A monster-of-the-week procedural sheds its scaly skin in the season three premiere of Netflix’s epic fantasy series The Witcher. Outstanding design and fantastic performances keep this precious gem of a show living up to the high bar it set for itself in season one.
1. Monsters of the Season
Our intrepid hero Geralt (Henry Cavill) has given up his career of episodic monster hunts, and has taken up the long-term goal of working with Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) to raise Ciri (Freya Allan) to fulfill her destiny and ultimately defeat the apocalyptic Wild Hunt. The full-season-enduring monster promises not to be the Wild Hunt, but the conspiratorial Redanian spies Philippa (Cassie Clare), and Djikstra (Graham McTavish). Their supernatural-yet-down-to-earth amicable-yet-competitive banter begs an encore. The other monster-of-the-season is Francesca, (Mecia Simson). Her moral rigidity is constantly being tested in between uneasy alliances, and her honest nuanced performance makes her an enchantment on screen.
2. The Monster of This Week
All that said, there is in fact a monster-of-this-week, and it is a shaelmaar, something like a giant armadillo wreaking havoc, rolling around a hedge maze. The exciting and refreshingly offbeat monster and set designs necessitate equally exciting and refreshingly offbeat fight choreography. Production designer Andrew Laws, also responsible for the rest of The Witcher series as well as the delicious eye candy that was the 2003 film Down With Love, continues to deliver a singular-looking world that sets The Witcher apart and above of other live action fantasy series.
3. Lucinda Wright Continues to Impress
Costume designer Lucinda Wright, another veteran Witcher artist, and the saving grace of the otherwise lackluster Blood Origin spin-off miniseries, is off to yet another inspiring start in season three. The best example appears at a masquerade garden party; Ciri wears a shining, flowing outfit in the light blue that has become iconic to her character. When she’s standing still, it looks like a dress, but when she’s forced to fight, a jumpsuit is revealed beneath the many sweeping layers, capturing the duality of her life as both a princess and a warrior.
4. The Adorable Family
It’s hard not to smile when Henry Cavill, Anya Chalotra, and Freya Allan share brief moments of domestic bliss in between life-threatening battles. Each actor performs consistently exceptionally, and the chemistry between them is the beating heart of this episode. As the structure of the show changes a lot this season, its spirit stays constant: epic adventure fantasy spectacle meets sweet earnest emotional dramedy.
5. Henry Cavill’s Last Season
Geralt is unique among his cohort of modern epic fantasy heroes, not because he is both heroically tough and profoundly sensitive, but because these traits aren’t a dichotomy within him; they are cause and effect. Geralt’s sensitivity motivates every act of violence, silently visible in Cavill’s face every time. Liam Hemsworth will be replacing him as Geralt next season, yet Cavill shows no signs of senior-itis. He sends off the beginning of his final season with a genuinely special performance.
In a franchise rich in award-winning and culture-defining works of art, The Witcher series holds its own. It continues to capture the universe’s distinct and plucky spirit, with earnestness and polish.
