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"The Witcher" Becomes The Show It Was Meant to Be with Episode 3 "Betrayer Moon" [SPOILER REVIEW]

Finally, the third episode of Netflix's The Witcher feels like the show it was meant to be. Rich in lore, plot, and tension – it's the first episode that feels complete.

When Geralt hears that another witcher took on job in nearby Temeria and disappeared, he sets off for the kingdom to take it on. A monster has been picking off miners and the townsfolk are ready to revolt. They think the last witcher took off with the money, but the court sorceress tells Geralt the truth she was hiding: the man was horribly killed.

No point in scaring the people even more with the knowledge that this monster could beat a witcher. The sorceress is Triss Merigold, a major character in the novels and future love interest for Geralt in the games. Geralt examines the bodies of the victims and figures out what kind of monster did this: a striga.

A Striga is a woman cursed to become ravenous beast during the full moon. The best way to defeat it is to lift the curse. But first, Geralt and Triss have figure out who placed the curse in the first place and on who. That means finding out who the Striga is.

CSI: "The Witcher"

Detective Geralt is the Best Geralt, after badass Swordsman Geralt. It doesn't take long for him to suss out the truth, a sordid tale of royal incest, a jealous lord who placed the curse. Then all he has to do is laying a trap to fight the Striga and lift the curse without killing her.

Geralt's storyline is faithfully adapted from the second story in The Last Wish with minor changes. It introduces Triss Merigold to the show when she doesn't show up in the books until the novels came along. Geralt's fight with the Striga had been adapted before as a cutscene in the first game and it's even more brutal and vicious here.

Meanwhile, Yennefer's Origin Story Gets Real

Yennefer has to deal with the politics of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers as she nears graduation from Azuleta. Mages and sorceresses are assigned to advise kings so the Brotherhood can influence the politics of the kingdoms. Newly anointed sorceresses are enchanted to look as beautiful as a weapon – horny kings are easier to manipulate. Stregobor uses Yennefer's part-Elven heritage to block her from the position she desires, a kingdom that's prejudiced against elves.

Undaunted, Yennefer subjects herself to magical surgery to correct her deformity and become the alluring enchantress she was always meant to be. She knows what she wants now: Power. And she's going to whatever it takes to get it, including seize the position she set her sights on. The price she pays for her transformation – for magic always has a cost – is her ability to have children.

Ciri's Own Little Cliffhanger

In the probable future or present timeline, Ciri and her elf friend Dara wander the forests before she gets entranced by voices that draw her deeper into the woods.

The density of story, theme and ideas finally feel substantial in this episode after the place-setting of the last two. Let's see if the rest of the season sustains this.

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