About three weeks after its release, we can now safely say that The Witcher: Blood Origin was not generally well-received by fans. The prequel to Netflix’s The Witcher premiered on Christmas, and it got a lot of views at first — even climbing to the top of the streamer’s charts in the U.S. However, the social media commentary only seems to have gotten rougher as time has gone on.
The Witcher: Blood Origin is a limited series of just four episodes, telling a brand new original story for the Witcher franchise. It is set about 1,200 years before the events of the main series during the magical cataclysm known as the Conjunction of the Spheres. It dives deep into the series’ lore while also introducing a whole new cast of characters. On paper, this seemed like a great idea, but in execution, many fans aren’t happy with the results. Read on for a look at why, but fair warning: there are spoilers ahead!
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Blood Origin is set about 1,200 years before the events of The Witcher, at a time when elves, dwarves and other magical races still ruled The Continent and humans hadn’t interceded yet. It gives insight into the mysterious, mystical event known as “The Conjunction of the Spheres,” which brought magic into the world and precipitated the creation of the order of Witchers themselves.
Among fans, both hopes and anxieties were high for this production, but the deluge of bad reviews early on is sure to sway some fans against it. The show has a 35 percent positive score on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of this writing. Here’s a look at what fans themselves are saying on social media.
‘Woke’
First off, a small but vocal contingent of viewers complained that the show cast non-white actors and women in some of its lead roles. This kind of complaint can mostly be ignored, but it plagues comment sections and drags the conversation down at every turn.
Profanity
Many viewers also felt that this show took the use of profanity in dialogue too far. Other fantasy shows have found success in making their characters more relatable with some crass phrases slipped in, but for some, this limited series jumped the shark. That opinion may have something to do with the fact that the show was released on Christmas Day, when many were gathered with their families.
Comparisons
Many fans compared Blood Origin to other fantasy shows premiering this year as the genre continues booming. They felt that a pattern of disappointment was starting to emerge.
Wasted Potential
Many long-time fans of the franchise were frustrated by this show because it promised so many interesting additions to the story.
Early Reviews
Some early reviews of the show were extremely negative, and many of the show’s defenders worried that this influenced its wider reception. They hoped that people would watch the show with an open mind.
Cavill
Although Geralt was never meant to appear in Blood Origin, many viewers associated this prequel with Cavill’s departure from the franchise and the series to gauge how things would go without him.
Wide Appeal
Finally, some fans thought that Blood Origin tried too hard to be universally appealing instead of emphasizing what makes the fantasy genre great.
