[Netflix] The Witcher

[Old_Nash]

First Teaser Trailer of Geralt sotry...

 

[505thAirborne]

Not going to lie, that trailer did nothing for me. 

[TangledThorns]

Never read the book. Never played the game. However, I'll give this a watch.

[Tking22]

Looks pretty damn good to me, restored quite a bit of faith after all the leaked stuff had me worrying. I've only read Blood of Elves and Time of Contempt, but yeah, this looks good. Gotta drown out the complaints of it not looking enough like the games, this is based on the novels folks, the games took place LONG after the novels.

[Thom]

Didn't know it was a book. Only thought it was a video game. I'll give it a watch.

[Old_Nash]

Main Trailer

 

[sqidd]

I'll give it a shot. I'm down for most monster stuff.

[Tking22]

I love that there's little winks to the games while still firmly being the story from the first few novels, and Henry is growing on me as Geralt. December 20th? That works for me, I'll gladly watch the Butcher of Blaviken get work done over the holidays :). 

[David Hingtgen]

The main thing that gives me hope, is that Henry Cavil is apparently a fan of the series (not sure if games, books, or both), and wanted the role--sought it out the moment there were rumors of a live-action adaptation.  So he "knows how things should go, how Geralt should be portrayed".  

[derex3592]

Looks good. Might wanna see if the wife wants to check it out together.

[Marzan]

I have never played the game but have read the first 2 books (with all the short stories) and have started the novels. Great stuff.

Regarding the trailer, It looks ok I suppose. Very "epic" and kind of missing the fairy tale style that the stories have. I hope they keep some of Geralt's wit and humour and don't do him as a dour bastard all the time.

[Mommar]

16 hours ago, Marzan said:

I have never played the game but have read the first 2 books (with all the short stories) and have started the novels. Great stuff.

Regarding the trailer, It looks ok I suppose. Very "epic" and kind of missing the fairy tale style that the stories have. I hope they keep some of Geralt's wit and humour and don't do him as a dour bastard all the time.

Fairytale style?  That hasn’t been my reading or game playing experience at all.

[Mommar]

On 11/2/2019 at 1:26 PM, David Hingtgen said:

The main thing that gives me hope, is that Henry Cavil is apparently a fan of the series (not sure if games, books, or both), and wanted the role--sought it out the moment there were rumors of a live-action adaptation.  So he "knows how things should go, how Geralt should be portrayed".  

Henry Cavil admitted to playing through the games once a year.

[Mommar]

On 7/19/2019 at 5:45 PM, Tking22 said:

Looks pretty damn good to me, restored quite a bit of faith after all the leaked stuff had me worrying. I've only read Blood of Elves and Time of Contempt, but yeah, this looks good. Gotta drown out the complaints of it not looking enough like the games, this is based on the novels folks, the games took place LONG after the novels.

And according to the author the games are fan-fiction at best.  He’s apparently quite the curmudgeon.

[Tking22]

13 hours ago, Mommar said:

And according to the author the games are fan-fiction at best.  He’s apparently quite the curmudgeon.

The author Sapkowski has never been shy about his dislike for the stories told in the games, he's praised them from a gameplay perspective, but has never been a fan of the original stories CD Projekt Red have come up with. There's a reason he made them set their games FAR into the future beyond the time of his novels, he didn't want them attempting to retell or alter the stories he'd already written.

Understandable, but I also like several of the stories told in The Witcher games, they're top notch RPGs IMO, incredibly well made and engaging. 

[Petrov27]

I got into it all with the Witcher 3 game; the trailer for it was fantastic - such immersive music alone! Started the game and was immediately super impressed so paused that and read all the books lol. It has some great great stories/quests - the Bloody Baron alone was one of the best computer RPG things I have ever experienced. I know the second game has some very positive reviews regarding the plot so I keep thinking to try again but the combat in that just really didn't click with me right from the start so never have.

I do have to laugh a little at the author Sapkowski  and his regard of the games; he was offered up front a cut in profits by the game producer early on and he basically told them to shove it because he figured it would be crap and wouldn't make much. So he took a lump sum for the rights up front back before the first game. When the third game came around and made giant cash he sued them for more $$$ then - not the best look in my opinion lol....

Edited November 5, 2019 by Petrov27

[Marzan]

On 11/5/2019 at 1:37 AM, Mommar said:

Fairytale style?  That hasn’t been my reading or game playing experience at all.

There's certainly tonal elements of it in the first 2 books with the short stories, specially in the likes of "A Grain of Truth". It certainly disappears in the novels; I reckon Sapkowski matured as a writer and found a more cultivated writing voice. I have never played the games so I cannot comment on those.

[Tking22]

On 11/5/2019 at 2:51 PM, Petrov27 said:

I do have to laugh a little at the author Sapkowski  and his regard of the games; he was offered up front a cut in profits by the game producer early on and he basically told them to shove it because he figured it would be crap and wouldn't make much. So he took a lump sum for the rights up front back before the first game. When the third game came around and made giant cash he sued them for more $$$ then - not the best look in my opinion lol....

I remember reading about this, he got mad and pissy Witcher 3 became a massive success and wanted more money after the fact.

Witcher 1 and 2 were moderate successes, they were solid games but didn't really break into the mainstream, then Witcher 3 came along and was game of the year for a lot of people. That was about the time he also started getting a little less harsh on his criticisms of the games, funny how that works when there's a bunch of extra money at stake. 

[sh9000]

 

[Tking22]

Looks good, I'm hyped. Fitting song as well, considering one of Geralt's nicknames is the White Wolf. 

[Bolt]

I enjoyed the game and the trailers look good. Definitely gonna check out medieval super man with white hair

[Marzan]

So I watched the first two episodes and I'm pleased with the adaptation they've done so far. While they are taking some liberties with the timeline and order of events, they are doing a solid job of introducing the characters and their back stories. Glad to see they're using material from the short stories too.

[Dobber]

Reviews are good from what I’ve seen. One reviewer said Episodes 1 and 5 are the odd balls and not that great but the rest are fantastic. Can’t wait to watch it when the kids are asleep as I also heard it is NOT safe for kids. Lots of nudity ect.

Chris

Edited December 20, 2019 by Dobber

[kajnrig]

There's an Entertainment Weekly review making the rounds for being abjectly terrible. Apparently the people (who actually got paid for their opinions) watched only the first episode or two before skipping to the last episode, then gave it a score of 0 out of whatever. That's... yikes.

[jvmacross]

Just completed the first 2 episodes and not really into it....does it get any better?  I have zero background info on the novels or games.  I'll check out a few more episodes.

May have to ditch Netflix, as I have nothing else on it that interests me...other than maybe Stranger Things.

[sqidd]

The wife and I just binged 6 episodes.

The first 2.5 episodes are a little rough. The first one had way too much shoved in it. Something pilots tend to do. Another problem is you can't understand what's going on because of thick accents and it seems the actors were given lines that sound "old". Between the thick accents and speech being a different flavor than we're used to listening to I was missing stuff here and there. It seems someone on the show figured it out because the dialog gets much easier to follow as the show moves forward. It's also confusing, and I don't think I'm spoiling anything here, probably helping, it's not real obvious you're bouncing between different times in the timeline. Once I figured that out I was able to be more immersed.

I've never played the game or read a book so I went into this 100% blind. I think the show is a 7/10. Nothing groundbreaking or thought provoking. But, a fun watch.  And if you're into beautiful women, it doesn't disappoint. And there is Henry Cavil for the ladies. 

[Tking22]

41 minutes ago, sqidd said:

It's also confusing, and I don't think I'm spoiling anything here, probably helping, it's not real obvious you're bouncing between different times in the timeline. Once I figured that out I was able to be more immersed.

I don't think this is spoiling anything, honestly I think it's better people know this going in, you pick up on it eventually through the dialogue but it doesn't hurt just knowing going in. The timeline jumps from scene to scene in certain episodes, and that's honestly how the first book and several of the short stories that have been adapted play out as well, it is a bit confusing, some scenes take place decades apart.

I've read the first book and played all three games, the games don't entirely apply because these books being adapted take place long before those, and the only real complaint I have from an inside perspective is the occasional lack of exposition. A lot of terms, places, and names get thrown around quickly. I can see newcomers getting a bit confused and overwhelmed by everything.

Geralt's good not-friend Dandelion doesn't get name dropped for a while, but I do like the actor. Cavill is pretty great as Geralt, he looks the part and he's got the gruffness down, his scenes with his trusty steed Roach are great. Overall at 5 episodes in I'm enjoying it, and I hope we get another season.

[Bolt]

3 episodes in and I'm definitely gonna watch more. I like the it. It's quite engaging and not for the lazy viewer. And yet so much gets thrown at you. Just pay attention  and enjoy 

[azrael]

Episode 3 is much better. Episode 4 moves the story along. The first 2 episodes are a bit rough and I know why (spoilers...). It starts making a bit more sense by Episode 3. And no, I haven't read the books or played any games. I can see why critics have been a bit rough on this show.

[sqidd]

7 hours ago, Tking22 said:

I can see newcomers getting a bit confused and overwhelmed by everything.

Yeah, me having no background was a steep learning curve.

After we finished the first two episodes my wife asked me "Do you know what is going on?". My reply, "Not Really". Her reply, "Good, it's not just me then".

[sqidd]

6 hours ago, azrael said:

Episode 3 is much better. Episode 4 moves the story along. The first 2 episodes are a bit rough and I know why (spoilers...). It starts making a bit more sense by Episode 3. And no, I haven't read the books or played any games. I can see why dumb/lazy critics have been a bit rough on this show.

Fixed it for you^^^^

[TangledThorns]

Wife and I will watch it tonight. We'll have to watch it quick as I'm suspending our Netflix account. Mainly because we don't have much time to watch anything on it and our young children mostly watch Youtube crap and some Disney+. 

[ErikElvis]

Watched the first 2 episodes. It’s ok. I think I’m interested in it just because I like the genre.  I don’t know if it’s just me and accents but I have trouble understanding what they’re saying at times. 

[jvmacross]

OK, "good" thing I asked...really picks up after the second episode.....looks like I have another reason to hang onto Netflix....

 

Edited December 22, 2019 by jvmacross

[sqidd]

10 hours ago, ErikElvis said:

Watched the first 2 episodes. It’s ok. I think I’m interested in it just because I like the genre.  I don’t know if it’s just me and accents but I have trouble understanding what they’re saying at times. 

The dialog gets a lot easier to understand after the first two episodes. I was having a hard time figuring out what was going on the first two episodes too.

The wife and I finished binging the series tonight. I give it a good 7.5/10. I enjoyed it. It leaves off all set up for a second season where it seems the plan is to "bring it all together". I hope they do season 2.