The Witcher (TV Series) The Art of the Illusion (2023) User Reviews

Worst season so far

[Izzy129 · 5/10 · 1 July 2023]

I'm a huge fan of this series. I haven't read the books or played the games, but I loved season 1 and 2 despite its flaws. This season is the worst so far, it's pretty embarrassing how bad it is and how much the quality declined from season 1 and 2.

The writing is pretty bad, the cgi is so bad it looks ridiculous at times like when Ciri was riding a horse. A lot of the scenes are so badly written. All the actors and actresses are amazing, but even they couldn't save these scenes.

The makeup and costumes are embarrassing. Everything Yennefer wears looks like it came straight from H&M, especially that purple top and clown pants which her character would never wear. Yennefers wig looks fake and is way too thick/heavy for her. I don't understand why they couldn't just use her natural hair like they did in the first 2 seasons, they could have just given her extensions instead if they wanted it longer. She looks so "off" because of this wig, and Anya Chalotra is one of the most beautiful women I've seen. Ciris makeup base is way too much, it's just caked on and that bronzer is too dark in her.

I love looking at the costumes and makeup in shows like this, so this probably upsets me more than the average viewer, nonetheless it is very annoying to watch.

This show had so much potential to be amazing but the writers ruined it, I understand why Henry left now.

I will probably watch the next season and drop the show if it doesn't get better. I will be watching for Yennefer and Ciri after Henry leaves. Henry cavill is Geralt and I can't imagine anyone else playing him.

Average, with some horrific and good parts

[Dannyboi94 · 6/10 · 2 July 2023]

Season 3 so far has been....fine. Not great, but not bad either. The production is amazing - with the sets, location and visuals being almost flawless. You can tell they filmed on location, as some of those landscape shots were glorious. However, it doesn't get any better than that. Aside from Geralt, Yen and Ciri, all the other characters are just, meh. Henry as Geralt as we all know, is just brilliant and the series doesn't deserve him, but he does give his all in this last season. Anya as Yen is also really good. I wasn't sold on her in season 1, but in this third season she has improved greatly. The story of season 3 is all over the place. We follow our trio as they try to keep Ciri safe, but the season never really does anything with it. There never feels like any real threat. Then there is the stuff with Jaskier. Jesus. Jaskier was a good character in the first 2 season, but here, he is irritating. The rumours were correct - they have made him Bi. For those who know the books, or the games, you know that he is not interesting in men at all. He is very flamboyant, and that doesn't mean he needs to like men. They clearly have no respect for the characters and world they are trying to replicate. Season 3 also suffers from dreadful editing. Now I don't know if Netflix just had a problem when I was streaming, but there were several scenes with dialogue and you would be in full site of the actor delivering said dialogue, but their mouth wouldn't move. It was distracting. And it wasn't one or two scenes, it was several.

Overall the first half of season 3 has been average.

Season 3, Part 1 - Brought down by horrendous storytelling

[amir_hmz · 30 June 2023]

The acting is (mostly) well done, Cavill while not the greatest actor out there, is showcasing a true-to-character and amazing Geralt and well worthy of being the lead.

The production and set design is amazing. You can tell the aesthetics are one of the best on tv and so on point, yet the story is terrible, no stakes, just too many secondary characters with motives I don't care about moving from one location to the next advancing a story that I couldn't care less about.

And really, giving us this much filler with cool short scenes of Geralt fighting a monster in between won't work in the long term, just leads to bad editing.

And I am sorry but the chemistry between Geralt and Yen is just non-existent, I still can't imagine them as a couple in a million years and every scene with their romance or even 'letters' totally takes me out of the show.

The potential is right there. Please get people who know how to use it Netflix.

Interesting storytelling. Refreshing episode

[nexonwaalwijk · 7/10 · 5 July 2023]

I'm not going to use this episode as a judgement for the first part of the season. In general this season has got me a bit bored, but this episode was refreshing.

For the whole season the writing has been below par. Bland conversations and very mediocre editing makes it that this season doesn't feel like it's heading towards something very exciting. You haven't been pulled into the story itself in the first part of this season. This episode, however, is one of the better ones of the first half, even though it's a very un-Witchery one.

First of all, there's no monster and no Ciri, unlike in the previous episodes. Instead this episode is being used to accelerate the plot and launch the story into the second part of the season. Instead of with a very linear storytelling, the way the story is being told most of the tension of the conclave's party is being denied because you know Geralt and Yennefer are going to be calm and satisfied in their room in the end. To make up for the loss of tension they throw a lot of plottwists into the blender and it kind of pays off. You feel hooked to the conversations and the powerplay of all the different mages feels a bit more satisfying than before.

The plottwists at the end of the episode are predictable, but still decent.

There is now a decent basis for the second part of the season to be exciting and fun. However, I'm afraid that the quality of the dialogue and editing won't be magically (ha) increased, so we'll have to wait and see if the plot is going to make up for it.

This episode is refreshing compared to the other ones this season, but it's still not extremely good.

I Really Tried

[ayonijaprithuvainya · 8/10 · 2 July 2023]

This review is for the season 3 vol 1 as a whole.

I really tried with this one. Really tried to agree with the internet. From IGN to the certain bearded youtubers, everyone on the internet seemingly wants us to hate this show.

Unfortunately, despite my earnest effort to summon hate, I am just enjoying it too much. The story is intriguing that has kept me hooked, characters are complex, the dialogue is very genre appropriate, the monsters are gruesome, the combat is stunning, and the cast and acting which has improved every season.

It is not without actual problems (as opposed to made-up ones). The writing throws too many characters, terms, locations at you which can be confusing even to people who are familiar with the universe. Some of the scenes are rather silly, some subplots superfluous, some narrative tricks (such as the one in this episode) completely unnecessary. And some new characters are once again cast with actors that look very different from how they are described in the original or portrayed popularly in earlier adaptations, as was in previous seasons.

Regardless, I have enjoyed it enough to eagerly look forward to volume 2, and season 4 after that even without Mr. Cavill. My sincere apologies to you, internet. I will try to do better next time. Please be gentle when using the thumb-down button.

the good, the bad and the ugly

[Rajit_thebingewatcher · 7/10 · 9 July 2023]

3rd season vol 1 is over.

The good: Henry Cavil is still here unlike the rumors and the impersonation of Siri by another girl came as a shock element , the only place where the viewer might be surprised The bad : few of the sequences do feel repititive ,specially the action scenes and the travels where yeneffer and siri. It feels like "wait a minute I have seen this already!" The ugly: The art of illusion has not worked ,from a mile away you know the person they are aiming is actually not the one who they should aim for. Specially because at the end of the season 2 it has been made clear .

Finally eagerly waiting for the volume 2, hoping it will be better than average.

Just annoying

[1nH3ll · 3/10 · 1 July 2023]

Whoever came up the the concept and filmed it failed hard.

Not was it in the beginning confusing -- and not the good confusing kind. The filming was just irritating. It felt so unnecessary to go through the same scene 5 times and adding just a little bit of dialogue to it.

There are many other series, movies and scenes where one feels intrigued by showing a different perspective to a) understand and get the big picture of what happened or b) to see and feel how the scene unfolded from an other perspective which adds a lot to the meaning or how the scene could be interpreted.

Here it done nothing, just repeating so much dialogue and just adding little bits which were not really that important to understand what was happening. It was very obvious on what is happening without it.

It honestly felt like a indie production who came up the idea and messed it up very hard but thought they crushed it. If it would be a Youtube Video I would think that they did it to increase the length of the video in order to put more adds in. It's embarrassing.

They clearly wanted to create a good episode for the end of part 1 but just failed.

Excellent episode, ignore the book maniacs

[SallyWilliams · 9/10 · 6 July 2023]

It's getting so annoying to see all those book maniacs, who think everything has to be exactly like written. TV is a very different medium, and needs different storytelling. The so called "fans" these days are trying to destroy everything, from GOT & LOTR to Marvel & Witcher. Just put your noses in your books and stop whining. Each & everyone feels like he is the main critic, storyteller, director & specialist. This was an excellent tv episode, very different from the others, had me hooked from the start. Unravelling a lot that was hidden at first. The actors were great and the director did a good job. For me this season so far, was a big improvement from the weaker 2nd season. As some other reviewers wrote, I'm also looking forward to the remaining episodes and the next season with Hemsworth. Cavill is good, but for me not irreplaceable. The series is definitely good fantasy entertainment.

"Don't forget you're talking to a commoner."

[LegendaryFang56 · 7/10 · 15 July 2023]

(613-word review) Since I already knew about you-know-what at the end, which, despite my prior knowledge, was impactful, giving the semblance of actual worthiness to be, albeit not 100%, engaged in what's happening (while perhaps being one of the most competently and well-done examples in this entire show at anything of such, and there's likely only a few examples overall) my biggest takeaway was the creativity and unconventional nature, directing and writing-wise.

To me, it seemed to be for adding some extra "this is the Volume 1 finale" seasoning to it, on top of stretching this episode's events out to full length - and maybe even some inspiration was taken from the first season's controversial and divisive 'different timelines' storytelling, which was treated too harshly and is one of a few things that continue to shine more positively, including in the sense of being, in a wishful manner, preferable to what we're getting now (there hasn't been much apparent distinction with the direction and writing in the show after that: it's all been generically routine) - as this would've been more unfitting as a finale without those elements.

That final scene was already abrupt (potentially because this season may not have been written with Netflix's occasional Volume 1 & 2-of-a-season model in mind), so thankfully, Loni Peristere (the director: directed seven episodes of Banshee, nine episodes of American Horror Story, one episode of Queen of the South, six episodes of (HBO) Max's Warrior, plus the last two episodes of the currently airing third season - and he's the upcoming executive producer of House of the Dragon's second season, AND he's the director for the next episode/the "premiere" of Volume 2!) and Clare Higgins (the writer) brought some homemade flavors to the cookout for enhancement.

However, I have one criticism: replaying some of the dialogue/scene sections that already happened "for the sake of" leading up to the new portions, instead of using some visual storytelling to create that connection element, dragged down the execution of an otherwise commendable choice. But the possible reason was to avoid repeating the whole disorder about the different timelines in the first season.

My conspiracy theory? The more accurate reason was to keep replaying, 'All is not...As it seems.' Once was never enough. "They" want you to be haunted by it - molded by it. Mr. "All is not...As it seems," you're not Mr. "Toss a Coin to Your Witcher." Stop it; get some help.

Regarding more general criticisms, and I've mentioned this before, but it was at its worst this time, so here I go again: the hair and costumes for Yennefer are usually dreadful. Did Anya Chalotra get under someone's skin in that department of production? Her hair styling in this episode was the worst it's been, along with whatever, makeup-wise, made her look orange; while her outfit wasn't as much so, it came across as having been picked immediately without any consideration and effort - in a negative way if it wasn't obvious. More borderline palpable thought and care went into Cassie Clare's appearance, which is still appreciated, but come on. Be consistent. What a tragedy.

And to a lesser extent of criticisms: more of that sublime modern language usage - with Sabrina saying the three-letter "S" word to Yennefer, and then, later on, saying, "Artaud's wasted again." Both terms, 'wasted' and the 'three-letter word,' seem too modern. But I'm no etymologist, so perhaps I'm off on that.

This was the best episode of Vol. 1, which isn't that significant of a compliment, as achieving that amid mediocrity is easy - but it was surprisingly decently crafted. Hopefully, Vol 2. (the last three of the season) surpasses it, or at least an episode.

They quite obviously don't care it sucks

[kariverson · 3/10 · 4 July 2023]

This is some points for the whole season. Dialogue was meh, but man was editing bad.

On one episode we had the fight between Yen and Ciri, it cuts there, we get a couple of other scenes with other characters and the next time we see Ciri she's randomly running from the Wild Hunt. What? Then out of nowhere Gerald comes and saves her. I was convinced it was a dream sequence, it wouldn't make any sense otherwise, yet to my surprise it wasn't. Wow.

Speaking of Ciri, what in the blue hell is going on with her make up and pretty much all make up in the series. Her face has more paint than all the sets of the series combined. She's young and this is Beverly hills, they were living out in the wild... Jaskier had so much makeup too. He looked ridiculous.

Which brings me to looking ridiculous, why did Sabrina look like she just came out her Hollywood residence? Complete with puffy lips, heavy makeup and fake breasts. I'm surprised she wasn't carrying a little Chihuahua in a Louis Vuitton bag... Is this mediaval fantasy oor what??

They don't care and we know it. If they cared a lot of things would be different. Such a shame.

The TV version of an idea based on SF conventions

[GwydionMW · 8/10 · 2 July 2023]

From the book version, I noticed that a lot of it was a transposed SF convention. Fair enough.

Told differently, with everything centering on a social gathering, whereas the book had it as several separate conversations. I'd say that was intelligent, but it clearly offends some people who treat the books like Holy Writ.

I'm looking forward to the remaining three episodes - likely to be much more like the book. I won't say more, naturally.

The whole series seems OK to me. Some very good special effects. Too many characters for my liking, but that is how the story was told. It also goes for good television - being too literal would not suit anyone except those who see it as Holy Writ.

The Witcher meets Bridgerton

[aleiss-64244 · 7/10 · 1 July 2023]

Sad as it is this is the best episode so far .(S3) At least it is tricky and entertaining but overall far to much style over substance.

The hole plot I mean the story telling is like watching the entire story on fast forward.

To many times I found me lost in confusion and asked me what the hell is going on .

I got a feeling when Cahil finally leave that's it and the rest is a soap without salt and pepper The cliffhanger feels stupid and pointless just like a cut in the middle where things start to get interesting.

I hope the finale 3 episode are at least at this quality and don't bore me to death with senseless jumps and nonsense.

I rate this one 7/10.

The Destruction of a Franchise

[alinho-27067 · 3/10 · 2 July 2023]

Having enjoyed the first two seasons, I'm really disappointed with this season has and this episode is the exactly what is wrong with this new direction that the Witcher is taking. For one the original vision of Andrezj Sapkowski has been completely replaced by this watered down, and frankly inferior replica of the author's work. After hearing the reasons of Henry Cavill's departure I decided to read the books to see what the big issue was and now it all makes sense.

For starters the show's dialogue is abysmal and keeps on getting worse by the episode. The use of dialogue is used for all the exposition of the plot and then we simply to move on to the next scene without anymore detail or context which would be important. It feels lazy and rushed. I'm not expecting GoT levels of dialogue, but I do expect there to be more to these conversations rather than this shallow version which we see in the show.

The characters don't act the way that they do in the previous season, let alone the books, and there is zero build up to their actions and zero intrigue. Many of the "big revelations" such as Emyr being Ciri's father and the work which Vilgofortz was doing was revealed later on in the book and kept the readers on their toes, but here it is just being used for shock factor and to try to keep the viewer entertained by having these big revelations with no build up whatsoever to make the pay off worth it.

Aside from all the modern issues with entertainment today, such as them forcing diversity for their quotas, and changing characters to fit the "modern audience" this show provides no context for place so that the audience can associate with who's on what side. Usually we can associate a people by their accents, clothing, how they look. We associate a location by its architecture, people, environment and culture. In this series everything and everyone looks the same. Even the elves look similar to humans and have been watered down to being distinguishable only having pointed ears and not by how look or act which was very prevalent in the books.

The beauty of the Witcher is how it described the complexity of its people and the relationships between the different people and distinct locations which make the Continent. Now even the smallest of villages have more diversity than a modern metropolitan city , where we can't tell where we are by looking at the people and place.

Overall I think that this season has been a disappointment and has skimmed through a lot of important storylines and pieces of information which Sapkowski had written about and which what made his work the masterpiece that it was and still is today.

Forced story without proper development

[shawnyu64 · 9 July 2023]

Ah, Thanedd ball and coup. That's what part 1 of season 3 was building towards and apparently, it had to happen because everything is mashed together to make it happen. Yen's betrayal that happened in season 2 no longer matters, both Geralt and Ciri forgot about it now. And so do Vizimir, mages, etc. In fact, nothing matters as long as it's convenient to make things happen. Story development is forced together in a cringeworthy manner and some characters are outright forgotten (Francesca, hello?) because writer doesn't know what to do with them after they deviated from book. At the end, for most unbelievable reason, everyone needed to be Thanedd is at Thanedd... because that's what needed to happen.

Maybe there could've been more build up if they didn't spend time rewriting Radovid who was 12 years old at this time in the book, removing all his characters traits (paranoia and madness) just for it to have gay romance with Dandelion (neither homosexual nor bi in the book) without any other story purpose (yes, not even building toward Thanedd) but alas, priorities.

They say season 3 is true to the source material...correct, they stayed true to fast travel from game. Most characters moves half continent in one scene like space and time no longer matters. At some point I was wondering if there was supposed to be like 1-2 episodes in between scenes... yes, that level of discontinuity.

The only saving grace is that major actors are very good at what they do. Aside from a few awkward interactions because lines are just unworkable, chemistry among Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri is great. Chemistry between Dijkstra and Philippa is even better. Actors are the only reason season 3 part 1 is a 3/10, not 1/10.

So far, so okay

[jeremiahlhorton · 7/10 · 3 July 2023]

Season 3 starts off somewhat strong, but slowly drags as it's tying and fleshing out way too many characters with side stories that aren't interesting nor engaging. The biggest pros have to be that Ciri has definitely evolved and her development is strong. Yen and Geralt have great chemistry on screen and the two have still proven to be a delight throughout this season. The quality and locations are gorgeous and almost flawless in delivery. The action is also there and a great time. Jaskier is cute, but his character is just kind of there. All the other characters are just there and serve no real purpose at times. A lot of the story so far seems filler and doesn't really raise the stakes very high as previous seasons nor does it set a higher bar. I think they're trying to cram as much as they can and make up some of the script as they to keep both fans and newcomers to the show. However, it is VERY slow. It is almost too slow to keep viewers interested. All I can say is that Netflix is following this weird pattern in releasing only few episodes first hand then the rest later. It may have worked for Stranger things, but not this. For the sake of this show alone, this does not bode well when not much has happened quite yet. The ending of episode 5 almost seemed random to keep audiences engaged and await the second half. My only concern is if the second half is even worth the wait with the first half being the weaker portion compared to previous seasons. With that being said, I am concerned if the writers are giving Henry as Geralt "the proper sendoff" before passing the baton to poor Liam like they promised or just another kick to the face just to finish the job and never having to look back again. Either or, I'll still watch. I guess maybe time will tell. All in all, this is the weaker season. Hopefully the second half can change my mind.

What a difference a director makes.

[W011y4m5 · 8/10 · 3 July 2023]

Loni Peristere just walked right in & stole the entire goddamn show with this episode, as if it were an effortless endeavour, of no real consequence.

"The Witcher" S3 has been sorely lacking any sense of coherent direction & then his filmmaking is suddenly introduced & the series feels like it's following a completely different narrative, solely due to the inexplicable increase in quality which is staggering to witness on screen. Honestly, no wonder HBO has stolen him in order to helm their competing fantasy series, "House of The Dragon" S2; "The Art of Illusion" is a masterfully crafted, thoroughly engaging puzzle box, delighting in withholding information until the very last moment (as each moment unfolds), delivering delicious twists & turns with wonderful skill & precision - whilst capturing the subtle nuances of veiled interactions carefully, in a manner rarely shown so carefully.

Fair and balanced here

[richardrc-18596 · 7/10 · 24 July 2023]

I've read some reviews to see what others are thinking and now it's time for some non-biased feedback. Yes the episode is boring. This is similar to a soap opera drama (someone said Bridgerton?) trash episode. No hunts or contracts. Nothing like the games.

BUT, there is a ball mission in the wild hunt where geralt and yennefer attend together. And this is very similar to it. Also, geralt and yenn(I think) attend a wedding and a party together. Similar too. So, yes, there are these parties that take place in the game and yes they don't end in geralt killing a monster. And I feel like the pet reference of geralt was also said in the game too. Also, the ball scene in the game and geralt being a detective, all happened. So the writers aren't completely disregarding the source material.

But this doesn't cancel out the show not focusing on the witcher and his adventures. And the impending wild hunt.

Are you sure about this?

[Kol88 · 1/10 · 2 July 2023]

This will be a review off all 5 episodes that are out, watching this will make have the same face Henry have in all episodes this season, this was something it's hard to describe this no cohesiveness, this complete lack of anything fun or interesting to watch honestly it's bad just bad, even Henry looks bored and unenthusiastic as me on Monday morning, if for nothing else at least we are closer to the end, sad end but at least the end. I think even if you are die hard fan of the Witcher games and books, it's just painful to watch this. The writers of this show are awful not as bad as those that wrote Rings of power but they are close to that monstrosity. What is really unbelievable is that they had books, they had games and they had a lead actor that understood the source material and that wanted to do this series in a right way, so no need to invent anything just make a transition into TV format but NO that's not enough for these writers they have to make it their own, unbelievable honestly. If I had any say every writer that worked on this shouldn't be allowed to write a postcard in their life anymore. But if you want to have at least some fun, drink anytime that someone says - are you sure about this - and I guarantee the show will be bearable if nothing else. Sad way to end something that had so much potential.

Not sure what the hate campaign is about

[baca84 · 9/10 · 7 July 2023]

I found season 1 great. Season 2 was weaker but still very good. Season 3 so far is about the same as season 2. The production is excellent. Acting is excellent from pretty much the whole cast. I'm not sure what one could ask more from a tv show. The story itself is confusing at times, but I'm guessing that it'll make sense in time. I tried reading the books few years ago and I found them quite bad so I'm not disturbed by the fact that the writers are taking creative freedom, on the contrary.

There's an obvious hate campaign going on, I'm not sure why. But the low ratings given by many people clearly isn't what the show deserves.

Don't you do it...they did it...gay

[rich-12169 · 6/10 · 6 July 2023]

Ok. This is a mid season review. 5 episodes.. 1 review. I thought Henry Cavil was done with the witcher. Glad to see he is still on board. So after watching the recap i remembered how boring the last season was and how pointless it all was.

This season is actually not bad. Not great but not bad. It feels a little bit more like the witcher. Except for the Bard. WTF. Why does he look like that, why is he wearing female goth makeup...you dont think...oh good he is sleeping with a woman, thank god.... But then later...Dont you do it. Dont you dare do it. I mean just because there is a gay character interested in him does not mean he is going to be gay right? Oh good he is still interested in woman can i stop worrying now

Then they went and did it. You..mother...duckers....you putrid vile. AAHAHAHAHAHHAH..

Moving on..actually no. That movie about the bard learning the witchers past...that was so awesome. Then we get this..

Ok moving on for real. /// They open the episode saying what a perfect night. Jeez..i wonder whats going to happen. They say perfect night perfect night what a perfect night. And then show the same events over and over and over again. Lame..

So its better than last season..a lot better..but they made bard gay and drag out that 5th episode into an hour when we got the who gist of it in 5 minutes.

Fire the writers, beg and plead for Cavill to come back and start the entire show over

[vilgotsund · 3/10 · 2 July 2023]

During the first season the complaints were mainly about Geralt having the intellect of a marvel hero and the conversational skills of a barking dog. Now the main problem is the writers' mistakenly thinking they're being smart. Everything to do with production and acting was great, the writing is obviously the problem and I think everyone will have incredible respect for Henry Cavill now that we see how right he was and I am relieved he will not be in the next season. Netflix doesn't deserve him.

The way they chose to go with the unfolding of events in a non-chronological order is just a mess. It only works if there's a logic behind it. I've actually never seen it executed this poorly. Guy Ritchie always does it very well for reference. In King Arthur the context is the main character being interrogated. This episode lacks proper context for which conversations are recalled. It's just Geralt and Yen having another incredibly dull and unintelligent conversation nothing like what could have been, had they stayed true to the characters that is. They do give some context for recalling certain conversations but then that flashback continues into other the next scene without the context of the conversation. It doesn't fit, the feeling is that the writers thought it would be cool. It's not nearly good enough to justify the layout of the episode and the tedious repetition of cheap dialogue.

We already know Vilgefortz is the bad guy. The bracelet was too obviously presented, several times over, and without any subtlety. They drew all of the viewers attention to the bracelet, it felt like there was more conversation about the bracelet than Stregobor. Then finally they revealed Vilgefortz was the villain. And I get that it's Geralt and Yen, not us, who were supposed to be shocked. But it takes the excitement out of the entire episode, and since we already knew they didn't need to push so hard on the hints throughout the episode.

They need to promptly explain why Rience and Stregobor were using the same castle. That part seems brushed over and it is that careless type of writing that I've come to expect from this show. It's disrespectful towards the viewer. It's like the last season of game of thrones and I don't use that insult lightly. It was to be expected that Netflix would butcher it. But I just thought they would stupidly and unnecessarily make characters LGBTQ or change their race, which by the way doesn't help the story and is another detrimental element which makes the viewer detached from the Witcher's diegesis which was so alluring in the games.

This is now just another garbage Netflix show, I will not watch next season and I hope no one else does either.

Intrigue and Creativity

[lukschrijvers · 9/10 · 9 July 2023]

Superb episode! All these storylines coming together, all the intrigue... I loved it.

Cant wait for the rest of the season to continue.

Kudos to the writers for being original with the source material.

Even a huge Witcher fan, who read all the books and played all the computer games, can still be sucked in by the creative writing and excellent performances of all the actors.

The song was well written too, with events to come, intertwined in (some of ) the lyrics.

I dont understand why so many people are giving it a negative review, even going so far as rating it 1/10.

1/10 for me is, " I will not watch a minute more of this show/film" and yet they come back each episode with the same gripe. It is a mystery to me!

"On warts" to the next episode then :-)

Wow the reviews are all over the board.

[lornaziegler · 7/10 · 30 November 2023]

I LOVED the way The Art of Illusion was directed and filmed. I enjoyed the missing pieces filled in each time they go back through the scenes. Very clever and well done. The song included throughout it as well. All is not as it seems was obviously perfectly tied to the party. Not all was as it seemed each time we saw parts of a conversation. But I am a bit lost as far as lore this season, and it isn't as good as the first and second. Tissenia "having the book for safe keeping" seemed a bit obvious? Not sure what will happen there but it was overly suspicious. Anyway I still really love the characters. The monsters are terrifying as well.

When ego destroys creativity

[DianaFiD · 4/10 · 13 July 2023]

I 100% agree with what another person wrote about writers wanting to make the series their own thing. I've never read the books (so don't "accuse" me for wanting the series to stay true, because I simply have no clue what the books say), but I do know a good story when I see it (because it's part of my job in real life!).

And this story is NOT good. The only reason I find for the production to create such an absurdity with no pace, character development or cohesive storytelling despite having in their hands an already well-loved source material, is when they believe they can be better.

Guess what. Time and again, this is a recipe for failure. When there is no respect for the source material you end up creating this monstrosity. Maybe the greatest monster Geralt had to fight was the production's ego. Glad he walked away.

Boring politics and a predictable no-twist

[ThatDoesntMatter · 23 July 2023]

Remember when the White Wolf was hired to kill beasts and it was fun to watch?

Remember when there was life in the writing?

Well now we have a boring ball with boring politics, boring 'reveal' repeats, predictable twists -

Oh, Geralt is not really jealous? Shock! Not.

Oh, it"s not Stregebor but Vilgefortz? Shock! Not.

Etc.

Ciri's probably been snatched by Vilgefortz already. I wish. That would at least be mildly interesting.

Tisseia is hopefully a villain.

I will watch the last three episodes, just to finish.

I knew something was very wrong when a teenage princess held a speech about bringing peace (yawn, I hear ya, Khaleesi...) and then slaughtering her kind 1 minute later.

And suddenly we have love again between Geralt and Yennefer, the writers too lazy to show why, instead making it a slapstick scene - not unfunny, but unworthy of the characters and the audience.

Bye bye Netflix come August.