#And yeah 'Extraordinary Things' show how much Joey understands Jaskier and that he's at his most emotionally open and truthful when he sings

[thelostgirl21]

Is it inappropriate to be turned on by a bunch of tags?

[thelostgirl21]

OMFG! I never saw that article! 😍 It's so awesome!

Also, I wish I knew at what point they decided to just... delete entire scenes and dialogues to replace them with "Extraordinary Things", and what was Hugh's first response/reaction to Joey's suggestion to have Jaskier sing for Radovid instead.

Like, did Joey come up with that idea BEFORE they started shooting?

Or did they shoot that scene in the carriage with Philippa (first scene Hugh and Joey ever shot together, apparently), Joey saw how many layers of emotions and intent Hugh could convey with his eyes, realized that what Jaskier just might need, first and foremost, is someone that shows an interest in listening to him play with a desire to better understand him; and therefore allowed his "inner Jaskier" to take over, compose, and sing something for Radovid?

Because, as "fun and flirty" as the dialogue in that leaked audition scene was, I don't think it would have succeeded in making as deep a connection between them as "Extraordinary Things" did.

Radovid's little "pick your favorite, please," when asking Jaskier for a song, him showing genuine interest in listening to what Jaskier wants to sing about the most (rather than dictating what he'd like to hear from him)...

The amount of respect and interest Radovid is showing for Jaskier's art is not so much about Jaskier's technical skills per say, but more about his songs revealing his innermost thoughts, and the way he perceives and experiences the world around him.

Yes, showing appreciation for Jaskier's lute playing and singing itself, and talking about how the instrument and the artist can elevate each other is nice - especially if it's used as a metaphore for something that would have been relevant to the scene or the context.

But Jaskier already has "fans". However, the people closest to him (except perhaps Ciri) on the show tend to show very little interest in the content of his songs or his singing.

Perhaps things have changed with Geralt since the mountain. But he once said that his singing was like ordering a pie and finding it has no filling; and that the Countess of Stael might have left him because of it.

Yennefer's first time hearing him sing happened while she was threatening him (and she referred to him as a "sing-songy twit" when she saw him again in Season 2. It was said affectionately, but still)...

Yarpen said Jaskier couldn't do anything for him, because he has "ears and good taste".

That "fan" Jaskier met at the docks was an entitled arsehole that didn't care much about the things Jaskier was trying to share or tell through his songs. He just wanted to point out all the things that "needed fixing".

Seanchai was perhaps the first to truly acknowledge Jaskier's storytelling as being something valuable and powerful - worth preserving and saving.

But she valued his skills as a bard as a means of inspiring and bringing hope to others...

So maybe... just maybe, what Jaskier needed was someone that truly paid attention to his words, showed interest the "heart" of his song rather than the "art", and told him that said heart was so beautiful, fascinating, and precious, that it was worth getting to know and even learn.

Radovid is a very active listener that yearns to be a part of Jaskier's world, and to connect with him... Someone that shows interest in what matters to Jaskier and offers support.

"Extraordinary Things" was a stroke of genius, because it allowed Jaskier to be at his most emotionally vulnerable and sincere with Radovid, and helped Radovid realise that it was safe for him to trust and allow himself to be vulnerable and honest with Jaskier as well.

Without it, you'd have had two deeply traumatised souls that have learned to hide who they truly are from others as a survival mechanism in their respective worlds, struggling with letting their guards down and allowing people past those barriers.

So yeah, I'm kind of curious to know at what moment the inspiration struck Joey to have Jaskier be the first one to emotionally strip down naked right in front of Radovid under the "cover" of a song, and what Hugh's response to that idea was.

And I'm also very curious to know who came up with the idea of having Radovid learn Jaskier's song, and then sing the first few lines of "Extraordinary Things" back to Jaskier when Jaskier is questioning him about what he wants.

Was it one of the writer's ideas (as a sort of follow up to the song that Joey had composed), was it Joey thinking/knowing that this would be the best way to get Jaskier to give into his growing feelings for Radovid? Or did Hugh feel that this is how Radovid would respond...

Because there's something very poetic and deeply touching in the way that Hugh sings it... Taking Jaskier's song, and expressing a desire for it to become their song, in a way...

It's a lovely way for Radovid to express a desire to form a relationship with Jaskier, while voicing his concern about his playing "being shit" and looking like he's nervous about falling short of expectations (according to what Hugh said in interviews, Radovid makes a connection with Jaskier that he's never made before, as no one's ever been that honest with Radovid), and having Jaskier responds with "maybe that's something we can work on", sort of showing a desire to commit to the relationship and figure things out with him.

Regardless of how that moment came to be, without Joey basically going "less talking more singing", it never would have occurred in the first place.

And Hugh's acting choices when it comes to how Radovid responds to Jaskier are basically just perfect...

There are infatuations that feel like people are moving too fast in a relationship without knowing each other while idealising the other partner...

And relationships that just sort of "realistically take off right away", because there's this sort of recognition that there's a unique type of compatibility between two people, and both of them wish to explore it while showing a willingness to make efforts, confront their own flaws and issues, step out of their usual comfort zone, and rely on each other to make it work.

And Joey and Hugh's in character interactions are able to convey that. It's absolutely fascinating to watch.

For Cassie Clare, who we luckily get to see more of in Season 3 as Philippa Eilhart, she highlighted that it was a "masterclass" to watch Batey and Skinner play off each other.

“There were scenes that I got to kind of observe. … Philippa's there but she's observing [Radovid] with the Jaskier," Clare said. "You almost don't have to act those moments where Philippa's like, 'I think something could happen here,' because you could feel this chemistry and them playing off each other, and being so present."

"You had to be so present, throwing lines in and the script is so in your body that they could play around that. It was beautiful. It was like a masterclass, being an owl on the shoulder watching over here.”

Also

"He's just really fun to act with," Skinner said. "He ad libs and stuff, and you just have to sort of listen and try and tell the truth."

Now, how much of radskier is finally just them flying around what was given and just landing back on the script when they had to move the plot forward ? I am finally gonna assume from now on that every line is an improv 😅