the Reavers, just snorts. As they're fighting, they're interrupted by Sheepbagger and the scouting party. And they're just like, “There's the thing! There's the thing! There's the dragon!” And, as soon as the company hears that there's a dragon, they all get on their horses, and they ride.
ANITA: And it's not the dragon they thought they will be fighting with.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ALYSSA: Yeah. It's not the dragon that they've been stalking this whole time.
ANITA: Surprise! Surprise!
ALYSSA: None of them can believe their eyes, because the dragon that they see on the hillock is golden. It's incredibly beautiful. The book describes this dragon as, “There was something inexpressibly graceful in the creature and the way it was sitting; something feline, something that contradicted its clearly reptilian origins. But it was also undeniably reptilian. For the creature was covered in distinctly outlined scales, which shone with a glaring blaze of bright, yellow gold. For the creature sitting on the hillock was golden; golden from the tips of its talons, dug into the ground, to the end of its long tail, which was moving very gently among the thistles growing on the hill. Looking at them with its large, golden eyes, the creature unfurled its broad, golden, bat-like wings and remained motionless, demanding to be admired.”
KAROLINA: Now, when we’re waiting for this Netflix’s material, everybody create memes about old witcher and the new witcher—
ANITA: Old, old series.
KAROLINA: —about Dandelion, and about the dragon.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
KAROLINA: And the situation in—
ANITA: Yeah.
KAROLINA: “Bounds of Reason”. Our dragon is very—
ANITA: The CGI was so poor.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Oh, I saw that. It made me laugh.
ANITA: Yes, it was.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: It was – it was so poor.
KAROLINA: And we have memes about the dragon asking Tomasz Baginski to hire it—
[Laughs]
KAROLINA: —for, for Netflix.
ANITA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Actually, I think, Redanian Intelligence, they shared – they shared an interview with Lauren S. Hissrich, the showrunner. And, apparently, someone had asked her like, “Had she seen the Polish – the Polish adaptation?” You know, she said, “People do send me links of the Golden Dragon.”
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Redanian Intelligence had a screencap of the Golden Dragon. And they captioned it, “The most beautiful.” I just snorted, because the most beautiful is a line from the prose, at least, in English. And I just laughed so hard.
ANITA: We will remember the dragon forever. We, we will remember it forever in our minds and imagination. Yes.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ANITA: I can – I cannot forget that.
KAROLINA: People have now a little fun about that when the Netflix Witcher came. They torrent the old version. And—
ANITA: They just name it.
KAROLINA: Yeah. They just name it as a new one. And, now, when you open, “Wow. This dragon is amazing.”
ANITA: Yes. Oh, my god, so stupid.
ALYSSA: Yeah. CGI has evolved—
ANITA: Yes, of course. But it's still funny, let’s say this one.
ALYSSA: Oh, it's so funny. I wonder what's going to happen. Like, we have heard in interviews that they're going to try to use as little CGI as necessary. I mean, obviously, if you're creating a dragon, you're gonna need some CGI, but I'm really excited to see what that might mean for the Netflix show.
ANITA: We are very curious about that.
KAROLINA: Yes, sure. But we have Tomasz Baginski create a little YouTube series, Legendy Polskie Allegro.
ANITA: In Polish Legends Allegro. It’s a—
KAROLINA: Yeah. Allegro. And it's a little part about—
ANITA: Yes. A series?
KAROLINA: Yes. And they create a monster and everybody in Poland thinking, “Oh, so, maybe this is how the monsters in the Witcher look like.”
ALYSSA: So, when they realize that the dragon’s golden, everyone's kind of like, “Oh, is this real? This can't be real.” And then Boholt is like, “Stop that. There’s no point in getting worked up. Any blockhead can see it’s a golden dragon. What’s the difference if it’s golden or not?” And Beanpole, he’s the youngest Reaver, Boholt’s little brother, says, “There is a difference and a vital one. That isn’t the dragon we’re stalking. Not the one that was poisoned outside Barefield.” Yarpen says back, “That dragon is golden, Kennet. Have you ever seen anything like it? Don’t you understand? We’ll get more for its hide than we would for a normal treasure hoard.” They’re just like bickering and bickering. Then the dragon speaks unexpectedly.
ANITA: Yeah.
KAROLINA: It’s talking.
ALYSSA: Yup. And he says:
[Reading] “King Niedamir and you, knights! I am the dragon, Villentretenmerth! As I see, the landslide which I sent down on your heads did not completely stop you. You have come this far. As you know, there are only three ways out of this valley. East, toward Barefield, and west, toward Caingorn. And you may use those roads. You will not take the northern gorge, gentlemen, because I, Villentretenmerth, forbid you. However, if anyone does not wish to respect my injunction, I challenge him to fight, an honourable knightly duel. With conventional weapons, without spells, without breathing fire. A fight to the utter capitulation of one of the sides. I await an answer through your herald, as custom dictates!”
ALYSSA: Everyone is just stunned. Completely stunned that this dragon is not only speaking in the common tongue, it's speaking intelligently. And Yennefer says, “With a forked tongue, it shouldn't be capable of articulated speech. So, it must be using telepathy. So, just be careful, because it works in both ways.” Everyone's like, “Oh, we should just be rid of it. Just forget about what he's saying.” And Eyck of Denesle steps up and he's like, “No.” Oh, they talk about just, you know, using dirty tricks to get rid of the dragon. And he says:
[Reading] “I will not permit knightly honour to be insulted in my presence. Whomsoever dares to violate the principles of this honourable duel, whomsoever affronts honour, affronts me, and his or my blood will be shed on this tired earth. The beast calls for a duel? Very well! Let the herald trumpet my name! May divine judgement decide! On the dragon’s side is the power of fang and talon and infernal fury, and on my side…”
ALYSSA :And, anyway, he, like, keeps going. He talks about, like, the tears of virgins and, like, all this other stuff. And Yarpen just says, “What a moron.”
KAROLINA: “What a moron.”
ALYSSA: And, you know, everyone’s just kind of sick of it. And I think it might be one of the Reavers who says, “Whatever. Eyck is an idiot. He's already riled himself up. Let's just let them go and see what happens.” They find a herald, which they appoint to be Yarpen. Gyllenstiern says, “Just talk politely, dwarf, sir. And courteously.” And the dwarf says, “Don’t learn me how to talk. I was sent on diplomatic missions when you lot were still knee-high to a grasshopper.” The prose says, “The dragon continues to sit patiently on the hillock waving its tail cheerfully. The dwarf clamored up onto the largest boulder, hawked, and spat. ‘Hey, you there! You fucking dragon, you! Listen to what the herald has to say! That means me! The first one to take you on honourably will be the meandering knight, Eyck of Denesle! And he will stick his lance in your paunch, according to the holy custom, to your confusion, and to the joy of poor virgins and King Niedamir! It will be a fair fight and honourable, breathing fire is not allowed, and you may only lambast the other confessionally, until the other gives up the ghost or expires! Which we sincerely wish on you! Understood, dragon?’”
ALYSSA: And it's just so silly.
ANITA: Yes. So, in Polish, it sounds even better.
ALYSSA: Oh, really?
ANITA: I promise.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: It’s even better.
KAROLINA: We can talk a little about the humor. Yeah. I—
ANITA: Oh, yes, the swearing words. In Polish, is “Na odpierdol skurwysynu.”
KAROLINA: Skurwysynu. Chce [Inaudible 22:36] chuja. [Inaudible 22:37].
ANITA: [Inaudible 22:37] chce [Inaudible 22:38] chuja.” We don't know what that means. Like, this chce [Inaudible 22:40] chuja. But still “Na odpierdol skurwysynu”, in English, it should be, “Damn you, mother – mmm.” You know what?
ALYSSA: Uh huh.
ANITA: And it's very unique word combination in Polish. And, in fact, it's even in some dialect of Polish language.
ALYSSA: Mmm.
ANITA: So, it's somehow deep in our culture. Like, someone sometimes is telling you “Na odpierdol” for someone and...
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ANITA: And it's just derived from it. The second one, I don't know what the words, chce [Inaudible 23:18] chuja means, but [Inaudible 23:19] is like, hm… “go away.”
KAROLINA: But it's very bad.
ANITA: But it’s a very bad meaning. Very bad swearing I would say, because we have a lot of swearing words in Polish language. In English, you have only few words for swearing. And here you have a whole dictionary.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: A whole dictionary for it. So, so, there’s even a book for swearing words. And Sapkowski did a great job in doing it in his books, not only like the simple swearing, but the very dialect ones from—
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ANITA: —from our language.
KAROLINA: And only we understand that.
ANITA: Yeah. It's very hard to translate it. I don't know how it's translated in the book.
KAROLINA: And, actually, it’s very funny for us, because this scene is very beautiful, the golden dragon and everything. And, now, they are using Polish bad words.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: And all this scene, for us, is like—
ANITA: Comic Relief totally.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: So, here, you have swearing words, and all it turns out to be somehow comedy.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: They're fighting a dragon, and you're laughing by reading it. So, like dwarf always is in, in the Witcher series. It’s always about something funny like Dandelion, for me.
ALYSSA: Yeah. I think one of the wonderful thing about Sapkowski’s writing in dialogue is that it's always tied to the character. His dialogue is so spot on with who he's writing for. It's just so Yarpen, and it's so Dwarven that it's just very funny.
ANITA: It fits it perfectly.
ALYSSA: Eyck of Denesle charges the battlefield with his lance and goes to fight this dragon. The dragon very quickly takes care of Eyck.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: It uses a claw to just cut open the stomach of his horse—
ANITA: Poor thing.
ALYSSA: —which, obviously, the horse just immediately falls over and Eyck gets thrown from the horse. But, also, the dragon, like, hits him in the back and his breastplate falls off. Like, completely done for. Dragon mercy kills the horse. Obviously, its guts are everywhere. Closing the chapter, it says, “In the silence that fell, everybody heard the deep voice of the dragon Villentretenmerth. The doughty Eyck of Denesle may now be taken from the battlefield, for he is incapable of fighting any longer. Next, please.” And the chapter just ends with, “Oh, fuck,” Yarpen Zigrin said in the silence that followed.
KAROLINA: Yes. That’s the perfect ending for Sapkowski.
ANITA: Yes, nice, nice summary of the situation. It tells you everything.
KAROLINA: Yeah. It simply wants you to know this is not going well.
ALYSSA: No. No, not at all. And I think you're right. It is, like, just the perfect concise ending for capturing the emotions, not just from the dragon side and not just from Yarpen himself, but of the situation as a whole.
ALYSSA: Before we get to the final battle with the dragon, Villentretenmerth, we’re going to hand it over to Lars from Witcherflix. When we return, Anita, Karolina, and I will continue our discussion of “The Bounds of Reason.”
“Tidings from Toussaint”
[“Tidings from Toussaint” theme music by Bettina Campomanes]
LARS FROM WITCHERFLIX: Hey, it's Lars from Witcherflix and this is “Tidings from Toussaint" with a very special, extra-long edition.
We were treated with several new promo pictures and photos from the set in the course of the last 2 weeks. We finally have a beautiful poster with our three main protagonists and an awesome map depicting the Northern Kingdoms in the background. Showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich visited the netflixwitcher-subreddit on Reddit and showed us what it was like to shoot scenes among famous mages and sorceresses such as Yennefer, Sabrina Glevissig, Vilgefortz, Triss Merigold, Tissaia de Vries and even Vanielle of Brugge or Lytta Neyd also known as Coral.
https://www.reddit.com/r/netflixwitcher/comments/e04gfr/a_little_nibble/
We know that Lauren S. Hissrich met with Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski back in 2018 in a restaurant in Poland. In an interview with movieplayer.it Lauren Hissrich talked about this almost legendary meetup: “We went to lunch together, we talked about ice fishing, his work and how I would adapt the story. We drank a little too much vodka, but I remember when we were leaving the restaurant I realized I had lunch with a star because everyone was asking for his autograph. Sapkowski told me what was important to him: to tell the story of three orphans looking for a place in the world, touching on topics such as sexism, xenophobia, racism, society’s difficulty in accepting what is different. Much of the original content from the books remains, full of spectacular fights, incredible adventures and monstrous creatures.”
https://redanianintelligence.com/2019/11/19/the-witcher-interview-recap-lucca-comics-and-games/
In an interview with RedanianIntelligence executive producer Tomek Baginski talked about what made him fall in love with the Witcher saga and his favorite short story. "It was a short story “Grain of Truth” in a local science-fiction magazine. I loved it instantly, quickly tracked “Witcher” short story, which was published earlier in the same magazine. And since then, I was hooked. I was waiting first for every new short story, and then for the books. The popularity of Andrew Sapkowski in Poland skyrocketed very quickly. Short stories were very popular even before “The Last Wish” was published as a book. Tomek Baginski's favorite short story is "The Lesser Evil". He said: "“It sets up the moral code of Geralt in the best possible way. In the world, when morality is corrupted by power or by vengeance – he just stays with the people. In his world, some things you just don’t do – there is no lesser evil. You don’t get bargaining about human lives – even if the reason is noble. This makes Geralt also a stubborn boar – but this is who he is.“
In another interview, this time with IGN Poland, Tomek Baginski was aksed about a possible Witcher animated series similar to the animations he did for the video games. He answered: "“I don’t want to give away too much here, but who knows if we won’t see The Witcher in this style. However these are things I would rather not talk about too much for now.” This sounds very suspicious if you ask me...
In other news thanks to various interviews Witcher composers Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli have revealed the names of several songtitles from the Witcher soundtrack: "Don't Ever Come Back to Blaviken" in episode 1, “Toss A Coin To Your Witcher" and "You Think You’re Safe" in episode 2, "The Fishmonger’s Daughter" in episode 4, "The Last Rose of Cintra" and "Her Sweet Kiss" in episode 6 and "The Song of the White Wolfe" in the season finale. 4 of these songs feature vocals of Jaskier, played by Joey Batey. When it comes to casting, we have one new actress and one new surprising role to talk about: British actress Josette Simon will play the role of Queen Eithne, the queen of the dryads of Brokilon forest. She is known for her work on TV shows such as "Nightflyers" or "Broadchurch". According to her profile on Spotlight.com we know that actress Viola Prettejohn will play "Fake Ciri". In the books this character first appears in "Time of Contempt". She is an orphaned noblewoman from Cintra who gets caught by Nilfgaard and is sent to emperor Emhyr var Emreis to pose as Princess Ciri of Cintra. Now we meet Fake Ciri much earlier in the show than we expected. This is a surprise, but her early apperanace will make h er role much more meaningful. In addition we've learned that there will also be a Witcher premiere in Poland: On December 18th a premiere will take place in Warsaw. Henry Cavill, Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan as well as Lauren Hissrich and Tomek Baginski will attend the event.
https://redanianintelligence.com/2019/11/25/josette-simon-eithne/
https://redanianintelligence.com/2019/12/01/viola-prettejohn-is-fake-ciri-in-the-witcher/
https://twitter.com/MarcinZwierz/status/1201421622969810944
But arguably the coolest piece of news from the last 2 weeks were the 8 episode titles. They were released on social media together with some unique artworks. Every episode title was described by one line of poetry. All 8 lines together reveal a full poem describing Season 1 of the Witcher. Now, let's look at the 8 episode titles, artworks and the poem and what all of this could possibly mean.
1. "The End's Beginning" - "A monster slain, a butcher named":
The symbol shows a sun with its rays. This symbolizes the "Curse of the Black Sun", a prophecy that also afflicts Princess Renfri in the short story "The Lesser Evil". In the background we can see the swamps Geralt fights the kikimora in. The episode's title could allude to the fact that they show the end of the season already in this episode. The "monster" mentioned in the poem could refer to the kikimora or Renfri at the same time. The "butcher" points at Geralt's nickname "Butcher of Blaviken" which he will almost certainly gain in this episode.
2. "Four Marks" - "We look at a sorceress's earlier days":
This episode is all about Yennefer's past and how she became the powerful sorceress we know and love. The symbol shows Yennefer's obsidian star. The snakes could symbolize magic or according to traditional Greek iconography healing or curing. In the background we can see the columns of a building. This could be the magical academy of Aretuza. Thanks to a leak from someone who already watched the first episodes, we know that the episode title refers to the currency, as in the former German currency "Deutsche Mark". The mark as a currency is used in the kingdom of Aedirn. Another hint for the episode being about Yennefer's past, as she is from Vengerberg in Aedirn
3. "Betrayer Moon" - "A picky eater, a family shamed":
This episode adapts the short story "The Witcher". In the background we can see the crypts of the Old Palace of Vizima we already saw in the promo pics. The title with its word "moon" as well as the picky eater could refer to the striga and Geralt's fight with it. The shamed family could be King Foltest's house who is ashamed of the incest between him and his sister Adda. The symbol mixes the striga's claw with the Temerian lily.
4. "Of Banquets, Bastards and Burials" - "The Law of Surprise is how one repays":
The title and the text refer to the banquet at Cintra where Queen Calanthe is looking for a husband for her daughter Pavetta and Geralt later fights the Urcheon of Erlenwald after the Law of Surprise has been called. The picture shows a tree and a desert. These are probably the same Ciri sees in the dream/vision sequence from the trailer. The desert could be the Korath desert foreshadowering parts of her story in later seasons. The broken sword could refer to the "Sword of Destiny" and how fragile destiny and fate are.
5. "Bottled Appetites" - "A fateful meeting, a bard is maimed":
This episode adapts the short story "The Last Wish". The bottled appetite could refer to the amphora Jaskier and Geralt find while fishing (just before they meet the djinn). The fateful meeting is not so hard to decipher: This is when Geralt and Yennefer meet for the first time. The maimed bard is of course Jaskier after he is attacked by the djinn. The symbol could be a woman and a man fighting against something. Maybe it's Yennefer and Geralt fighting against the djinn.
6. "Rare Species" - "The hunt for a dragon is underway":
This is very straightforward: The episode title, the text and the symbol refer to the short story "The Bounds of Reason" and the hunt for the dragon.
7. "Before a Fall" - "A return to before a kingdom is flamed":
This is also not too hard to decipher: It refers to the Sacking of Cintra, symoblized by the lion.
8. "Much More" - "The Witcher family, as you all like to say":
The episode title is a quote from the final short story "Something More". It will all come together in this episode: Ciri and Geralt will meet again. It's also possible that Yennefer will be part of this reunion, too. The symbol shows Geralt's wolf, Ciri's swallow and Yennefer's star intertwined.
Here is the complete poem:
"A monster slain, a butcher named
We look at a sorceress’s earlier days
A picky eater, a family shamed
The Law of Surprise is how one repays
A fateful meeting, a bard is maimed
The hunt for a dragon is underway
A return to before a kingdom is flamed
The Witcher Family, as you all like to say."
https://www.instagram.com/witchernetflix
That's it for today. Only two more week to go until we can finally watch the show. Until then, thanks again for listening and good luck on the path!
[“Tidings from Toussaint” theme music by Bettina Campomanes]
Discussion
ALYSSA: Welcome back from the break! I’m here with our friends, Anita and Caroline, discussing the first short story from Andrzej Sapkowski’s Sword of Destiny, “The Bounds of Reason.” When we left off, Geralt had joined a hunting party stalking a dragon near Barefield. After overcoming social tensions amongst the party and a sudden landslide, the company stumbled across a golden dragon, which challenged them to a duel.
ALYSSA: So, in Part A, after Eyck is removed from the battlefields, Niedamir decides to return to Caingorn with his men, leaving the witcher, bard, sorcerers, Reavers, and dwarves behind. Dorregaray threatens the group and is attacked by the Reavers and dwarves before Geralt attempts to stop them. Yennefer ends the brawl with a spell and has the witcher, bard, and sorcerer tied to the wagon. She threatens the Reavers and the dwarves before they tie her to the wagon too. The dragon, impatient, arrives and the Reavers and dwarves attempt to kill it on their own. The dragon injures the Reavers and the dwarves run away. So, when we open the chapter, Yennefer has examined Eyck, and she lets the witcher know that both of his legs are crushed and, like, his back as well. And he may never ride a horse again. Yennefer pleads with Geralt to kill the dragon for her. She says, “That dragon is unbelievably fast, Geralt. Too fast for a man to fight it.” And Geralt says, “I understand. No, Yen. Not me. Principles or ordinary, commonplace fear? The only human feeling that wasn’t eradicated in you? One and the other. What difference does it make?” the witcher responds. Yennefer says, “Precisely. None. Principles may be broken, fear can be overcome. Kill that dragon, Geralt. For me.” Ugh. And it's like – I don't know. Like, something about it.
ANITA: Yes, change of attitude. Like—
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: —she would never ever forgive him, and, now, ‘Kill the dragon for me.’
ALYSSA: Yeah. It just, just didn't sit well with me personally. But the thing is it comes across as manipulative, but then we hear that the reason why she wants this dragon is because she wants an operation that might reverse her infertility.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: Now, we understand why, because—
KAROLINA: Right. I think she's out too proud to ask him earlier. And, now, when she knows that the situation is a little complicated, she asked Geralt about this.
ANITA: She was too proud to reveal it earlier. Just, just like that. So, it’s—
KAROLINA: Yeah. And, now, she have a great argument I think, because it's something about they care both, about the child. And it's not as complicated situation. He's mad, of course, because however she's a little too, uh—
ANITA: Bitchy.
KAROLINA: For him. Yeah, And, now, she tell him why.
ANITA: Like, it's the fact of her that it's based on some deeper reasons, not the facts only.
KAROLINA: Yeah. But it’s bad time and bad place. Yeah.
ANITA: Yes, for the discussion.
KAROLINA: And, next, we know that Geralt regrets his words to her.
ANITA: Words. Yeah.
KAROLINA: And, now, we have again and again their relationship is very complicated. Of course, none of us approves killing the dragon, but Geralt, despite the fact that he knew about Yen’s past experiences associated with her childhood and later with training for sorcerers, he treated her very harshly. Somehow, accusing her when it was about the dragon. As he states, he doesn't understand why Yennefer hunts for the creature, because she's already famous and she has various sources of income. So, why she really insist on killing the dragon? He suspects that Yen just wants to accumulate more riches that are not really necessary for her life. And, even during their conversation, she mentions that wizards and jeweler guilds are always associated with dragons. But, actually, asking Geralt to kill the dragon is not actually as selfish as he thinks, because this is a very sensitive topic for Yen about the chance to have a child. On the one hand, of course, it's obviously immoral that Yen wants to kill the dragon. On the other, the parent will do anything to save the child, for Yen’s deepest desire is to have one of her own. So, she will sacrifice a lot for this cause, which seems, for her, some kind of justification. This part of the story is about the borders Yen is ready to cross and what price is she willing to pay for it.
ALYSSA: That excerpt specifically, Yennefer’s still pleading for him to kill this dragon. And she tries to make a barter with him. And she says, “When we were hanging on the bridge, you asked me for something. I’ll meet your request. In spite of everything.” The prose reads, “The witcher smiled sadly and touched the obsidian star on Yennefer’s neck with his index finger. ‘It’s too late, Yen. We aren’t hanging now. It’s stopped mattering to me. In spite of everything.’” And it’s incredibly heartbreaking. We just rolled off of a passage where her intention seemed incredibly manipulative, especially with how she's been treating him throughout the whole chapter. Then, all of a sudden, our expectations and Geralt's expectations are really turned around. And it reads, “He expected the worst; a cascade of fire, lightning, a smack in the face, abuse, curses. He was surprised just to see the suppressed trembling of her lips. Yennefer slowly turned away. Geralt regarded his words. He regretted the emotion, which had engendered them. The limit of possibility overstepped, now snapped like a lute string.
KAROLINA: I think the silence is more terrible for Geralt.
ANITA: This is the worst answer.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Again, like, it's really heartbreaking. But I think, as you guys mentioned, it alludes to the complex nature of their relationship.
KAROLINA: Yeah. And, now, we have a problem, because Geralt don't want to kill the dragon. She asked him for this. He know why she asked. And it's a big topic for them, a child. And, now, again, we have this part in Geralt’s character where he must choose evil or worst evil.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: And he doesn't want to choose—
ANITA: Anything.
KAROLINA: —anything, because everything is bad.
ANITA: So, he chooses in fact to save the dragon.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ALYSSA: Yeah. After all this King Niedamir orders the men from Caingorn back home. And, as they retreat, Dorregaray threatens the dwarves and the Reavers. And, you know, they just smack him and, like, dispatch him. Geralt tries to help. They're all brawling, but not lethally. They're not trying to kill each other, but they're trying to curb each other.
ANITA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: So, eventually, Geralt tries to step in just to stop them from attacking Dorregaray. And then Yennefer steps in to stop the witcher. The Reavers and the dwarves tie the witcher, bard, and sorcerer to a wagon. And then, as soon as that's done, Yennefer turns on the dwarves and the Reavers saying, “You guys are going to go to the bottom of the hill. I'm going to take care of the dragon using my own magic and unconventional weapons.” Yarpen takes a really small ball and kind of like, in “The Edge of the World” with the sylvan, Yarpen just pelts this little iron ball at Yennefer's forehead. And, before she can even get her bearings again, the Reavers tie her up and stick her on the wagon as well, but not before opening her blouse and Boholt just gropes her openly, which is awful. Now, that everyone's tied to the wagon, the Reavers and the dwarves go to attack the dragon. And the dragon comes to them. The dragon just quickly takes care of the Reavers, scattering them across the battlefield. The dwarves just make a run for it. So, they're completely useless. In the second half of the chapter, the Barefield Constabulary arrives. And they attempt to capture and kill the dragon with nets. In a moment of rage and helplessness, the dragon lets out a cry, which is answered by the Zerrikanians, who charge into the battlefield. Yennefer, though still tied to the wagon, uses her leg to cast spells and attacks the Barefield Constabulary from the wagon. After they're taken care of, Vea is about to kill Yennefer when Borch stops her sitting on a stone holding the dragonling. This is basically the big twist in the story.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: No one expected that.
ALYSSA: No. What has happened is that Sheepbagger, this annoying local that's been tagging along the convoy the whole time, eventually, the rest of his company arrive. They actually get it to a point where the dragon is actually caught in a number of nets and is desperately in danger. And, so, the dragon lets out a cry, and the Zerrikanians come, which – pew! As I said, this is the big twist. And, you know, everyone's kind of putting the pieces together.
KAROLINA: And Borch know better the human and Yennefer or Geralt… Now, his point of view changed. And, in this part, we can learn more about order and chaos—I mean, for Borch, at the beginning, everything is very simple. And he tried to—
ANITA: Convince Geralt.
KAROLINA: Geralt. And, now—
ANITA: To choose a side.
KAROLINA: Yeah. And, now, himself changed his point of view. In this part, we know that everything is not that simple.
ANITA: It's not only black and white—
KAROLINA: White.
ANITA: —and chaos and order.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: Sometimes, it's gray. So, we're just going back to the beginning to their scenes when they were at the inn discussing the most important things about this chaos and order and how to choose a side or not to choose a side or have some moral background other than just black and white.
ALYSSA: As everyone is piecing stuff together, Dandelion says:
[Reading] “Do you understand, Geralt? There’s an ancient ballad about a golden dragon. A golden dragon can…” And Geralt finishes the sentence, “Can assume any form it wishes. Even that of a human. I’ve heard that too. But I didn’t believe it.”
ALYSSA: And, after Borch has changed back and all of the Barefield’s constabulary have been taken care of, between Yennefer and Tea and Vea, the Zerrikanians, Yennefer and Geralt go over to Borch and have a conversation with him. The Witcher says, “Three Jack… Villentretenmerth…” Villentretenmerth, or Borch, or Three Jackdaws says, “My name, when freely translated into your language, means Three Black Birds.” He kind of talks about Chaos and Order:
[Reading] Villentretenmerth smiled, “Do you remember, Geralt? Chaos is aggression, Order is protection against it. It’s worth rushing to the ends of the world, to oppose aggression and evil, isn’t it, Witcher? Particularly, as you said, when the pay is fair. And this time it was. It was the treasure hoard of the she-dragon Myrgtabrakke, the one poisoned outside Barefield. She summoned me to help her, to stop the evil threatening her. Myrgtabrakke flew away as soon as Eyck of Denesle was removed from the battlefield. She had sufficient time, while you were talking and quarrelling. But she left me her treasure as my payment.”
The dragonling squealed and flapped its little wings.
“So you…”
“That is right,” the dragon interrupted. “Well, it’s the times we live in. For some time, creatures, which you usually call monsters, have been feeling more and more under threat from people. They can no longer cope by themselves. They need a Defender. Some kind of… witcher.”
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: “And the destination… The goal at the end of the road? This is it,” Villentretenmerth lifted his forearm. The dragon-ling squealed in alarm. “I’ve just attained it. Owing to him I will survive, Geralt of Rivia, I shall prove that there are no limits of possibility. One day, you will also find such a purpose, Witcher. Even those who are different can survive. Farewell, Geralt. Farewell, Yennefer.” Ah. And, so, I think, as we said, there's sneaky little line in there that definitely alludes to Geralt’s—
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: —relationship and his future-found family.
KAROLINA: I didn't find more information about this. But, in this book, History and Fantasy, an interview between Sapkowski and Stanisław Bereś, its information about Bounds of Reason is the first story, and that's all. And I don't understand this because Sapkowski have a first story in Fantastyka magazine—
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
KAROLINA: —that was Witcher, which is from The Last Wish book. Now, we have this information that “Bounds of Reason” is the first story. And I don't have any more information. But, uh, we can read, in this book, that “Bounds of Reason” is the first idea about creation of the family between Yennefer and Geralt, his problem is that they don't have a child.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
KAROLINA: This part starts everything that comes in the next stories, next books, and what’s there.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: There is a huge, huge section of this where, you know, we now learn that Borch is essentially a witcher for monsters.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Which – yeah, which is super interesting.
KAROLINA: For me and I think maybe other people, this end of the story is quite example that witchers like Geralt are between monsters and humans, but must create a balance. They’re not only for humanity killing monsters.
ANITA: Yes, but also different monsters from humans.
KAROLINA: From humans, because, as we know, humans are the worst monsters.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: And, for me, that's a great example for that. The witchers are defending the monsters. Yes, that’s what we said that monsters are better than humans sometimes.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: That we should learn from them.
ANITA: So, just as we told—
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ANITA: —the universe of Witcher is not black and white, it's not only the chaos and order. Nothing between it. It's always some choice. It's always some grays in the colors of the choices. So, each character, each situation has its own, let's say, resolution. It has its own direction.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
ANITA: And it's not always so obvious about the sides we should choose. And the Witcher should choose as Geralt does in many situations.
ALYSSA: And we kind of see the reasons why, at least for Borch, this exists. And both of you have already talked about this briefly. But Geralt asks Villentretenmerth:
[Reading] “You can assume any form. Any that you wish.” And Villentretenmerth, the dragon confirms. And Geralt asks, “Why then, a man? Why Borch with three black birds on his coat of arms?” And it says, “The dragon smiled cheerfully. ‘I don’t know, Geralt, in what circumstances the distant ancestors of our races encountered one another for the first time. But the fact is that for dragons, there is nothing more repugnant than man. Man arouses instinctive, irrational disgust in a dragon. With me it’s different. To me you’re… likeable. Farewell.’”
ALYSSA: And, you know, the prose kind of finishes this out with:
[Reading] “It was not a gradual, blurred transformation, or a hazy, pulsating trembling as with an illusion. It was as sudden as the blink of an eye. Where a second before had stood a curly-haired knight in a tunic decorated with three black birds, now sat a golden dragon, gracefully extending its long, slender neck. Inclining its head, the dragon spread its wings, dazzlingly gold in the sunshine. Yennefer sighed loudly.”
ALYSSA: I think it's either Borch had more of an inclination toward humans or his view on them changed with Geralt. There's an interesting little wrap up in this. You know, for the most part, aside from the Barefield Constabulary, like, no one was really killed out of the main group. It seems that Borch wasn't really fighting with them to truly, like, slaughter them all, except for Sheepbagger, who he just kind of ate.
ANITA: Well…
KAROLINA: Ooh.
ANITA: There always has to be someone who should play this role. Come on.
ALYSSA: So, I mean this does take us to the end of the chapter. And, Anita and Karolina, do you guys have any last thoughts on either the chapter or the themes that we encounter?
ANITA: I mean – yes.
KAROLINA: Actually, when the chapters for Sakowski book, The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, it’s different points of view of relationships between humans, monsters, and witchers. And I think this part is about the hope that humans can change, can be good, and the monsters can be good, and they are cooperate together.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: They have someone like Witcher, who – and the monsters and create a space for understand each other.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: Mhmm.
KAROLINA: It’s hope. And it's a very – I think a very good ending, because it's actually—
ANITA: An open ending for another story.
KAROLINA: And I think it's a good story. It's about hope, I think.
ANTIA: Yes.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: It's a hope for everyone. Like, they can understand each other. They can find some common thing to—
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ANITA: —to make the world better.
KAROLINA: Make a good decision.
ANITA: Yes, not to fight with each other all the time. Like, for example, Geralt and Yennefer, they can always find something in common. Like, infertility can be bonding for them.
KAROLINA: Yeah, because, in the end, they are together.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: And then understand each other.
ANITA: Yes, not fighting anymore. In fact, at the first glance, the story is quite simple. Like, we have dragon to kill. We have the whole journey. The whole company just going to kill the dragon, but it's not really about killing the dragon. It's a very deep story. And I think that's the most interesting part of this.
KAROLINA: Yes.
ANITA: And it has few levels.
KAROLINA: Yes, about monsters—
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: —about relationships and about Geralt and Yennefer actually.
ANITA: Yes. So, we have different themes here, different topics, and different levels of understanding the story. So, that's really astonishing for me.
ALYSSA: Yeah.
ANITA: Magnificent story, I would say. Quite short, but interesting.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Yeah. I mean I love the way that you phrased it. Good and evil isn't necessarily defined by what creature you are, what race you are, what class you are, but it really does come down to goals and intention and action. And that's really what makes the distinction between good and evil.
ANITA: Yes.
KAROLINA: Yeah.
ALYSSA: Not just in the Witcher world, but I think in our world at large. And I really like the way that you talked about that. I think, as you guys had said, it is a story with a closing message about hope and about compassion and empathy and—
ANITA: Understanding. Yeah.
ALYSSA: Yeah. So, hmm, this is one of like – one of the best stories out of the short stories just because it really does seem to have almost everything.
ANITA: Yes.
ALYSSA: It's a lot of good fun. That's it for our show today. Anita and Karolina, thanks so much for joining us for this episode, and thank you to our hanza for listening. So, where can people find you? And is there anything that our community can help you with or anything that you'd like to share with them?
KAROLINA: We are Witcher Kitchen project about cuisine inspired by the witcher’s universe. You can find us on witcherkitchen.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. You can also visit our second blog about food design in video games and with many recipes inspired by various virtual universes. And it's called nerdkitchen.pl. So, we invite you to visit our websites and hope you will like our work. And thank you for listening.
ALYSSA: Next episode, we’re heading back down to South Carolina for another episode with Charlotte from Vengerberg Glamarye, this time to explore the ever-complicated nature of Geralt and Yennefer’s relationship in “A Shard of Ice.”
Outro & Credits
[Breakfast in Beauclair theme music by MojoFilter Media]
ALYSSA: Thanks for joining us at the breakfast table! For show notes, transcripts of each episode, and a complete list of our social platforms and listening services, head over to breakfastinbeauclair.com.
Breakfast in Beauclair is created by Alyssa from GoodMorhen. It’s hosted by Alyssa with the “Tidings from Toussaint” News Segment by Lars from WitcherFlix. The show is edited by Alyssa with the Breakfast in Beauclair theme by MojoFilter Media and the “Tidings from Toussaint” theme by Bettina Campomanes.
Breakfast in Beauclair is produced by Alyssa in New York City with Luis of Kovir, The Owner of The Churlish Porpoise, Coolguyhenry, Arix the Godling, Katie (The Redhead of Toussaint), Jacob, Mahakam Elder Joe, Julie, Sylvia of Skellige, Jamison, Will P., and Brandon.
Special thanks to Anita and Karolina for joining us for this episode and our international hanza for their support.