The Witcher (2019+) <Netflix>
I've tried a few times to watch The Witcher, but just cannot get into it yet.
Finally gave this one more go, ended up binging my way through all 3 current seasons and likeing it for the most part. Henry Cavill plays our main lead as the Witcher (children are essentially sent off for training, most die, those who survive drink potions and fight monsters for money without taking sides in things). He has done the role of Geralt great justice throughout the series, but it appears he is leaving now and they will bring in Thor's brother (I don't know which Hemsworth, but not Thor) to fill in the last 2 seasons. Unemotional, uninvolved, he does his jobs and moves on. The second main character is a female mage known as Yennefer (Yen), played by Anya Chalotra. The first season or so of her role is as some disfigured outcast child by her parents for less than they wanted for a pig. She turns out to be one of the most powerful mages ever, partners with Geralt with on again / off again sex and escapades. Third main character is Princess Ciri (Freya Allan) who becomes the target of everyone on the continent. Elves want her as the one of prophecy who will restore their kingdom, mages want her because she is the ultimate power, regular kings and such want her to capture her kingdom (without knowing her power). S1 is a bit scattered, introducing characters, S2+S3 focus in on Ciri being the focal point, I have no idea what they intend for S4&5.
What's done well in this is the CGI for monsters, and some of the magic, the character development and utilization of our main 3 but also the supporting dozen or so. It isn't gripping, more like medieval plodding along with moments of fighting. However, perhaps my favorite part of the whole thing is the writing in that with this wide cast of characters, they rarely interact as a group. Instead you follow the paths of several which criss-cross with others, so they have common points of contact but only part of the history/story. This allows for the viewer to be up on everything, but the characters to take some twists and turns along the way as things become revealed. Also, perhaps top 3 in aspects to like is the total transformation of Yen from mangled freak worse less tha a pig to a very attractive and powerful woman. What she went thru for the early episodes in terms of physical twisting and deformity ccannot be prosthetics alone, and she pulled it off very well.
What I didn't like is from the get-go we have a bard, Jaskier (Joey Batey) who would be the fourth of the core group but he stays outside the innermost circle a bit. But throughout these 3 seasons we see him as a womanizer, frequently, and then when he meets Geralt there is a hint of attraction. This is brought full force in S3 when he enters a gay relationship with a prince. I checked the references - there is no homo for this character in the stories, nor in the game, nowhere. This aspect is wholly an injection of LGTTQIA+ by Netflix, and Netflix alone. Also, in S3, there is a bad mage working with a female guard to kill a king...the lesbianism is completely pointless other than Netflix pushing that agenda.
I'll likely wacth S4&5, just because I have to finish things. But I'm expecting a notable drop off in losing our main actor and Netflix flexing more gay agenda. On the plus of this overall, lots o'titties. Just sayin.
Final verdict so far: 5/10, you need to like this genre for it to carry for you, in which case it does for the most part. It's not GoT, but it's good.