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Of monsters and magic: “The Witcher” goes into season two
“The Witcher” with Cirilla (Freya Allan, left) and Geralt (Henry Cavill) goes into the second round. Photo: JAY MAIDMENT / Netflix / dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
TV stations and streaming services have been desperately looking for the next mega-success à la Game of Thrones for years. Netflix has made a hit with “The Witcher”. Now season two starts with high expectations.
After around two years, the wait for fans of the Polish-American fantasy series “The Witcher” is over. The second season will be available on Netflix from Friday (December 17). According to the streaming provider, the first season is still one of its biggest hits.
The focus of the series is on three characters: the eponymous witcher Geralt (Henry Cavill), endowed with supernatural abilities and powers through a mutation brought about since childhood, the young princess Cirilla (Freya Allan), on the run from her homeland and even with mysterious ones Magic blessed, and the sorceress Yennefer (Anya Chalotra). At the end of season one, Geralt and Cirilla, bound by fate, finally meet.
Brought together by fate
After season one with three different timelines was a bit confusing at times, the three main characters are now closer to each other. “This series is about a family. Not one that is connected by blood, but that was brought together by fate and ultimately by your decision for it, ”said series creator Lauren Schmidt Hissrich of the dpa. All three come together, that is what they want to fulfill in the second season. “But it won’t be as simple and perfect as you imagine it would be,” she suggests.
Geralt and Cirilla have to build trust in each other, he has to grow from a lonely warrior to a father figure in season two, says Schmidt Hissrich. She is particularly looking forward to showing fans the Witcher’s Fortress, Kaer Morhen, in season two, which Geralt brings Cirilla to.
Even if the second season two is a little darker and more introspective, “The Witcher” continues to rely on its formula for success: In the search for the next “Game of Thrones”, many viewers found what they were looking for in the series, who were based on the stories of the based on Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski.
A fantasy world full of conflict
The superficial parallels are clear: Both stories take place in a large, conflict-ridden fantasy world that resembles our Middle Ages. But in “The Witcher” the fantasy and horror aspects, such as monsters and sorcery, play a much larger role. Plus, the series doesn’t always take itself as seriously as the HBO hit. There are giddy and deliberately exaggerated moments, but they work very well in the context of the series.
Last but not least, the already known popularity of the numerous books and computer games on the “Witcher” should have favored the success of the series. In doing so, she may avoid a problem with the late “Game of Thrones” seasons: the source material will not run out anytime soon.