Netflix’s The Witcher season 3, episode 5 recap: “The Art of the Illusion”

Welcome to the recap of The Witcher season 3 episode 5 titled, “The Art of the Illusion.” In this episode, the Brotherhood throws a party to lighten the mood before the Conclave of Mages.

Geralt and Yennefer take advantage of the gathering to gather evidence against Stregobor, while Triss and Istredd make a significant discovery. As tensions rise and alliances shift, the true identity of the mastermind behind the conspiracy against Ciri starts to come to light.

Join us as we delve into the events and revelations of this intriguing episode.

The Witcher season 3, episode 5 recap

The Brotherhood organizes a party for the mages to unwind and socialize before the Conclave of Mages. It’s a chance for them to relax and boost their spirits before diving into the challenging discussions that lie ahead.

During the party, Geralt and Yennefer take advantage of the opportunity to engage with different mages and gather evidence against Stregobor. Their goal is to bring his actions to light at the Conclave.

However, they soon realize that time is of the essence, and they must act swiftly to achieve their objective. Triss and Istredd team up and find Monoliths’ text in Stregobor’s safe.

Triss shares this information with Geralt and Yennefer, revealing that the text enables a magic user to travel through space and time. If Stregobor gets hold of Ciri and her raw magical power, it could have disastrous consequences.

Geralt and Yennefer must find solutions swiftly. To create a diversion, Istredd and Geralt stage a fight.

While attention is diverted, Yennefer secretly enters Stregobor’s quarters and breaks into his vault. Inside, she discovers a list of half-elf students from Aretuza who went missing, along with items that belonged to them.

Using her magical abilities, Yennefer examines the items and determines when Stregobor targeted each girl. She obtains the evidence needed.

Unfortunately, Stregobor’s vault has a security system that alerts him to intruders. He confronts Yennefer, with Geralt, Triss, and Istredd arriving soon after.

Tissaia, Vilgefortz, and Artorius join the group after realizing that others are missing from the party. Stregobor admits to working to rid the school of elves but denies stalking Ciri or using the missing girls in tests.

Stregobor is also puzzled by the text Istredd took from his vault. Although he is captured and will be tried at the Conclave of Mages, his genuine surprise suggests he may not be the main culprit.

While at Aretuza and the ball on Thanedd Island, Geralt and Yennefer uncover more information about the true identity of the person conspiring against Ciri. They don’t give much thought to Stregobor’s capture, but they soon realize their mistake after spending the night together.

Geralt learns from Dijkstra that the Brotherhood has Nilfgaard spies, and only Redania can protect Ciri. Philippa advises Yennefer to cooperate with her instead of serving the Brotherhood, as a conflict seems inevitable.

She also reveals similarities between Lydia, a telepath blinded by love, and Tissaia. Using his witcher senses, Geralt notices that Lydia wears earrings made from the same rare stone as Tissaia’s bracelet.

This stone is found in West Redania, where Geralt discovered gruesome experiments. He speculates that Lydia communicates with the person she loves, possibly Vilgefortz, through telepathy.

Geralt and Yennefer need more evidence to connect all the details. At the ball, Vilgefortz tries to manipulate Geralt and recruits him to his cause.

He reveals a painting depicting the coast where the Brotherhood was formed. Yennefer, sensing danger, stays in her room to cast a location spell to find Tissaia.

Meanwhile, Geralt pursues Vilgefortz and hears a battle in the hallways. Dijkstra emerges and surprises Geralt with a blade, urging him to pick a side, while Geralt tries to make sense of everything.

The Witcher season 3, episode 5 review

The Witcher season 3 episode 5 “The Art of the Illusion,” wraps up the first half of the season with a romantic evening between Geralt and Yennefer. However, the episode falls short in delivering a satisfying conclusion and lacks the complexity that would make it interesting.

The whole episode focuses on conversations and events from the party Geralt and Yennefer attended. We see different perspectives, but it becomes repetitive and predictable.

The ending feels obvious, and it doesn’t have the impact it could have had. Unfortunately, the episode doesn’t bring anything new or surprising.

It tries to make things more complicated, but it ends up being tiresome and boring.

It feels like the episode could have been more exciting and engaging. “The Art of the Illusion” is a lukewarm finale for the first part of The Witcher season 3.

It doesn’t live up to its potential and lacks the excitement and intrigue we expect from the series. Hopefully, the second half of the season will bring a fresh and captivating storyline to make up for the weaknesses of this episode.

What did you think of The Witcher season 3, episode 5? Let us know your answers and opinions in the comments below!

Watch The Witcher season 3 only on Netflix!