The Witcher season 3: Every episode reviewed and explained
By Bryce Olin
The Witcher season 3 Episode 4 recap: “The Invitation”
“The Invitation” is the penultimate episode of The Witcher season 3 part 1. If the first two episodes were mostly set-up and the third episode was when things really started to move, there’s another pause in Episode 4. There’s a lot of action, but it feels like the quiet before the storm in many ways.
The episode begins in Nilfgaard. Emyhr wakes up Cahir while he’s having another dream about Ciri and the prophecy. After Cahir kills Gallatin, Emyhr gives Cahir a mission, and it involves Francesca. It’s very ambitious, but we don’t yet know what it entails. Cahir asks for Fringilla to do it, but Emyhr breaks the news to him that Fringilla is dead. Cahir asks how they know they’re doing the right thing. Emyhr asks Cahir to let go of all the questions and “embrace what we’ve done together.” It’s more of a threat than anything.
In Aretuza, Yennefer proposes an alliance with Redania against Nilfgaard. Tiassa supports Yennefer’s plan. The mages pound their chairs in support, except for Stregobor.
Tissaia tells Yennefer that the Council of Mages agreed to the Conclave. Yennefer plans to try to convince Philippa to agree to attend in person. They’re interrupted and told that another novice, Elisabet, has gone missing.
Before she leaves, Yennefer thanks Triss for what she did at Kaer Morhen, but Triss is troubled. She looks into why these novices who are half-elven keep going missing. She explains her fears to Istredd, who theorizes that someone is taking those girls. He explains that he is looking for the Book of Monoliths, which is the key to traveling between spheres. Someone at Aretuza has it and is using it to banish the elves.
Later, Vilgefortz questions Yennefer and asks her not to abandon Tiassia again. Also, he says that they’ll give Yennefer a secure portal to Redania, and they speculate about who the “rogue mage” is.
On the way to Aretuza, Geralt explains why the Wild Hunt wants Ciri and how they know of her power. She “left the door” open during the events of the season 2 finale. Ciri needs to embrace and learn how to control her power to “close those doors.”
Shortly after, Jaskier, Ciri, and Geralt are reunited. Yay! They are crossing the sea to Aretuza, but the boatman won’t sail because there’s a monster in the water. Geralt agrees to kill the monster in exchange for passage across. On the boat, the captain, Obin, claims that the Wild Hunt are “riding again.” Somehow he knows, which gives Ciri a bit of a shock.
En route, Ciri tells Geralt she thinks the monster is an aeschna. Geralt teaches Ciri what it means to take a life, saying it should only be used as a last resort. Ciri asks Geralt what he’ll do if Ciri agrees to go to Aretuza. He says it’s much bigger than Reince.
Then there’s the aeschna fight! Ciri cuts it up, but struggles. She kills it from above. Geralt says he’s proud of Ciri, and they go looking for Yennefer.
Yennefer is not in Aretuza, but in Redania, where she approaches Philippa during Queen Hedwig’s funeral. Yennefer offers condolences and invites Philippa to the Conclave of Mages. After Philippa declines, Yennefer pressures Vizimir to send her. He decides Dijkstra and Radovid will also attend.
Yennefer walks back through the portal, but unexpectedly arrives on some rocky cliffs where she is attacked by Geralt. It’s not the real Geralt, obviously. It’s an illusion. She escapes, but something weird is going on. Triss warns her that bringing Ciri to Aretuza is a bad idea. Sabrina looks suspicious and walks away. Yennefer balks at Triss and doubles down on bringing Ciri to Aretuza to train under Tissaia.
Before they arrive, Geralt reveals what happened to Teryn and how they’re using the half-elves as test subjects. Geralt wants to protect her, but Ciri agrees that she needs to go to Aretuza to find out what’s going on.
Ciri, Yennefer, Geralt, and Jaskier are finally together again! At the end of the episode, Ciri and Jaskier are at Loxia protected by Yennefer’s spell, while Geralt and Yennefer attend the ball before the Conclave of Mages.
Cihar asks Francesca and the elves to join the hunt for Ciri. He proposes an alliance between Nilfgaard and the elves. They accept.
Back in Aretuza, Triss and Istredd try to find the Book of Monoliths by tracking the stellecite dust, and it works. The Book of Monoliths is inside someone’s room, but we don’t know whose.
Geralt and Yennefer make a pact to let this plan run its course, and so begins the Conclave of Mages. No one is really sure about this. It’s the ball before the Conclave.
What a whirlwind of an episode. The political focus of the season is a definite shift for The Witcher, and it’s working really well. Of course, politics has always been a part of the show, but the feeling that everything is resting on a sword’s edge is real this season, much more than any other. There is so much more going on than meets the eye, and I have a feeling it’s all going to come crashing down at the Conclave of Mages in the final episode of The Witcher season 3 part 1.