Why Did Jaskier Leave Geralt & Will They Become Friends Again?

Why Did Jaskier Leave Geralt & Will They Become Friends Again?

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One of the best parts about The Witcher is the strange friendship between Geralt and the bard named Jaskier. The reason is that Jaskier serves as the comic relief and the unofficial hype man to Geralt’s adventures back in season 1. However, one of the things we noticed in season 2 was that Geralt and Jaskier were no longer friends and that the bard even wrote a song describing their tarnished relationship. So, why did Jaskier leave Geralt, and will they become friends again?

Jaskier left Geralt when the Witcher had an outburst of rage, wherein he said that the bard was the source of all of his problems. This came after Geralt’s love was rejected by Yennefer. But they became friends again when Geralt broke Jaskier out of prison to ask for help to save Ciri.

A lot of us love the comic relief in the relationship that Jaskier has with Geralt. But we still have to remember that Jaskier is a human with feelings, while Geralt and a lot of Witchers are usually stoic and emotionless. As such, it is completely understandable that Jaskier was hurt when the man he considered a good friend wanted him off of his hands.

Why Did Jaskier Leave Geralt In The Witcher Season 2?

The Witcher is a series with a lot of different subplots and secondary characters. One of the most interesting subplots in the entire series is the relationship between Geralt and the major secondary character Jaskier, who lives and makes a living as a bard.

Now, the interesting part about their relationship is that it is completely symbiotic and somewhat dysfunctional because Geralt is the stoic monster hunter that he is, while Jaskier is a man that cannot seem to shut his mouth up.

This makes Jaskier the comic relief of the series but is ultimately the reason why Geralt has a better reputation and is as popular as he is. Meanwhile, Jaskier made a living out of composing songs about Geralt’s exploits, as he became one of the most popular bards in the continent.

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However, in season 2, we noticed that Jaskier was missing throughout much of the first few episodes. He used to be Geralt’s traveling companion, even though the Witcher preferred no one’s company. But Jaskier was visibly missing in the second season and only went on to appear in the middle of it. This time, however, he was by his lonesome.

So, why did Jaskier leave Geralt in The Witcher?

Jaskier actually left Geralt as early as episode 6 of the first season when the duo went dragon hunting together with a few other people, which included Yennefer. Now, the main reason why Geralt wanted to join that quest was because of Yennefer, who Jaskier never really liked due to the circumstances surrounding their initial meeting.

When Geralt and Jaskier got separated from one another, the Witcher found himself in the company of Yennefer. The relationship between the two improved, as they seemingly officially became lovers in the middle of the episode. However, at the end of the episode, Geralt and Yennefer found themselves in an argument, as the mage eventually rejected the Witcher’s love.

Visibly hurt, angry, and frustrated after getting rejected, Geralt found Jaskier, who was completely clueless about what happened. The Witcher eventually poured his rage out by telling the bard that he was the source of his problems and that he wished that Jaskier would be taken off of his hands for good.

Now, if you recall, a lot of Geralt’s problems did stem from his friendship with Jaskier. In season 1, the only reason why Geralt was in Pavetta’s wedding celebration, which ultimately became the reason why Ciri turned out to be the Witcher’s child of surprise, was due to how Jaskier forced him to come with him as a bodyguard.

Meanwhile, without Jaskier’s mistake with the djinn, Geralt would have never met Yennefer. The Witcher was basically blaming the bard for all of those misfortunes and sudden changes in his life, as he was previously living in peace as a simple monster slayer.

Because Jaskier was hurt from Geralt’s outbursts, he left the Witcher’s company and was never seen again in the first season.

Why Does Jaskier Sing ‘Burn Butcher Burn’?

As said, Jaskier was hurt by the words of a man he truly recognized as one of his closest friends. Geralt’s outburst left him heartbroken and scarred as a man, and that is the reason why he composed a song entitled ‘Burn Butcher Burn’, which is basically a song he wrote about how Geralt left him high and dry and how the Witcher betrayed his friendship.

Of course, we also know that Jaskier makes a living out of composing songs about Geralt’s exploits. So, one of the reasons why he composed ‘Burn Butcher Burn’ was to profit out of the feelings he had about his broken relationship with Geralt. And we know a lot of real-life recording artists who do this on a regular basis by writing songs dedicated to their ex-lovers.

Will Jaskier And Geralt Become Friends Again?

While Jaskier and Geralt were not friends throughout much of the early portion of the second season, the good news is that they eventually became friends again in one of the episodes in the second half of season 2.

After the events surrounding Jaskier and Yennefer, who asked for the help of the bard, our singing hero found himself in prison. However, Geralt came in to bust him out of prison and even hugged it out with his friend. Geralt also said that he needed Jaskier’s help to save Ciri, and that was ultimately the reason why the duo rekindled their friendship. 

Does Geralt Care About Jaskier?

The thing about Geralt is that, as a Witcher, he hardly shows any emotions at all. However, from what we know about him, he respects life and cares about the people around him. In fact, whenever he recognizes someone as a friend, he would go out of his way to help that friend out. 

This was the case with Jaskier, who he helped multiple times throughout the entire series. If you recall, Jaskier got himself hurt when he and Geralt messed with a djinn. As Jaskier was visibly in pain and was even dying, Geralt went out of his way to find a way to heal the bard, and that was ultimately the reason he met Yennefer.

While there are other instances wherein Geralt showed his care for Jaskier, the incident with the djinn is the ultimate proof that he does care about his friend.

Will Geralt Apologize To Jaskier?

The apology was never Geralt’s forte, but he immediately realized he made a mistake after his outburst, which caused the bard to leave. In fact, there were multiple times wherein he wanted to finally apologize to his friend, but he just couldn’t stumble into him.

However, in season 2 of The Witcher, we saw Geralt busting Jaskier out of prison and hugging it out with his friend. This was the implied apology that we needed to see from the Witcher, who said mean things to an innocent bard.

What Episode Does Jaskier Appear In Season 2?

While people were wondering whether or not Jaskier would appear in season 2, he ultimately does in episode 4. This was when Yennefer was looking for someone called the “Sandpiper”, who smuggled refugee elves to Cintra. Yennefer realized who the Sandpiper was when she heard the voice from afar.

Of course, Jaskier had the best re-introduction to the series when his first-ever scene in season 2 was him singing his iconic ‘Burn Butcher Burn’ in a tavern.

Is Jaskier Geralt’s Best Friend?

Throughout his entire life, Geralt has made many friends. He is friends with all of his Witcher brothers and has made friends from the different journeys and exploits he had in the past. However, throughout the entire time and before he claimed Ciri, he was always alone. The only time Geralt wasn’t alone was when he allowed Jaskier to accompany him on his journeys.

While that might not be enough to say that Jaskier is his best friend, it should be enough to say that Geralt sees Jaskier as a really good friend. Of course, he wouldn’t have allowed the bard to accompany him in his journeys had he thought of him as a nuisance.

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