One may say, “Toss a coin to your Witcher…” Others may call him the Butcher of Blaviken, but most just call him by one name, that being Geralt of Rivia.
This past December, we saw Netflix take on the challenge of bringing “The Witcher,” the famous game and book series, to life. Those who star in it include names like Henry Cavill as Geralt, Freya Allan as Princess Cirilla and Anya Chalotra as Yennefer of Vengerberg. What director and showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich had envisioned was a perfect story that put author Andrzej Sapkowski’s stories into the limelight of Hollywood, and on the main stage of the world for the mainstream audience.
The story progresses through eight episodes, as during the series the timeline shifts to tell each tale of the main characters in the prequel novels “The Last Wish” and “The Sword of Destiny,” those being Geralt, Yen and Cirilla. It takes place in the fictional land of The Continent, a large landmass that consists of several known kingdoms and a mysterious keep called Kaer Morhen. The kingdoms of Nilfgaard, Cintra and Temeria are in this series, and it tells the tale of how the very beginning of this Witcher’s story actually began within this massive landscape.
For those who are not familiar, a Witcher is a human with mutations, such as the ability to use magic or drink many potions. Said mutations making Witchers into beings of immense strength. The eight episodes in the first season were well done and well directed. As an avid “Witcher” fan myself, I cannot wait to watch season two in 2021. For those who don’t know about this story or have only played “Witcher III: Wild Hunt,” this is a perfect series for you if you also love “Game of Thrones.” It speaks to the medieval heart and the choreography for the many (and I mean many) fight scenes that take place across the story of this first season, which is utterly fantastic.
Cavill himself loved the character, as this for him was spoken of as his “dream role,” and he definitely shows it as he channels the very Geralt that the fans of “The Witcher” know and love. Whether it’d be the grunting “hmm…,” dealing with his horse companion Roach’s weird shenanigans or dealing with a constantly singing bard named Jaskier (or Dandelion for those familiar), Cavill definitely does Geralt justice. Chalotra also does a fantastic job as Yennefer of Vengerberg, from the very beginning of Yen’s life to the very time of her transformation into the greatest sorcerer in all the continent.
Overall, “The Witcher” isn’t for everyone, but for those who have a love for medieval or fantasy themes, this will be for you in a heartbeat. For those who have never heard of it, I’d definitely suggest giving it a shot because for the first time in a very long time, they did a gaming and book series right. Perhaps after watching, even consider giving the games a shot as well, because the story tells itself within. Now… With all that being said, who’s up for a round of Gwent?
Jeffrey Babcock is a third-year student majoring in communications and minoring in journalism. JB884128@wcupa.edu.