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Netflix's The Witcher review thread
- Thread starter Saucycarpdog
- Start date
Holy shit that might be the dumbest thing I have ever heard. I posit that it shouldn't even count once.
Watched the first episode. Some messy set-up but it's an entertaining pulp fantasy exercise. Cavill does a fine job. Worth watching if you're a fan of the genre and you have an appreciation for cheesy fantasy shit, otherwise stay away. As far as the reviews go, it's fine to ask a non-fan to give their take, but not fair to ask critics who are actively hostile to the whole idea of cheesy fantasy shit to give their take. Like, "LOL it's Dungeons & Dragons and the names are weird, there are elves, can you believe someone made this??" isn't something that should get past an editor's desk.
The actual plot and characters are pretty good, some of the acting is also quite strong
Dialogue is not great; it sounds like late season GOT pop culture dialogue as opposed to dialogue "in that world".. early seasons GOT had terrific dialogue
The sets are fine but the wilds are not great, particularly the forest shots and such are quite ugly. Looks weedly and don't have the fantasy tone
Lastly, Cavill himself is OK. There's not a lot to do here with the character because it's very deadpan, he plays the humor parts fine but again very pop culture as opposed to something inhabiting the world.. lastly he does the action pretty good.
I think they need to invest into better writing/screenplay talent, with better eyes for visual production, led by top tier TV directors and we'd have something terrific. So far I'm in episode 2 and I like it
Dialogue is not great; it sounds like late season GOT pop culture dialogue as opposed to dialogue "in that world".. early seasons GOT had terrific dialogue
The sets are fine but the wilds are not great, particularly the forest shots and such are quite ugly. Looks weedly and don't have the fantasy tone
Lastly, Cavill himself is OK. There's not a lot to do here with the character because it's very deadpan, he plays the humor parts fine but again very pop culture as opposed to something inhabiting the world.. lastly he does the action pretty good.
I think they need to invest into better writing/screenplay talent, with better eyes for visual production, led by top tier TV directors and we'd have something terrific. So far I'm in episode 2 and I like it
Wait what? I thought Mindhunter S3 already did get the green light?
This is a pretty good show 3 episodes in so far, maybe it's because I'm attached to the universe but I'm overall pretty satisfied and excited to continue to watch.
I binged it all today. It was pretty damn great, even with it's flaws. I can't wait for season 2.
I'm just now reading reviews after finishing the show, and it's ridiculous how many critics are having to compare this show to Game of Thrones. As if GoT is the only other fantasy to exist in all of media, for fuck's sake.
I'm just now reading reviews after finishing the show, and it's ridiculous how many critics are having to compare this show to Game of Thrones. As if GoT is the only other fantasy to exist in all of media, for fuck's sake.
After enjoying the first 2 episodes immensely, I can safely say these popular critics have no idea what they're talking about. They need to be spoon fed every little bit of exposition to not be completely dumbfounded by the simplest bits of lore.
This show is doing extremely well with audiences. It's one of the top rated shows on IMDB currently.
This show is doing extremely well with audiences. It's one of the top rated shows on IMDB currently.
What do you mean by fantasy tone? Like alien looking fantastic type of landscapes?
5 episodes in now and yeah my major complaints are weird pacing, bad dialogue (here and there), and my biggest complaint: the show being shot like it's a music video or something; episodes are filled with such weird lighting and shot choices.
Otherwise the show is actually really good so far and critics are way off the mark. I'm going to stop following them for sci-fi/fantasy.
Otherwise the show is actually really good so far and critics are way off the mark. I'm going to stop following them for sci-fi/fantasy.
I liked the first episode just fine. I thought it introduced various concepts well enough to not be confusing, there was enough going on and it was entertaining throughout. Not high art or anything, but it never pretends to be. My main issue lies with the visual effects, it leans hard on CG and it shows.
I don't know how to describe it, but it's very weedly and ugly. Forests are a staple in fantasy, even putting aside GOT it's used in Pan's Labyrinth and stuff like Bridge to Terabithia. It looks very bad here. It's probably shot in the wrong location. There are multiple forest scenes in Witcher and supposedly in different locations but I give a thumbs down to all.
I'm also on episode 5 now and will finish it today, and I give the series a big thumbs up.
Interesting. That could be a valid criticism lol. But to me being in a state that is one giant forest it looks like all the forest in any "grounded" fantasy show. I might be too used to seeing nothing but trees🤣
I've gone to forests in many states, lived in 3 but traveled 10+.. lots of better choices they could have used
The cheap CG and lens flare in some of the scenes are also pretty bad
It's a good show but the visual direction is a B
I'm not convinced this was a high budget production at all
It could definitely be better, I expected a lot worse. Needs a bigger budget though. The fight against the striga for example looked like shit when it should have been a big ass CG monster whooping Geralt's ass.
It's 2019 and people still think they're cool for hating on the fantasy genre when they're two decades removed from high school. Tear it apart like a grown up if you feel really feel that way.
It's 2019 and people still think they're cool for hating on the fantasy genre when they're two decades removed from high school. Tear it apart like a grown up if you feel really feel that way.
watched the first three episodes and its damn good. i don't get all these criticisms, they sound overly harsh to me. its not perfect but for a first season, its damn good. only one scene i felt was exposition heavy, combat was great, monster effects are very good. love the characters and as a player of the game i liked that i could follow certain plot lines and there are nods to the games in there. while i haven't read the books i can see the connection from the books to the game (w3) to the show. if you are familiar with geralt from the game then this show version will feel like home to you. i'd give it an 'a' for effort.
don't go in here expecting a new g.o.t. show and appreciate it for its own sake. g.o.t. set a high bar its unfair to judge all new efforts to it.
also found the nudity gratuitous, a taste is sweet, but they kept going back to that well and it turned sour quick.
*edit: one more observation: i had a thought half way through ep3, this series (so far) reminds of a monster-of-the-week x-files show, less g.o.t. i like that.
don't go in here expecting a new g.o.t. show and appreciate it for its own sake. g.o.t. set a high bar its unfair to judge all new efforts to it.
also found the nudity gratuitous, a taste is sweet, but they kept going back to that well and it turned sour quick.
*edit: one more observation: i had a thought half way through ep3, this series (so far) reminds of a monster-of-the-week x-files show, less g.o.t. i like that.
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Mindhunter isn't going anywhere. Some people just like fearmongering and acting as if Netflix will cancel its critically acclaimed shows.
Fincher is a busy guy and I think he's working on a film at the moment so it may be a longer delay for the next season IIRC.
I think I'm noticing what you mean...it looks desaturated to me? But living in Oregon I'm used to bright green forest. There is something off looking, just can't put my finger on it.
The Witcher....gratuitous nudity you say lol. Sounds like the Witcher! Especially the first game.
Roughly $10m an episode budget (more than nearly every season of GoT up to Season 6), tonnes of hype and marketing, plus a strong cast. I think some level of expectation is fair?
i've only played witcher 3. now don't get me wrong there are only a few scenes with nudity (maybe even just a couple), but the scenes with them i found leaned into titillation a bit too hard. i couldn't help but roll my eyes after the third or fourth shot. a scene turning into a peep show doesn't help the narrative. either way, its a minor criticism, i'm just trying to enjoy a witcher show.
That first episode was pretty much what I wanted to see. Writing was a little rough in places, but it was the right mix of the books and games.
I guess I just don't go into things expecting a masterwork. It's good. It's not altering the very concept of visual storytelling, it's just a solid show.
Also the sword fight was excellent. Exceeded my expectations.
Essentially, they said they were making a Witcher Netflix show, and they did. I'm sold.
I guess I just don't go into things expecting a masterwork. It's good. It's not altering the very concept of visual storytelling, it's just a solid show.
Also the sword fight was excellent. Exceeded my expectations.
Essentially, they said they were making a Witcher Netflix show, and they did. I'm sold.
That makes sense, the first Witcher game had collectibles in the form of card that features nudes of every woman in the game lol. and the books have been criticized by some for being pretty bad in terms of there depiction of women.
Can I get a source for this? I'm watching the series and it looks good but $10m an episode seems like a bit much? (I'm enjoying it btw)
No. It may scratch the itch in some ways, but replacement?.. nah. it's far more fantasy focused than GoT, for one. It doesn't fuck around, it deep dives into magic right away. Also, while I'm really enjoying it, I'd say that GoT's early seasons were far better written & paced.
Not sure how accurate this is mind.
Supposedly Cavill's salary is also $400k per episode.
GRRM simply wrote what is the pinnacle of fantasy and at the very least the first four seasons of GOT really adapt it quite well, I wouldn't come into this with those expectations. I mean, things like Ned Stark's death in season 1 and of course the Red Wedding are some of the most shocking things to happen on television. The Witcher is high fantasy, there are mages, elves, dwarves, and other creatures and monsters, it's not of the quality of GOT but it is a well made fantasy show that is fun to watch. There are some good acting performances, excellent fight scenes and the like.
Wonder what they spend the money on, the series looks closer to Princess Fantaghiro than GoT.
From reviews, this sounds like there's a lot of objectification of female characters compared to Witcher 2 and 3. Is that accurate? Is there not much male objectification? If so, that's quite sexist, no?
Ok thanks. My partner probably won't like the high fantasy aspect, so that's good to know. Cheers.
Would be surprising given that the showrunner is a woman, no?
Oh my god. I used to think your Avatar is a dog with a closed mouth who has a weird throat. I just realized the dog has an open mouth and is yawning.
E.. even if, why is this your concern? It was a smile, nothing more. And if there's more, she seems to enjoy it. I didn't see a shocked face on my end at least. People should worry more about themselves tbqh. There are adults that enjoy way older partners. Live and let live?
I am crawling towards the end and the show remains a watchable mess. The astonishing production values make it. Trashy source material it mostly adheres to but is randomly adapted via time jumps and mediocre acting undo it. I´ll return for S0201 to see if there will be a marked improvement but the longer the books go on the worse they get so, I ain´t holding my breath. And about Henry Cavill. He is sadly misacts and delivers a meh performance that is neither book (hooray) nor game (bummer). Quality actor, wrong show. The critic got it right. A very weak 6/10 that would have been a 5 if I didn't know what was going on due to the books and games.
$10 million per episode sounds crazy. Amazon's 'The Boys' was made in like $5 million per episode, and has movie quality VFX. I wonder what happened here.
Also, to those who've seen the show, is the scrotum armor as terrible as it looked in the leaked pics?