The first pictures of Henry Cavill in the white wig of the iconic, brooding hottie, Geralt of Rivia, divided even some of the most hardcore fans of the game The Witcher. They were dubious the Man of Steel (2013) could do the gritty hero justice in the world of blood, guts and princesses that Netflix picked up as a series. Yet I am delighted to report that no-one should have worried as Cavill did a wonderful job.
Wrapped up in eight hour-long episodes, the season can be binged perfectly and the tone of the show is perfect for anyone missing the glory days of Game of Thrones. Chock full of gore, lore and Geralt; I am certain that the show will have a long run yet. With the announcement of the second series set to start filming in February; I have no doubt this show is primed to become a fantasy classic.
The world of The Witcher is a dark one. We follow the strings of the story from the past and the present. The narrative focuses on our favourite sarcastic Witcher, Geralt, the young witch named Yennefer and the princess Cirrila of Cintra. If the show has any fault it would definitely be situated round the lack of explanation as to the past and present threads in the story. It was only during the fifth or sixth episode that I actually realised that the plot following Cirrila and the one following Geralt were actually at different points in time.
Needless to say, it is a wonderful plot to follow made with a whole cast of great characters. It is merciless in it’s killing of characters and does not pull punches when it comes to blood. I believe if you really wanted to get drunk one evening you could watch the show and drink whenever someone gets beheaded. However, despite all the blood, the fight scenes are excellent. Geralt clearly played Assasin’s Creed at some point in his really long existence.
From the numerous explicit sex scenes in the Witcher games I thought there would be more graphic scenes. This is not a complaint, only an observation. Truly it wasn’t that bad. I wouldn’t recommend watching it with your grandmother but aside from the odd bit of nudity, and the occasional orgy – it is rather tame. In fact, personally I am an advocate for Cavill to have more shirtless screen time.
The plot kept me entertained and now I want to play the third game. Just for Geralt – because one can never have enough of that sarcasm and brooding.
I cannot wait for the second season and I need to buy those books.
