Fantasy Netflix's The Witcher - General Discussion Thread

[blueharvest]

The Witcher season four review – Liam Hemsworth is as charismatic as a bollard in a wig

The replacement that Netflix has chosen for lead actor Henry Cavill is utterly lacking in his predecessor’s likability. The ex-Neighbours actor is a scowling lunk who brings a wildly uneven vibe to this fantasy drama

www.theguardian.com

 

[Mani-Man]

I finished the first Episode and so far im super positive surprised.
It has this "going on an adventure" vibe, the production quality is nice and Hemsworth does a really strong job.
Cavill is Cavill, he is a physical Actor and presence...but Hemsworth does incredible well.
The Fight scenes feel more like Geralt from the Books and Games, he brings a stronger line delivery to it and brings a Vulnerablility that works for this season well.
If the Season can hold this level, im happy.

 

[Sithborg]

I've seen two headlines praise Hemsworth 2 over Cavill, and I am cackling.

 

[BlackFox]

I've only watched one episode so far and action wise it seem decent still and inventive and Liam is trying but he just doesnt have the same chemistry with Jaskier that Cavill did in the first two seasons. Maybe things will improve as the season goes but the first episode didnt blow me away and still seems as flat as season 3.

 

[Mani-Man]

So i finished the Season...and it was imo way better than expected.
I was especially doubting it because of Hemsworth, but he stands out positively in this season.
He did a incredible job and i realized while watching, how much more Book and Game Accurate he was.
He brings a lot of good to the table and worked so well with the rest of the cast.

In General the cast did a great job, the different plots were carried by the main cast because the writing itself is fumbling way too often on its own.
It saves itself somewhat thanks to a good cast...but not completely.
The shows biggest problem is that 8 episodes are just too short, even if each is an 45-60 minutes.
This format just sucks out so much depth because it doesnt let the story breath, which makes for sloppy writing.

Too many shows nowadays fail because of this dumb 8 episode format, it leaves no room to be whimsical, to build tension or enough depth for a story, character or relationship.
This season has 3 main plots going on, squeezing that into 8 episodes, is incredible hard.
You notice how the last 8 episodes are so much faster and hectic because they needed half the season to build it.
If they would have had 15 or what episodes, it all could have been done more natural and im 100% sure the show in general would have benefited in the last 3 season from more episodes.
The format is just horrible for storytelling.

Anyway, i really enjoyed Season 4 and im not ashamed to admit that i was wrong when it came to Liam Hemsworth.
He did a great job replacing Henry Cavill.

 

[Teelie]

Saw the first two episodes. First was okay. Second bored me and I didn't bother going to the third episode and watched something else.

 

[BlackFox]

Over half way now and I will give it that its better than season 3 (a low bar I know) and I admire the attempts at trying new things with Jaskiers musical number and animated part, it shows more effort was put into this season but a lot of the usual problems remain. Also where are the Jaskier catchy songs that really lit up the first couple of season? Why ditch one of the best parts of the show??

Hemsworth is doing his best but he just does not have the screen presence or intimidation factor of Cavill. I know Cavill is often disliked for his stiffness in the acting capabilities but he had far more chemistry with the other leads than Hemsworth does, it may be down to the shonky writing but it feels like Geralt is rather weak now. The support characters and some new casting is decent and I thought Fishburne as Regis would be terrible but he hasnt annoyed me as much as some.

The rest yeah, its a mixed bag, the Rats stuff is not the best and often the worst parts of the episode, with again lazy writing at times. Yen and the mages part is probably holding up the best and the action is still decent if rare. For all the talk of war and pillage there is not a lot shown. I will get through it quicker than season 3 but its not really changed my opinion greatly for the disappointment of season 3 and the way the show has gone.

 

[BlackFox]

Made it through the season, 8 episodes is very brief, nothing really has time to gain any depth or traction. It is better than season 3 and does get better as it goes on but then its based on one of the better books, in my opinion, so that helps but everything feels very safe and surface level.

My issues with the series are pretty much the same as they have been for sometime, its meant to be a massive war in the region but every "battle" seems to be limited to about 20 people in a single room or area, the scale feels small when its meant to be epic. I cant quite put my finger on the problem at times while watching, it just feels "off".

The mage and Yen stuff probably comes off the best in the series and does actually feel like there is something at risk there. Geralt and the random group got better as it went on but Hemsworth doesnt have the presence or chemistry with the others like his predecessor as I stated above, he isnt the worst thing about it, it had problems with Cavill so it was never really going to be his fault as it had already come off the tracks.

It feels like it will be pretty quickly forgotten sadly once season 5 is wrapped up as well and will feel like, on the whole, a missed opportunity that started off with some potential but got lost on the way.

 

[Drizzle]

I only realized this was out by opening up Netflix. Has there even been any marketing for this?