The Witcher 2×04 “Redanian Intelligence”
Episode 4 deserves five golden stars for folding Jaskier back into the narrative. His character is no longer just comic relief, if he ever was. He is using his connections and fame to smuggle elves to safety, an unsung hero in his own right. Joey Bates, who plays Jaskier, said the Sandpiper storyline “reminded me of the work of Josephine Baker, who was a performer who used her influence and fame in the French Resistance to do some good for the world, whilst hiding behind the veneer of performance and frivolity.”
I am still trying to get over the fact that Jaskier became the medieval equivalent of a sensational pop star with a breakup song he wrote about Geralt where he damns the witcher for abandoning him. The bard’s pain is so raw that even Yennefer refuses to rub it in. Their reunion was more emotional than I would’ve expected considering their history, but a joy to watch. What were the odds that Jaskier would be the Sandpiper, and exactly in Oxenfurt where Yen needed him? It’s almost as if the show is playing with its prophetic line that “people linked by destiny will always find each other,” because these two are undoubtedly linked, be it by fate or Geralt’s love.
A guest arrives at Kaer Morhen: Triss Merigold is absolutely enamored with Ciri from the moment she lays eyes on her and takes her under her wing. Ciri has developed relationships at the keep, but it’s clear she needed someone to guide her through magic and through femininity, someone who is not afraid to scold witchers.
Triss is haunted by the memory of Sodden and is happy to be in a place where people speak honestly to each other with no ulterior motives and where she can be of help to someone who needs her. She even seeks solace in Geralt, but does not let that distract her from their mission to investigate Ciri’s mysterious power.
Meanwhile, Yennefer and Cahir are on the run and in hiding, short of options. It’s interesting to see that he does not abandon her when he learns she has lost her powers. We glimpse a new side of Cahir; he is more than a one-dimensional ruthless general of an imperialistic force. When the two team up with elven refugees, they witness the brutal oppression their race has been subjected to. Yennefer begins to feel some connection to the elves, and even Cahir chafes at their unjust persecution.
Although the episode is called “Redanian Intelligence,” Redania and its spies do not feature too heavily. The head of the kingdom’s intelligence network, Sigismund Dijkstra, advises King Vizimir, unmasks traitors, schemes and moves pawns to collect information. His goal is to uncover Emhyr’s strategy, which is impossible to predict. We begin to understand the aura of mystery around the emperor, a crescendo that will build until the very last scene of the season.