Who lives Who Dies Who Tells Your Story?

This blog is pretty much dead.

[lukeskyvvalkers]

Unpopular opinion - killing Eskel makes total sense to me narratively. I have no problem with them killing him off. I’d probably make the same decision if writing the show.

I only think they should have done it in the last episode of season 2 during the fight at Kaer Morhen so the audience got to know him better or made him more likeable beforehand so it had more emotional impact. I think the execution of the death was it’s only issue.

[emilyscully]

What is destined cannot be avoided. And it shouldn’t be.

[herestoimagination]

Us three, we’ll help each other.

[y-ennefers]

I can’t wait to grow old together.

[yenneferblog]

I can’t wait to grow old together.

[morabbots]

So, you love him too.

[yenneferblog]

YENNEFER & GERALT The Witcher, Season 2

[yenvengerberg]

“I pulled Ciri into this mess and I’ll do everything I can to get her out of it.” YENNEFER & CIRI in The Witcher: Season 2

[lukeskyvvalkers]

I really do have to remember sometimes that most people on tumblr are children but I get so stupidly and pointlessly frustrated when people just don’t get... media literacy  😂😂 

[lukeskyvvalkers]

And another thing! I don’t understand people who keep posting that this has “soured her relationship with Ciri”?? Where?? 

By the end of the episode it’s pretty clear things are in an alright place between them - I’m sure they will have some *complicated feelings* to work through next season but that’s great! More mother-daughter healing! Love that for them - if anything it will probably bring them closer together.

The writing of the end of that episode clearly shows us to forgive Yennefer (even if Geralt “says” he doesn’t, emphasis on “says” - but hey that’s Yen and Geralt in a nutshell!) so yeah, I’m pretty sure the family will be fine.  

[limerental]

Yeah I had this feeling too and don’t think it aligns too differently from their relationship in the books. They openly start out not liking each other, this just gives a more concrete conflict. Their relationship is set up to develop positively in s3.

[lukeskyvvalkers]

Yen & Ciri don't "meet briefly" in Blood of Elves. On the contrary - their best moments as mother & daughter come straight from that book (Ciri spends few months with Yennefer while she teaches her magic and trains her).

The 'betrayal' hurts so many book fans because this is doing a 180 to Yennefer's character and her relationship with Ciri (and Geralt) which is built on mutual trust first and foremost (sure, at the beginning they may not like each other very much but it changes VERY quickly and the initial scepticism has nothing to do Yennefer's intentions. Because they're clear and pure from the beginning - she wants to help Geralt by helping Ciri).

Sorry but no matter how you slice it - the thing Yennefer does in the show TAINTS their relationship. Her last minute "i am sorry" repeated 10 times doesn't change that.

Nah it really doesn't. I don't know what show you watched but it just isn't the same one I did. The storyline was really interesting, gave Anya such good scenes and does not taint their relationship at all. I'm pretty sure we are going to see them become stronger than ever in season 3.

Honestly I find The Witcher fandom to be very... odd. At this point you guys are determined to be mad even though as far as I can see I can't see any narrative reason to be? The characters all end up in the place they are supposed to be in season 3/Time of Contempt. Ciri and Yennefer will forge their bonds going forward, we'll get to see that training/teaching you talked about and Geralt and Yen will forgive each other and go to Thanedd together. Also I don't see why this would cancel out mutual trust going forward???? Like I said Ciri seemed to be pretty ok with her at the end of the episode. They'll learn to trust and forgive. Honestly I loved their scenes together in the last two episodes.

Also while I agree some great parts of their relationship begin in Blood of Elves. Yen and Ciri don't meet until the very end of that book it's literally the last few chapters. The best parts of their relationship for me are in Time of Contempt. Which I will be looking forward to seeing next season.

I love the books more than anything but being so stuck in the mud about changes is such a weird way to be.

[lukeskyvvalkers]

And another thing! I don’t understand people who keep posting that this has “soured her relationship with Ciri”?? Where?? 

By the end of the episode it’s pretty clear things are in an alright place between them - I’m sure they will have some *complicated feelings* to work through next season but that’s great! More mother-daughter healing! Love that for them - if anything it will probably bring them closer together.

The writing of the end of that episode clearly shows us to forgive Yennefer (even if Geralt “says” he doesn’t, emphasis on “says” - but hey that’s Yen and Geralt in a nutshell!) so yeah, I’m pretty sure the family will be fine.  

[lukeskyvvalkers]

I apparently have many controversial opinions on Witcher S2 according to many of the posts I’ve seen on here 

[lukeskyvvalkers]

A defense of the Yennefer S2 plot

Yennefer is my favourite character. Has been since I played Wild Hunt for the first time, was all throughout the entire book series and is in the Netflix show. 

Is there some deserved criticism around the characterisation in the Netflix series - I guess. I personally don’t mind it at all, but I understand why some people don’t. But here are my thoughts on the Yennefer plot from season 2 that I haven’t seen much of in the fandom discourse. 

I saw some of the discourse before I finished the series and honestly I think it really misconstrues, misinterprets and misrepresents what actually happened on screen. With the amount of hyperbolic talk around this I was expecting the worst and I came out really baffled about some peoples reading/interpretation of this? I guess each to their own. 

1. Everyone acting like Yennefer was about to slit Ciri’s throat with her bare hands and bathe in her blood before Geralt stopped her while she spat in his face?? It was pretty clear to me that Yen was in the worst place of her life and being manipulated by a powerful entity and made decisions that were not clear headed. As soon as she found out the girl was Geralt’s Child Surprise you could see how conflicted she was. She is presented with a chance to take Ciri in the midst of a chaotic moment and went with it. It was not planned out. I think if they were going to infer that she was manipulating Geralt the entire time she would have tricked him (like maybe slept with him to lull him to sleep and spirited away with Ciri under the cover of darkness). 

Also correct me if I’m wrong but Yen didn’t really know what the Deathless Mother wanted Ciri for? Yen didn’t explicitly agree to kill her if I’m not mistaken? She was only told ‘Ciri is the key and you have to bring her to the door’. Obviously anyone in a good mental state could see that it would probably lead to a sacrifice but honestly Yen wasn’t thinking anything through at that stage! Everyone acting like Yen was like ‘yeah I’ll kill this girl’ when really she was like not thinking it through at all. Even the scene with Jaskier when he uses the word ‘sacrifice’ he then later says ‘what if she’s changed?’ as in let’s not kill her because we don’t know if she’s planning that like old Yen would have. And also the show explicitly makes it clear that she’s under the influence of the Deathless Mother.

2. Personally I love the trope where someone has to retrieve a child for nefarious purposes, lies to them about it but then along the way learns to care for them and love them and then refuses to finish the job. Very Joel and Ellie tbh. If anything I would have liked to see this played out to it’s full conclusion and seen Yennefer almost give her to the witch and decided against it at the last second. But to me you could see Yen’s resolve falling apart as she spent time with her and fell in love with Ciri as a mother. Then trying to sacrifice herself to make up for it and protect her daughter *chefs kiss*

3. Honestly this sets us up nicely for Yen and Ciri’s relationship to progress in season 3 - remember it isn’t until Time of Contempt that we really see Yen and Ciri’s relationship. Every is acting like this has replaced their relationship all together but we were never going to get their relationship until season 3. They only very briefly meet in Blood of Elves. So if anything it gives them more of a connection. Everyone on this website seems to infer that once a road bump is encountered in a relationship that it’s all over forever! (the amount of people saying that about Yen and Geralt after this season and Jaskier and Geralt’s friendship after season one is alarming - angst is ok people!) This gives them a chance to learn to trust each other and grow into the mother-daughter duo we love. 

4. It puts Geralt and Yennefer in the perfect position for season 3. In Time of Contempt they are at their lowest point in the whole series just about. They were definitively broken up after Yen broke his heart in A Shard of Ice. They weren’t on speaking terms (sound familiar? It’s almost like this is a replacement conflict for A Shard of Ice!) If the betrayal didn’t happen how would you get them there? They were very clearly about to get back together in the temple. So how could you have the forgiveness we find in Time of Contempt without any betrayal?? This sets up for - and god I do hope they keep this scene! - one of my favourite scenes of the series! The apology in the garden! Jaskier narrating to Ciri about how they silently communicate! How Yennefer’s yelling is her telling him sorry and Geralt’s silence is telling her the same! It’s perfect. 

tldr; this plot was not as bad as everyone is making out. It plays into one of my favourite tropes of learning to care for a kid you initially set out to betray. It sets up everyones storylines for the third season/Time of Contempt, it just gets there in a way you guys aren’t used to. And it gave me some of my favourite Yennefer scene’s this season! Anya knocks it out of the park! Ugh her trying to apologise to Geralt was one of my faves! Her trying to sacrifice herself for Ciri! Her falling in love with her little girl on their travels! *chefs kiss*

[lukeskyvvalkers]

I’m coming out of tumblr retirement of two years to say: I watch The Witcher season 2 and I genuinely don’t understand half of the fandoms criticisms of it?? It was good. I am a rabid book reader - the witcher is my favourite book series and I thought it was fine. 

The changes for the most part made totally sense to me and I can understand where they will likely connect to the story going forward. 

Would I love to see more of the books in the show? Absolutely I love them. But this season was great and I saw heaps of what I liked from the books in this. 

[fircyca]

[sunfortune]

#MOVE IM GAY

[lukeskyvvalkers]

here me out, 

Hopper lost his daughter

Eleven has a piece of shit for a father figure

I’m not saying Hopper should adopt Eleven and they should fill the giant voids in each others lives but actually that exactly what i’m saying

[lukeskyvvalkers]

Not saying I predicted the show but I predicted the show