🚨 SHATTERED: The Witcher Season 4 KILLS Beloved Mentor Figure – Book Fans in TEARS Over Brutal Twist! 😭⚔️

That wise, fatherly Witcher we all adore – ALIVE in the books – gets brutally cut down by Vilgefortz in a shocking battle! No epic last stand, just gone. “Why DESTROY him?!” the internet screams. Geralt left shattered… is this the END of the old guard? Heart-wrenching betrayal!

Watched it? Rage or respect? 👇 Uncover the full tragedy [link to article] – will Season 5 save the soul of the series? 🐺💔

Netflix’s The Witcher Season 4 has ignited a firestorm among book purists and longtime fans, with the brutal killing of Vesemir – Geralt’s mentor and father figure – standing out as the latest contentious divergence from Andrzej Sapkowski’s source material. Killed off in Episode 6 during a chaotic clash at Castle Montecalvo against the villainous Vilgefortz, Vesemir’s demise has viewers reeling, especially since the character survives the entire saga in the novels.

Portrayed by Peter Mullan in his final outing – a recast from Kim Bodnia’s earlier seasons – Vesemir meets his end uttering poignant last words: “For my son, Geralt.” The scene unfolds amid Yennefer’s desperate defense of the proto-Lodge of Sorceresses, where Triss Merigold calls in witcher reinforcements. Vesemir arrives with Lambert and Coën, only to duel the overpowering mage and fall swiftly. It’s a far cry from the books, where Vesemir fades into the background after training Ciri at Kaer Morhen but lives on, offering quiet wisdom in Sapkowski’s saga.

Showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich addressed the uproar in interviews with GamesRadar+ and TheGamer, insisting the deaths serve deeper purpose: “We’ve had some controversy with characters that we have killed off before, that aren’t killed in the books… One of the things that our characters have to deal with is the trauma of losing someone and how that changes who you are.” She nodded to past backlash, like Eskel’s Season 2 leshen transformation and death – another book survivor axed early. Hissrich emphasized: “We always do it for a reason,” framing the body count as a “human experience” amid the Continent’s escalating wars.

Season 4, which dropped its full eight episodes on October 30, adapts elements from Baptism of Fire and The Tower of the Swallow, blending Ciri’s time with the Rats gang, Geralt’s Hansa assembly, and Yennefer’s anti-Vilgefortz crusade. Liam Hemsworth steps fully into Geralt’s boots post-Henry Cavill, whose exit was tied to frustrations over source fidelity. Viewership hit 45 million in its first week, per Netflix metrics, but Rotten Tomatoes sits at a series-low 68% audience score, with Vesemir’s exit fueling review-bombing.

Fan reactions on Reddit’s r/witcher and X are visceral. “Can’t believe they killed off Vesemir. And his death even is a footnote,” lamented one user, echoing sentiments across threads amassing 50,000+ upvotes. X posts like “They killed Vesemir?!? For a series called the Witcher they sure do like killing them off when it wasn’t in the books” garnered thousands of likes, with hashtags #RIPVesemir and #WitcherS4 trending globally. Book loyalists contrast it with CD Projekt Red’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, where Vesemir dies heroically at Kaer Morhen against the Wild Hunt – a post-book event fans deem “earned.”

This isn’t isolated. Season 4 piles on deviations: Istredd’s portal-sacrifice, Keira Metz and Margarita Laux-Antille’s deaths (key Lodge members in books), and the Rats’ slaughter by Leo Bonhart – faithful but amplified for shock. Ciri witnesses Mistle’s beheading, hardening her arc toward The Lady of the Lake. Hissrich defends: “The books still exist… This is our version.”

Critics are split. Forbes praised Bonhart’s (Sharlto Copley) rampage as “worth the price,” but slammed witcher sidelining: “They sacrifice Vesemir for girlboss witches.” SlashFilm called it “egregiously breaking canon,” arguing the quick kill robs emotional weight. ComicBook noted the recast enabled a “heroic” sendoff echoing Witcher 3, sans Wild Hunt.

Financially, stakes are high. Seasons 1-3 amassed 300 million hours viewed; Season 4’s controversy boosts buzz for the Liam-led finale. Netflix renewed through Season 5 pre-launch, eyeing a 2027 wrap. Sapkowski, ever detached, prefers his novels: “The original stands alone.”

Vesemir’s loss ripples: Geralt’s knighting bittersweet, Ciri’s trauma deepens, Yennefer’s Lodge forms sans allies. As Emhyr unleashes a Geralt-scenting beast, fans ponder: Does deviation destroy, or evolve? Hissrich teases Season 5’s “body count keeps growing,” promising witchers’ return – sans Vesemir.

For purists, it’s another stake through the heart. Streamers mourn the “Witcher daddy” icon, modding saves in Witcher 3 for solace. Netflix’s gamble: Trauma for payoff, or final rift?