Earlier in August, another title from the world of “The Witcher” by Andrzej Sapkowski joined the list of the most anticipating productions on Netflix. Is the animated spin-off called “The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf” worth your time?
The animated film tells the story of events before the well-known story of Geralt of Rivia. The main character here is Vesemir, the teacher of the White Wolf in Kaer Morhen. In addition to current events, we also see flashbacks from Vesemir’s childhood, which are to tell us a bit more about this character.
We learn that he followed a path similar to that of many other boys who were later trained to become witchers. We also get to know this process better, being aware of its high price.
The introduction of Vasemir
Readers of Sapkowski’s books and fans of CD Projekt RED games certainly have a different image of Vesemir in their heads than the one presented in Netflix’s animation. In the “Nightmare of the Wolf”, he is a young man focused on becoming richer and having fun.
People who are used to well-drawn characters in Sapkowski’s prose may expect a bit of disappointment here. Vesemir kills monsters, fights and allows himself to express his feelings for only one moment. This is definitely one of the very few moments with the potential to squeeze a tear or two. Actually – probably the only one in the entire production.
In quite brutally presented combat scenes, we can see how proficient the main character is with the sword and witchery magic. The animations are reminiscent of those from many other Netflix productions. In this respect, do not anticipate anything original but also let’s agree that it still presents good quality.
If you haven’t watched other Witcher-inspired production, you might even enjoy this animation. If you have seen them, though, we doubt you will be charmed. However, you need to pay attention to this film, because in the end this scheme will become ugly and will start to be a burden for Netflix’s animation. Sometimes it is worth doing something bold and new than safely duplicating the same form.
We are not sure how the Polish public, the native one to Sapkowki’s books, will react to this production. Considering there is no mention of Geralt in the film, some might feel slightly discouraged. As vivid fans of the character’s card game and, essentially, online casinos available in Poland, the lack of gambling aspect is a bit surprising.
Not extraordinary. But still decent
“Decent” and “okay” – these two words explain well what this film actually is like. It meets the minimum standards but nothing more. It is not long enough to be boring, but also not addictive enough to make you want to watch more of it. It tells a nice story, but not in an original, unexpected way.
Soundtrack turns out to be one of the elements that deserve appreciation. At some points, one can also identify the simplest yet extremely amusing themes playing in the background, which is not so common in similar productions. Let’s hope that these will keep you entertained and engaged as you watch “The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf”!
Amanda Dudley is a lecturer and writer with a Ph.D. in History from Stanford University. After earning her doctorate in 2001, she decided to pursue a fulfilling career in the educational sector. So far, she has made giant strides by working as an essay writer for EssayUSA, where she delivers high-quality academic papers to students who need them.
