Oftentimes, we sadly have to see shows we love and want more of get thrown into the gutter, never to return for another season. Stephen Surjik’s adaptation of season two finally came to light after many fans thought that COVID-19 would derail further production of the show. Season one of “The Witcher” saw a lot of praise as it garnered a 91% approval rating from fans, who loved the mix of a fantasy world set in medieval times.
The show revolves around the famous witcher, Geralt of Rivia, who travels the continent slaying monsters for coin, the one true purpose of a witcher. Geralt is one of many witchers, a collective of mutated orphans who are trained as highly dangerous monster slayers. The witchers tend to stay out of the affairs of humans and their wars, only looking to make money from villagers plagued by monsters.
To give a quick recap of the first season, we see the nation of Nilfgaard contest the powerhouse nation of Cintra, with many deeming it a lost cause and a waste of a war. To the astonishment of many, Cintra fell in a grave loss, and everyone was murdered in a mass genocide. To her luck, Princess Cirilla of Cintra was able to escape, with many sacrificing their lives for her. As her grandmother, and caretaker, is about to pass, she tells Ciri to find Geralt of Rivia, thus intertwining the paths of our main characters. In season one, we also follow the path of Yennefer of Vengerberg, who is a lowly farm girl sold to the mages of Aretuza. Here, we see her come into her own, struck with an infatuation for power and willing to do anything to get it. Yennefer and Geralt briefly cross paths, and even fall in love, but that doesn’t last for long as they are pulled into opposite directions. Season one ends with Ciri eventually finding Geralt and with a huge battle at the kingdom of Sodden where fans were left questioning whether Yennefer survived or not.
After two long years, fans of the popular show were finally able to feel excited as “The Witcher” was announced for release in December 2021. Currently, the show sits in the No. 2 spot on Netflix’s top 10, and it seems like it will remain for quite some time.
Season two is filled with many answers to the questions that fans had at the end of season one, but more importantly, our main characters are now together, which makes for a more conjoined story. In all of season one, viewers were forced to handle many different story arcs at many different points of time, only having everything make sense at the end of the season. This type of story writing is definitely one that obviously had many people intrigued, but Surjik definitely understood that season one was only really a build-up for something bigger in season two.
With our main characters more focused on one common goal, instead of various individual goals, the story is much more interesting and easier to follow along. Like season one, season two is still full of monsters, battles, political warfare and everything else that made fans fall in love with the show in the first place. At eight one-hour episodes, this show is obviously something that can be deemed “binge-worthy,” and with the cliffhangers that end each episode, binging the show is really the only way to go. Season two most definitely ends in a way that leaves the door open for a third season, and with the attention that “The Witcher” has received in the past, a third season will be almost guaranteed.
Verdict: After watching season two of “The Witcher,” it’s safe to say that this is most definitely a worthy season that fans need to watch. For those looking for a new show to get into, “The Witcher” is the perfect one to start on.
