Critic Reviews

The Witcher’s interpretation of its original text offers up something new—and that’s refreshing, both within this story and for fantasy TV at large.

The biggest strength for this fantasy show follow-up, and the one that kept me returning for all six episodes given out, is the found family it offers in Geralt and Ciri as they settle into familiarity and trust with one another — with Cavill and Allan effectively playing the kind of duo worth building a long-running franchise around.

It's a shame that Cavill won't be present to see the show through to its conclusion, but given what Season 3 of The Witcher establishes in terms of mounting conflict, rich character growth and relationships, and phenomenal performances, there's still plenty worth tuning in for into a fourth season and beyond.

The Witcher Season 2 is the best kind of adaptation. It takes something known and creates something wholly unique while always respecting its source material. No matter if you’ve read and played everything or if you’re entirely new to this world, you’re going to have a blast.

Despite the danger they’re all constantly in, it’s a pure delight to finally see the series’ three leads sharing a screen together. And, to its credit, while The Witcher clearly delights in showcasing the charming found family bond between them that viewers have been so long to see, not everything between and among the group is hearts and flowers.

A worthy legacy for his turn as the White Wolf, but viewers will likely wish we’d gotten to spend more time with him before the end.

If you can circumnavigate or weather the quick and unforgiving narrative beginnings—like if you have a background with fantasy, a knack for rolling with crazy shit, or a general love for Witchery things—and buy into the tone, The Witcher has lots to love.

When the worst thing you can say about a series is that every episode ends up being better than the one that preceded it, that leaves an exciting amount of room to grow. Especially when you can see it steadily moving out of the shadow of the show Netflix might have wanted, in favor of the far more interesting series it might actually turn out to be.

The Witcher’s second season is vastly more confident about leaning into the high fantasy and higher stakes of Sapkowski’s lore, opting to let characters such as the wizened witcher Vesemir (Kim Bodnia) speak of forgotten histories instead of taking safer, more randy detours. Encouraging still is its stronger focus on maintaining a sense of narrative momentum (gone is the needlessly confusing time-hopping format of season one), at last bestowing upon The Witcher a sense of direction and purpose.

Complaints are minor: I’ll take having to learn a few more goofy character names if it means making its whole ensemble more interesting. So far, The Witcher Season 2 holds on to just enough of its arched eyebrow to survive.