As there are so many characters in The Witcher saga, especially in CD Projekt Red's games, vying for the spotlight, some of them are destined to be underrated or underappreciated compared to their book counterparts. One such character is Fringilla Vigo, who has a controversial past and relationship with Geralt and her peers in the Lodge of Sorceresses.
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In the games, Fringilla is often overshadowed by the more powerful and louder mages such as Yennefer, Triss, or Philippa Eilhart. However, The Witcher community seems to more or less like her, particularly in the books. Some even think that she should've had a bigger role in one of the game's expansions. If you're not convinced with such a sentiment, then maybe you ought to know Fringilla Vigo more, Geralt certainly did. The difference is that Yennefer won't be going at your throat.
10 She's Related To Anna Henrietta
While she might not seem like much compared to war heroes such as Yennefer and Triss or other prodigies in the Lodge, Fringilla Vigo is sort of a royalty figure. She's the second cousin or distant relative of Anna Henrietta, the Duchess of Toussaint.
Anna is also related to Emhyr var Emreis, the Emperor of Nilfgaard. Fringilla isn't necessarily related to Emhyr, though, but her lineage gives her some pretty powerful liaisons. That's also why some fans of the franchise expected Fringilla to be present in the Blood and Wine expansion. Sadly, that wasn't the case.
9 She's Nilfgaardian
This one is a given since Fringilla is related to the royalties of Toussaint and that kingdom is considered as an autonomous duchy of Nilfgaard. Beyond that, she was also raised in the region and has pledged her allegiance to Nilfgaard as well.
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Hence, it wasn't surprising that Netflix's The Witcher painted Fringilla Vigo as an evil mage stereotype given her heritage. In the games, this wasn't so apparent since the timeline is canon and Fringilla was supposedly suffering the consequences of her connections with the Lodge.
8 Aretuza Probably Isn't Her Only Magic School
The Witcher show went into detail about how sorceresses were trained and even prominently featured Aretuza, which appeared more like a dull bootleg version of Hogwarts. Fringilla was present here alongside Yennefer and the others.
That's why it's surprising for viewers that Fringilla would turn against her own kind to maintain her loyalty with Nilfgaard. The thing is, Nilfgaard in the books actually has its own magic school and produces its own wizards and sorceresses. Chances are, Fringilla could have gone there as well. Otherwise, she wouldn't have had the guts to fight her own mentor at Aretuza.
7 She Had A Complicated Fling With Geralt
Now, on to the most discussed Fringilla moment in the books: her tryst with Geralt of Rivia. During this time, Geralt believed that Yennefer had betrayed him and was heartbroken. It just so happened that Fringilla needed to use and delay Geralt.
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Consequently, Geralt was placed under a charm, and to keep him pinned in one place for a season, Fringilla kept him company. It's not like Geralt wasn't aware of what he was doing with Fringilla, although he later discovered that she was just using him.
6 She Did Fall In Love With Geralt
Fringilla's affair with Geralt was initially strategic but emotions got involved and she ended up falling for him. It was a rather dysfunctional affection since Geralt, at one point during the height of their lovemaking, mistakenly referred to Fringilla as Yennefer.
Even so, Fringilla endured it and ended up having deep romantic feelings for Geralt, even after they parted ways. The Lodge was rather playful about such an affair and even teased Fringilla about it. It's even implied that up until the third game, Fringilla was still attached or attracted to Geralt.
5 Thorny Relationship With Yennefer
Due to Geralt's affair with Fringilla, one might predict that Yennefer doesn't like her, and that is the case. Both Fringilla and Yennefer hate each other's guts. After all, they started out their professional careers as enemies.
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Further widening the rift between the two is Geralt's tendency to seek out sorceresses to ease his mommy issues. So, why don't they just kill each other or fight? Because the Lodge compelled both sorceresses to become allies, uneasy ones at best.
4 She Blinded Yennefer
Even before the Lodge was formed or Geralt got involved, Fringilla and Yennefer already had bad blood. During the infamous Battle of Sodden Hill, Yennefer and Fringilla were on opposite sides. Fringilla aided Nilfgaard by crippling the opposing side's mages. She then blinded Yennefer temporarily during the battle, effectively taking her out.
That isn't to say Yennefer was without any transgressions. Fringilla had to do it because Yennefer was blowing up Fringilla's allies left and right. After that war, both put the past behind them but remained vigilant towards each other and remembered their scars well.
3 Her Allegiances Are Murky
Fringilla's allegiances were already complicated in the books but the games made things even more convoluted. Fringilla simply kept changing sides, making her seem like a capricious ally at best. First, she joined Aretuza, and then sided with Nilfgaard and even covered up their offenses.
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After that, Fringilla sided with the Lodge of Sorceresses, and she only got her just desserts when Emhyr imprisoned her for her connection to the Lodge. That last part happened in the third game. After Ciri's story concluded, it's not made clear where Fringilla placed her bets.
2 Fringilla Saved Geralt From Vilgefortz
Despite everything, Fringilla isn't exactly a bad figure; in fact, at one point, she was especially useful to Geralt and friends. She gave Geralt a medallion that supposedly worked just as well as his witcher medallions. However, it didn't was apparently made to cause harm to Geralt, although it did have special magical tricks.
When Geralt was fighting Vilgefortz, the powerful wizard could have killed the former if he didn't clutch this medallion, causing it to release some defensive illusions that confused the latter. That very well means Fringilla saved Geralt.
1 She's Not A Villain
After seeing the Netflix adaptation for The Witcher, it's easy to paint Fringilla Vigo as one of the big bad villains. After all, she was instrumental in Nilfgaard taking Cintra and even much of the deaths in Sodden Hill.
However, the show doesn't really do justice to Fringilla's character. In the source material, she is nowhere near that powerful, murderous, or psychotic. In fact, some fans have even grown to sympathize with Fringilla after getting to know her better in the books. Perhaps the second season of the Netflix adaptation will fix this in a redemption arc, but don't count on it.