Netflix Will Make Changes in The Witcher Season 2:
Netflix’s The Witcher is being received extremely well by both fans and critics alike. Netflix has jumped in on the bandwagon and has added more fuel to the fire by announcing that they will be making another season for the show carrying on where the first season left. While the show did get rave reviews, some fans complained about certain elements of the series. Netflix has taken note and the second season, according to Netflix, will have several changes that will set it apart from the first season of the show. And that is where the problem is. While some will be happy with the changes, many will be sad that Season 2 will be unlike Season 1.
One glaring criticism of the first season of The Witcher was that it had a very non-linear plot direction that was somewhat confusing to a whole lot of viewers. It was only after the third or fourth episode that fans started to realize that the various cut scenes might be of two different timelines put together. The transition was smooth but the fans took a long while to understand it and hence they started complaining. The world-building and the contorted storyline were two points to consider, claims Lauren S. Hissrich, one of the showrunners of the series. In an interview, she says and we quote:
“What’s great about season two, I can tell you, is that, in what we’ve written, the story becomes much more focused. There’s a stronger drive in the story, because all of the relationships that we’ve been setting up in season one, actually start to come into fruition in season two.”
The fans might be excited now. The confusing time jumps that gripped most of the early part of the series may not be happening in the second season. Yennefer, Geralt and Ciri will not be moving forward in a rather straight forward storyline. With the amount of source material in her hands, Hissrich claims The Witcher has enough potential to run for more than seven seasons.
And therein lay the catch. Right now, Netflix is most focussed on grabbing new subscriptions. For new subscriptions to happen, Netflix needs to release new Netflix Originals. Making an entirely new series is more beneficial at attracting new customers than making another season of an old series. That much the data analytics-driven Netflix has learned over the past years. So Hissrich’s claims that The Witcher needs at least seven seasons for its arc to come full circle may not be possible for Netflix to sanction. The Witcher might just be wrapped within two or three seasons. This means that The Witcher might just be cursed with a rushed production with the huge storyline being compacted to fit 2 or 3 seasons of the show. The same curse that doomed Game of Thrones might also be leading The Witcher to its doom.
There are exceptions within Netflix to that logic. Stranger Things is one of its flagship series and it has managed to attract new subscriptions for Netflix with each consecutive season. Maybe The Witcher will become a flagship Netflix Original like Stranger Things and not die a quick death like other beloved shows like House of Cards and Game of Thrones. Whether the show dies an early death or is given a new lease of life is something only time can reveal. Until then, we can just enjoy Geralt of Rivia and his many adventures.
Toss a Coin to the Witcher!!!
The Witcher was released on Netflix on the 20th of December this year. The official film synopsis for The Witcher reads:
“Based on the best-selling fantasy series of books, The Witcher is an epic tale of fate and family. Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. But when destiny hurtles him toward a powerful sorceress, and a young princess with a dangerous secret, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent together.”
