Hey Guys, I hope you guys enjoyed today's video. As per usual, it took me far longer than it really should have to make this because procrastination is a constant enemy. But if you liked the video and want to help me in making more, then please do support me on Patreon. When you help me out there, it seriously does make a difference, and it directly supports me in creating more of these videos. Also, I have a bunch of rewards there like a discord server where you can talk to me and other subscribers and get early access to upcoming videos. There's a link in the description if that sounds good to you :D Anyway, thanks for watching, and I look forward to seeing why I'm wrong down below, - Henry

@seanisgone5413

4 жыл бұрын

Long have I waited

@levon8238

4 жыл бұрын

Sean Smith lol

@ringostarr8034

4 жыл бұрын

No I think you are completely right about everything.

@TheCloserLook

4 жыл бұрын

@Zombobo Smith I'm fairly sure they actually answer that in-world. From my understanding, Geralt took the standard trails very well, so he was singled out for experimentation and they tried many new trials on him.

@insanemakaioshin

4 жыл бұрын

They could’ve done a chokehold & destroyed the market. They could’ve starved the town and allowed the citizens to leave, but not return & choke him out.

They had problems with adaptation in Season 1 so they decided to adapt nothing in Season 2.

@DieDieNacho

2 жыл бұрын

Sigma grindset writers

@szafraniec8164

Жыл бұрын

Precisely

@asdflkj6680

Жыл бұрын

This aged well 💯💯💯

@maxmustermann-zx9yq

Жыл бұрын

modern writing classes gotta be like: "first rule of adaption, burn the source material, BURN IT ALL"

@okdude8215

Жыл бұрын

Seriously im kinda amazed it took 2 more seasons for people to stop watching this shit show after i barely got through season 1 i was done so much dogshit like not even 1 good episode in its entirety.

I thought the title said "how to fail at adoption" and I was like "that's right, GERALT"

@taikajorma7276

4 жыл бұрын

keksien En oo syöny keksiä ja NÄIN

@Claire18Hi

4 жыл бұрын

@@qozat7367 wait what ? i thought her father was good?

@chloewinnaa1515

4 жыл бұрын

@@qozat7367 he was but had a change of heart and only wanted her to take the throne

@swofzie123

4 жыл бұрын

😂

@smittysmeee

3 жыл бұрын

lmaooooo 🤣

They didn’t HAVE to take out 50 percent in my opinion. Having 3 protagonists was a mistake and they should have focused on geralt

@LenaLovesgoodStories

2 жыл бұрын

Completely agree. Especially because yennifers backstory was nowhere near as prominent and detailed in the books, definitely not the first one. Especially because I think its a weakness of the book series that they include more and more different characters while Gerald looks for ciry without accomplishing anything for two whole books. For me, it really lacked story progress after a while...

@legendarylitening

2 жыл бұрын

@@LenaLovesgoodStories the first two books are great. They're just geralt being a witcher doing witcher things and it's awesome.

@firstly5180

2 жыл бұрын

@@legendarylitening I think other ones are just as good, I'm on book 6 and having both Geralt and Ciri as protagonists works really well. Ciri moments are even more interesting at this point.

@Gigachad-mc5qz

2 жыл бұрын

But geralt is a straight white cis male. We cant have that now can we

@maxanderson3733

2 жыл бұрын

@@LenaLovesgoodStories agreed, kinda hated how it felt like time was being wasted searching for this chick

The defense of the writers in this video did not age well. It turns out they actively dislike the source material, really hard to adapt something when you actively hate it.

@hanaboskova

Жыл бұрын

Oh no, they deeply adore Sapkowski, they told us so

@elevenm.a.1125

Жыл бұрын

@@hanaboskova Yes, and he loves them back. So much that he wanted to lawsuit CP when he discovered they sold his IP to Netflix.

@skdeathxlife

Жыл бұрын

@@elevenm.a.1125 I think you mean when he sued CDPR for more money because he sold the IP cheap by the time of witcher 1 and didn't expect witcher 3 to be so popular and wanted more money

@elevenm.a.1125

Жыл бұрын

@@skdeathxlife No, I mean exactly what I said. He did it after discovering that CDPR sold Witcher rights to Netflix. That''s because Polish law does not accept "I don't like that Netflix will butcher my magnum opus", but it *does* accept "the company bought my IP too cheap and is ripping me off, I deserve compensation". Sapkowski rolled with whatever laws his lawyers could find, as long as it meant he'd get some sort of 'damages' for the breach of trust. He was very explicit about movie adaptations of his works - which, after a disastrous Polish movie, was "over my dead body". CDPR knew he'd veto the whole thing if they asked him, which is why they did it over his head. The whole 'he just wanted more money' thing is just online backlash from people who don't understand the situation.

@skdeathxlife

Жыл бұрын

@@elevenm.a.1125 Not that I don't believe you but gonna need a source on that (edit I could not find any sources it's as I remember it being about royalties)

Another point about the "helmet removal" scene: in the books, Duny keeps his helmet on until the clock strikes 12. As he removes it, his hedgehog face is revealed and everyone gasps in shock. You see, Calanthe *knew* that Duny would show up, so she instructed the bells to be rung an hour early to expose him as the "monster" he is.

@KeytarArgonian

2 жыл бұрын

Exactly, and the very reason she called for Geralt to be there in the first place, which is why she’s so pissed when Geralt outright refuses to kill Duny instead of leaping up and offing him. She misunderstands Geralts modus operandi, And Geralt is semi on to her plan too at this point in the book.

@clxwncrxwn

2 жыл бұрын

Warning Spoiler comment. Imagine my surprise when the emperor of Nilfgard is Duny!

@jackj9816

2 жыл бұрын

@@KeytarArgonian yer I read the book not long ago and at first I thought it was going to be a different story sense they gave him a monster contact just to get him there

@jdksdj11

2 жыл бұрын

Another one major change is that in the book Geralt knows that Pavetta is pregnant and he chooses the law of surprise, bcs he knew that the child will have more chance to survive the mutation. In the show they made a joke from it.

@seanmichaelmilligan2525

2 жыл бұрын

@@KeytarArgonian Admittedly, I didn't actually pick up on a lot of the structural problems discussed in the video because I had read the books and thus I did understand what was going on. But one thing I definitely DID notice is that Geralt is at the party for a completely different reason. In the show, Jaskier/Dandelion brings him along as a sort of bodyguard. In the short story, though, he's there at Calanthe's request, which makes a lot more sense, because as you mention, she knows Duny is going to show up. In the show she seems to know who and what Duny is, same as in the short story, but ... doesn't have any plan for him showing up? She just sort of notices Geralt at the party and is like "Ah, perfect, a witcher has fallen into my lap. HE can kill the monster that will show up demanding my daughter's hand. What a stroke of luck!" It does a real disservice to her character.

Dont forget, they made Vilgefortz who arguably the strongest sorcerer who ever lived fight so poorly. In the book hes able to take on Geralt, Yennefer and won he also killed a HIGHER vampire. While in the netflix adaptation he cant even beat some dude in a weird ass armor.

@finngeorgas4090

2 жыл бұрын

The guy that beat vilgefortz in the Show was Cahir and in the books Cahir is defeated by Ciri, so he would never stand a Chance against Vilgefortz.

@samiraansari5686

2 жыл бұрын

To be fair the show is still in the time before the main story of the books Even starts, so he has plenty of time to level up. I don‘t think this is as much of a hurdle as some of the other things, since he might have just gotten stronger over time.

@chost-059

2 жыл бұрын

Oh did the show end already?

@madalice4703

2 жыл бұрын

...beat some dude with a sword. WITH A FUCKING SWORD, CARL! Imagine this: he used his powerful magic not to kill a man (who he met only in the end of the story btw), but to conjure a strip of iron. Pathetic

@meliiina_4647

2 жыл бұрын

In the show Vilgefortz lost on purpose to favor Nilfgaard in Sodden Hill, as he's a nilfgaardian ally, it makes sense.

Ciri and Yennefer are introduced perfectly well in the books without Sapkowski having to have 3 simultaneous main characters. If they just adapted the stories as written, it would have been gold. It almost seems Hissrich thought she could write it better but a lot of the series' plot is almost unrecognizable from the books (especially looking at you, episode 3), and most of it ends up being nonsensical. The writers made a complete mockup of it all.

@ChessJourneyman

2 жыл бұрын

This! Chick fancied herself a better writer but only proved how incompetent she is. Henry carried this shitshow that would otherwise only be slightly better rated than Batwoman.

@lohvrti

2 жыл бұрын

The worst part of the series is the script imo. If it was better written the story could have been pretty good.

@destinpatterson1644

Жыл бұрын

That's what a lot writers adapting fantasy books seem to be doing nowadays, it was like that with The Wheel of Time as well, they have a hatred for the story and the belief that they could improve upon it in everyway

@mikepriestey2547

Жыл бұрын

@@destinpatterson1644 Yep. She even admitted that she didn't like Eskels character so turned him into a dick that gets turned into a Leshen in the show. Pathetic

@ZemplinTemplar

Жыл бұрын

I concur.

*reads title of the video* "Hmm" -Geralt

@brucewayne236

4 жыл бұрын

More likely response "Fuck"

@meris8486

4 жыл бұрын

"...Fuck" -Geralt

@wild1000022

4 жыл бұрын

"Fuck" -Geralt

@JensenRebias

4 жыл бұрын

dude that is word for word what thought when I saw the notification on my phone 😂

@Peecamarke

4 жыл бұрын

😂😂 priceless! That's SO Geralt!

Give him a break guys, it took 7 episodes for him to level up so that he can continue with the main story.

@lambsauce9404

3 жыл бұрын

Underrated comment

@briangray6476

3 жыл бұрын

Too relatable.

@jack-exzolt9858

3 жыл бұрын

Having played the game, this is too real lol.

@infjelphabasupporter8416

3 жыл бұрын

Exactly

@heemz4330

3 жыл бұрын

sometimes you just gotta grind pointless sidequests, you know?

I think the biggest shame of the show is missing one of the main themes of the books, the importance of moral choice, or the lack thereof. Which is actually all characterized within The Lesser Evil. In that, Geralt did not choose the lesser evil, he was forced into action by Renfri. The entire plot of the Witcher is basically Geralt doing shit he doesn't want to do, but he feels morally obligated to because that's just how he is.

@stevend285

Жыл бұрын

In a slight defense of the show, I watched it before I had read the books, and wasn't really ever confused, past the weird timeline stuff for a few episodes until I realized that we were watching 3 different plots at 3 different points in time.

@roanoke7551

3 ай бұрын

True. A lot of people interpret the lesser evil as Geralt siding with Stregobor when thats not true at all.

Why not do the short stories first? Set up Geralt as a tough, battle hardened mercenary while also developing the world while hinting at the other characters and future plots? They aren't extremely long and detailed books, and if something is given in too much detail or explanation, it seems as though it can be fixed by the visual media.

@adapienkowska2605

2 жыл бұрын

If they wanted to give Yennefer more time, they could show her career as a mage on royal courts and use it to explain politics.

@rexnas8150

2 жыл бұрын

@@adapienkowska2605 agreed

@rexnas8150

2 жыл бұрын

@@adapienkowska2605 honestly think they could have done better if they did more animations personally. I find that it had far more potential

@sebastianzuzi311

2 жыл бұрын

@@rexnas8150 r rated animation doesnt sell as unfortunately at least thats what producers think

@rexnas8150

2 жыл бұрын

@@sebastianzuzi311 big sad😖

Jeez I had no idea how complex the Renfri situation is in the books, it seemed so vague in the show

@koczan8464

4 жыл бұрын

Just read it lol

@MrSobe00

4 жыл бұрын

Every story in The Last Wish is loosely based in classic fairy tales. Renfri was Snow White with her seven mercenaries (dwarves.)

@JoshuaGraves113

4 жыл бұрын

@Draydin Bardon No, that's a YOU problem. I understood just fine. He was telling the OP to read the books.

@fiszu4075

4 жыл бұрын

@@MrSobe00 Sapkowski made a great original story and added a fairy tale element in the backstory of one character. Lesser Evil is not based on a fairytale, even loosely. plz stop repeating that, it's just incorrect and hurtful to the author.

@Rhelanae

4 жыл бұрын

To be fair I find it just as weak in the books. Well book. It wasn’t really explained just as much as the book.

The entire time I was watching the show, I was thinking "Man, there is no way anybody who didn't read the books (or doesn't already know the stories from different source) has any idea what the hell is happening right now." I know the books quite well and even to me it took a while until I went "Oooh, this is taking place fifteen years before the previous episode! Maybe it would have been a good idea to indicate that somehow."

@TheJupiteL

3 жыл бұрын

I was so hopeful for this series, as I can share my passion with my friends who have heard of the franchise but never played the games or read the books. I watched it together with a friend and he didn't have any reaction to any of the scenes, I was fucking confused too, and I've read some of the books and read wiki lore.

@linkofvev

3 жыл бұрын

The fact that they didn't even say in like title cards or something, that the time periods were different annoyed me. It was only after the Yennefer scene where she's escorting the Princess that I realised it wasn't all set at the same time, so I checked online only to see how far out each story was timewise.

@manchild3437

3 жыл бұрын

Bruh to me after watching the whole series i was able to piece together easily when everything was happening, it was kinda fun too. Sure it was weird at first, but after seeing Yennefer interacting with Geralt i was like, "oh so we were seeing Yennefer and Geralt's past and Ciri is in the present and we are working up to that got it".

@Snagabott

3 жыл бұрын

I should be a fairly good yardstick on this: I had not read the books or played the games, but I am pretty well versed in fantasy tropes. My verdict is, sadly, that there were several times where I felt a bit lost. The show had been hyped so much and while I felt some parts of it were really great, others looked either really cheap (like the dragon), or just... off - probably for the reasons outlined in this video. I'm still hopeful for season 2 though.

@heathbaker1138

3 жыл бұрын

You have to really be paying attention to realize what is going on with the timeline until episode 5.

"The lesser evil" also makes every heroic action of Geralt even more heroic. He doesn't want to choose the lesser evil because in this chapter he has been taught not to. But sometimes he has no choice. Sometimes he needs to leave his neutral role and be a hero for example in the battle of the bridge (You know what I mean if you read the books). At least thats what it's supposed to be like. Netflix kinda failed to show us such things. They somehow manage to show us most of the story but leave every deeper and secretly important part of the story completly out.

@GG-ee5hm

Жыл бұрын

In that chapter Geralt says multiple times that if he is presented with evil and lesser evil choices, he'd rather not choose at all. So while you read you think: Is there a lesser evil? What would I choose?. Or you disagree, like me, thinking that if you can minimize damage it's worth choosing the "lesser evil". And towards the end, Geralt links the dots and understands Renfri's plan and starts running towards the market. So the village elder asks him what is he doing and Geralt says something like: "I have to choose the lesser evil". That chapter, like most of the saga, was a great experience, that makes you think and evaluate these concepts deeply.

@inquisitorthornside3p494

11 ай бұрын

To be fair winning the battle of the bridge was his only chance for survival considering the Milva situatuion.But still Geral and Cahir were heroes.

I love how a show called the WITCHER with GERALT as the main character somehow gave him such little screen time

@KB-si5fx

8 ай бұрын

Apparently, the directors really didn't like how Henry Cavill kept wanting to make the show more book accurate. Pretty sure they wanted him out of the way.

To sum up the 26 minute video, If the showrunners removed Ciri and Yennefer and focused solely on Geralt until it was time for Ciri and Yen to be introduced they would have had enough time to adapt the nuance of his character in the books.

@Synthia17

Жыл бұрын

You mean adapting the source material by using the source material? Crazy how they had everything presented on a silver platter, just hire people that can shorten it out properly for tv episodes which the first books are already perfect for. Could easily have another GoT with possibility of less of an ass ending but no, had to prove everyone they're better than some Pole and here we are, having the one guy who cared, abandon ship because it was unworkable.

I feel like The Closer Look is getting more and more Savage with the titles as time passes

@TheCloserLook

4 жыл бұрын

Yep, I'm afraid to see what my next one will be each time.

@liaml.e.5964

4 жыл бұрын

Sensationalism attracts more people

@PangolinMontanari

4 жыл бұрын

Clickbait tactics, the only way to survive on KZread is to make people upset or to be Markiplier

@kimmyp3407

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah cause hes desperate for clicks

@unnf9971

4 жыл бұрын

Everybody gets tired of the bs after a while

When you use a cup to get the spider out of the house instead of killing it *WITCHA*

@KarachoBolzen

4 жыл бұрын

*tosses coin*

@sotirisgeorgakopoulos6220

4 жыл бұрын

you should check out story from north america then

@Kaiju3301

4 жыл бұрын

Pours ale

@GermanWaffle

4 жыл бұрын

@Pinkaugust They only talk when its necessary

@dreadbos

4 жыл бұрын

@Pinkaugust Well if it is harmless spider just leave it be. Invading and scaring humans doesnt seem much of a reason for us witchers to kill the spider :D

I never got how this adaptation got such praise in the public eye... every episode is quite literally a clusterfuck.

@scottphillips6005

Жыл бұрын

Henry Cavill. He's the only reason it got any praise. And the Toss a Coin song. That song is pretty good.

@predator70nc46

Жыл бұрын

If someone hasnt read the books and maybe only played witcher 3 its a 7-8/10show for me simply because of Henry Cavill... But hands down reading the books and know the lore makes this show just trash... But thats how randoms probably think about Star Wars too, if they only watch the movies and dont want to learn the iceberg behind it. Ignorance is a blessing.

@PhyreSpore

Жыл бұрын

As someone whose only exposure to The Witcher is the Netflix series and who considers himself at least a little critical of the media he watches, It wasn't hard to follow. Like, it wasn't amazing, but it was definitely engaging at least. I wasn't checking out and was interested to see what would happen next. And most people aren't looking for much more than that.

@mohdshahariar5833

Жыл бұрын

@@PhyreSpore read the books, simple, just read it

@Sparticulous

9 ай бұрын

Most Americans are used to bad movies by hollywood especially when its fantasy

Geralt waking up with knowing the market is a target was always funny to me and I just realized it's because that's basically the scene in one punch man where Saitama bails on a partially completed plotline because he realises he needs to go shopping immediately.

@ZephyrWrites

3 ай бұрын

LOL an OPM reference in the comment section of The Witcher, I love it! Although it's essentially marketed as a satire battle anime, OPM actually has great depth once you look for the layers.

I have never read the books and what I got from the first episode was that geralt asked renfri to leave so he wouldn't have to choose between killing her or stregobor. But she decides to stay and kill him anyway so geralt killed her men and her. The show didn't pass the idea that she had a plan to kill the entire town whatsoever. When she said she woud kill everyone it sounded like "I will kill everyone in my way", not that it was her plan the whole time. For someone who didn't read the books it's like a completely different story

@lf9177

3 жыл бұрын

Unfortunately that's problem with most of the first season. I've read books several times and couldn't believe how they butchered some of the most impactful stories. Or even cut them completely (like meeting between Geralt and Ciri in Brokilon - very important and completely removed).

@Ytomany

3 жыл бұрын

That episode was butchered to shit lol in the books it almost felt like Geralt and this woman had a connection in the show she kept stalking him in the woods and saying random buzz words from the book that didnt quite fit. That episode got it the worst the others weren't as bad and were fairly accurate as they could be in shorter run time but I can barley watch that one.

@Ytomany

3 жыл бұрын

@@lf9177 Bro that was the best story and is my favorite story from any book every Geralt and ciris first meeting is amazing like he wrote them like actual people playing off eachother very well plus ciri is hilarious. Its dumb how they did the ending too where they meet again but in the show thats the first time in the book you think she is dead and Geralt is like about to cry and sees her and runs to her in front of Dandelion who knows Geralt as not this type of guy and she says "I am your destiny Geralt dont leave me anymore" and he says "I wont ciri I wont" and it ends. I never cry but that scene gets me everytime cause its set up so well...man the show really fucked that up.

@zackeryhardy9504

3 жыл бұрын

@@lf9177 Oh god that was one of the worst. I mean the driads had that isolationist attitude and complete hostility. It did a lot of world building in the conflict between the elves and the humans while showing the meaning of destiny along with connecting us and Geralt with Ciri in a meaningful way. I mean even the scene where Geralt is wounded protecting the merchant and is hurt in the cart was horrible. I mean in the book we learn that a sorcerous was being sent for before Geralt's mother shows up and the way its potrayed in the movies makes it seem like some kind of fever dream with Geralt hallucinating. I cannot believe how badly they butchered the series to the point where the meaning of the stories almost seemed to have the opposite meaning that it did in the books.

@lincolnduke

3 жыл бұрын

This same thing happens with Terry Pratchett adaptations. The actual adventures are normally ridiculous but they're normally metaphorical or witty or explorations of humanity. The TV shows are literally just the events.

15:00 the last episode is called 'Something More', but that message is also completely lost. In the books, Geralt finds Ciri. Ciri asks. "Am I your destiny, Geralt?" To which he replies. "No. You are something more." In the show the whole conversation becomes. "wHo iS yEneFer???"

@PatrykUnderhill

3 жыл бұрын

+1

@rodynzhaku4711

3 жыл бұрын

Also, that reunion centers around the line, "People linked by destiny will always find one another," when the point of that encounter was that destiny and fate aren't strong enough on their own for such a connection.

@TheMone22

3 жыл бұрын

@@rodynzhaku4711 Exactly.

@julianatorquato7796

3 жыл бұрын

@@rodynzhaku4711 And to me that killed the show because the characters are moved by destiny not their choices so why bother watching the rest. It's all destiny and destiny alone. The people in it don't matter anymore.

@Cj-xt6tv

3 жыл бұрын

Exactly. That moment is much better in the book

It wasn't that they cut too much, it's that they added a lot of new material -- such as Yennefer's entire backstory -- that left too little time for more interesting things, like the relationship between Geralt and Ciri. Even so, the best episodes were the ones that focused on Geralt.

@abcdmefgh2843

Жыл бұрын

Exactly. The best things about the show were copied from the books. The rest was boring.

@mrsrandom3062

Жыл бұрын

@@abcdmefgh2843 Because Henry was fixing his parts

Henry did amazing as Geralt thats about all I can say good about the second season

@ssk58607

2 жыл бұрын

Even he doesn't have the charm or sarcastic attitude he had in the first season. For some reason,they managed to make him more emotionless and boring with the reason of oh witchers don't feel anything but literally every other witcher in kaer morhen acts as a normal human being, laughing around on Lame jokes

@JesykaL

2 жыл бұрын

Joey stole the show for me. He's too good of an actor for the show LMAO

@samayasidd8161

2 жыл бұрын

Season 2 was worse for the people who haven't read the books, Even I, who has read the books, was confused most of the time. And again with the explanation at the end in the first episode.

@snkybrki

2 жыл бұрын

@@samayasidd8161 You sure? I liked it a bit more than the first, and considering how the fanboys in this comments section have been acting, I'm not about to touch those books in a while.

@JesykaL

2 жыл бұрын

@@hyro3292 All in all the show is pretty entertaining. A lot of us fans just really dislike how its some weird fanfiction instead of an actual adaptation. We don't expect 1:1 tho, theres a lot of boring parts that they could filler out or do something better with. Just kinda sucks this is what we get imo

Yeah, I agree with you, you should have mentioned also the Hedgehog Knight's response. "You lie, queen. I did not force your husband into a promise when he was in trouble. I saved him and got him to safety, and only then, he, on his own volition, insisted that I choose the reward." Also, Queen Calanthe is revealed in the book to have adjusted the palace clock, so that Midnight strikes at 11:50 PM, before Hedgehog can turn into normal person face (He can only be normal from Midnight to Morning). So he takes off the helmet, true to his word and under peer pressure, but is humiliated because the face is still hedgehog.

@agentarachnid2009

4 жыл бұрын

I really liked that part. It showed calanthe to be cleverer and more cunning than expected

@Stopitpls

4 жыл бұрын

I found that episode to so be so cringe, just complete overacting on almost everyone’s part.

@THEPELADOMASTER

4 жыл бұрын

And they turned an intelligent, clever woman into a battle queen that kicks ass, because whamen.

@Gadget-Walkmen

3 жыл бұрын

@@THEPELADOMASTER LOL is there anything wrong with that or are you just mindless bitching.

@LeutnantJoker

3 жыл бұрын

@@Gadget-Walkmen did you literally just ask if there's anything wrong with turning good writing into bad writing? Wow

Season 1 should’ve just been Geralt imo would’ve made the episodes way more enjoyable and they could really focus the time on the dilemmas that he’s faced with as a Witcher

@turin236

4 жыл бұрын

This is exactly what I would have wanted to see as well. The stories could have been fleshed out more, important characters in those stories could have been given a much more faithful representation, such as the elves and Yennefer. Instead what we got was, in my opinion, a rushed mess, with shoehorned in characters that will later become important. Freaking Vilgefortz for example

@tomthefox8909

3 жыл бұрын

I agree. I love Yennefers storyline in the series but it would have worked just aswell later on. If only they had the patience to make that decision and trusted in an audience to meet new characters later on and not get confused. Anyways theres still plenty more to come with 7 seasons planned.

@darko1295

3 жыл бұрын

I like Yen's backstory so I just would have liked for them to remove the Ciri scenes and the whole build up that leads to the third book, and instead maybe only have the scene in Cintra with the curse and Geralt meeting her later in Brokilon forest without knowing she's his child of surprise like in the books. Have season 1 be an anthology series that follows Geralt and Yennefer through the decades, their problem romance and all that, and have the season end with each arc reaching a nice climax (the battle for Sodden and Geralt meeting orphaned Ciri) And leave the prophecy storyline for season 2 and onwards. As it stands season 1 is an incoherent mess with no properly defined themes.

@domusavires19

3 жыл бұрын

Definitely, I enjoyed any part about Geralt or Ciri, while I did like Yennefer I don't think she should have had so much screen time.

@yeetwchybaban

3 жыл бұрын

@@turin236 yeah tbh

Considering the sheer mess that was made out of Season 2, and the way a lot of fan favorite characters were treated in that season... I feel like this would be a great time for this video to have a part 2. At least, I know I'd sure love to see that.

@manidhingra5192

2 жыл бұрын

I wouldn't consider season 2 a mess, it was a tad confusing and I don't know how much worse it was story wise compared to the book, but It was a good piece of art. It alone made my Netflix subscription worth it

@keroco3611

Жыл бұрын

@@manidhingra5192 no offense but that's pure 🧢

@kytwb4252

Жыл бұрын

@@keroco3611 People can have opinions my guy. Sheesh, all people do is complain these days.

@Shamino1

Жыл бұрын

This channel took an apologia approach to The Witcher, that it's 'too grand to adapt' or that 'books can't really be adapted' which tells me that this youtuber never read any of the material and has no idea what he's talking about but made this video for clicks.

@BrightWulph

Жыл бұрын

And given even more recent events with some of the information we know now. It goes a long way to explain why the show runners shit the bed the way they did.

This analysis is even more relevant another season later.

@metalrockstarizer89

2 жыл бұрын

I’ve been watching it so far and I have to say, things are so freaking confusing as hell. Like from the beginning in season 1, it shows the fight between Geralt and that kikamora monster. Yeah okay, cool fight but wtf is going on? I haven’t read the books or played the games so how would I know what kind of monster that is? Episode 1 would’ve been a whole lot better if it included a short prologue of the Witcher Universe, with Geralt speaking himself, providing brief summary’s of how the universe was created, what chaos is, what Witcher’s are, how he became a Witcher, where he became a Witcher, the ethnic groups, the mages etc and so on and so on and then bam kick right in into what’s going on. THATS how it should’ve started. Imagine if Squid Game started at red light and green light, yeah okay cool but what LEAD up to that event? The story telling is a big problem, it’s too rushed and when a story is too rushed, how can you feel certain emotions from a certain scene when you don’t know the MAIN reason why. They have got to fix this. Great actors, poor story telling. This series has great potential, it just needs to learn from its mistakes.

@MrMoose-bl7jv

2 жыл бұрын

@@metalrockstarizer89 disagree

@592Johno

2 жыл бұрын

@@metalrockstarizer89 shut up boy

@AndyR_927

2 жыл бұрын

@@metalrockstarizer89 personal opinion that it didn't need that, as someone who hadn't played the game read the books or looked at anything witcher related prior to the show I think it does quite a good job at explaining those things as the story progresses, throwing all of it in an exposition dump is unnesseccary when it can show rather than tell, also the kikamora can be glossed over since it adds nothing to the story since it is simply "a monster than has been causing trouble nearby" and the visuals do enough to show what it is and the fact that it hurt a deer which was the main point of that scene

Book Dryads = Beautiful green nymphs Netflix Dryads = Plain jungle ladies Book elves = beautiful/handsome Netflix elves = Goblins

@Belzebubke

3 жыл бұрын

Art direction is the worst. Everything looks like it's from a Syfy channel movie from 2008

@SatsujinIsa

3 жыл бұрын

True :D Model who played Toruviel had potential to be beautiful elf, but end results were disappointingly goblinish.

@oneirosgames

3 жыл бұрын

Best comment ever !!

@user-qb1lq9xf1d

3 жыл бұрын

Such losers

@atisnicholson1844

3 жыл бұрын

Who the fuck thought casting people with diastrophic dwarfism as dwarves is a good idea?

Cahir is not an evil man depicted in this series. He's just a soldier doing his duty. Nilfgaard is not some evil empire who obsessed with wanton massacre and destruction. Foltest is not some fat weak king who go through his food like a pig. He's a handsome, well built man with a keen intelligence and clear mind.

@THEPELADOMASTER

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah they made Foltest a bad guy in the show.

@yarpen26

4 жыл бұрын

To be fair, while initially Nilfgaard might come across as just this medieval Nazi doppelganger jumping onto defenceless kingdoms at will, later into the season they do blur the lines quite a bit, most notably emphasizing Cintra's holocausting of the elves and Nilfgaard's appeal to the poor and downtrodden (Sapkowski himself seems to have based them on the USSR rather than Nazi Germany).

@bugraaltuntas9047

4 жыл бұрын

@@yarpen26 "...Cintra's holocausting of the elves..." which is also weird because I don't remember Calanthe being a dick to elves, in fact she was quite peaceful but hey you know can't make a badass woman without turning her into a mindless killing machine according Netflix so there is that.

@lslusa

4 жыл бұрын

@@yarpen26 Nilfgaard has a German vibe to it, but not a Nazi vibe. It is more akin of German Empire or Teutonic Knights. This plays around with Polish perceptions of Germany, being both seen as a conquering power, but also a country more developed and better organized, to which many Poles have emigrated freely. Another good comparison is Roman Empire (even named after their capital, like Nilfgaard is). They were seen as brutal conquerors by the people they fought, but themselves saw them as bringing civilization and order to barbarians.

@robyntact9251

4 жыл бұрын

Cahir literally slaughtered a bunch of peasants when it was completely unnecessary.

Queen Calanthe was a billion times better in the books. I found her extremely captivating to read. She was like a masterful poker player. She had exploited or bent all the rules in her favor, or she just broke the rules, if she could get away with it. She could get away with A LOT because of how feared and clever she was. Even in defeat, she kept her head high. This was a terrifying antagonist to Geralt, but also a very human one. Geralt had to defend his morals against her, despite constant threats of execution and torture, which she made in the middle of a witty and classy conversation. She enjoyed her games. But then, the stakes were raised, and Geralt had to defend the law of surprise against her as well, even though it would cost her her daughter and granddaughter. So when Calanthe is bested by Geralt, it elevates Geralt. When even she cannot bend the law of surprise, it shows that this is something far greater than human laws. When Nilfgaard finally takes Cintra, you know Nilfgaard is nigh unstoppable. When people speak of Ciri as the lion cub of Cintra (in reference to Calanthe's title as the Lioness of Cintra), that means something. Calanthe elevates Geralt, the law of surprise, Nilfgaard and Ciri. What does the show give you? She starts off as MCU-Thor without the humor, and then never acts like that again. Then she is constantly trembling, or scowling, or bawling her eyes out. Then she loses in the most undignified manner. Every. Time. Why? Because they skipped her victories and backstory, portrayed her badassery and human side in the laziest way imaginable, and only showed her defeats.

I remember watching this show (having not read the books) and feeling that nothing made sense except the last episode(s). Having random time skips with little to no indication (like age/appearance at least) made it a whole lot more confusing. Some of the CGI looked like it belonged in a remake of Scorpion King, and that horrible color grading filter they slapped on top of it all didn't make things any better.

@MrSilender

2 жыл бұрын

Basically, the show didn't depict the books at all, it's so vague and I'm surprised that they manage to extend it to seasons 2, though I think they were other reasons behind it, cause season 1 in itself was pretty bad, even something which most of today's shows(back up with big studios) have in common like good CGI, costumes, Make-up, etc., simply design/art, in general, of the Witcher was at least in my opinion awful...

@hermionetwo2739

2 жыл бұрын

I didn’t read the books either but found it fairly easy to keep track, a bit confusing but not by much.

@sirperybLakeney

2 жыл бұрын

I hadn't read the books or played the games when I watched season 1 and had no trouble.

@merchantmocha4665

2 жыл бұрын

@@sirperybLakeney Play Witcher 3. Do yourself a huge favor

@kregman6928

2 жыл бұрын

@@sirperybLakeney my 75 year old grandmother is watching it with me right now and she is asking questions about characters and all that because she is so invested in it. she is having no trouble at all keeping up with the timelines and in fact even figured it out herself because of the scene with foltest. people are just crying about this show because it isnt a 1 to 1 recreation of their book and none of them can accept that TV has to be watered down in order to sell well and fit a budget. id love to see all these die hard fans make their own witcher series if everything everyone else does is so bad right

I actually saw a lot of great potential in the show. The acting and action were both the highlight. Sure, they could've had the timeline thing executed better but with everything in line I'm looking forward to season 2.

@TheCloserLook

4 жыл бұрын

So am I. I think the acting from pretty much everyone was excellent, and going forward I've got high expectations for the show.

@BrandonGiordano

4 жыл бұрын

As a witcher die hard fan I really enjoyed but as someone who knows the universe super well even I was confused. Apart from that the only thing I didn't like was Triss's casting. Looking forward to season 2

@AllThingsFilm1

4 жыл бұрын

The production value is top notch. But, like a lot of adaptations, they try to cram too much story in small segments. As a result, a lot of important story content is taken out for the sake of run time. Big mistake.

@Exel3nce

4 жыл бұрын

@@BrandonGiordano you forgot fringilla, buddy boy?

@Exel3nce

4 жыл бұрын

such a shame they dont take a piece of got, where its slowly getting into the shit, without cramming everything into 1 season, which makes it just confusing. still dont understand the "fanboys" who defend this timeline system

Well, now I understand WHY THE HELL geralt chooses to fight Renfri for no apparent reason

@vasyajx

4 жыл бұрын

it's because the gang started the fight

@pawe1721

4 жыл бұрын

@@vasyajx Renfri told Geralt she will leave town in the morning. In books Geralt trusts her and through Blaviken Mayor random story he finds out she plans to take citizens hostage. In TV Show... well Geralt just wakes up, says "Renfri" and automatically goes to market.

@neph6098

4 жыл бұрын

But she attacked him, he was defending himself!

@ThePandaSupreme

4 жыл бұрын

Netrunner ya I would probably go to the market as well since that’s where he first found her and she was missing lol

@SysterYster

4 жыл бұрын

In the show, he never really does choose to fight her. They (Renfri's goons) attack him before he has a chance to even answer. Then she basically forces him to kill her, despite him obviously trying not to throughout the entire fight. It's really badly written.

I have not read the books and when I watched the show, I did not quite understand why he was called "The Butcher of Blaviken" after he killed those men, from our POV Geralt just killed some people that was already armed and was also trying to kill a little girl+wizard that was simply trying to avoid getting killed by hiding, but now you're telling me that there was an actual choice Geralt could have made there to avoid the killings BECAUSE he COULD'VE change Renfri's mind... holy shit ok

@brookles6177

2 жыл бұрын

LOL, I'm the opposite. I listened to The Last Wish audiobook first, and seeing clips from the movie, I'm like, "Who is that?" or "I'm pretty sure Dandelion (Jaskier in movies) was NOT in that scene." The changes are even bigger than I expected, and I'm sad that they cut out "A Grain of Truth." That story would be very fun to see on screen.

@qzoid3060

2 жыл бұрын

@@brookles6177 well now season 2 is out, they’ve also ruined that story

@Zuzannaq

2 жыл бұрын

I don't think in the book it's clear whether he could have changed Renfri's mind or id Renfri would have killed the innocent people or not. It's possible she was lying about it to Geralt to make him feel bad. She does lie a lot in the story and is obviously trying to manipulate Geralt and using her sad backstory for that purpose. I always got the feeling that the thing is there was no way of knowing and Geralt did pretty much best thing he could have done, it's just it did not work well for him personally. It is something that is a reoccurring motif in the books, that Geralt's heroism goes underappreciated. And the Renfri's story is sad not because she is not evil, it is because she is evil, and it is impossible to tell if she was born a monster or turned into one by people who wanted to gain from it.

@qzoid3060

2 жыл бұрын

@@Zuzannaq That’s all true, all points here could be made and that’s what makes the witcher such an interesting topic for conversation. It is also why it’s such a shame that the show doesn’t seem to incorporate anything beyond generic Hollywood action into itself.

@TomCruz54321

6 ай бұрын

It's Hollywood's obsession with the Big Reveal structure. They think it's cool to reveal the exposition and character motivation after the climax, but in reality what happens is the audience doesn't care about what's happening because they're missing the context. And when the Big Reveal comes the audience doesn't care because they've already tuned out.

That's the thing I was afraid the most about Witcher adaptation to the screen. Witcher is quite philosophical. I was afraid that Hollywood will focus on monsters and magic and disregard the philosophical side of the stories. And it feels like that's exactly what they did.

@ekaterinakornyushina7227

2 жыл бұрын

Yes. You are absolutely right. Even the game closer to the books than the show. Cavill did good job in my opinoin, but he whole idea of the show is wrong

@kamael1125

2 жыл бұрын

@@ekaterinakornyushina7227 So happy someone agrees with me. Game was good because it's done by Polish studio that understands the nuances of the books. I feel like show is extremely simplified version of the books.

@ekaterinakornyushina7227

2 жыл бұрын

@@kamael1125 Yes, this game is brilliant, it was made by real fans of Sapkowski's world. I haven't ever played this game, I watch my son playing and watch youtube gamers' videos like a movie))))). I like this movie more than Netflix series. Yesterday I've found Polish audiobook on youtube. This is masterpiece! I understand about 30 % with my native Russian language, but English subs save the situation.

@DrRoo91

2 жыл бұрын

They couldn't even get the monsters and magic right. Their magic rules are inconsistent compared to the books and even games. Most of the monsters had a terrible CGI and not enough screen time.

@StripedJacket

2 жыл бұрын

@@kamael1125 as a casual who didn’t enjoy the games (didn’t like it but didn’t hate it) I really enjoyed the show

Game of Thrones was perfectly adapted in my opinion. . . well, up until they rane out of books to adapt. .

@animeworld5847

4 жыл бұрын

That's what everyone says, but even before they ran out of books they were starting to butcher it. The quality was falling each season

@alexeyserov5709

4 жыл бұрын

End of season 4 is when it started to really falter. I mean specifically Tyrion vs Tywin scene. But it was good enough. Attack on Titan is as good adaptation of source material as one can get right now but they still have 1 season to go so who knows

@Kurpitsamehu

3 жыл бұрын

Imo Game of Thrones is horribly adapted

@Elrohof

3 жыл бұрын

Game of Thrones may be poorly adapted, but it was an amazing show, building suspense and improving with every season until they were done with Season 4. After that Season 5 came, and with it the downfall of the quality of Game of Thrones.

@travishughes7221

3 жыл бұрын

@@Kurpitsamehu some of the stuff they cut from the character arcs really hurts it. Book Jon is so much more interesting, same as Cat, Robert, Eddard, Tyrion, Sansa, Sandor.... you know what lol its literally everyone is dumbed down and far less interesting.

Funny thing is that all this cut material was made so Yennefer could get more screentime. Yet in her situation more screentime only made her character worse because we lost all of the mystery and surprise around her. We should first know her as the beautiful and powerfull mage for the information about her past had any imapct on us. It didn't work in other way.

@adapienkowska2605

2 жыл бұрын

They could give her more screen time and use it to explain politics to the audience. She was a powerful mage for a time and had served various king and important people over the years. We get to see her as a powerful mage, she retains her mystery and the audience know more about the world the story takes place in.

@MilornDiester

2 жыл бұрын

@@adapienkowska2605 It sounds like an idea worth to concider. It would change the plot but there would be some vision behind it

@sammykent5752

2 жыл бұрын

I disagree. I absolutely loved that we got to know about her past first and that the series highlighted her character and history.

@Bjjbhcoa86

2 жыл бұрын

@@sammykent5752 They made a mess out of her though. She became inconsistent this way.

@sammykent5752

2 жыл бұрын

@@Bjjbhcoa86 how?

"Netflix's Witcher" and "faithfully" should never come in one sentence. They first cut content from the books, then add some random bullshit, and what's left of the books they twist beyond any recognition.

@DudeWatIsThis

2 жыл бұрын

"HUurrRrr SorCeRerS TuRn To Eels!!"

@Thor.Jorgensen

2 жыл бұрын

You can make entertainment not faithful to its original content and still make something good of it. The Witcher games 1-3 are a perfect example of this. They essentially created their own canon, and it is absolutely excellent. This show, on the other hand, left a bad taste in my mouth. It's as though the writers and directors, once they got started, just wanted to get it over with, like a wet fart in an elevator.

@dericmederos1514

2 жыл бұрын

i read the first book, which is just a colletion of short stories, and thought "Why couldn't the show just make a stream line event with original content?"

@MultiGolonka

2 жыл бұрын

@@dericmederos1514 yeah especially since they're glued together as Geralt's recollections in Brokilon

@DudeWatIsThis

2 жыл бұрын

@@dericmederos1514 The saddest part? They made 4 different Spidermans in 20 years, but we'll probably be stuck with this shitty Witcher adaptation for decades.

I was honestly confused as to why they decided to do everything out of chronological order. Also the need to shove so many interceding storylines into episodes was so frustrating, it robbed yennefer of all mystery and the "ah, that's why she's like that" moment instead of how it's pretty much explained before we even meet her as a power hungry and powerful woman

The biggest failure of the show is its lack of depiction on how Geralt and Ciri are fated to find eachother no matter how much Geralt fights it. The story where they meet in Brokilon forest was completely cut along with several other bits that all come together perfectly in the end

@FirstSynapse

2 жыл бұрын

I have never read the books and understood that just fine from the show. I guess they could have showed it more but it's just a first season, there's so much you can do while also introducing the characters and world.

@tacofacefart

2 жыл бұрын

The show has boobs.

@ignajara

2 жыл бұрын

that is one of the main things i got from the show, how important that bond between geralt and ciri is...

@rexnas8150

2 жыл бұрын

@@ignajara how? They literally just meet and somehow know and then hug. It depicts nothing like what he's talking about from the book. The show wasted almost a full episode with that dumb changeling and them going in the Brokulon forest.

@rexnas8150

2 жыл бұрын

@@FirstSynapse yeah, but there was such wasted time and effort when it came to the Brokulon forest and the changeling guy

It never stops to amaze me - how cluttered and overcomplicated bad adaptations are, and how they always manage to exclude the most important story and tone pieces.

@sericsson1996

2 жыл бұрын

To me it's pretty obvious the things that are cut are things they could show without outright telling us. Yes... all those things that give more foreshadowing and the rich dialogue, give more context into the actions of its characters... all were cut in favor of something easier to show. What the video failed to address is that this is an adaptation. From a book to a show. The same way you can't show every thought of every character on screen as opposed to a book, the same is true for any dialogue. But that's what makes books great. It's the added context to a lot of stuff you enjoy/ed watching. You could argue that since it's a show they have the option to adapt everything correctly without cutting anything since it's not a movie. But at the end of the day... it's meant to entertain in a different medium. Many people keep bringing up the jumping through time parts of the story without any indication... but I understood everything just fine. And that holds true with other people with similar experiences. People that read the book or played the games already are biased. As a book reader you enjoy all that dialogue, the exposition and the foreshadowing that comes through clever writing. I love books for the same reason too. And I do read them. But at the end... I accept the differences, I understand why/how they exist and enjoy them for what they are. GoT is the perfect example for this but I can also bring up Harry Potter. The books had way more stuff in them... did the cuts make the movies worst? That's totally subjective. It's not an objective bad thing. In all 3 instances from the Witcher, to GoT, to Harry Potter and some other examples... I've gone from watching the show/movie to reading the books. I've done the opposite too but that's not important. What's important and my point is... that I enjoy both for different reasons but I still do because they are the same story. Yes, things get cut for millions reasons we know or only can think of, but it's still the same story told through a different perspective. It's not some abomination that gets butchered like Dragonball Evolution or Avatar the last airbender. In those instances the end product... no matter how much you love the story... is not the same. Those are objectively bad. Also... when you say "they always manage to exclude the most important story and tone pieces." that's not necessarily true. Those pieces may be important in written format... but they can be boring on camera. Not everything written can work in live action. And not everything has to work. It's an adaptation for a reason. If the only thing you want is a 1:1 adaptation... then you don't want an adaptation ... you expect a copy of the original done in a different medium.

@dzecob

2 жыл бұрын

You nailed the needle on the head, sir

@Skillet19988

2 жыл бұрын

@@sericsson1996 I think people should start thinking about adaptations as a kind of promotion for the books. Some people who like the show and never read the books before will go and buy and read them. They will enjoy the original story and will see the differences. And people who will not go to buy books will just continue to enjoy the show. They don't care how much it differs from the books, they just like the show and it's fine.

@sebasbot01

2 жыл бұрын

But somehow they always remember to include little jimmy that made a mess at a table which takes like 5-8 minutes of the episode

@himmlerlovesbeer8867

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, instead of finding ways to make something work. They just drop plot points and devices. It's like leaving out certain points in a paragraph that's in Mandarin in order to transcribe it into French. At the end, that beautiful articulate expression of life and death becomes a standard paragraph about how you just live and die as a human losing out in all its contextual meanings.

I still don't know why they didn't just start with an episodic first season, maybe hinting at or referencing larger events in the wider world, but sticking with a close focus on Geralt & Dandelion. Then slowly add more and more and more until they have built a fuller story.

@skyejacques

10 ай бұрын

Maybe in future someone will... An alternative reality 😊

What's really wild is that, though it's been a hot minute since I watched the show, I remember thinking that a lot of its runtime felt wasted and directionless until the last episode or so, like what was left in the show was the bits that should have been cut. Most of these points seem like they could have easily been made the focus in a more condensed way with actual clever writing, where a whole conflict can at least be addressed if not fully explored by a few well-placed lines and good visual storytelling. But doing that is hard, so this is what resulted.

From my perspective, the first season should have focused on just the seven stories of "The Last Wish", with Yennefer's tale mixed in them and an entire episode dedicated to her. By cutting the weakest part, Ciri's side of the story, and saving it for the second season for a proper story for her, we get a greater focus on not only fewer things to juggle but get greater time to explore them. The only reason why they included Ciri despite her not appearing in the first good was to draw in "The Witcher 3's" fans, who knew who Ciri was and massively liked her. This is fine in theory, but putting it in practice showed the flaws in doing that. Saving Ciri for the next season, once Geralt and Yennefer were firmly established, would be much easier and allow them to adapt all short stories of the second book, which was the most gutted of the two.

@kanglongshankz3313

3 жыл бұрын

I completely agree and thought this same thing after finishing it. The first season should have been 5-6 episodes of The Last Wish including Yennefer's backstory throughout episodes culminating in the Last Wish short story. Ciri's plot was completely pointless and therefore ruined some of the most vital parts (like Something More) and didn't even include Sword of Destiny which is the necessary former counter part to Something More. Sword of Destiny should have been the second season, then continue the saga from there.

@ionga

3 жыл бұрын

@@kanglongshankz3313 And the funny part is that the showrunners kept saying that they wouldn't be influenced by the games, which they clearly were considering Ciri isn't even mentioned in the first book (apart from when they talk about her mother being pregnant). Her existence in the shows harms the whole experience. And let's be fair... Ciri wasn't needed. Fans of the books would be perfectly fine with her only showing up in the second season and the fans of the games would still love Geralt's and Yennefer's parts because they are fans of the world and its characters. Lots of people seem to forget that the thing is called "The Witcher" and not "Geralt and his superfriends". Despite being other very relevant characters in the story, Geralt is and always will be the main star, with him having the best moments overall. So robbing time that could have developed him and replace it with "Girl goes from A to B" is annoying to say the least. And they also robbed us of seeing their best moments together, like in their journey through the dryad's forest! It's one of the best short stories and we'll never see it realized because they simply had to include it right at the first season!

@pituino

3 жыл бұрын

Yennefer does not need that much of screen time Imo. If they continue that way they might as well call the show "The Sorceress", my point is that everything they show about Yennefer is either made up or briefly mentioned later in other books, wich gives her a misterious aura and then Netflix comes in saying "So yeah, here's all of Yennefer's backstory".

@ionga

3 жыл бұрын

@@pituino I don't quite mind her parts, as they are quite good and well made, but the problem comes with the showrunners trying to do too much all at once for this season. I think what they could have done is adapting the seven stories of the first book while sprinkling her parts here and there. And then when they adapt the short story where Geralt is recovering from fighting the Striga (think that was the name of the monster the princess became), they invert that and do the "Yennefer Episode", as in that particular short story Geralt doesn't do much besides lying around healing. Again, the actress playing Yenn did a fantastic job and they could have included her parts without major issues, but Ciri is the one stealing a third of the time while giving a quarter of the results the other two gave.

@pituino

3 жыл бұрын

@@ionga I agree with you, they are well made and the actress did a good job. I don't like it because I feel that it is completely unnecessary and the time could be used in other important things, like Geralt and Ciri meeting in Brokilon or making a better job on the other short stories. I also find it very infuriating what they did with the magic in the show like it's an exchange. I really don't know how they're gonna do the Korath scene with Ciri looking around to find sources and the fire incident. And all the little things at Aretuza that are completely absurd like turning students into eels, or the simple fact that Fringila is there. In short, I find that those scenes could be better used to explain the story instead of all that bullshit.

but... its netflix show why bother with limiting runtime? its not competing for space on tv.

@Peter_S.Woldrich

4 жыл бұрын

ever heared of money?

@JoelCoffeeholic

4 жыл бұрын

It often depends on what they are willing to pay and that also includes the rights. I don`t know how it is with the rights of the witcher, but with the netflix adaptations from daredevil and other marvel series they were only alowed to do this many episode with specific lenghts per episode. For each season they had to rebuy/negotiate how much they are alowed to do. like peter said money matters and producing a show costs money, like salarys for many many people involved. This in a time where more and more streaming services come out for way more competition.

@mwilsonUT

4 жыл бұрын

@@Peter_S.Woldrich This first season cost somewhere between $80-$90 million dollars, so approximately $10 million per episode. It really, really doesn't look like it, either.

@tj843

4 жыл бұрын

@@mwilsonUT that's because they paid Cavill bro _He was the budget_

@MorderElg

4 жыл бұрын

@@tj843 Then they goofed. Cavill seemed almost obsessed with playing the Witcher, they could probably get away with paying him less.

Hey man...waiting for your vid "witcher s2...how to fail at adaption EVEN HARDER"

@julianapiresluciano9482

2 жыл бұрын

Much much harder.

And you take the one good part of the show and anger him enough so that you have to now recast him

I was so confused when they were talking about the law of surprise I swear

@aengusog3415

3 жыл бұрын

Right 😭

@lincolnduke

3 жыл бұрын

I had thought they were secretly in love behind the queens back.

@gkdunch

3 жыл бұрын

i mean, so is most characters in universe

@Robyamdam

3 жыл бұрын

you might want to change your profile picture: look up penguinz0 the worst youtube to understand what I mean

@mr.crowgamer6250

3 жыл бұрын

@@Robyamdam it’s just a picture calm yourself..

Maybe they could've cut the Ciri plot and just revealed her at the end of the season (her story was pretty boring imo). With that, they could've focus on Geralt and Yennefer a lot more and all that juicy content you talked about would made it in. Great video and I'm denitely getting those books.

@hiluminatul6750

4 жыл бұрын

They should have cutted everything after the Sacking of Cintra...the Sacking of Cintra should have been the last thing in the series!!! How Cintrian riders tried to get Ciri to safety, but they were followed by Cahir...and Ciri's dread at seeing the Nilfgaardians!! And then she would wake up, all a nightmare, right next to Geralt...that would have been better!! Instead we get nothing good!!!

@badanzlordofchromosomes823

4 жыл бұрын

Ciri only appeared in the end of the second book, literally all her scenes apart from the last one can be cut

@therabbi9848

3 жыл бұрын

They changed Ciris story from the books considerably. While the ending to the show season is pretty much the same as the ending of the second book, it doesn’t really feel that way. In one of the earlier stories, Geralt meets Ciri in the Brokilon Forest. She is there because she escaped her escort on its way to a different kingdom to meet its prince. This is where Geralt and Ciri first bond in the story. It’s probably my favorite of all the short stories, and it has some seriously stiff competition. The back and forth with them is just priceless. In the last story of the second book, Geralt is informed by Dandelion that there was a battle at sodden (only referenced in the books) and is told that Cintra was destroyed and a whole bunch of people died in the battle including several mages. Because of this Geralt believes both Yennefer and Ciri are dead and he feels extremely guilty since Ciri would have been safe if he had just taken her with him after the Brokilon Forest adventure. The result is probably my favorite ending to a book ever

@MustardSkaven

3 жыл бұрын

Cut Ciri out of "The Witcher"? Time you get those books and change your mind. Even Yennefer comes in as third character, Ciri is a clear second after Geralt. If anything, they could have dedicated a full episode on Yennifer in S02E01 to get her back story and introduce her but leave her out of S01 in favour of more Ciri time. The child of surprise plot point is vital. You can't shove aside Ciri for more Yennefer or even more Geralt. It's called "the Witcher" but it's mainly not just about Geralt.

@roryfehring1045

3 жыл бұрын

Honestly, Ciri doesn’t get interesting until she joins the Rats

I'm quite eager to hear your thoughts on the second season. Despite considerable production quality improvement, after watchin S2, I would stop calling it an adaptation. More like "loosely based on".

@factbeaglesarebest

2 жыл бұрын

Exactly. Immediately upon watching the first episode knew “holy shit… they really fucked this one up”. They’ve ruined the story by just making up new shit. They’ve made the Game of Thrones mistake DESPITE HAVING JUST BEGUN THE FUCKING SOURCE MATERIAL!

@luckynko24

2 жыл бұрын

@@factbeaglesarebest And still, I would consider E1 the best by far. The rest of S2 was way worse.

@criran

2 жыл бұрын

I wouldn't even call it that. Season 2 is so far off the mark, it might as well be a comic book-style alternate universe with no canonical connection to the source material other than character names. Watching that show, I couldn't think of a *single* scene that did not deviate from the events of the book. Usually in absurdly major ways.

@MeltonCrest

2 жыл бұрын

It was a "let's milk another IP to death" from the very first episode of the first season on as is typical for Netflix.

@hartincmajor202

2 жыл бұрын

I think "loosely based upon" is fine. The whole witcher expanded universe outside if book canon is "loosely based upon." The show isn't nearly as bad as everyone raves on it for being. It's an ok show with an ok show budget

The answer is astoundingly simple as to how they could of adapted the Witcher novel correctly and overcome every hurdle you've mentioned in this video: Netflix should of given the season more episodes. Also internal thoughts and monologues are also astoundingly simple to portray - anime does it all the time.

Bruh that Witcher 3 soundtrack in the background tho....

@TheButterShowThatsMe

4 жыл бұрын

And it's infinitely better than the shows.

@IbrahiemLegoFilms

4 жыл бұрын

@@TheButterShowThatsMe Oh absolutely, I wasn't even aware that that was ever an argument haha..the only thing the show nailed was Geralt, and we have Henry Cavill to thank for that.. originally, Geralt wasnt even gonna be in the show

@GAPIntoTheGame

4 жыл бұрын

Ammar I. Borovnica I sincerely doubt that he wasn’t gonna be in the show

@noah5300

4 жыл бұрын

@@GAPIntoTheGame I heard he was gonna be reduced to a side character, but it was a mere rumor.

@IbrahiemLegoFilms

4 жыл бұрын

@@GAPIntoTheGame Nah you can check, which would make sense, as the Showrunner is pretty liberal n shjt

in anime characters have internal thought all the time. "watching a character stare out of a window for 10 minutes straight" is essentially death note, and its fuckin amazing. there is 40 minutes of death note where they literally just walk down a street. its one of the most intense scenes ive every experienced.

@kauswekazilimani3736

4 жыл бұрын

I take a chip, AND EAT IT!

@GUILLE832

4 жыл бұрын

But the directing in Death Note is what keeps those thoughts interesting. The animation does wonders too, and the art style emphasizes the emotions of the characters superbly through coloring changes, shadows and movement. I'm not sure if you could pull that kind of experience off with live action. You could approach it, but the animated medium gives you such a large window of opportunity to convey emotions that it is hardly comparable.

@-Trauma.

4 жыл бұрын

Guts does all that shit while chopping waves of people in half...😏

@YourBlackLocal

4 жыл бұрын

It doesn’t really work in live action for some reason, I thought about that before but only Dexter has really pulled it off

@doomdidamn554

4 жыл бұрын

@@YourBlackLocal Dexter pulled it off because of his nature of being a "not-very-okay-mentally" serial killer. We need his internal monologue to relate to him at all, and it embraces his perverted nature. When a mentally healthy character starts talking to himself it just seems weird.

I’ve never read the books but I enjoyed the series quite a lot and thought that I understood everything. But wow, yeah, now that you explained how the whole Renfri storyline went in the book I actually understand why people are so disappointed with the series

I hadn't read any of the books before watching the show and I really enjoyed it, especially puzzling out the time line, but I completely agree about the confusion around The Butcher of Blaviken story. I had to look it up online because it was bugging me, I had no idea why Geralt acted the way he did or why the townsfolk turned on him.

This series can be summed up quite simply: Scenes with Geralt: 9/10 Scenes without him: 5/10

@kiracarver988

3 жыл бұрын

I loved most of Yennefer's scenes. She was nearly more compelling that Geralt. Geralt is cooler, though.

@marvinarsolon715

3 жыл бұрын

Nah fam. It’s more like Geralt, Yen, and Jaskier 9/10 Ciri 5/10

@kbonh22

3 жыл бұрын

@@marvinarsolon715 Yea, Yen and Jaskier were great characters actually.

@DrRoo91

3 жыл бұрын

It's more like: The entire adaptation: 5/10 That was rough watch for my Witcher pals and I. The show runners had very little clue of what made Sapkowski's work so brilliant.

@EpicMania18

3 жыл бұрын

@@marvinarsolon715 I felt that ciris actress carried her scenes they were just played with slow and lack luster story structure

I’m Polish and I grew up with those books. For me, the Netflix adaptation felt not just not loyal to the books, but downright disrespectful of our culture and legends. Yennefer’s character was completely butchered, the whole story with the Striga, the first ever written and possibly most beloved was done so badly I had to stop watching at that point. It was just so bad all around. If only they just stuck to adapting each short story as it was, without trying to turn it into one big narrative with confusing timelines. Let us know Geralt better before introducing Yennefer and then Ciri, only flesh them out more once they start to adapt the saga. Like this, we get a half-baked and unrelatable Geralt, a Yennefer who feels more like a pouty child than an almost 100 years old, powerful witch and Ciri with all her trauma spilling onto the rather lighthearted and sometimes really damn funny short stories. Even Jaskier, though he was probably the best done character in the series, didn’t escape the bastardization as they conveniently forgot that Jaskier was a womanizer and a bit of an idiot, sure, but he was also someone with strong beliefs and will to defend them. How the hell would the Jaskier who once challenged a whole gang of thugs bragging about hunting dyads, the Jaskier who was best friends with witchers, dwarfs, elves, how could that Jaskier ever write mocking racist songs and talk about how you’re not remembered for respect? Ugh.

@przemysawbirn356

2 жыл бұрын

Pięknie napisane :)

@kcufhctib204

2 жыл бұрын

Anyways it had good looking people, sex scenes, cool sword fights and magic pew pew pew.

@TheMone22

2 жыл бұрын

@Ola Kowalska I completely agree with you.

@theccpisaparasite8813

2 жыл бұрын

Close your eyes, take the title out of the picture and then enjoy. It's a terrible adaptation. But, its not a bad show. You want to see something awful, watch Wheel of Time. Comparatively speaking, Witcher was a documentary

@beyondblur246

2 жыл бұрын

@@theccpisaparasite8813 It's a terrible show with bad writing, incoherent plot and cringy dialogue. It's just that American audiance has become so braindead, that they will watch and clap anything containing boobs, muscle, action and special effects. That anyone can give it over 2 stars is beyond me.

I played through the games and STILL didn't understand what was going on, so I started reading the series. The show explains things terribly, if at all.

I have just finished the second season and I am shocked. After the fairly good first season, they were hopes for it to improve. More world building, more character development, more interesting relationships. Everything so many people hoped to see after 2 years of development was ruined by an extremely bad writing.

@bluemouse_draws3694

2 жыл бұрын

Tbh, season 2 had thrown me for a loop. Geralt FINALLY finds Ciri and has the opportunity to train her to be a Witcher. Yet, it gets all tossed away for some kind of "Destiny child's" plot. Like c'mon man! I wanna see Ciri improve as a fighter! 😭😭 Also, I'm also speaking as someone completely ignorant of the books. I just like seeing characters that are deemed as "inexperienced" in certain goals they're trying to achieve grow through the nitty-gritty, y'know?

@shawnheatherly9219

2 жыл бұрын

@@bluemouse_draws3694 she does train. It's not like someone can become a witcher in a week this isn't a Shonen anime

@bluemouse_draws3694

2 жыл бұрын

@@shawnheatherly9219 Well duh, that's my point. She does train, yes. But I feel as though season 2 should of focused MORE on Ciri's training than throwing all this other bs in the way for some random crazy witch in a shack possessing Ciri to kill majority of the witchers.

@snkybrki

2 жыл бұрын

@@bluemouse_draws3694 From what I remember in the games, Ciri was written as a sort of extra badass witcher. I assume they're doing a lot of that stuff to build up that point. A goat training arc wouldn't have really done much to put her particularly above the others.

They could have adopted The Last Wish, almost word for word, blow for blow, and with some added dialogue and visuals to give more context and explanation, and it would have been great TV. A lot of action and witty dialogue. I don't think the Witcher is uniquely difficult, they just got a terrible team on board.

@spencer4679

2 жыл бұрын

As he says in the video, there's simply not enough runtime to do that. They have to set up the other characters for future seasons to make any sense as well

@silphonym

2 жыл бұрын

@@spencer4679 Point is, they don't. You're basically saying they cut quality for future opportunity. Now I don't know anything about the deals behind this, but if you want to get a second season you usually have to deliver in the first season first. Was it necessary to adapt the whole book in one season? Was it necessary to interweave all those storylines to a point someone new to the property was bound to be lost? Was it necessary to cram good stories that could be adopted in two episodes into a bad adoption a third or fourth the length? Maybe just a few foreshadowing shots of Ciri and Yennefer would've been enough for the first season. Or they could've decided to do half the stories later and give the ones they adopt double the time. I know it isn't easy, but to just say "there wasn't enough runtime" is extremely reductionist and misleading. All of this is obviously something that wasn't done and this can be due to failure of any number of the involved people.

@JuliuszCovers

2 жыл бұрын

Characters don’t HAVE to all be introduced at the same time. It would make sense to introduce Ciri in season 2 or 3, and just focus on doing justice to Geralt (and partly Yennefer) first. Part of what made the earlier seasons of Game of Thrones great is that they stuck to the books in this regard. The first season is about Ned Stark, and the other ones have different focus? So be it, if that’s how the story works! Jaime Lannister started as a side character, only to be built later on. If the creators had decided that they HAD TO make Jaime a central character from the start, then his redemption arc would be much weaker, because they would have to make him more sympathetic from the start. There’s nothing wrong with adding characters. Yes, it can be tricky, viewers can be confused that they are suddenly watching a story about different characters, but if the story keeps them engaged, there is no way they’ll be turned off by this.

@aaronswallow3189

2 жыл бұрын

@@spencer4679 If you restrict yourself to 8 hours for season 1, yeah. Why not make it an 18 hour first season?

@Shamino1

2 жыл бұрын

@@spencer4679 That's complete nonsense. The Last Wish is a small book- roughly 300 pages in medium sized font. Typically, the golden ratio rule for a script is 1 page = 1 minute of screen time. They had ten episodes to work with. In fact, they had *more time* than was needed to follow the golden ratio. Each miniature story in the book = 1 episode. It's actually one of the more perfect books to do a fine adaptation of. This idea that 'they don't have the runtime of a full season to tell the stories of a short book' is frankly ridiculous.

The problem with The Witcher is that it seems like they adapted the Wikipedia summary of the stories, not the books

@olelukje3928

4 жыл бұрын

Gabriel Machado I think even the Wikipedia summary is better and deeper than the show:)

@lordsnow8438

4 жыл бұрын

@@olelukje3928 no

@icyman2

4 жыл бұрын

Wikipedia summaries are true to the books, unlike Netflix series.

@drisshansfreetime453

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah right 🤣

@Jigger2361

4 жыл бұрын

give the show a chance ... season 2 will rock

Are you jesting??? They could easily adapt Last wish as it was written. At first introduce Geralt, his adventures, his character, the world, Marigold etc and then adding other major characters like Sapkowski did and it worked perfectly. There is literally no need to introduce Ciri or Yennefer too early.

Man, this video didn't age well. Turns out the show runners just hated the material they were adapting. Shame.

Just so everyone knows, the entire audio book for, The Witcher: The Last Wish, is on KZread for free.

@user-bw8kt3fu3m

3 жыл бұрын

And the irony is that series is 8 hours long, and the audiobook is 10 hours, which is just 2 hours longer. But their level of storytelling is very different.

@DrRoo91

2 жыл бұрын

@@user-bw8kt3fu3m With almost the same amount of time,the Audiobook can tell a better story leagues beyond the 80 million dollar adaptation.

@user-bw8kt3fu3m

2 жыл бұрын

@@DrRoo91 Exactly!

@r4ng3rd3thr0w

2 жыл бұрын

And some of the narrators are top notch, depending on the video.

@alyssa3605

2 жыл бұрын

it's a great read as well if you can afford the book!

The knight: I've come to claim my reward for saving the king Queen: take of your helmet Knight: I can't until midnight *turns midnight* Knight: IT WAS ME, SONIC

@LukiKruki

2 жыл бұрын

You made mah day.

At some point Andrzej Sapkowski and the producers of the show inexplicably decided that what readers and viewers wanted was anything besides Witchering.

@dramaticwords

Жыл бұрын

You can't blame Sapkowski for this. It's all the showrunner and writers' fault.

@xboogsx

Жыл бұрын

Absolutely NONE of the blame for anything in the show should be put on Sapkowski. He's been interviewed and openly disavowed the show and said that the only thing faithfully adapted is that his name appears in the credits and that it would be improper for him to say he liked the show (or something along those lines)

@dramaticwords

Жыл бұрын

@@xboogsx I saw an interview in which he stated his opinion that adaptations are almost never as good as the source material. The implication was that he had low expectations for the TV show. Maybe he just licensed it for the money? Not everyone can negotiate a deal like JK Rowling's in which they retain creative control.

@xboogsx

Жыл бұрын

@@dramaticwords it's entirely possible he licensed it only for money. I wouldn't be surprised at all seeing as he sees all adaptation of his universe as non-canon and therefore not worth consideration. He's said so about the games as well, HOWEVER, he was much harsher on the show than the games iirc

@dramaticwords

Жыл бұрын

@@xboogsx I'm not surprised he was harsher on the show. The games were obviously made by people who respected and tried to follow the canon of the books much more than the TV show writers.

Wow! I have not read the books, only played the games. How you highlight the key differences between the book scenes and the Netflix adaptation is masterful. I’m sure others would agree with me that it would be awesome if you did a revision like this for every episode. As it shows how deep the book story is vs the Netflix adaptation. Great job!

What killed the show for me is the fact that Geralt wasn't in Brokilon with Ciri. This is unacceptable.

@oldmanwinter3597

3 жыл бұрын

And they did the Dryads so dirty. Diversity barbarians with spears... What a joke.

@MrKILLINOOBZ

3 жыл бұрын

Yep, but honestly what killed it even way fucking more for me was simply put; Geography. Instead of Brokilon being set before the 1st Nilfgaardian war, they set it during and after the slaughter of Cintra; by the point that Ciri escapes Cahir and flees, Nilfgaard hasn't crossed the Yaruga nor reached Sodden. Brokilon is past Sodden and way past Cintra on the other side of the Yaruga, so somehow she ends up in Brokilon, escapes yet heads south of all places....(?) I mean, I guess given that she's young she wouldn't know the direction she was going but given that there's this massive war going on and a giant fucking river between the regions that are safe and those that are not, anyone should know not to head south for any reason, towards the war unless they're soldiers.

@kristiankopera

3 жыл бұрын

@@MrKILLINOOBZ and topography as well.. What about dol blathana, so called valey of flowers. And Netflix made it into some dry canyon or desert or whatever it was 😆😆

@MrKILLINOOBZ

3 жыл бұрын

@@kristiankopera Tbf on the other side of Dol Blathanna to the east is tons and tons of literal wasteland desert, but yeah they also made Brokilion into a jungle.....???

@ninjakoule9878

3 жыл бұрын

@@kristiankopera and then made the village of Dol Blatana into some skyscraper shit. Like how the fuck are they farming there? And also, where was that old Gramgram with a book and her assistant? These were really important character.

Your transition from saying how good reading the books was to sponsoring audible was great hahah

@adidas-dd4dt

4 жыл бұрын

I have to say Peter Kenny is an amazing narrator.

1:35 I kinda disagree, while I would say it's trickier to perform on the big screen, you can definitely do "internal monologues" by just having the main character voice-over. Dexter is an excellent example of this. That aside, this is an amazing eye opening video. Thank you for making this man, never knew how much I missed out on by not reading the books and just watching the TV show.

@rinceoir3737

2 жыл бұрын

You could, there are times when someone did it well. But, i can't really imagine listening to Geralts internal monolog.

@owyemen9367

2 жыл бұрын

It's very hard to pull off tho, just watch the first dune movie

@moonknightish

2 жыл бұрын

@@rinceoir3737 Geralt talking to himself could be done. Think of the "killing monster" trailer. It begins with his monologue

@landmindssoul4636

8 ай бұрын

Yes. It's also awful lack of internal dialogue cause I've had some shows where the characters are just silent and I'm supposed to guess what the characters think. I end up not catching internal conflicts and changes. Internal dialogue to know what your characters are thinking, their thougt process. But if people abuse it just to info dump then at that point have a mysterious narrator above speak on their behalf.

They managed to take Cahir, one of the most well intentioned and misunderstood characters from the books and made him a complete psychopath. How could they do that to my boi!?

@skyejacques

10 ай бұрын

They redeem him a bit in Season 2 and 3, but not much..

WOOOOOOAH There is a massive error in the "matter of price" segment. Gerlat DID NOT say anything about law of surprise being used on him, Mousesack does. MOREOVER Geralt was not child of surprise, he was dropped at kear morhen by his mother. He clearly states that in his talk with the queen in the last story "Something more". He said Mousesack twisted the fact to suit his goal at the time.

@MilkBreakMinecraft

4 жыл бұрын

Naxster You are right. He also mistakenly says Pavetta is Calanthe’s granddaughter. Pavetta is her daughter ,of course, Ciri being the granddaughter.

@ivanstepanovic1327

4 жыл бұрын

Oh, the inconsistencies in the show... Can't be counted... - Renfri. Geralt tries using Axii on her and she says "Doesn't work, I'm a mutant". Well, that just confirms Stregobor's story, so she is a mutant (mutations are irreversible, as Geralt says) and it means killing her is a good call! Which removes the need for Geralt's moral dillema, troubled conscience etc. In the book, it makes sense (and so does her plan in Blaviken and ultimatum talk). - "Magic works like this: you do smth magic and smth dies. You move a stone and flower dies"... And we never see the principle again... - Doppler turns into Mousesack and says "I know all you have ever known" only to later attack Kahir for "not knowing what Ciri was"?! And what was the doppler's plan when he attacked Kahir, anyway?! - Battle of Sodden is to start, Yen says "I lived 3 lifetimes"... When?! She was about 18 when she saw little Foltest. If she is 98 (like in the books), how old is Foltest then?! So, at best, she was about 68-70 at that moment... Hardly 3 life times... In the book, it is so and actually makes sense (Foltest is 40 in the books, btw)... - "THey took my choice away", says Yennefer about having a baby... Ummm, no... The way it was done in the show, you requested it! And so on, and so on...

@do__ob

4 жыл бұрын

You're right. But when reading the story for the first time we think that Mousesack is telling the truth about Geralt's past so it doesn't change what he said about adding context to the law of surprise and about Geralt's behavior.

@ivanstepanovic1327

4 жыл бұрын

@@do__ob In the books, Geralt suspected Pavetta was pregnant when claiming the law... It is much later that he said "No, I will not claim the child" and explains why. And Mousesack even, in Brokilon, suggested he would do nothing if Geralt would try to take the child (btw, why wasn't the real Brokilon scene included in the show?! It was awesome and would explain the connection between Ciri and Geralt; this way it is hard to believe the connection even exists if they never even saw each other). Show writers just used "destiny" as an excuse for bad and lazy writing. That real Brokilon scene explains also "there is destiny, but there is also something more". Which we don't see in the show.

@do__ob

4 жыл бұрын

@@ivanstepanovic1327 yeah I know. I've read it too and I agree, the relationship between Ciri and Geralt in the series is non existant. They've never met and Ciri only learns about Geralt when her grandma tells her "go find Geralt" before dying, which makes their reunion at the end of the series very insignificant. In the book the emotion builds up through the story, in the show it doesn't. So I agree with you. I was just replying to Naxster about the error in the video about Geralt's past. I don't think it changes the scene that much.

11:00 so true. The scene of the massacre at the market was the strongest in the book, as we were shown that the massacre had begun in the midst of the crowd and no one understood who started it. Everyone thought it was Witcher. But there was no massacre in the series, there was only a battle of arrivaled bandits (about whom locals do not care) with Witcher on *empty streets.*

@reng935

4 жыл бұрын

Then there suddenly were a lot of people in the end. Ugh.

@Gadget-Walkmen

4 жыл бұрын

gotta read now!

As somone who has read the books an played the games I could’t even get through season 1

@roanoke7551

3 ай бұрын

Same.

This vid has won you a sub. What a detailed and interesting breakdown you gave. Thank you for this

so they ran out of budget after hiring henry cavill

@ptitecame6688

3 жыл бұрын

I'm not sure since Henry Cavill was a big fan of the game and being Geralt was like a dream for him

@sakifbro2586

3 жыл бұрын

@@ptitecame6688 yeah but he's not gonna work for free tho.

@Nevirate

3 жыл бұрын

@@ptitecame6688 Dream or not. Gotta get paid. Plus, he’s awful as Geralt.

@bigdaddyb1837

3 жыл бұрын

@@Nevirate like rdj as ironman that's awful too

@Nevirate

3 жыл бұрын

@@bigdaddyb1837 Your point?

“It’s not true that I was an unexpected encounter at home, as a child. That’s not how I became a Witcher. I’m a commonplace foundling, Calanthe.” - Geralt, Sword of Destiny pg 307

@BassFlapper

4 жыл бұрын

Wait, so Geralt lied?

@jamtex2

4 жыл бұрын

@@BassFlapper Geralt never claims to be a child of surprise in that story. It's Mousesack that makes that claim (iirc).

@BassFlapper

4 жыл бұрын

@@jamtex2 Oh right, now I remember

@Shadeius

4 жыл бұрын

@@jamtex2 You're correct. ‘He knows this law better than anyone else,’ Mousesack said in a hoarse voice, ‘because it applied to him once. He was taken from his home because he was what his father hadn’t expected to find on his return. Because he was destined for other things. And by the power of destiny he became what he is.’ Sapkowski, Andrzej. The Last Wish: Short Stories 1: Introducing the Witcher (p. 143). Orion. Kindle Edition.

You know, I never thought about it too much. But the Renfri storyline kind of mirrors the actual books' storyline. Renfri is Ciri, Stregobor is Vilgefortz, and Geralt is like Bonhart. It's basically what the story would be like if Ciri never had Geralt or Yenefer around to teach her/take care of her, however brief it was.

Looks like Netflix and the screen writers on SE02 didn't get the memo and watch this video. Perhaps, an updated "How to fail at an adaptation twice" video is due. They made the same mistake again and possibly even worse by once again wasting the magic and greatness that is in the books. Visually (looks like they went from an iphone to medium format), the new cast members - Vesimier, Nivellen, Djkstra etc, wardrobe and CGI all make SE02 a significant improvement over SE01 but what they did to the Witcher lore just takes that all away.

The adaptation of "A Question of Price" turned Calanthe into a brash fighting woman when she was actually a careful, proud woman of guile. She ASKED Geralt to be there because she knew a monster-looking guy was going to claim her daughter. (Although "asked" is perhaps too soft of a word.) She made sure his sword was hidden behind her throne. She didn't chafe at the idea of the banquet, she planned it to try to get what she wanted. She tricked Duny into removing his helmet because she thought Pavetta (or at least the gathered nobles) would never agree to the match. The woman on screen just wasn't Calanthe.

@sukhrobmirzodavlatov2385

4 жыл бұрын

I think that was the beauty of Calanthe character from the books. She is powerfull woman and thats been shown without monger marches against neighborhood rulers (or who it was on the show? I don't really know because I can't handle it more than episode 3). But her power been revealed trough her persona. Even when she asks it feels more like a demand.

@earendilthemariner5546

4 жыл бұрын

But in the show, didnt Geralt say that Calanthe knew Duny was coming, so thats why she wanted him there, next to her? He says something like "you knew he would come and you wanted me to kill him"

@tscotts9699

4 жыл бұрын

That’s too nuanced for a female character on Netflix. They must be above criticism or the men don’t look as bad.

@louis8487

4 жыл бұрын

@@tscotts9699 How was Calanthe in the show above criticism? She tried to kill an innocent man her daughter loved, while pretending to accept him. Clearly showing her in a very bad light. Also she was clearly stated to be a war monger who butchered elves.

@Blue_Lunacy

4 жыл бұрын

@@louis8487 In the book, Duny wasn't so innocent. He had specific goal in mind when he execute his plan. I won't say more because it will be a spoiler. Only that this is The Witcher, things are more complex than just right and wrong.

Well, you've convinced me. I'm going to read those books.

@helgenlane

4 жыл бұрын

We'll see you in a month, lol

@anitaremenarova6662

4 жыл бұрын

Good Call, the books are incredible. I've read them several times each since they are still enjoyable even after a bunch of reads

@urekmazino6519

4 жыл бұрын

Most disappointing book series I've ever read. Campy writing, most of the short stories and side stories in the saga are just folk tales with a twist. The Character interactions and development are contradictory and inconsistent. Pretty much all the major arcs spoil themselves by revealing the conclusion through narration before telling how the events transpired. None of the characters feel like real characters. 6/10 at best.

@anitaremenarova6662

4 жыл бұрын

@@urekmazino6519 Taking an inspiration from folk tales and folk tales with a twist are a major difference. Show me examples of your "contradictory and inconsistent" character interactions. Never been spoiled on anything, no clue what you're on about. The characters are a take on classic stereotypes that evolve as the story progresses, it's done very well and they do feel like real characters. Hating on something popular won't make you interesting buddy.

@WibblyLever2

4 жыл бұрын

@@urekmazino6519 Right now, I'm still on the first short story compilation (The Last Wish), and I'm enjoying it. I like the writing style, and the bits of worldbuilding are enough to keep me coming back. I'm not yet sure if I'll stay for the actual series, but time will tell.

17:56 - "The lesser evil is one of the more faithfully adapted story." while completely missing the point. Which speaks volumes about the show.

"The creators have taken out the majority of the filling." *immediately pans to Jaskier", I see what you did

@emryscaster7332

2 жыл бұрын

Honestly I’ve noticed such a disconnect when talking to show only fans who apparently see Jaskier as being just as important as Yen from what I’ve seen which is so weird to me. Like I get liking side characters - my favorite character from the Witcher universe is fucking Eskel (hi yes I hate the show) but I don’t pretend that he’s part of the main cast or anything which a lot of show Jaskier fans do and it’s such a disconnect for me between his narrative role (even in the show itself!!!) and the fandom perception

The original books are absolutely amazing but I'm really not sure that english translation do them justice. Here in Russia the Witcher saga was a cult fantasy classic long before the games came and I think that a lot of this success can be attributed to the amazing russian translation (thanks to an amazing translator Evgeny Weissbrot, may he rest in peace... actually the last book of the series was translated by another translator and it's really not good). I think that it's even more difficult to do good translation from polish to english since russian and polish are both slavic languages.

@rabidrivas

4 жыл бұрын

@Precog Yeah, I read the last wish in english then chaged to my native laguage for the rest of the books and it was way better. The english versions are more pragmatic, aming to just make sure you get all the info. While the other version makes it as if the info is just there and you take it. It is difficult to explain,

@petrairene

4 жыл бұрын

The German translation that I have been reading is really great, too. Haven't tried the English one.

@SysterYster

4 жыл бұрын

I would think it's easier to translate from Polish to Russian since the languages are related. Harder to English. But I liked the first two books in English though. But then, I can't read Polish so I can't really judge or compare. :P

@jorislemoine1488

4 жыл бұрын

Translating from one language to another is always difficult. Even strongly related languages have different idioms or rhythms which may hinder readability, punch or presentation. It's why people are still translating Beowulf and the Iliad, because there will never be a perfect translation. That being said, great translators can pinpoint what is most remarkable about a source text and focus on that aspect for the translation. I'm guessing that's what Evgeny Weissbrot did. Similarly, the Dutch translations of Harry Potter were magnificent because they were written with the dry wit and whimsy of the originals in mind. I had heard before that the English translations of Sapkowskis books weren't very good. Sadly, we're probably stuck with them until some other publisher wants to invest in a full translation - which they are unlikely to do. Or, until a fan makes an excellent translation and shares it online. It's too bad, because I really love the lore and grit of the Witcher and I can only really fall back on the translations and the video game (though the last one does compensate hugely for the books).

@annatar9365

4 жыл бұрын

Books are not that good as everyone says they are ok. They are far better books in the world and the autor has no plan for the story he create in the saga. In orginal the dialogs are the best thing but the world that create Sapkowski only for the plot is kinda empty. There are good characters like Vilgefortz, Regis, Dijkstra, Yen, Bonhart, Fillipa Eilhart, Jaskier, Yarpen Zigrin, Zoltan. They could be far better if autor focused on expanding his mythology by presenting an interesting plot that would not amount to a fight of good and evil. It would be much more interesting if the main antagonist won instead of dying in a pulled way.

I thought I was just too dumb to understand what was going on in The Witcher, so I just assumed it was genius. Turns out, it just lacks a lot of story... I'm glad I watched this video. Now I know I'm not (completely) stupid.

@yarpen26

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah, the show certainly gives way too much credit to its viewers, myself among them. I actually did have to rewind stuff every once in a while to make sure I got everything. In a perfect show, once started you shouldn't need to touch the remote unless you need a bathroom break or want to make yourself a sandwich.

@romy5154

3 жыл бұрын

@@yarpen26 too much credit to the viewer? No, it's just poorly written. It's not the viewers fault if the producers can't tell a story properly

@cupcakemcsparklebutt9051

3 жыл бұрын

@@yarpen26 too much credit? What are you even talking about? The show would not appeal to anyone who doesn't have an encyclopedic knowledge of the witcher before watching, it is just rushed, pacing is off and leaves the viewer completely lost

@dumitrache12

3 жыл бұрын

This is why I hate the average consumer. They feed you mediocre content and you take it as amazing. You are basically rewarding companies for not giving a shit for quality, same thing happened with GoT

@Slender_Man_186

3 жыл бұрын

yarpen26 it assumes you’ve already spent a fair bit of money on novels some people might not even know exists. That’s just bad writing. You can play the games without the books just fine, the books further add to the story, but aren’t completely necessary.

I remember thinking that a lot of stuff in the early episodes would somehow become relevant later (for example I believed Stregobor's thing with the eclipses had something to do with Ciri and that was why she was special) and then they never did. And being incredibly confused by the three separate timelines.

For me the show makes me want to read the books more so, not because the show is bad I personally think it’s decent but I want to read them because I know I’ll probably get more out of it and even if the show fails to adapt the source doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the show for what it is. I did enjoy this essay, you did a wonderful job with it.

@landmindssoul4636

8 ай бұрын

I get it. While new fans get a nice appetizer for the main course. Older fans get a bitter meal since you know what's it's supposed to taste like. Similar to Panda express vs authentic Chinese food.

I REALLY hated the 3 stories going on at the same time. I couldn't keep up, and it got irritating because I would be getting invested in one story and then got pulled out of it for another

@luistorres6956

3 жыл бұрын

Yea it should've been about geralt more then the others. Why pay him big bucks to show us these lesser characters smh

@ParisHoney1998

3 жыл бұрын

That and the timeline jumps. It took me way too long to realize the story was jumping back and forward with time, and it took a lot of enjoyment out of the show for me. 3032021 / 10:22p

@uniquecorn491

3 жыл бұрын

That are wasting their time with Yennefer, she was never a main character. Her backstory takes no more than 2 or 3 pages in all books compined. And when she is a part of some story there is always Geralt, Ciri or other sourceress with her

@savaralyn0951

3 жыл бұрын

They should have at least cut out Ciri, she isn't in the Last Wish books at all and they would have had so much more time to flesh out the stories in the show without having to follow her shit.

@Eris_Norregard

3 жыл бұрын

@@savaralyn0951 Completely agree. I understand they thought they had to introduce Ciri right away since she later becomes such an important character, but it really would've worked better if they made the first season about Geralt (and Yennefer) and only hint at Ciri's existence. Make us aware of the fact that Destiny is a real force in this universe, that something like a Law of surprise exists, and that Geralt has a child bound to him and is avoiding his responsibility. Use the time to really build up his character, his relationship with Yennefer and Jaskier (and add Nenneke!) and the way he struggles to find his purpose in a world that hates him for who he is. Than the last episode would be him finding out that Cintra is under siege and heading there to finally get and protect Ciri. End it on a cliffhanger of him arriving only to find the city destroyed and Ciri gone, but knowing she's alive. Do a whole emotional scene where he meets badly injured and dying queen Calanthe as she pleads for him to go and save her. Roll credits. And then make the second season about her and her escape, and her and Geralt finding each other.

I haven't read the books and I thought it was alright, but now I'm realizing it could've been so much better.

@jasonsinn9237

3 жыл бұрын

I just finished reading the first book yesterday and I was blown away by how much better it was. Definitely grab yourself a copy.

@andrewcharlton4053

3 жыл бұрын

Please read the books. They're top top literature

@shineinouzen7412

2 жыл бұрын

I only played the games and even I knew it was adapted terribly.

I dont really see much of a problem for writers. They just should make one story into one episode. First 2 tomes of the Witcher are perfect for adaptation. You don't have to make everything 1-1 but the length and style of writing is just perfect to translate to series format. And people might say - we need to a grander scope. We need to set fundaments for all 8 or 10 seasons. But do we really? The book didn't had that and became immensely popular. Recently released House of Dragons season 1 was also missing grand worldbuilding and instead focused on small stories of one family and it worked perfectly and it still leads to big war coming very naturally. The problem for me was screenwriters or showrunners ego that was a problem. They wanted more Yennefer cause she's strong female character. But they still could add that stuff, just make it one episode You could argue that suddenly having one episode with new character would be confusing, suddenly dropping protagonist and telling some witch story, but people would most likely already know about Yennefer if not from books or games then from demn poster, so as soon as they see her they know its someone important so they'd pay attention. Another problem with American shows and movies is that they try too hard to transform the material into something familiar, something they can relate to. so they make a lot of strange decisions that don't fit to this specific kind of story.

When I tried watching the first season I was so confused about what was going and why certain things were happening. For Christmas I got the full set of books, and having finished the first one today (the last wish) everything made so much more sense. Unlike with the show It didn't take me so long to understand the timeskips. I love the intense to amusing interactions so far from what I've read. :) Geralt's dry comments are always great.

I haven't read the books or played the games. I vaguely knew of the existence of them, that was it. And yes, many parts, especially the "The Market" and the stoning afterward, were _VERY_ confusing. Watching this, it makes a lot more sense now. And that is, indeed, the problem. I enjoyed the show. But it did have many moments that were confusing. Some I assumed were due to lack of information (not a great choice,) but others I had zero idea. In this case, I didn't even guess that the books had more information that made it understandable.

@willhelmtell4980

4 жыл бұрын

Anonymous Freak While its true that this show can be confusing for people who’ve never read the books or at least played the games, I think that that is exactly the point. The show is targeted towards people who are already familiar with the source material and the hardcore fans in general. It already assumes that you know the world, setting, etc. and just serves as an adaptation of the books (not the games). And yes, for a person who has never had any prior experiences with the Witcher, it must seem pretty confusing, especially with the non-parallel timelines of the episodes, but that is because the show is simply geared for a whole other audience. That doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy it as a newcomer to the story of course, but it’s not surprising that it just throws you in the cold water right off the bat.

@AnonymousFreakYT

4 жыл бұрын

@@willhelmtell4980 Yeah, it took until probably episode 3 or 4 to fully "get" all the timelines.

@karlmarcs31

4 жыл бұрын

When I first saw that scene I thought the mage had played Geralt and then turned the town against Geralt so he couldn't retaliate.

@christopherbaker8595

4 жыл бұрын

Willhelm Tell yeah I have to disagree. Netflix threw a LARGE amount of money at this show. I highly highly doubt Netflix of all companies would make this show on that budget to pander to the smaller audience. Also if that was the case I don’t think they would’ve applied such diversity to the cast. Seems like classic Netflix and why cut out things that the fans already knew about if it’s for us already on the ride. I think that it was written to appeal to many while keeping the fandom in mind to make everyone happy.

@celticbabs3105

4 жыл бұрын

@@karlmarcs31 ummmmm that's exactly what he did. The townspeople had no idea what was going (on in the books or the episode) - all they saw was a witcher brutally kill all those people for no apparent reason. They had no idea Geralt had just saved their lives and because of Stegobor helping to incite them, it was easy for the townsfolk to turn on him. He resorted to that tactic to save his own skin.

Exactly what my gripe with the adaptation is, picked the very two stories/episodes, where I felt the writers totally missed the point. Liked and earned a sub.

@TheCloserLook

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks man, I'm glad you liked it :)

@gerongrahamgg

4 жыл бұрын

Me too

Watching this I kept thinking of the Red Wedding from Game of Thrones. In both the show and the books they make a big deal out of guest right *ahead of time* and make sure the audience knows what it is (to summarise, it's the holy of holies in Westeros when you are a guest in someone's house you are under their protection. The idea that a host would do harm to a guest, or a guest to a host, is unthinkable) and that adds to the shock when the betrayal comes. While simultaneously fill in a plot hole; why would Robb Stark agree to attend a feast at the home of someone who might have a grudge? He expected guest right. If the massacre happened and THEN they explained guest right, it would completely ruin everything because not only are we confused watching the Red Wedding, but we're being given vital context while emotionally reeling. I think Netflix wanted Witcher to be their GoT, but they Netflixed it up.

The problem is the writer trying to "correct" the written information. She's said as much and was challenged into stating she wouldn't do this. It's a bit unfortunate.

What an excellent breakdown of what went awry in the adaptation. I'm personally very aggrieved that they cut the important parts of the Sword of Destiny short story, namely Geralt and Ciri bonding before the war

@erockthehorse

4 жыл бұрын

And you know the dislikes are from idiots who didn't watch the video

@Malavidea

4 жыл бұрын

I believe it won't go a season and book, So I believe we will have these time jumps during the second season too. Also if you check the budget they did a really good job and the story structure is exactly like the collection of the short stories and the last episode is a really good conclusion.

@vuductien1195

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah, the forest part between Geralt and Ciri is the time that bonds them together, not just 1 single word of destiny like in the show.

@ThaYoungChad

3 жыл бұрын

@Digonto Zahid you clearly didn't watch the video

Choosing the lesser evil.. somehow that makes me think of elections.

@rubbers3

4 жыл бұрын

The elections are almost always like that. And in pretty much every country.

@alexsm3882

4 жыл бұрын

There is no lesser evil Tessian. Evil is Evil. Lesser, greater, middling… Makes no difference. The degree is arbitrary. The definition's blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another… I’d rather not choose at all.

@rubbers3

4 жыл бұрын

@@alexsm3882 Only Evil and Greater Evil exist and beyond them, in the shadows, lurks True Evil. True Evil, Alex, is something you can barely imagine, even if you believe nothing can still surprise you. And sometimes True Evil seizes you by the throat and demands that you choose between it and another, slightly lesser, Evil.

@rutessian

4 жыл бұрын

@@alexsm3882 Greater evil - a candidate who will destroy a country in 2-5 years, lesser evil - a candidate who will destroy it in more than 10 or not at all.. Would you not prefer the second candidate to get elected?

@alexsm3882

4 жыл бұрын

@@rutessian you missed the point

I'm sorry I think you're going far too easy on this. As a writer myself I saw awful changes, incredibly bad overacting. Terrible casting, and a rushed messy timescale. I think you're being too generous. Henry Caville was the only person I felt tried his heart out to be true to the material and that's hardly difficult with and ten lines per episode.

@nighthowk117

2 жыл бұрын

Well Joey is also doing pretty well but it actually turns out him and Henry were the only two that actually had any idea about the lore the Director im sure didnt touch the books before because she has no fuckng clue wtf shes doing. The show literally suffers from the same problem as GoT in later seasons, it was great until they changed so much they had no idea what to do with it, however unlike witcher they didnt start fucking it up from episode 1

@cloacal_kissing

Жыл бұрын

I agree. I don't see how this show got as much praise as it did. even disregarding all the other issues, it feels incredibly cheap. it feels like a fan made series with a bigger budget and none of the passion for the source material.