WiC Watches: The Witcher
By Dan Selcke
Image: The Witcher/Netflix
Episode 6: “Rare Species”
A solid structure and some genuinely affecting character moments make “Rare Species” one of the show’s best episodes so far.
Let’s start with the structure. Now that Geralt and Yennefer, at least, have met, we don’t have to split our attention between three different timelines. Having these two in the same place allows writer Haily Hall to focus on them and their hopes, dreams and fears.
It helps to be working off “The Bounds of Reason,” one of the more rollicking adventure yarns from Sapochnik’s early books. The plot: there are a bunch of people who are all looking to kill a dragon, some for gold (the murderous reavers), some for the promise of land (the dwarves), and Yennefer because she thinks she can strip the dragon for parts and use them to make herself fertile again. So we’ve got a bunch of eclectic characters with competing goals off on an adventure. It’s a classic because it works.
I like that “Rare Species” takes the time to build camaraderie among those characters rather than rushing towards the conclusion; I think the hour-long runtime actually suits this episode. I liked the early campfire scene, where these rivals crack jokes, eat monster meat and get to know each other. The self-important knight Eyck is enjoyably pompous, if extremely expendable, and the mysterious Borch Three Jackdaws — an older adventurer after the dragon for unknown reasons — draws some pathos out of Geralt, whom Borch recruited for this venture. All along, Henry Cavill has been making a herculean effort to bring some seriousness to a character who’s always a line away from camp, and this episode features his most impressive work yet. Geralt may have yellow eyes and white hair and know how to recite the names of 1,000-and-one fairy creatures, but when he and Borch talk about species dying out, and he stares off into the middle distance, you feel something. There’s an ache and a yearning at the center of Geralt. You can build something on that.
I was also genuinely impressed by his scenes with Yennefer. While ascending a steep mountain to find the dragon, Borch falls, inspiring the gang to do some “what’s it all about?” soul-searching. Geralt ends up in Yennefer’s tent, and while they do have sex (as Yenn predicted), what really drew me in was their conversation. The two of them lay on Yenn’s bed afterward and just…talk. What do they want out of life? What do they regret? What do they mean to each other? “I dreamed of becoming important to someone,” Yenn says of her desire to be able to bear children again. “Someday.” “You’re important to me,” Geralt replies. It’s sweet and direct and well-played by these actors. This is the first time I’ve really believed in one of the relationships on this show. You can also build something on that.
Their fight at the end of the episode hurts to watch, a little, as does Geralt taking out his anger on Jaskier, who I’m glad to see is capable of being more than comic relief. It’s a good episode for our main characters.
That said, the special effects kind of let the episode down at the climax. When the adventurers do finally encounter a dragon (with a twist), it looks…kinda rough. I’m used to watching the dragons on Game of Thrones and it’s hard not to compare. Also, Geralt and Yennefer seem pretty OP, fending off all those reavers by their lonesome. Although I liked the bit where Yennefer shanked the head guy in the throat.
As you can probably guess, the reavers aren’t given anything remotely resembling deep characterization. The dwarves are a tiny step above them, and Borch’s pair of fierce black Amazonian warrior-esque protecters come dangerously close to being exotic stereotypes. Still, overall, the dragon story is a winner.
The Ciri story, on the other hand, just feels like it’s running in place. Ciri and Dara fight off the doppler. Dara leaves Ciri, and I have already forgotten that he existed. At one point the doppler attacks Cahir in what we discover at the end of their fight is the back of a bar, and I don’t know why they fought. It has something to do with Ciri being the fulfillment of same prophecy so vague it’s hard to care. You know how fantasy stories love their vague prophecies.
And while I’m getting used to it, I still don’t like how the show dips into modern vernacular. One of the dwarves calls Eyck “a fucking dumbbell.” At one point, Jaskier marvels that dragons “are, in fact, a thing.” Geralt sounds as incredulous as any high schooler when he finds out why Yennefer is after the dragon. “Seriously?” he asks. “You? A mother?” I’ve said this already, but the show’s use of this familiar language marks it as a campy diversion rather than a serious work of fantasy, which I think is what it’s trying to be? Maybe the finale will clear things up for good.