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Is 'The Witcher' Season 3 A Good Send-Off For Henry Cavill? Here's What The Reviews Say
Some people (myself included) thought the explosion of "Witcher" books, games and spin-offs a few years ago could lead to it being a cultural phenomenon. When Netflix announced it had picked up the rights to adapt it into a TV show, I couldn't help but think this was going to be the streaming service's attempt to make a show bigger than "Game of Thrones."
But ultimately, this was just a fairly popular B-grade fantasy epic that has its fans, but hasn't garnered the attention or critical reception like the video games have.
So when it was announced that Henry Cavill will be stepping down as the protagonist Geralt, and was being replaced with Liam Hemsworth, it was fair to wonder whether this show has any real potential for greatness left in it. The critics have all put out glowing reviews for this latest season, and you can watch the first part of season 3 on Netflix on June 29 and the second part on July 27, 2023.
The premise
Francesca, an elven sorceress, wants Ciri because she believes Ciri is the subject of a prophecy, the person who will save the elves from annihilation. King Vizimir of Redania wants to marry Ciri to secure an alliance with Cintra; she is, after all, technically Princess Cirilla, heir to the Cintrian throne. Emperor Emhyr var Emreis of Nilfgaard (Ciri's father) wants her, too, though his motivations aren't yet apparent. And then there's Rience, the crazed fire-wielding mage whose motives for wanting Ciri are also unclear, though he seems to pose the most immediate danger. It’s not quite a monster of the week, but it's close.
Now we have season 3, which is being split into two volumes and which will mark the end of Cavill's run as Geralt (the show will continue with Liam Hemsworth in the lead role). The first volume doesn't exactly get away from the epic story the show is trying to tell — there are still warring factions and magical forces and questions about the nature of the world itself — but it returns most of the focus where it belongs: on the main cast of Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer. More importantly, the show is fun again, where the big narrative beats don't get in the way of all the blood and jokes.
This is the Henry Cavill show (which sucks because he's leaving!)
This season (given to us in two parts, the second of which will be dropping in July) is famously the last time that Henry Cavill will be appearing in the title role, after parting ways with the show due to supposed "creative differences." This is a shame – Cavill's rigid face and chiselled jawline are perfectly suited to the role of Geralt, and he's made no secret of the fact that this is one of his all-time favorite roles. Not that you'd know it, though. He scowls, grunts and grimaces his way through the season, infusing his Geralt with a sense of grumpiness generally found amongst Yorkshire farmers. Though of course, that's all part of his charm.Really, it falls to Cavill to carry the whole thing, which he does with aplomb. The man utterly sells it: you care about Geralt, and when he is not on screen, the whole thing suffers. This series will be poorer without him.
As far as swan songs go, Season 3 of "The Witcher" is an unexpectedly exceptional one for Cavill's Geralt, as he's allowed to showcase his best fatherly side through a strengthening connection with Ciri as well as his capacity for vanquishing monsters, navigating political intrigue, and even a little romance too. (And he's not a bad dancer, to boot!) While it might be easier to feel sad or dismayed about his departure, this most recent season of the series serves as the pinnacle of his time on the series and as a testament to just how much the titular witcher has grown. It's a shame that Cavill won't be present to see the show through to its conclusion, but given what season 3 of "The Witcher" establishes in terms of mounting conflict, rich character growth and relationships, and phenomenal performances, there's still plenty worth tuning in for into a fourth season and beyond.
Hope you like political backstabbings
This latest season is far and away "The Witcher's" most political outing yet, trading in gnarly monster fights for exposition-heavy negotiations, secretive plotting, and backroom dealing between a wide variety of elves, mages, and human kings, all with their own goals and agendas. (Though it must be said the show's most disgusting monster yet does appear this season.) Betrayals and back-stabbing abound and there are moments where it feels utterly impossible to know who we, as viewers, should trust at any moment. But despite its occasional bursts of action, it's a remarkably slow-moving season, and the connections between its various pieces aren't entirely clear after five episodes. And thanks to an influx of unexpected external factors, it's also difficult to know how to feel about Season 3 as a whole at this point.
Sometimes the political manoeuvrings cause a glut of sequences where characters explain or complain about what just happened without furthering the story, but the ensemble is capable of distracting us with pure fun. The kingdom of Redania is a standout hoot, with the buffoonery of its king, Vizimir (Ed Birch), now offset by his playboy younger brother Radovid (Hugh Skinner), who is not quite the dissolute booby he first appears to be and whose romantic subplot is an unexpected delight. Redania's intelligence operations, meanwhile, are in the hands of Dijkstra (Graham McTavish) and Philippa (Cassie Clare), whose snappy office banter has progressed, rewardingly, into sub-dom kink.
"The Witcher" quickly becomes bogged down in warring kingdoms and a battle that never dares make its way on-screen. The show often struggles under the weight of juggling these plots, with the continual back-and-forth between Geralt's protection of Ciri and the attention given to the world around them gifting the season an uneven shape. Worse still, it calls to mind the first season's needlessly convoluted timeline debacle with how scattered (and scatterbrained) everything feels.
Does this show even have a future?
You have to wonder whether "The Witcher," with its dry stretches of intrigue and other stuffy concerns over the next five steps in its elaborate chess game, will hold onto its appeal once Cavill passes his sword to Liam Hemsworth for Season 4. Maybe more can be done to make Ciri feel like she can command a series instead of her continuing fate as a walking, talking McGuffin — pursued for her Elder Blood powers and her role in the Scoia'tel's prophecy. As a presence in "The Witcher," Allan is clearly Cavill's equal. Whenever Ciri takes agency over her destiny, Allan slays. For the sake of the series' future, can someone please, please, toss a coin to this witcher?
The initial draw of "The Witcher" was Cavill getting to play a character he loved and watching him fight monsters and grunt his way through sticky, magical situations. But as the show evolves into a geopolitical magic thriller, "The Witcher" won't be able to rely on Cavill or cool monster fights much longer. It's a fascinating thing to watch — "The Witcher" show made its name based on Cavill killing monsters, but its underlying source material used those fights as a way to introduce Geralt to readers. And while "The Witcher" novels delighted fans with compelling characters and a great storyline, the show has failed to pivot to match the source material and is quickly running out of time.
TL;DR
Geralt and Ciri's latest outing is a spectacular odyssey of family and destiny set within a world as brimming with history as it is in political schemes.
Season 3 levels up for Henry Cavill's last ride.
"The Witcher" season 3 Volume 1 is a work of excellent dark-fantasy storytelling; if you have enjoyed your previous journeys with Geralt of Rivia, I cannot fathom a reason why you would not enjoy this one.
The first half of "The Witcher" season 3 has no intention of tying off any of its many plot threads, but it does at least set the stage for a barnstorming finale for Henry Cavill's Geralt of Rivia.
