The Witcher: Season 1 – Netflix Review

THE WITCHER is a new Netflix series in the adventure-supernatural genre – but it also features quite a lot of horror moments. Henry Cavill stars in the title role but Anya Chalotra plays the more interesting character. Read more in our Season 1 The Witcher review here!

The Witcher is a new Netflix series that is hoping to take over where Game of Thrones left an audience wanting more. Just like in Game of Thrones, we’re in the adventure-supernatural genre with storylines that feature action, drama, and horror.

Still, The Witcher on Netflix does differ from the aforementioned HBO series in many ways. For one, there are several kinds of monsters and not “just” dragons. Also, there are many witches and other interesting creatures. In fact, it feels more like a “Game of Thrones meets Lord of the Rings“-hybrid.

Sounds very interesting, right? Well, fortunately, it is. However, you should expect to watch a few episodes before you really get on board with everything happening. The same was the case with the brilliant new HBO series Watchmen, so hang in there.

Henry Cavill stars in the title role but Anya Chalotra plays the more interesting character.

Continue reading our The Witcher review below. 

Anya Chalotra is the heart of the show

While everyone has been talking about Henry Cavill playing the title role in The Witcher, I found myself being much more fascinated with another character. Don’t get me wrong, I think Henry Cavill does a wonderful job of portraying the Witcher. Then again, I have no prior knowledge of this character, so maybe others will feel differently.

To me, however, the real heart and soul of The Witcher is the character of Yennefer. She is portrayed by Anya Chalotra who is absolutely brilliant. In case you don’t know anything about the story, I don’t want to spoil it for you. Still, I do want to say that her character arc is both fascinating, heartbreaking, bold and downright scary!

Anya Chalotra hasn’t worked on too many productions yet. In fact, she has only done TV series and this is her fourth. Her third was “only” as a voice actor in Sherwood where she voiced Robin Loxley. Her first role was on the Netflix series Wanderlust which was followed by a role on the BBC mini-series The ABC Murders.

Season 2 of The Witcher is coming

The Witcher also features Freya Allan (The War of the Worlds) as Ciri, and Joey Batey (Knightfall) as the funny sidekick Jaskier. Honestly, there are  a lot of characters in this new series, but I do want to mention just a few more. Our fellow Dane, Lars Mikkelsen (House of Cards) plays Stregobor, which sounds like a name from Lord of the Rings.

Also, Jodhi May (who guest-starred on Game of Thrones) is truly awesome as Queen Calanthe. I absolutely adore her character though she isn’t exactly without fault. Finally, MyAnna Buring plays the powerful and intriguing Tissaia. You should recognize MyAnna Buring from genre movies such as Kill List, The Descent, or the horror-comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009).

Look, this isn’t an easy story to start watching. But which of the really awesome series are? You simply must allow for the characters and plots to take you on an adventure. It will deliver!

Also, season 2 of The Witcher has already been greenlit so you know this is a series that will continue beyond its first season.

Watch The Witcher on Netflix now!

The creator of The Witcher series for Netflix is Lauren Schmidt. She has worked on a variety of shows ranging from writing for The West Wing to writing and producing episodes of Daredevil and most recently The Umbrella Academy. With The Witcher, she has moved on to the role of creator and it seems to suit her quite well.

Of course, this new Netflix show isn’t a new story since it’s been adapted from the novel by Andrzej Sapkowski. I am not familiar with the novel so I am watching (and rating) this Netflix series on its own merits.

We’ve watched the first five episodes of the new Netflix series for this review. The entire season consists of eight episodes. Honestly, I was fascinated and intrigued from the first episode, but it wasn’t until we hit episode 3 that I was truly hooked. Also, episode 4 is really amazing. As for the final episodes, I am getting to those as soon as possible!

Season 1 of The Witcher is out on Netflix globally from December 20, 2019.

Details

Creator: Lauren Schmidt
Stars: Henry Cavill, Freya Allan, Anya Chalotra, Jodhi May, Lars Mikkelsen, Joey Batey, MyAnna Buring

Plot

Based on the best-selling fantasy series, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.