Episode Guide
Episode 1 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 2 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 3 – | Review Score – 4/5 Episode 4 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 5 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 6 – | Review Score – 3.5/5 Episode 7 – | Review Score – 3/5 A Discovery of Witches is one of those fantasy shows that has a very specific audience in mind. This is not a gritty, bloody epic like The Witcher or Game of Thrones nor is it a wide-spanning journey like His Dark Materials. Of course, if you’ve made it this far into Sky’s three season show then you’ll already know this. And season 3 delivers everything fans enjoyed from the previous two chapters of this show. Season 3 picks up right off the back of the dramatic graveyard fight last year. Emily is dead. Knox is back in Venice, trying to stir up Baldwin and Gerbert to hit out at Matthew and Diana, who coincidentally return from the 16th Century to find tensions between the races more volatile than ever. The real talking point here though is the blood rage vampire on the rampage. With Oxford a new hunting ground for this killer, a face from the past returns with a vengeance. The sins of a father come back to bite Matthew while Diana juggles pregnancy with a fetch quest that keeps her busy for much of the season. Diana in particular needs to find three missing pages from the Book of Life, intending to bring them together in order to stop this fight once and for all. Despite its teasing promise of a big, epic brawl to conclude the season, A Discovery of Witches just sort of… ends. The conflict is wrapped up with a neat little bow and while it’s great to see everyone get their happy ending, it also leaves the final chapter feeling rushed and a bit underwhelming. That’s a shame because there are some great verbal duels across the 7 episodes. Gerbert and Ysabeau have a particularly memorable stand-off during the finale while a guy called Ransome has a tense meeting with Matthew during the middle chapters. The journey itself is pretty compelling and there’s a consistent effort to try and add as much magic as possible into this season too. Following the subdued journey into the past, there’s a consistent effort here to really live up to the fantasy genre this series occupies. There’s a lovely fight in episode 9 between Matthew and the main antagonist (no spoilers here!) while Diana uses her magic powers across the 7 episodes. The visual effects are suitably glossy the entire time too, and whether it be projections transforming a whole alleyway or simple flame conjuring spells, A Discovery of Witches is undoubtedly a visual treat this year. The big questions hanging over these three seasons – what is Blood Rage, who is the prophecy about and how do these races come together in harmony – are all explored and explained, meaning fans should be satisfied with the way A Discovery Of Witches concludes. Of course, the big focus here is on love and romance, which is ultimately the drive for A Discovery Of Witches. If you’re going into this expecting any differently then you’re bound to be left disappointed. A Discovery Of Witches has never pretended to be anything but light, fluffy entertainment – and season 3 delivers that in abundance. Although it does feel a bit rushed at times and the story could have done with a big, epic showdown between the different races, this is a decent send-off for this entertaining fantasy romance.
