Dara figures into this episode's C Plot, which introduces the titular Redanian Intelligence and Djikstra, a towering figure in both the books and the games. Played by a glowering Graham McTavish, Djikstra personifies the Witcherverse's often brutal realpolitik. He makes his entrance into the show by throwing a knife through one noble's throat and forcing another to drink poison, whereupon he begins laying out his plan for Cintra. As establishing character moments go, it's pretty good. Despite the episode title, Djikstra doesn't figure prominently into this week's plot, his only other big scene involving him striding back and forth and rambling animatedly to an owl. Still, it's good to have him. As I discussed in my Episode 3 review, this Witcher adaptation's politics haven't really landed to this point, mainly because they tend to be related in the abstract. Djikstra is just the sort of backroom schemer that this show needs, and McTavish's energetic performance makes him an immediate standout. With Djikstra enacting his plans in the background for now, the plot picks up this season's two main threads: Geralt's continued training of Ciri, and Yennefer and Cahir's flight from Aretuza. The former gets a nice shakeup with the arrival of Triss Merigold, who is immediately concerned about Ciri's treatment in the all-male Kaer Morhen. Their rapport is reflective of The Witcher's generally strong handling of female friendships, encouraging Ciri to shed her training rags in favor of what looks like Zelda cosplay from Breath of the Wild (I like it!). She's jeered by Lambert and Coen, now the stand-ins for basically every Witcher in Kaer Morhen. The Witcher's scope continues to expand in an episode that whipsaws between light comedy and dark violence. The oppression of the elves takes center stage in this episode, sending The Witcher into occasionally tasteless territory. It also sees the welcome return of multiple Season 1 character, as well as a figure who fans have been waiting to see for a while. It's a packed episode that encompasses almost everything that has defined The Witcher to this point, both for better and for worse.