Ep. 64 — 206 "Dear Friend" from Netflix's The Witcher (Part 3)

Charli from Austria and Kim from Germany join Alyssa for our discussion of Netflix’s The Witcher Episode 206 “Dear Friend”. Very important bits include: how the birth of the elven baby will change the alliance between the elves and Nilfgaard, how resentment poisons the self rather than harming the object of resentment, Lara Dorren—and consequently, Ciri—as genetic weapons, breaking down the fight between Geralt and the Michelet Brothers, and my take on the macro villain arc for Season 2. Plus: Kingsman, Deadpool, and The Flying Tooth.

This episode is available at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher.

Transcript

Cold Open

CHARLI: And you should all absolutely join the Breakfast in Beauclair Discord, its a fun place.

ALYSSA: Joooooin uuuuuus.

CHARLI: Join–come to the dark side.

ALYSSA: Joooooin uuuuuus.

CHARLI: We have cookies!

ALYSSA: Oh my god, we have so many cookies.

CHARLI: We do. We will share, if you’re nice.

ALYSSA: If you’re nice. Have you had s’mores before, Charli?

CHARLI: I’ve not but I want to in the US.

ALYSSA: We’re gonna do that in Boston, okay, we’ll have these s’mores.

CHARLI: Yay!

[Breakfast in Beauclair theme music by MojoFilter Media]

Introduction

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.

[Netflix TUDUM]

Netflix broke major news at their global fan event TUDUM this past weekend: The Witcher: Blood Origin will arrive this Christmas, December 25, 2022 and The Witcher Season 3 will premiere in Summer 2023! This certainly means that we have a ton to cover on the podcast in a very short period of time. In the next month or two, I’ll be sharing information on how to apply to be a guest on the next two seasons of Breakfast in Beauclair. Season 5 will cover Andrzej Sapkowski’s Time of Contempt in the Spring and Season 6 will cover The Witcher Season 3 in the Summer or Fall.

In the meantime, head over to the Breakfast in Beauclair Instagram to rewatch the livestream of me, Danny from the US, Elsa from France and the UK, and Michelle from Mexico discussing and reacting to TUDUM! Join us as we chat about working in the industry, the Netflix series that we’re looking forward to, and the inevitable meltdown that I have when I hear how soon the new season will premiere.

[Hanza-ween 2022]

It’s almost October and—by popular demand—we’re bringing back our Hanza-ween party and Witcher closet cosplay contest for the spooky season! Everyone had such great costumes from the show, games, and books last year and I can’t wait to see what you come up with this time. Tentatively save the date for Saturday, October 22, but keep an eye on future podcast episodes, the Hanza Discord, and the Breakfast in Beauclair social accounts for confirmed details.

[Patron Announcements]

This episode, we welcome Paweł to our hanza on Patreon! Thanks to our patrons for supporting the show and our producer-level patrons: Luis of Kovir, The Owner of The Churlish Porpoise, Katie (The Redhead of Toussaint), Jacob B., Ayvo of Gulet, Bee Haven of the Edge of the World, Charlotte from Vengerberg Glamarye, RedKite, The Original Roach, Codringher’s Cat, Libby, Jennidy Mundilovitch, Wolf, Corey from the US, John of Ryblia, Tom from Australia, Jill Cate, The Tabby Witch, Olle from Sweden, James Carson III, Psilocybe Sorcerer, A Toussaint Knight, Jeanette of Brokilon, Miriam of Temeria, Softie, and Mary the Moo.

If you’d like to learn more about becoming a patron of the show, head over to patreon.com/breakfastinbeauclair.

[Episode Details]

As for this episode, Kim from Germany and Charli from Austria conclude our discussion of Netflix’s The Witcher Episode 206 “Dear Friend”. Join us as we discuss how the birth of the elven baby will change the alliance between the elves and Nilfgaard, how resentment poisons the self rather than harming the object of resentment, Lara Dorren—and consequently, Ciri—as genetic weapons, breaking down the fight between Geralt and the Michelet Brothers, and my take on the macro villain arc for Season 2. Plus: Kingsman, Deadpool, and The Flying Tooth.

And as a follow up to the cold open, since this episode was recorded, Charli did in fact try s’mores for the first time in Boston and loved the experience so much she stayed by the stovetop to cook marshmallows with me that evening and even had two or three.

In our mid-episode news segment, “Tidings from Toussaint,” Lars from Witcherflix shares updates from Netflix TUDUM about The Witcher Season 3 and The Witcher: Blood Origin. After the break, don’t miss our listener call in segment, Dear Friend.

Without further ado, let’s get to our discussion of Netflix’s The Witcher 206 “Dear Friend” (Part 3).

Discussion

[Breakfast in Beauclair stinger by MojoFilter Media]

ALYSSA (VOICEOVER): Hey everyone, welcome back from the break. When we left off, Geralt and Ciri had sought help for her powers at the Temple of Melitele, unexpectedly reuniting with Yennefer. In Cintra, tensions rise between Nilfgaard and the elves. Meanwhile, Istredd, Codringer, and Fenn investigate the mysteries surrounding Ciri.

In the next scene, Yennefer, Geralt, and Ciri chat comfortably over a meal. We're back in the Temple of Melitele, and they've all settled down for like a “getting to know each other” and it's very sweet. Aside from everything we know about everything going on behind the scenes, It's nice for them to have some time and care for each other. Geralt has this kind of dreamy look on his face as he's watching Ciri and Yennefer interact and Ciri starts talking about like, “oh, unicorns are like real, real?” Yennefer makes an allusion to the stuffed one that her and Geralt used to have. And of course, there are easter eggs in there for book readers as well. A number of easter eggs in this very short scene.

KIM: Yeah, I just loved the banter between them. I thought the relationship between those three in a nutshell and yeah, I love that unicorn easter egg. Thought that was really funny because I still can't wrap my mind around how one would manage to have sex on a unicorn. Like how, how do you do this and not fall off or, I don't know, hurt something?

ALYSSA: A lot of core strength. 

KIM: Yeah.

ALYSSA: An insane amount of core strength. 

KIM: Those sit-ups come in handy there, I guess.

CHARLI: I don't know. I thought, I personally found it a little painful to watch. It was nice to finally have all three of them together. That was nice and something everyone, including myself, have been looking forward to forever. Because Yennefer is being obnoxiously nice. It's almost painful to watch because you know why she's there as you watch it and I mean, I love her storyline, I love that she lost her powers and everything, but just knowing that the reason she is there is to capture Ciri and bring her to Voleth Meir is just—you know, and she was being so nice and so, and she was being so weird. And I'm like, yeah, Geralt is smiling from ear to ear. And he's just, like, enjoying this moment, you know, with his two, two ladies. Finally, by his side, all of them, together again. And it's like, dude, wake up.

ALYSSA: Yeah.

CHARLI: Why don't you see what's going on here?

ALYSSA: Yeah, I could see that as well. Like, it must be so surreal for him. I'm sure that Yennefer doesn't know how to react either. Just because, I think, again, like, the conflict is brewing in her head, the reality of what consequences her actions could take if she follows through with her plan. But yeah, there's that sinister undertone that we the audience are aware of that, that Yennefer is aware of. But it certainly can underscore the scene. In the following scene, Francesca has her baby, with Fringilla and Filavandrel as witnesses. The elves celebrate into the night but Cahir reveals that the White Flame will be visiting Cintra. Gage goes to find Filavandrel down at the training courtyard and lets him know that the baby's arriving. I think it's been like four days. I don't know how long it's been. But it certainly hasn't been that long since they were chilling with Voleth Meir. This is definitely like, this is a very fresh baby given this expedited timeline of her magic. She has the baby but there's, lik,e some complications that it's like not breathing. But Fringilla is able to get the baby to cry and to, you know, cough up anything it has, just with, like, kind of a little warmth, as she puts it. And yeah, the elves are over the moon at the hope and the joy that this baby represents. And the fact that it's healthy. It's the first full-blooded elven baby in, like, lord knows how long, and then here comes to ruin the moment, as he's wont to do. 

CHARLI: I forget. An elven child, a healthy elven child being born is a huge deal for the elves. Because as we learn, this hasn't happened in a while. It doesn't happen very often. But I think that's pretty true to the books, isn't it? The elves, the young elves, joined Aelirenn’s Rebellion–

ALYSSA: Yeah.

CHARLI: –who was this elven figurehead. All the young elves who joined her died, but it's only the young elves who can have children, I think. And since they're all dead, the elves have trouble, now, reproducing and the humans were able to outnumber them more and more and more.

ALYSSA: Yeah, they did discover along the way that humans and elves can procreate with each other. But obviously then that, quote, unquote, dilutes the Elven bloodlines. So there are, like, half-elves, quarter elves, like Yennefer, that are born. But you know, no full-blooded elves in a very, very long time.

CHARLI: So Francesca has this baby. And I think Voleth Meir told her that you will have to spend some time amongst humans to get what you want, right? 

ALYSSA: Yeah. 

CHARLI:  So this baby is what she wants because she says, all she wants is for the baby to live and to have a life. And it's a healthy baby because she has the help and the aid of Nilfgaard too, and Fringilla was there you know, she took it in her arms and that's when the baby started to breathe. So it was literally living amongst humans that sort of saved her baby, right?

KIM: Mhmm. So Cahir comes in to ruin the day, he sees Fringilla drifting—drifting from the cause and says what if the elves no longer need Nilfgaard's help. Obviously, the elves cannot rank up their numbers quickly enough on their own, so they will need Nilfgaard's help and they will continue to do so, even with that miracle child to keep their spirits up, but they still will need alliance among the humans to fight for that cause. Yeah, then again, he probably just says that to plant little seeds of doubt.

ALYSSA: It seems so counterproductive. Like, why would you do that amongst your own ranks? That seems a bit silly.

CHARLI: I think he does have a point, though, with what if the Elves don't need Nilfgaard anymore? Because rationally, you're right. And of course, they do. They can't do it on their own. But it's a thing of hope. And right now, they're in very high spirits because this child was born and it's a miracle. And it's like, we can do this guys. We have a child now. And if we can have one, we can have others and stuff. So it's a thing of hope. So I think I agree with you. But I think he does have a point. Again, he's so sure of himself and of his position. And even when he hands Fringilla like the letter, he's so sure of himself. He questions her position. And he's like, he's basically like, I hope you're not in trouble. I hope you know what you're doing to her. He has no, no thought that he might also not be the Emperor's favorite right now, that he's the one who has to keep Fringilla with the cause for her own sake as well, apparently, because he's like, girl, I hope you know what you're doing. 

ALYSSA: And it does tie back to the theme of hope, just because I think up until this point, Fringilla and Francesca's goals have been incredibly intertwined. Not just because Voleth Meir told them so, but because given the resources that each of them has, they can be mutually beneficial toward each other. But both Cahir and Voleth Meir prey on that in this scene. For you know, seemingly different reasons, but, like, maybe they're both predators in their own way. When Cahir actually leaves this scene, Fringilla hears in her ear, “they will take it. First your power, then your freedom”. The hope that even Fringilla feels in regards to this elven baby, the Deathless Mother feeds off of that and Cahir’s got his own issues. I think this is where we're starting to see, like, a true shift in her. A lot of it is because of Cahir. So yeah, I think this is that moment where the doubt starts to creep in. In the next scene, Ciri confides in Nenneke as they light candles in the temple. Ciri shares a lot of her doubts about, like, her family, her upbringing, her place in the world, all of this stuff, and what her goals are, and where she's going to go next. Nenneke tells her “hatred is an endless circle of fear and desperation, and who can tell which came first. Perhaps your grandmother's hypocrisy when it comes to the elves was rooted in something honest, a desire to protect you. Your true power resides in more than your blood, Ciri, with the right guidance, you have the ability to break the cycle of hatred once and for all.” And this is very similar to something that Geralt told her in the previous episode, Turn Your Back. Ciri had said to Geralt, “I want to be like you. I want to be indifferent to the past, to the lies, to things I've done, please let me have that.” And Geralt tells her “that's not how this works. Neither you nor I can just forget who we are. We can't kill our feelings, our best chances to kill the hatred we may hold on to and move on.” It's so close to what's written in the books and it's not what's written in the books. It's interesting to see what Ciri's challenges and her internal conflict in her internal world is like. And Nenneke is a  delightful person to bring that out of her for the audience, I think.

CHARLI: Ciri carries a lot of resentment within herself, that no one told her who she was, what she was, you know, and she still has a lot to learn. And one of the things she has to learn is that the path of revenge is not a good one. Not the best one for her to take, maybe, and it does seem a bit like that's going to be a major theme for her to not tap into that side of her, maybe. It remains to be seen. But—

KIM: Yeah, I feel like this, this theme that this circle of hatred, it doesn't…it doesn't bring you peace, revenge doesn't bring you peace. It just eats you from the inside out.

ALYSSA: Yeah.

KIM: It's just a reoccurring theme that we have throughout the episode, the season, this whole series, this whole story generally, and realizing that Calanthe was not the perfect idol that Ciri made her out to be as her, as her guardian, as her grandmother. It's really hard to acknowledge that the people you love, that you look up to, that they are not perfect, and that they do or did some horrible things. And it's a very important step also for Ciri and in her development into her own person with her own beliefs and her own standards. On the other hand, that we can still love people even though we might not agree with everything that they stand for, and that we can improve wrongs that have been committed by others without having to condemn them as a whole person.

ALYSSA: It's impossible to stray, like, all the different shades of a person and to parse them out into what's good and what's evil about them. The note about resentment, because I certainly agree, and I've been thinking about that a lot lately, the idea that resentment or anything that's directed toward another person, they don't impact the other person, like not really. It just ends up, like, upsetting you or, like, poisoning you. And I think we see that with Ciri.  All of her hatred is contained in the idea of the black knight. of the Nilfgaardian knight, but it doesn't do anything to Cahir. Cahir's fine, Cahir's thriving. He doesn't give a shit. He doesn't know that this girl has this deep-seated resentment for him that's causing her so much internal turmoil and really fracturing a lot of her morality. He's thriving in his bathrobe in Cintra. He doesn't care.

CHARLI: Self-care, bae!

ALYSSA: Baybee. But it's nice to see that she's thinking about it already and that she's verbalizing it already. And that people are able to have honest and open conversations with her about it.

CHARLI: I thought the entire scene was so nice, with the, I mean, I love candles, personally. 

ALYSSA: Yeah.

CHARLI: You know, it looked very beautiful. And the little nod to you know, four roads, lighting a candle that was very, very sweet.

ALYSSA: And at the end of the scene, Nenneke's like, I've got a hundred more that way. And then she just kind of like peaces out. 

CHARLI: Oh, yeah, she's so great.

ALYSSA: Yeah she’s just delightful. In the next scene, Geralt and Yennefer are strolling throughout the temple together. And this is kind of where, at least in my opinion, we're starting to feel, like, the spirit of the Dear Friend letter. There's, like, some skepticism between the two of them. They are still trying to suss each other out, where they've ended up, why they're here. Just a little bit is off to make them both a little suspicious, especially again, given what the audience knows.

KIM: Look at them having a real conversation about feelings, could have been so much easier if they would just talk to each other more often. Not so passive-aggressively. There's so much more going on than what's actually being said. Obviously, as the audience, we know both sides of the conversation and what lies beneath, and revisit also their old feelings. I'm Geralt- Yennefer all the way. I love seeing them have an actual conversation.

CHARLI: Agreed, that was necessary as well. There's a lot to unpack between the two of them that they don't even get into all of it. But they get into the most important bits for now. Like, you hurt me, yeah, I know, I was hurting too. And when he asked her, like, what are you doing here? Your heart has been pounding so fast this entire time. I mean, she's being truthful, she's like, I have wounds that refuse to heal. Obviously, her magic that's gone, still. So it's not a lie, per se, but–and, and you see in Geralt's face that he's suspicious for a second, and then it's like he brushes it away, as if he doesn't want to deal with it. He refuses to believe that she could have any other agenda for being here. But it was nice, and it was important for me personally as a viewer to see that he is catching on that something's up, you know, he is not completely oblivious to her, to why she's here. And also the concerns he shows when she mentioned that she ran into Jaskier in Oxenfurt you know. Because there's a lot to unpack there as well, with the way it ended between those two. Yeah, all those things that we've seen coming for a while that now finally get let out, a little bit.

ALYSSA: In the next scene at Codingher and Fenn’s, Istredd discovers records of the Lara gene and the Cintran bloodline. I still love Codingher and Fenn, they're so delightful and I just love Istredd as their straight man, which is so fun. At some point as they're looking through these books, Fenn is like, you know, it's probably pure coincidence that Emyhr wants the princess with the secret power to shatter monoliths for her claim to the throne that he already took by force. And I think it's at this line, Codingher is like, you know what would help us? Less sarcasm. But the thing that they're actually able to find is a note about this weapon and the excerpt is, “and when the humans proved hostile, bringing death and destruction, multiplying and infesting their lands, the elves built a weapon to destroy them.” And then Fenn goes into the entomology of it. “Paraben means weapon, but this is prefin, which is more like drefin. It's a mistranslation. The elves didn't build a weapon. They built a warrior, Lara Dorren. And when the babe was born, a field of Feainnewedd sprung up and Lara Dorren drew her last breath crying. ‘Know this, my curse will hound your descendants unto the 10th generation until the columns of time and space tremble and open for my people. Then my vengeance will be born again.’” This is the vision that we saw on the Dol Durza with Triss, acouple of episodes back. We saw Lara Dorren and her baby in the yellow dress. Codingher, Fenn, and Istredd, suspect that Calanthe hid her elven bloodline because she knew there was a generational weapon within it. So this kind of answers Ciri's question to Nenneke about, like, why Calanthe may have had some hatred toward the elves— a lot of hatred toward the elves, overblown racism toward the elves. And I really do love this storyline for Istredd, just because it makes so much sense for him.

KIM: Yeah, it's giving a little Indiana Jones vibes, I love it. Poring over old scrolls and books and then finding this tiny mistranslation that obviously was a mistranslation. How could—how could we have overlooked this before? And then this is the final clue that gives way to the solution. And then everyone just excitedly packs their bags and just goes find the treasure. I love the exchange between them, especially that “you know what would help? Less sarcasm” line and I loved the bit of lore about Lara Dorren, and just the whole story around it, and how that war between elves and humans started. It always breaks my heart, kind of. It's so— it's such a tragic story. And I love it. And I love that they incorporate it in the show.

ALYSSA: We've been hearing about the story of Lara Dorren throughout the entire season. But we're just getting pieces here and there. We get this piece here about the genetic warrior. We got the piece in the Dol Durza where we actually saw her in the fields of Feainnewedd dying. And then all the way back in episode one, in A Grain of Truth, the story that Nivellen told with, like, the shadow lamp was the story of Lara Dorren. And I think it might have been just referred to at the time as an elven warrior and a human warrior or a human mage. All of this kind of pieces together throughout the season.

CHARLI: That's just great.

ALYSSA: It’s good.

CHARLI: I mean, I agree that they're just delightful and great casting and the only thing this scene lacked was Esmeralda, the cat was not present. 

ALYSSA: Sadness. 

CHARLI: Yeah.

ALYSSA (VOICEOVER): Before we continue our discussion, we’re going to hand it over to Lars from WitcherFlix for recent news on the Netflix show. When we come back, Kim, Charli, and I will continue our discussion of “Dear Friend”.

“Tidings from Toussaint”

[“Tidings from Toussaint” theme music by MojoFilter Media]

LARS FROM WITCHERFLIX: Hey, it's Lars from WitcherFlix and this is "Tidings from Toussaint". Welcome back everybody. Last weekend the annual Netflix TUDUM event took place where we finally learned more about the Witcher shows and what we can expect in the coming months.

We now have at least the rough time frame Season 3 of the main show will be released. The new season will be available in "Summer 2023". This could mean as early as May, but also in late September. Well, the post production is already in full swing and they definitely have a lot to work on, if you consider all the Wild things that happen in the Witcher book "Time of Contempt", which Season 3 is adapting.

Netflix also showed a short video from behind the scenes of Season 3 with Anya Chalotra and Freya Allan in costume. Some scenes have Ciri fighting on a fake boat. She used a very special sword: it's Geralt's sword, the one with Renfri's brooch that Geralt got back in Season 1. Whatever led to Ciri getting this sword, will be interesting to see.

Thanks to the TUDUM event we finally have some more substantial news about the Witcher spinoff miniseries "Blood Origin". Most importantly, it will see its release this Christmas, on December 25. Netflix confirmed that the show will consist of four episodes.

Show creator Declan de Barra has sat down with Netflix and talked about Blood Origin and its ties to the Witcher books and the Witcher main series: "Viewers will be surprised because they’re going to see a story told about a period of elven history that was buried by the humans after their arrival and eventual conquest of the continent […] We get to tell a tale about the elves when they were at their height, like all great societies before their fall. […] Blood Origin sets up certain core characters and fan favorites from the books in the later Witcher series. There are items and discoveries that are made in this world that play off in later seasons of The Witcher and have critical effects on the storyline. Witcher creator Lauren Schmidt (Hissrich), the producers and I spent a lot of time seeding new Easter eggs and answering older Easter eggs from other episodes and series. We’re weaving a complex spider web of delicious story that stretches over thousands of years."

Netflix also revealed a new character for Blood Origin that plays quite an important role: Seanchai is a "shapeshifting elf and collector of old lore with the abilities to travel between time and worlds. Very few of her kind remain. She brings long forgotten stories back to life when a world needs them most." Seanchai is played by Hollywood actress Minnie Driver. Her most famous movies include "James Bond: GoldenEye", "Good Will Hunting" or Disney's "Tarzan". Netflix adds that Minnie Driver's character will be the show's narrator.

Anyway guys, that's it for me for today. I hope you all stay safe and well. We'll talk again in the next episode of Breakfast in Beauclair. Until then, thanks again for listening and good luck on the path!

[“Tidings from Toussaint” theme music by MojoFilter Media]

“Dear Friend…”: Listener Call-in Segment

[Music by MojoFilter Media]

ALYSSA (VOICEOVER): Hi everyone! Welcome to our listener call-in segment, “Dear Friend…”. Keep on listening as members of our international hanza share their thoughts on what we’re discussing in this episode:

MINDY: Transcript to come.

MICHELLE: Transcript to come.

ALYSSA (VOICEOVER): Thanks to Mindy and Michelle for sending in their thoughts on Episode 206 “Dear Friend”! Hear your voice in a future “Dear Friend…” segment by emailing greetings@breakfastinbeauclair.com or DMing the podcast on social for more information.

[Music by MojoFilter Media]

Discussion

ALYSSA (VOICEOVER): Hey everyone! Welcome back from the break. When we left off, Francesca had given birth to her elven baby in Cintra, reigniting elven hope, but shedding doubt on their alliance with Nilfgaard. Geralt and Ciri had reunited with Yennefer, while Istredd uncovered the girl’s valuable nature as a bearer of Elder Blood.

In the next scene, Dara speaks to the owl and tells it about his relationship to Ciri. So Dara is spilling his heart out to this owl on this windowsill in Cintra, but he's telling this owl a lot of things that not a lot of people know. And all of this is of course gonna get funneled back to a certain spymaster, so it is not great. But Dara doesn't know any better. So, he doesn't know everything that we know.

KIM: Obviously everyone that read the books or played the games, knows that this is not just any owl just sitting there randomly listening.

CHARLI: I almost envy the people who don't know the books or games, when they see this scene because you gotta be like, why is he talking to an owl?

KIM: This must mean something. 

CHARLI: Yeah. What is the owl? Who is the owl? That must be fun to try and figure it out. He must feel very, very funny speaking to an owl.

ALYSSA: I wonder if they put the owl in post because, I do know that they had an owl there. But I don't know how cooperative it was all of the time. And there are some close shots of, like, just its little face, every once in a while. They just probably put, like, a close-up shot on the owl for a while. Let it roll for five minutes and then sprinkled that throughout the season. 

CHARLI: I think it's maybe both. 

ALYSSA: I think it's a little bit of both. Yeah, because there are close-up shots of him doing his monologue and close-up shots of the owl. And then I think only a brief introductory shot of the two of them sitting there together. Yeah. Movie magic.

KIM: Movie magic. 

ALYSSA: And in the following scene, back at the temple, Ciri discovers Jarre wounded. Rience and the Michelet brothers attack Ciri, Geralt, and Yennefer. Yennefer guides Ciri to opening a portal, leaving Geralt behind and the two women land in a dark building. This is a fight scene that will be familiar to readers of Blood of Elves. I think this happens in chapter six, at the end of chapter six, if I remember correctly. It's nice to see it on screen, I think, even if it is different to what we saw in the books. All of you know that I'm very squeamish. It's a very gratuitous fight scene, a la Kingsman or Deadpool in my opinion. But it's, it's very fun. For the most part.

KIM: Yes. So for a second. I was afraid they were going to use the music that they used in the trailer. Thank God they did not.

CHARLI: Kanye West?

KIM: Oh, gosh, I don't know who took the artistic liberty to put that music over it. But yeah, anyways, they didn't use it in the scene, and that's all that matters to me. Overall, I—it was good action, and I did like Deadpool. I know Charli has a lot of thoughts on this.

CHARLI: It's not that many thoughts. I'm not gonna go into the detail I put down. I did not like the fight scene the first time I saw it, because the only thing that stayed with me after it, after this episode, was the slo-mo of the tooth flying through the air. 

ALYSSA: Very Kingsman. Yeah.

CHARLI: And I liked Kingsman and I liked Deadpool, but I hate slo-mo if it's used excessively. I don't mind it here and there. But it was used a bit too much this season. Personally, I didn't like this fight just because that stayed with me and the flying tooth, I still hate it. I hate it with a passion. I—I think it's so unnecessary. It's ridiculous. It doesn't have any place in this.

ALYSSA: We should name one of our Discord channels or a tavern The Flying Tooth.

CHARLI: We should. Oh, God.

ALYSSA: I feel like that's a really good adjective noun, a name for a tavern. 

CHARLI: Yeah. Sure, absolutely should but yeah, I mean I rewatched it of course, and I actually like the fight itself now, but I still hate that flying tooth. It’s just, what the hell.

ALYSSA: I think it's fair. 

CHARLI: Yeah, the fight had great CGI with the signs and the usage of Aard and stuff. It was great. It looked really good. I liked that even though it was different than the Michelet brother's fight in the books. It was very, very engaging, the scene itself, I liked that was so dark, you know, and you only have this moonlit chamber, which made for a really cool atmosphere. It was good action and Geralt didn't have a weapon in this fight. So he had to get creative with—with what to do. And I like how he uses the room and the inventory of the room basically to, like, defend himself. Like, pick up a stool here, table there. That is what you would do, I guess if your opponents are three armed men and you got nothing, I feel like the first thing you would try and do is arm yourself in any way possible, probably. So yeah, that was nice. The choreography was really good. What I found funny was that the one guy when the fight started, one of the brothers, Geralt punched him. And that's how the fight started, basically. That guy got into punching distance before the fight even started, and that's not something you would do if you were in your right mind. But it had to start somewhere and so it's not a problem or anything, but it's just something I noticed.

ALYSSA: I will say some of the sillier things about this fight that I do miss from the books, I miss how freaking French the Michelet brothers were, or at least just, like, how they come across in the books and in Peter Kenny's rendition of them. It's so fun, and I wish we got to see more of them, rather than just to have, like, them be equally as faceless as, like, Nohorn and everybody else in Renfri’s fight. Like, it would have been nice to kind of, like, have the world feel a little bigger by getting to know who these people are. Obviously, we only have eight episodes and a very short amount of time. But the last we heard about them, Lydia just told Rience like I know these four brothers that are, like, very good at what they do. And then he just, like, shows up with these, like, dudes. I think the unique thing about the Michelet brothers was how in tandem they worked. I would have loved to have more of that. Makes it more interesting, I think. If the fight had, like, a different cadence, or there was something about their fighting style that was unique to them. But it really just felt like Geralt is kind of picking them off one by one, which, you know, happens in books. 

CHARLI: Which is fair, yeah.

ALYSSA: It felt like more of the same. So I'd have loved to have like another element or for there to be something more spectacular than a flying tooth.

CHARLI: I mean, the—what I only noticed when I rewatched, was that one time that one of the brothers was like on top of him and Geralt was lying on his back and he like Aard’d him into the air and put up his sword and let him fall flat on the sword with, with his face. That was pretty cool. There were a few cool things in there. But yeah, like you say, it was more about Geralt and how he takes them out than it was about how they fight and try to subdue him, the guy without a weapon. 

ALYSSA: Yeah. 

CHARLI: So there was lots of grappling and Geralt trying to intercept their movements before they even got to him. It was—it was good. It could have been better. I think the slow-mo and the sped-up parts took away from it. I think that the contained space, the limited space took away from it. But it was fine.

ALYSSA: Yeah, they certainly serve their purpose though, they keep Geralt busy while Yennefer and Ciri go running off somewhere and leave Rience available to follow them. Toward the end of this, Ciri and Yennefer lock themselves in a room, they have no way out though. And Yennefer tells Ciri like she has to open a portal or they're both gonna die. Rience is at the door using his fire to try to, you know, blow everything open. He's completely melting the doorway. So Ciri uses the orbuculum to—I don't know, like draw her powers from it? It's unclear what that thing actually does. If it's just a little, like, mood fish that tells you that, like, how you're feeling or if it's actually a source for power, it's unclear. In any case, she is able to open a portal with Yennefer's guidance. The orbuculum erupts or cracks. Once Ciri goes through, Rience leaves, there's no reason for him to be there anymore. And you just see Geralt's little face in the hole in the doorway and he's like, oh no, but why! Yennefer just, you know, peaces out.

KIM: Ah, the way he just looks through that melted door and just sees them stepping through the port. I was like, no, please don't do this to me.

CHARLI: I loved that.

KIM: God, it was so good, but it tore my heart in two.

CHARLI: I thought it was very, very fitting that Geralt, as you saw them disappear, wasn't angry or anything. He was just— he had this fucking disappointed look on his face. And he was just very softly, he just said, “Yen, stop”. Like, and it was just like, that's a real reaction, I guess. Because the utter disappointment, you didn't see it coming. That pierced my heart a little that was like, aw. I loved that. I love how they did that.

ALYSSA:  Yeah, I mean, it's gone to the ends of the world for his ward, for Ciri, to be betrayed by a woman that he loves, that he trusts is—is heartbreaking.

CHARLI: Abeyance is very intimidating. And I don't know how I feel about that.

ALYSSA: I hate it. I hate it so much.

CHARLI: I love to hate it.

ALYSSA: Not that I hate this about the show, where I hate Chris Fulton or whatever. Like, on a very personal level, I just feel very personally attached, because I hate Rience in the books, and I love to hate him because he's so dumb. And I say this in every single episode. And I can't hate him for the same reasons in the show because he's scary. 

CHARLI: He's competent. He's competent.

ALYSSA: Yes, the worst kind of scary. 

KIM: Yes. Oh, my God, he is— you actually have a reason to fear him. Oh, it's horrible. I love it. 

CHARLI: It is. And I love having the books. He thinks so highly of himself, but he doesn't amount to much. 

ALYSSA: No. 

CHARLI: And in the show, he thinks highly of himself, probably, apparently. And he's right to, because he can actually do things and he can actually, you know, he teleports left and right all over the continent. And he finds Ciri and he encircles in fire and he almost has her— he just— I don't know, he's just, he just feels like such a threat. 

ALYSSA: Yeah.

CHARLI: I mean, I feel like Alyssa, you've talked about this before, but he would have been enough.

ALYSSA: He would have been enough for this season. Like I really think that Rience would have been fine, and yet if they kept Eskel in the Leshy, I think they should have dragged it out to episode eight. Like both of those things, I think, would have been more than enough for the entire season, if they allowed them to breathe, and then they could have killed off Eskel, and we would have cared. 

CHARLI: Oh, well.

ALYSSA: RIP our boy. As we close out the episode, Triss tells Vesemir that the mutagen is gone. And she leaves Kaer Morhen for Aretuza, telling her to say on what she knows. When we last saw Triss, Coen had told her over dinner, he's like it's a good thing that that guy didn't leave her with anything. And she's like, oh, shit, maybe he did. So she realizes that Rience took the bottle of Elder Blood. And she now has to go tell Vesemir. And it's so dangerous that she goes to Tissaia and tells her everything about her time in Kaer Morhen, about Ciri, about the Elder Blood, believing that this isn't something that she should keep to herself. There's no way that this can go poorly.

CHARLI: Yeah, I mean, that was a great cliffhanger to end the episode. Tissaia, MyAnna Buring. She doesn't even really say anything in this scene. She's still just so great. Once Triss teleports in there. I don't know what, what do you guys think is her feeling towards Yennefer at this point?

ALYSSA: Triss or Tissaia?

CHARLI: Tissaia.

ALYSSA: Um…I don't know. I think Yennefer is so far off the grid. I think one of the last times they'd seen each other, Tissaia told Yen to stay low and to let Vilgefortz take the mantle, yadda yadda yadda. So I feel like as far as Tissaia knows, Yennefer is doing that, she has no reason to suspect that Yennefer's in league with a Deathless Mother or that she's like, traipsing around the continent, like looking to regain her power. I think as far as Tissaia knows, Yennefer is doing as she's told, which I feel like is a mistake.

KIM: Yeah, I would agree with this. So, Tissaia probably thinks that Yennefer is hopefully keeping out of trouble, trying her best at least.

CHARLI: But the last time she saw Yennefer, was when she broke Cahir out at the end of episode three, right? 

ALYSSA: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

CHARLI: Don't you think there's an element of she feels betrayed or she feels like I can't believe Yennefer did that?

ALYSSA: You know, we had a—we had a conversation about that, at the time with Kyle and Elora. We couldn't read her face. MyAnna's face acting is so good, and like it is in this scene as well, when she's kind of like sitting there. And her face as she's thinking over the desk is just beautiful, Renaissance worthy. At the end of episode two or three of what you're talking about Charli, when Yennefer frees Cahir and they go running off, it's just like a Mona Lisa smile. You can't tell if she's proud of Yennefer, you can't tell if she's horrified. To me, it reads like pride that Yennefer can take command of her own destiny and she escapes. Because I feel like Tissaia knows that she would be miserable or taken advantage of if she stayed in Aretuza and I feel like she still does have a lot of loyalty toward her girls and a lot of respect and wants to protect them. At the same time, you can't know for sure. She doesn't have any lines. She just stands there. So I don't know. I really don't know.

KIM: Yeah, I would think that maybe Tissaia would be like, I'm not 100% sure what you're doing, but I'm sure you have a good reason to do what you're doing. 

CHARLI: Probably.

KIM: You just go ahead. I taught you well, my child. Now go on and wreak havoc on the world.

ALYSSA: We'll see that it causes a lot of strife for Triss, for Tissaia in the next episode 207. The knowledge that Triss brings to her will ripple out throughout the Brotherhood and throughout the continent. And that really does bring us to the end of the episode. Did you guys have any overall thoughts on this episode as a whole?

KIM: Yeah, definitely. So I think this episode was so jam-packed with; with different things that were happening. We're obviously advancing closer to the season finale. I just want to come back to that Dear Friend letters for a second, it gave the episode its name. And I had really high hopes that they would go a little more into detail about this and the original source material from the books, and even the Blood and Wine expansion of Witcher 3 goes into that, you actually receive that letter. And then just depending on the choices you made in the game, it's either like a love letter or it's that Dear Friend letter. The way they—they wove that into the episode was nicely done, that when they get interrupted by Ciri, Geralt is completely overwhelmed by the situation and doesn't know what to say. So he just completely puts his foot in his mouth and just says, oh, her, well, you just saw me may make out with her, but that's a dear friend, which is obviously just awkward for everyone involved. Yennefer reacting the way that she does, did you just say dear friend, like what is going on? Why—Why would you say this Geralt? It is a very Geralt thing to do, and I loved it. I wish there was a little bit more of that passive aggressiveness of that letter going on just like maybe a sentence or two, nothing much, but just like a little bit more. But yeah, overall, I love that, that few moments where the crew was finally back together, then obviously they go their separate ways again, but I really enjoyed this episode. It was a nice episode, the birth of the elven child felt like a mixture between an end to a storyline which automatically started a new, very important subplot with the elven revolution and this split in the elves' perception of Nilfgaard, of Fringilla versus Cahir who represents Emhyr and how that may recur in later—in later seasons, in later episodes, that the elves might decide that they don't need all of Nilfgaard to support their cause. There's so much going on. And I love to see some of those subplot lines and recur in later episodes and everything.

CHARLI: Yeah, I agree, overall. I mean, I don't think it's my favorite episode of the season. But it's a decent episode. It's a good episode, I agree with, about the friend—Dear Friend letter. I wish they'd done more with it, even though the little nod was nice, but it was just, like you say, it's the title of the episode. A part of me doesn't really understand, because it's such a big thing within the community, within the fandom, you know, I mean, it's one of Yennefer’s—the character of Yennefer. It's one of Yennefer's most iconic moments in the entire book series. So a part of me, I think, just doesn't understand how they can just completely gloss over that and completely lose that part of her character. But then again, I mean, this whole storyline, this whole Voleth Meir capturing Ciri story arc is just not Yennefer from the book. So I don't know how they could have woven it in there, in that same way.

ALYSSA: That was going to be the question that I posed, like, do you guys feel that the Yennefer we have in this series would have even written that letter in the same way?

CHARLI: Probably not. Because their relationship, actually, when she asks him when he says, dear friend, this is my dear friend, and she says, dear friend? Is actually perfect, the way it is for her character. Because what else would show-Yennefer say to him in that moment? Like, it's been years that the way they separated, you know? There isn't this depth to it that we get from the pages and pages of book dialogue and thoughts we get to read. Even if they had put it in more, maybe it wouldn't have had the same impact.

ALYSSA: I think the crux of the letter, as well, or the fact that it's a return letter. Geralt reached out to her for the first time in two years requesting something of her. The fact that they're meeting on neutral terms and that Geralt isn't asking anything of her in this moment, I feel like It would be impossible for her to have the same response with the same intent without the ask, I feel like.

KIM: Yes, I would agree with this. It's very fitting and everything and they're different circumstances than, than in the books. I was just such a big fan of the letter. 

CHARLI: Yeah. Weren't we all?

ALYSSA: Yeah, I know. I mean, I am, too. There is still room though, in season three, like, I think based on everything that happens in the rest of season two, they're gonna have to mend their little family. So maybe there is another opportunity, maybe not for the letter that might have already kind of come and gone. But Yennefer will still have to respond to that ask at some point, for the role of Ciri's mentor. I think for me overall, it was, it was a hefty episode. So much has happened in every episode. And we're really starting to sow the seeds of doubt that we're really going to push into next episode, Voleth Meir, and then see the consequences of in episode 208 Family. We're kind of shuffling everybody around the continent, getting them where we need to be for the end game.

KIM: Let's see.

ALYSSA: So that is it for our show today. Kim, Charli, thank you so much for joining us for this episode. And thank you to our Hanza for listening. So where can people find you both? And is there anything that our community can help you with or anything that you'd like to share with them? 

KIM: So you can find me on Instagram, I have, actually, two accounts, you can find me at kim_so96, and organised_ by_kim, organised spelt with an s, where I upload like very satisfying, like cleaning and building furniture, videos, and all that kind of stuff. So if you're into that, check that out. You can also find me on Archive Of Our Own. So if you're into Witcher fanfiction, I do have two stories uploaded there. You can find me there under semis_girl. If you can't find it, just feel free to send me a message on there, on Instagram or anything and I can send you a link. And then also, obviously I want to use this opportunity to shamelessly promote myself so if you're a creator or student in the film industry, and if you have any projects going on where you would need an actor or a voice actor or anything, feel free to shoot me a message!

CHARLI:  Again, I don't have anything to plug in. But you can find me on Instagram at xcharli (just an i) x. And that's it.

ALYSSA:  You could also see Charli in our weekly D&D games on the Hanza Discord, who are you playing now?

CHARLI: I play Shandris Redbane, a very cool and not murdery at all, warlock tiefling.

ALYSSA: Amazing. And you can catch all of our communities, and D&D games on the Hanza of Discord at bit.ly/thehanzadiscord. And those are run four or five times a week now. We now have two DMs within the Hanza Discord, so you can catch all of that and next episode join us as we discuss The Witcher season two episode seven, Voleth Meir.

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 music by MojoFilter Media.

Breakfast in Beauclair is produced by Alyssa in New York City with Luis of Kovir, The Owner of The Churlish Porpoise, Katie (The Redhead of Toussaint), Jacob B., Ayvo of Gulet, Bee Haven of the Edge of the World, Charlotte from Vengerberg Glamarye, RedKite, The Original Roach, Codringher’s Cat, Libby, Jennidy Mundilovitch, Wolf, Corey from the US, John of Ryblia, Tom from Australia, Jill Cate, The Tabby Witch, Olle from Sweden, James Carson III, Psilocybe Sorcerer, A Toussaint Knight, Jeanette of Brokilon, Miriam of Temeria, Softie, and Mary the Moo.

Special thanks to Kim and Charli for joining us for this episode and our international hanza for their support.

Transcriptionist: Kristianne Benganio

 

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