The Witcher was supposed to be the show to fill the void Game of Thrones left behind, or at least, that is how it was initially promoted and marketed.
It is a fantasy action drama series based on the popular book series by Andrzej Sapowski. It follows the story of a monster-hunting Witcher, Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill). Geralt has a mutation of some kind that allows him to live longer than an average human. There are three storylines told simultaneously throughout multiple timelines. We have Yennefer (Anya Chalotra); a hunchback peasant girl sold to a sorceress by her family — The sorceress takes Yennefer to a training school for mages, where she learns to become a Sorceress herself. Then we have princes Cirilla (Freya Allan), who is on the run from an invading kingdom hell-bent on capturing her. Cirilla has shown to possess magical powers and has been told by her dying grandmother Queen to find Geralt of Rivia.
The Witcher is a very complicated show, with lots of exposition and lots of moving storylines. You have to follow the plot carefully and be fully invested in understanding the complexity of the multiple storylines. After the third episode (favorite episode of the series), things get easier to follow. Some episodes seem not that well constructed, but I persevered and made it to the end of the series. Nevertheless, as far as quality is concerned, the show feels like a low-budget fantasy adventure show. The quality of the customs, the sets, special effects, and dialogue of this show does not feel like, say…Game of Thrones, which is the only immediate comparison that I can make.
Henry Cavill is perfect here (I heard he is a big fan of the book series and video games); he essentially saves the show and keeps things interesting. The sword fighting sequences are awesome; Cavill shines on every scene. I came to this show completely open-minded, never having read the books or played the video games. So while this show was initially marketed as the new show for Game of Throne fans — I kept my expectations low and found it enjoyable and entertaining.
Three out of Five Popcorn Bags 🍿🍿🍿
The Witcher (Season 1). Streaming on Netflix
Rod Rioja 