The Witcher (Netflix): A Review

I may have been posting a string of dour musings over the past week or two, but I did also take some time for some binge-watching. The Mandalorian is good. The promised second season has big shoes to fill. But you don't need me to tell you that. Everyone is saying that. The other show I watched deserves a look, though, and that is The Witcher on Netflix. I should also note that I haven't yet finished the last two episodes. Is this premature? Maybe. I'm OK with that, though, because it means I won't accidentally spoil the series finale for anyone else, either.

Image credit

I have not read the books, and I haven't played much of the game series, so I admit up front that I am going into this with only minimal knowledge of the source material. The books are probably far better, because that is the norm. No need to tell me that. Some cursory reading indicates the games are considered a non-canon sequel following the novels and short stories. I will be considering the show on its own merits. The obvious comparison is HBO's Game of Thrones, but with more magic, fewer main characters, and a faster pace. It has its share of vulgar language and nudity, though. If that bothers you, this isn't the show for you.

The production value is trying to be GoT, but it doesn't make it. It's not bad, but it's not perfectly polished. A couple characters had a bit too much of a man-in-a-rubber-suit effect, and HDTV magnifies that. But on the other hand, it's nice to see practical effects. Some of the CGI was jarringly obvious post-production manipulation, after all. The Mandalorian wasn't even immune to that criticism, though. The sets varied in believability, too, but a lot of them seemed like location shoots using existing real structures for exterior shots instead of studio sets. That was nice.

The casting and acting is mostly solid, though, and that's what counts. Henry Cavill plays the title role well, and while the stunts and swordplay are clearly cinematic play, he makes it believable anyway. I would like to see a behind-the-scenes look at how Anya Chalotra's makeup was done for the first few episodes where her character Yennefer is a deformed hunchback. Freya Allan does a fine job as Princess Ciri, too. They all hit that balance of being neither flat nor hammy despite the fantastical nature of the dialogue and setting. I suspect that was hardest to balance for Joey Batey as Jaskier, but he was just great. The same goes for the rest of the cast, except for Anna Shaffer as Triss Merigold, who had some flat lines a few times.

The story is where it really matters. Each episode is split between the stories of Geralt the Witcher, Yennifer the Sorceress, and Princess Ciri. These three story arcs are each largely internally chronological, but not concurrent until the characters actually meet. The stories have many more fantastic elements than GoT, with elves, dwarves, creepy monsters, very overt magical effects, and the like. The characters have personal conflicts and failures. It's not high drama, but it's not a trio of Mary Sues, either.

All in all, I recommend the show to fans of fantasy. It's not epic like The Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones, but it's a generally well-produced and well-acted adventure in a world of swords and sorcery. Four out of five stars. And I'm a picky person when it comes to granting a maximum review on anything.

The Mandalorian gets 5 out of 5, for the record.