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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 ratchets up its political intrigue and lore, setting up its final season to end with as much heartbreak as joy.
A Discovery of Witches Season 2 faced no easy task when bringing Diana (Teresa Palmer) and Matthew (Matthew Goode) home from 1591. While Season 2 threw believable snags into the beloved pair’s plans to bring The Book of Life to present-day Oxford, it also set some tragic events into motion for them to discover upon their return. Although some fans might miss the period piece attire and the simultaneously decadent and diseased era of London, Season 3 wastes no time in steering its ship towards the present day’s dire matters. Based on the two episodes available for review, A Discovery of Witches Season 3 blends the fight against corrupt power and devious creature politics with the power of found families and unforeseen magic.
Off the bat, A Discovery of Witches Season 3 pacing can feel a bit jarring, especially given the loss of a key member of Diana’s family from the Season 2 finale. Diana has barely taken her corset off before she faces the loss of Emily (Valarie Pettiford), and even that gets sidelined for her quest to find a cure for bloodrage with Matthew. To the show’s credit, however, a phenomenal Alex Kingston fills in the missing emotional beats with her performance of Sarah, a bereft wife who is quick to point out how no one seems to be focused on losing Emily. This is, after all, the third and final season for A Discovery of Witches, and with only seven episodes overall, the series has a lot of ground to cover fairly quickly to tie up all its loose ends.
At its heart, A Discovery of Witches has always been about balancing love with loss and fear with desire, and in this light, Season 3 fairs well so far. It’s incredibly tricky to balance the story’s main quest — finding The Book of Life’s missing pages so Diana can save all creatures — amidst a background of sinister political plots to derail the De Clairmont legacy, on top of all the interpersonal drama that arises when all four species are in the same room (and in the same beds, at times) with centuries of drama between their bloodlines. From this point of view, it’s easier to handwave away a speedy plot, as Deborah Harkness’ characters act as they would in incredibly tense, confusing and unprecedented times. Impulsivity abounds.
If things become a bit too breakneck pacing-wise, Lindsay Duncan’s Ysabeau De Clairmont is always there to steal the scene. It’s a joy to watch how Duncan has crafted Ysabeau from a rage-filled widow to the series’ true matriarch, providing the perfect dose of gravitas to sell any tense moment — no matter how absurd the reality would sound aloud.
As for A Discovery of Witches‘ central romance, Season 3 offers a compelling look at Diana and Matt’s evolution as a couple. As Goode’s Matthew struggles to understand what it means to be not only married to but starting a family with a 21st-century witch, Palmer’s Diana genuinely challenges his antiquated and volatile views. While the tension between Matthew and Diana has always been at the heart of the series, what Season 3 does best is show how their confrontations reverberate through their families, while the larger creature world remains out to get them in harrowing ways. For once, it’s nice to see a show poke and prod at the difficulties of communicating between two loving and devoted partners. It goes to show that sometimes marriage provides more interesting conflict than a torrid love affair.
A Discovery of Witches Season 3 almost doubles its cast. While it’s hard at this stage in the season to pick a favorite, it’s already incredibly easy to continue rooting for Marcus (Edward Bluemel), who receives a wider playing field to show his range of pathos alongside his mate, Phoebe (Adelle Leonce). Additionally, Malin Buska’s Satu is no less riveting. Newcomer Olivier Huband also crafts a wonderfully needed moment for Sarah early on in the series that sows the seeds for a potentially great match for Kingston to play off of further down the line.
At this stage, it’s hard to tell if A Discovery of Witches Season 3 will be able to solve the many questions it raises. However, one thing is for sure: the show is aware of this challenge. Plot-wise, the pieces are in play to either watch our beloved characters save the day or falter and live with the consequences. Based on the seasons that have come before, it’s likely the series’ final season will show us a little bit of both. If endings are beginnings, as Matthew says, whatever comes next will be as filled with as much promise as heartache for our creatures.
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