Willow | Chapter 8: “Children of the Wyrm” Episode Guide

Airk stands before Kit and Elora, dressed in the dark clothing of the Gales. Behind them, the Crone’s servants stand guard. But instead of an attack, Airk greets his sister and his love warmly and offers them a deal: once they listen to the Crone’s side of the story, they can all go home.

On the other side of the waterfall, the rest of the wanderers are still debating their choices. “This is bigger than Airk and the Crone. I can feel it!” Jade says. “This is the beginning of a war and they can’t win it alone.” She leaps off into the unknown followed by Graydon.

Only Boorman and Willow remain on the edge, but Willow knows his destiny lies with his daughter back home. He must turn back from whence he came. After a moment of considering what he truly cares about, Boorman takes a running leap into the abyss, shouting “This is a bad idea…” on his way down.

Inside the Temple, Kit and Elora come face to face with the Crone, although she’s not at all what they expected. “We’re going to set her free,” Airk says. “She’s the Harbinger of the Wyrm. She’s going to awaken him and bring about a new age of this world!” The two young women discuss the obvious trap in hushed whispers, but neither has a plan.

Jade and Graydon arrive at the outskirts of Immemorial City with a wicked storm moving in swiftly ahead and Boorman trailing just behind them. Using the sandy stone around them, they decide to camouflage themselves and attempt a sneak attack.

Kit and Elora walk through the golden gate of the Wyrm and arrive in a dreamlike courtyard where Sorsha is waiting to greet them for Elora and Airk’s wedding. Meanwhile, outside the temple doors, Jade, Boorman, and Graydon are trapped by the storm and turned to stone.

In the Wyrm’s illusion, Airk and Elora share another picnic, reminiscent of simpler times, and the sorcerer admits how difficult she has found this revelation of her true identity. “What if we could go back to the last night in Tir Asleen?” Airk asks, offering a cup of the golden liquid that would join Elora to the Wyrm. At the same time, Sorsha is making a similar promise to her daughter: the freedom to set off on the adventure she craves with Jade. “The life you want. The life you were meant to have is yours,” Sorsha says. “Everything the way it was before?” Kit asks.

Suddenly, Madmartigan interrupts the dreamlike enchantment, breaking the illusion with his disembodied voice. “Kit!” he commands. His daughter is confused and filled with questions since his disappearance. “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But love is sacrifice. You’ve got to be willing to give up what you want for what you believe in. It’s the only way to save Elora.”

Kit finds herself back in the Wyrm’s golden courtyard with the Crone. “Elora’s made her choice,” the witch says. “The right choice. And now the great awakening has begun.” Like her friends outside the temple door, Kit is turned to stone.

Elora walks down the aisle toward her prince. She is back to her earlier form: Dove, the towheaded kitchen maid. A kiss will seal not only her fate but the fate of the world, bringing the Wyrm back to full power. Just as the Wyrm begins to feed on her power, Elora stops the ceremony. “It’s too late,” the Crone says.. “You’ve made your choice.” But Elora scoffs at the minion’s audacity. “No, I haven’t. And not you or them or some Wyrm is going to make me doing something that I don’t want to do.”

“Who are you that you would choose pain over pleasure?” the Crone asks. But before she can answer, a great sorcerer arrives at the threshold. “She is Elora Danan, Last Blood of Kymeria, future empress, high priestess, Semprum Sorceress of the Nine Realms,” Willow intones, his magical staff at the ready. “And you, lady, are in big trouble.” With one spell, Willow breaks the Wyrm’s enchantment and brings Elora and her friends back to reality.

Kit, Jade, Graydon, and Boorman shake off their dusty shells and prepare for battle. The Crone emerges from the glowing void in her true form, a diseased, zombie-like body, decayed and rotting, replacing her beautiful mirage. The Gales arrive to defend their mistress. “You think you can defeat the Wyrm?” the Crone taunts. But it’s Graydon who takes up Elora’s wand and attempts to fight the Crone with his own magic; despite his passionate hatred for the creature and love for Elora, he is unsuccessful. The Crone snaps the wand like a twig and banishes Graydon with a flick of one hand.

The loss of Graydon awakens something inside Elora, a raw power unlike anything she’s experienced before. She directs the energy at the Crone and sends her opponent flying out of the temple and smashing into the rock.

Boorman gives the Kymerian Cuirass to Kit, finally realizing why it’s not working for him but believing she has the power to wield the ancient armor. Then he hands Jade the key and walks back into the fray ready to fight until the end.

In the depths of the temple, the Crone and Elora fight magic with magic, red bolts of the Wyrm’s magic ricochet off Elora’s flesh as she pummels her opponent with green bolts of her own spells. Meanwhile, Jade and Kit confront Airk, still possessed by the Wyrm. “You’re my brother,” Kit pleads. “I’m your king!” Airk bellows back, drunk with the power of the Crone’s promises.

Elora is pinned down, convinced she’s not strong enough to beat the Crone. But in her moment of doubt, Willow’s voice reaches her from afar. “She’s not as strong as you are,” he tells her. “It’s taken me a long time to learn: it’s OK to fall, to make mistakes. I’ve made lots. It’s how you become a cantankerous old sorcerer! I think the trick is to embrace your defeats as well as your victories. You pay for both in the end.” Elora refocuses her efforts and tackles the Crone. For a moment, the Crone has the upper hand, but Elora is stronger.

Airk rushes to the Crone’s side. He still sees the beautiful facade. “You are the Harbinger,” she tells him. ” And now you’re ready to rule.” With no time to waste, Kit uses the Kymerian Cuirass, her body shielded in the magical armor, and wields her father’s blade.

The possessed young prince attacks Elora but Kit is ready to defend her, clashing swords with her brother in a ferocious duel. “I don’t want to hurt you,” she whispers. “You can’t hurt me. I’m stronger than you,” the possessed Airk says. “I’m gonna kill you to get to her.”

Just as Kit is about to kill her brother, Elora stops the fight. Willow smashes his staff and gives Kit the magical rock within. “Talk to him,” the sorcerer tells her. “If he can, he’ll see the light and come to you.” Through the power of Kit’s love for her brother, she banishes the evil possessing him and he reverts to himself.

In the aftermath, Boorman gives Graydon’s flute to Elora as they mourn their fallen friend. They prepare to make the long journey home.

Jack Kilmer and his father Val Kilmer both provided the voice of Madmartigan in this episode through a combination of AI and sound mixing technology. Jack had previously provided the voice of his father in the 2021 documentary Val.

The script refers to the phantasmic pre-wedding gathering in the Temple of the Wyrm as “…like stepping into the lavishly artificial world of an MGM musical or Baz Luhrmann commercial…” The leaves were included to evoke imagery of glowing embers, and were inspired by art of Japanese maple trees.

The sliding blade extension on Boorman’s cleaver weapon is featured in his heroic standoff in this episode.

Willow Ufgood’s extended announcement of his arrival in the Immemorial City would have originally noted that he was the 186th High Aldwin of the Freen Nelwyn.

The language of the world of Willow, the common tongue that we hear as English, is actually Gwenaari, and has its own alphabet developed for the production.

The final scene of this episode was omitted from most versions of the script to keep the ending a secret. Among the reptilian beasts in the otherworldly army is the classic two headed Eborsisk from the 1988 movie.