Here Are All The Ways "The Witcher" Season 2 Was Better Than Season 1

For one: no time jumps!

While Season 1 of The Witcher was entertaining for a myriad of reasons, it also had its shortcomings.

Netflix / Via media.giphy.com

Even die-hard fans had their gripes about one of Netflix's most successful shows of all time.

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Mainly: the nonlinear plot structure was confusing, the character-building needed work, and the dialogue could be... Well, it could've been better.

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Fortunately, it appears The Witcher's creators took many of the fans' complaints to heart and used the criticism to improve upon Season 2.

Netflix / Via media.giphy.com

Here are all the ways that Season 2 of The Witcher was better than Season 1:

Warning, 🚨SPOILERS🚨 ahead!!!

1. No time jumps!

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Shall I repeat? No time jumps! For the casual viewer, the first season of The Witcher was incredibly hard to follow because of the nonlinear storyline that jumped around without specifying what time period it was. This time, the characters are in the here and now, and the plot only moves forward. Thank god.

2. Less "Monster of the Week."

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In Season 1, it seemed like Geralt battled a different creature every episode, none of which really had anything to do with the bigger story. The episodic nature had viewers drawing comparisons to '90s fantasy series like Xena and Hercules.

3. Side characters were developed further.

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In Season 1, characters like Fringilla, Cahir, and Filavandrel were side characters who were pretty one-dimensional. In Season 2, they had backstories and more depth.

4. Ciri and Geralt actually had scenes together.

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While we knew that Ciri and Geralt were destined to end up in one another's lives in Season 1, it wasn't until Season 2 that they even shared significant screentime. 

5. Ciri has more agency.

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In Season 2, Ciri is no longer a scared, confused little girl who's on the run. Instead, she's a powerful apprentice and Witcher-in-training who is upfront about what she wants and doesn't want.

6. Geralt actually speaks instead of grunts.

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Apparently, Henry Cavill explicitly asked the writers to give him more lines this season. Don't worry, he still grunts, though. A lot.

7. Triss takes a front seat.

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Triss was mostly a background player in Season 1 but she gets a lot more screentime in Season 2. 

8. We get to meet Geralt’s “family.”

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More Witchers? Yes, please! In Season 2, The Witcher takes us to Kaer Morhen, the place where Witchers are trained and where Geralt grew up. We even get to meet some of his friends, who are like brothers to him. 

9. Confusing plotlines from Season 1 are explained.

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Ciri being a child of prophecy? Elf discrimination? The motivations behind Nilfgaard's brutality? Some of these confusing Season 1 plot points were finally expanded upon in Season 2.

10. Bigger budget.

Ian Failes / befores & afters @ianfailes

Making Nivellen in s2 of ‘The Witcher’ - Kristofer Hivju played the creature in practical make-up effects, and digital VFX from @ILMVFX took it further. Watch the new video at #beforesandafters https://t.co/ml8QsjgDx8

10:51 PM - 30 Dec 2021

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While the special effects of Season 1 were actually some of its high points, Season 2 took the bar and raised it. I couldn't stop staring at the CGI character of Nivellen (played by Game of Thrones' Kristofer Hivju) in awe. They truly outdid themselves this time around.

11. The characters' looks are being updated.

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There was quite the outcry when certain characters' distinguishing features from the books and games (i.e., Triss's red hair) were ignored in Season 1. This time around, the characters look much more like the source material describes them. So yes, Triss was a redhead this time around.

12. The Wild Hunt was introduced!

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In the finale of Season 2, Ciri, Geralt, and Yennefer come face-to-face with the dreaded Wild Hunt while they're in another dimension. The Wild Hunt play a large, antagonistic role in both the books and the games, so getting a peek at their terrifying presence was a promise of more conflict to come!

13. Sigismund Dijkstra was introduced!

Netflix / Via netflix.com

Sigismund Dijkstra is an important player in the books and games, and is somewhat of a fan favorite. He is a master spy who sometimes works with Geralt and sometimes works against him. His inclusion in the series means that there are probably more courtly intrigue plots to come. Which I'm all for!

14. They gave an introductory explanation of the Conjunction of Spheres.

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In the Witcherverse, the Conjunction of Spheres was an event that took place thousands of years ago in which different dimensions collided, trapping monsters, humans, elves, dwarves, and the like together on the Continent. The second season shows us that Ciri is powerful enough in her own right to portal people to other spheres (like the sphere with the Wild Hunt) by using her abilities to manipulate monoliths.

15. Season 2 finally revealed who the emperor of Nilfgaard is.

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Spoiler alert! It's Ciri's dad (aka Porcupine Head, aka Duny, aka the White Flame)! After two full seasons of mystery surrounding the Nilfgaardian emperor Emhyr var Emreis, the final episode reveals that he is the big bad behind all of the wars and chaos! It makes a little sense, after all. While we see the moments right before Ciri's parents die, we never actually see them die onscreen. 

Did you enjoy The Witcher Season 2 more than Season 1? How so? Let me know in the comments section below!