Witcher Netflix Season 4 review.
I feel like I want to go about this the right way. So show and book spoilers ahead.
I'll start with the good, then go into the bewildering/bad. Because there is good, I watched this without getting input from others because I wanted this to be my experience.
I think using the Nimue character to explain the casting changes was a good use of existing characters/material. Because this is how it goes in the books. I'm not a fan of this type of "story in a story" storytelling. But it works here.
The cast/casting is great, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I think Liam Hemsworth did great, and he added depth to the character. While I liked Cavill as Geralt, I think his taciturn style wasn't exactly how the character is in my opinion. Dour yes, but also quite talkative too.
Lawrence Fishburne did a great job as Regis, I wasn't sure at first, but I think he did great! Danny Woodburn did a great Zoltan too, and Zoltan being one of my favorite characters did awesome.
The actor for Leo Bonhart... wow... Terrifying and psychotic.
The rest of the returning cast did very well. I really enjoy Emhyr, he's so intense, I love it!
Anyone who is hating on the cast for this or that reason can shove off... because its the writing and the direction I have issues with.
The closer to the books, the better the show got. Its the stuff that does its own thing. OH BOY....
So here is the bewildering part... Why is this an ensemble show, why is the showrunner so insistent on having this be an ensemble show when it is about Ciri and Geralt.
Why does Yennefer have this Marvel Avengers side plot that goes nowhere and does nothing, just to take up space.
In the books between time of contempt and baptism of fire, Yennefer is a statue, in the books, the opposite happens. She then escapes the Lodge of Sorceresses and does her own thing in trying to find Ciri, she ends in the same place that she does in the books, but it doesn't amount to much besides killing off characters that either shouldn't be dead, or two aren't involved in the saga anymore. I hate to say it, but I felt nothing when these characters died, it was almost unceremoniously Margarita and Vesemir come to mind. Oh, Istredd too.... Like he faded off awhile ago book, but was carried for way longer...
I noticed they changed the actor for Vesemir too. And that whole sequence goes on for far too long...
I don't know what this show is trying to be at times, does it want to be Marvel, does it want to be Xena? It really should be its own thing, like I said earlier, when it gets closer to the books, it gets better.
People hate on the rats, but I think that was the point... if anything they toned them down... Which I will get to.
My issue is with the book stuff, there wasn't enough of an arc, because we had Yennefer's side quest, it took away from other characters to have longer moments. There just wasn't enough time in 8 episodes to have a satisfying payoff for them. Resolutions felt more forced than natural if that makes sense.
One final nitpick because I can, what kind of costume is that for Yennefer at the end of the season. It looks like the outfit that the actress would wear when leaving set after wrapping up. I know its fantasy.. but she's had some bewildering outfits over the years. Great ones too, but odd ones also.
Now this part might ruffle some feathers, but it has been bothering me for awhile now. This show cannot or will not go the whole distance. It wants to be dark, but it gets scared at the really terrifying moments. Like with Ciri and Mistle... They really toned it down, I don't think this is an acting issue, this is a direction issue... I know its sensitive, but its not gonna get any easier. Also with Leo Bonhart vs the rats, I think that was good, but when it came to Ciri, they also held back a bit. Part of that is because this series is being crunched, but also because they're afraid of going to full distance in terms of the horror that is being experienced. To quote Leo from the show "You've got the skill, but you don't got the stomach for battle".
Perhaps in trying to reach the broadest audience we're denied a better version of this. Clearly the showrunner has their direction in mind, and its a bit too late to change it.
I feel at times we're just checking off boxes at times (Looking at the sex scene between Geralt and Yennefer).
I know it can't be 1:1 in the book. (Oh my god, the genetics part of BoH is so boring) but still, this insistence on a ensemble cast is to its detriment rather than its benefit. I'm going to watch season 5, and more than likely this will be a "how not to" for book adaptations in the future.
