The Witcher (Netflix series) - Henry Cavill

[MinionZombie]

Finished the season last night. I quite enjoyed it - got more and more into it as the episodes ticked by. It didn't grab me as much as Game of Thrones did, but there's room for that to happen yet. Episode 8 was pretty epic, even with hardly any Geralt in it. ... Oh, and this made me giggle:

[Neil]

Yes!

[EvilNed]

Yeah, I'm ready. Happy to see it getting a release in late december. I have a party on the 17th and on the 18th I'm gonna be hung over and see the whole damn season. EDIT: I'm even gonna go ahead and write that down in my calendar. Nice.

[Neil]

Yeah, I'm ready. Happy to see it getting a release in late december. I have a party on the 17th and on the 18th I'm gonna be hung over and see the whole damn season. EDIT: I'm even gonna go ahead and write that down in my calendar. Nice. Series one was a surprise good watch for me...

[kidgloves]

Just absolutely smashed season 2 in one go. AWESOME. That is All. Enjoy �� - - - Updated - - - Prequel series

[Neil]

Just absolutely smashed season 2 in one go. Dannng!

[MinionZombie]

I've got just one episode left of season two (and then the making of to watch as well). I'm not familiar with the source material or games, so I'm purely going on the show itself. I found Game of Thrones much more accessible (again, wasn't familiar with any of the source material) because I felt I had a better understanding of who everyone was, who was in allegience with who (and why), and what everyone wanted (and why) ... ... whereas with The Witcher I am finding myself a bit perplexed and lost at numerous points, getting a bit befuddled by this or that, so I think the show still needs work on how it tells the story. Season One was already obtuse enough with it's various timelines (I did catch the little in-joke they made about that, when the guy at the dock was slagging off the Bard's songs, haha), and while Season Two is better in those regards, I still find it a bit of a struggle at times to really know exactly what is going on and why. That all said, Henry Cavill is fucking awesome as Geralt ... who sometimes feels a bit sidelined in his own fucking show! What's up with that? Also - so much fucking talking all the time. Yes, we absolutely need the talky bits to tell the story, but the talk/action ratio is far too out of balance. You could have 50 minutes of talk and 3 minutes of action, I mean, you wot m8? It's a show I like, but I don't love it because I always feel a bit 'kept at a distance' by the style of storytelling. It's not about dumbing things down, it's just about tidying things up a little bit and balancing out the talk/action ratio a bit better. I do like that they've given Geralt a bit more of a sardonic sense of humour (which IIRC is how the character should be anyway ... I recall HC saying that in an interview recently).

[Neil]

Generally enjoyed it, but it ended with a little bit of a wimper IMHO. Shame the series was short IMHO...

[MinionZombie]

Generally enjoyed it, but it ended with a little bit of a wimper IMHO. Shame the series was short IMHO... At least the last episode had some decent action in it that went on for longer than two minutes! So ... much ... fucking ... TALKING in this show. Yes, it's absolutely necessary for storytelling and I'll be the first to say that you can't just have action all the time as that simply isn't a story, it's just shit crashing about the place for no reason, but the story/action balance in The Witcher is so far off. It felt like there was a lack of propulsion in this season, for me at least. Did all that much really happen over-the-piece? Ironically, for a show that spends so much time staring at people talking, I continually struggled to understand what was happening and why, not to mention who most of the characters were beyond the main three. Certain elements of the show lack distinction (e.g. the settings). Game of Thrones had a much more complex story and larger cast of characters with a wide array of locations - but I always knew who everyone was, what they wanted, why they wanted it, how they were setting out to achieve those goals, and where they were doing it. The Witcher really needs to redress the story/action balance, utilise Geralt much more, and tell its story more clearly and concisely with increased momentum.

[Neil]

At least the last episode had some decent action in it that went on for longer than two minutes! So ... much ... fucking ... TALKING in this show. Yes, it's absolutely necessary for storytelling and I'll be the first to say that you can't just have action all the time as that simply isn't a story, it's just shit crashing about the place for no reason, but the story/action balance in The Witcher is so far off. It felt like there was a lack of propulsion in this season, for me at least. Did all that much really happen over-the-piece? Ironically, for a show that spends so much time staring at people talking, I continually struggled to understand what was happening and why, not to mention who most of the characters were beyond the main three. Certain elements of the show lack distinction (e.g. the settings). Game of Thrones had a much more complex story and larger cast of characters with a wide array of locations - but I always knew who everyone was, what they wanted, why they wanted it, how they were setting out to achieve those goals, and where they were doing it. The Witcher really needs to redress the story/action balance, utilise Geralt much more, and tell its story more clearly and concisely with increased momentum. Yeh, was a tad talk heavy Hopefully season 3 learns and improves...

[MinionZombie]

Yeh, was a tad talk heavy Hopefully season 3 learns and improves... I'd hoped for that from season 1, but alas. Mind you, the structure of season 2 was definitely better - so there was more clarity there. However, the joke about some of the Bard's songs being too complicated (i.e. in reference to the confusing structure of season one) just generally came off as a bit smug, so we could do without that. Speaking of the Bard - why do they have him talking as if he's living in 2021? His dialogue is so often meta and snarky in that 'point out the thing that's literally happening' way that's so common. It sticks out like a sore thumb compared to everyone else in the show, and so every time the Bard acts 'too modern' it's like crunching gears. I don't know why they insist on doing that, he can be the main comic relief without resorting to tonally and stylistically out-of-place dialogue. Geralt's funnier in this season, too, which does actually work and gives his character a bit more room to breathe and it's handled better - even just a look, a gesture, and a gravelly half-sighed "fuck", when well-placed, simply works.

[Neil]

I'd hoped for that from season 1, but alas. Mind you, the structure of season 2 was definitely better - so there was more clarity there. However, the joke about some of the Bard's songs being too complicated (i.e. in reference to the confusing structure of season one) just generally came off as a bit smug, so we could do without that. Speaking of the Bard - why do they have him talking as if he's living in 2021? His dialogue is so often meta and snarky in that 'point out the thing that's literally happening' way that's so common. It sticks out like a sore thumb compared to everyone else in the show, and so every time the Bard acts 'too modern' it's like crunching gears. I don't know why they insist on doing that, he can be the main comic relief without resorting to tonally and stylistically out-of-place dialogue. Geralt's funnier in this season, too, which does actually work and gives his character a bit more room to breathe and it's handled better - even just a look, a gesture, and a gravelly half-sighed "fuck", when well-placed, simply works. Yeh, his dialog was a touch Ryan Reynolds far too often!

[Neil]

Season 3...

[MinionZombie]

Anyone watching this? I've ditched-out. Not even the great Henry Cavill could keep me watching despite the onslaught of utter meh-ness (and downright shitness at times) of the show in general. I was already strugging a bit on-and-off with the first two seasons, and season 3 really gets off to a thoroughly mediocre start ... quite literally, too. How would I not start season three of this grand fantasy epic show about a burly monster hunter? Well, I wouldn't do what the makers of this show did - a half-assed, quickly-cobbled-together punch-up round the back of some shoddy old barn you could find anywhere. It's the most underwhelming way to begin your season and really boggles the mind. Of course, the main problems with the show persist as well. For example - I still have no idea where any of the locations are in relation to each other (something that Game of Thrones absolutely mastered), as everywhere looks pretty similar to everywhere else most of the time, with every population looking pretty darn similar to every other population. Then there's the dialogue of supporting characters ... e.g. the sometimes-Scottish/sometimes-Irish beardy-fighty dwarf guy who is constantly swearing and being vulgar for vulgarity's sake ... irksome ... but nowhere near as irksome (or downright infuriating) as the bloody bard bloke who still talks, in a realm of sword-wielding armies on horse back laying siege to castles and fending off magic spells, as if he'd stumbled onto set from 2023 ... ... oh wait, that's exactly how they've written that insufferable character. Idiotic. Cavill has been severely under-served by the material and after two seasons of being on-the-cusp with it already, I just can't be bothered to finish off his time on the show unfortunately. I didn't bother with that prequel mini-series either, which seems to have been universally slammed by critics and viewers alike. It's funny, really ... these shows trying to be the next GoT (e.g. Rings of Power, The Witcher etc), and all fucking it up, and then along comes House of the Dragon and whips out its big old dragon-riding todger onto the table and shuts everyone up.

[Neil]

I've made it though the 5 episodes but it felt lack-lustre... I'll give then next 5 episodes a go when they're released in a few weaks...